Well not exactly abroad, but I have been spending some time in Yorkshire, leading to a serious restriction on my cricket watching time. I only managed to get along to the opening day of the Glos – Middlesex game that started back at the end of April. In fact, I didn’t even manage the whole day, as we had an important cheese tasting session to attend on that Friday evening. I know its all about priorities, and fortunately the cheese was very good.
Two things come to mind when the phrase “Home Thoughts From Abroad” is used. There is the Lyrical poem by Robert Browning, appropriate as it starts by bringing to mind the glorious awakening of the British countryside in April and May. I don’t think that a such a joyous lyrical poem would have been written, after the decidedly soggy April that most of us experienced this year!
The other, is a song, of the same name by Clifford T. Ward which references that poem. It contains the line “How is Worcestershire?” Something I’ll return to later.
But the first let’s talk a little of the play that I did see.
The day saw me preparing for another chilly occasion. It looked like being an overcast sort of day, that would potentially see the requirement for gloves again. How wrong I was! By mid-afternoon, I was regretting my lack of sun cream and a hat. The long-sleeved T-Shirt, was a nuisance and deciding not bring along any cold water was another stupid decision.
Fortunately, though the cricket was excellent. Glos came into the match after a spirted defeat away at Sussex. Our star in that game, with excellent contributions with bat and ball was Zafar Gohar. Sadly though, he was injured during the pre-match warm up for this game, so he had to drop out. The Glos attack would be predominately made up of their fast bowlers, all of whom are looking lively this year.
Initially Middlesex looked pretty comfortable, before 3 wickets fell in quick succession. Zaman Akhter making the initial break though 17 balls later Marchant de Lange had 2 wickets to his name. Then another period of batting stability saw Middlesex take lunch at 105-3. Honours fairly even.
Our small gathering, and those around spoke briefly of the upcoming Glos AGM, there were fears (sadly later confirmed ) that the Glos finances appear to have been run with the same level of fiscal prudence as the Truss/Kwarteng double act which bankrupted the nation a while back.
When play resumed the Glos attack set about the Middlesex batters with urgency. With Marchant de Lange at the helm, Glos rushed Middlesex out for just 203 inside 60 overs. Last season poor de Lange only took 6 wickets in a summer cut short by injury. Today he took 6 wickets in a few hours, showing what a potent force, he can be. Also good to see young Dom Goodman take a couple of wickets in a good performance.
After a couple of seasons when we have struggled to pick up bowling (or batting) bonus points, this was a day to savour.
As mentioned previously, I couldn’t stay for the whole session after tea. Before I left though, poor old Chris Dent was out. It was he, that was the late addition to the team following Zafar’s injury. Dent apparently has a back issue himself, which may be affecting his early season form.
We tasted 10 different cheeses at the excellent L’affinage Du Formage in Westbry Park. Once for each Middlesex wicket. And there were some very tasty deliveries in their selection.
The next day we set off for Yorkshire, so kept tabs from a distance as the game ebbed and flowed. Finally ending in another drawn game in Bristol.
Whilst we were away there were a couple of sad pieces of cricketing news. First up was the situation with very promising Glos player Ben Wells. A routine screening diagnosed that Ben has a heart condition which requires him to give up the game immediately. The last time I saw him play was last year, in what turned out to be his last game. Fittingly he scored his maiden century that day. And what a great one it was. What a shame that he won’t be able to add any more to that. Fortunate though that his condition has been detected, and steps taken to make sure that his long-term health is good. We all wish him well.
Earlier I mentioned that Clifford T. Ward song, and that line “How is Worcestershire?” Well, tragically the answer was soon to be “very sad”. Just after the new of Ben Wells, we heard of something even worse. The young Worcestershire spin bowler Josh Baker had passed away at just 20 years of age.
Now I can’t say that I knew Josh well as a player, it is though very clear to see how loved and respected he was. Both as a player, and a person. I hope that the outpouring of love for Josh from all around the cricketing world, can go some small way to helping his family, friends and colleagues, as they try to come to terms with his devasting loss. I’m sure that Worcestershire will ensure that his name shall live on for a very long time.
That song goes onto to say.
“Oh, and by the way,
How’s your broken heart?
Is that mended to.
I miss you.
I miss you. I really do.
A sentiment that that many in Worcestershire will share.
This has been an unusually serious post from me. But it’s important to remember that these young cricketers, that we cheer on, and yes, sometimes moan about, are just like you us. We all have things to deal with. Often these are unexpected and hugely challenging. Ben and Josh are an all too real example of this.
I’ve finally warmed up again after an engrossing four days of County Championship cricket. I’m feeling enthused. Over recent years that hasn’t been a common feeling. At the start, and the end of the match against Yorkshire there were some very positive signs.
Maybe our new Head Coach Mark Alleyne can bring some long overdue joy to the Seat Unique Stadium.
I’m reminded of the Turner Cody song Better Days. It could be Mark’s message to the fans, with the lyrics:
Well, I won’t let you down,
And I won’t mess around,
There will be better days,
Better days will come.
I will hold you long,
Till the leaves are all gone,
And the strong winter winds blow (though they can’t be much stronger than the winds we had on Monday!).
See the sun sinking fast,
Feel the great shadow cast,
There will be better days,
Better days will come.
Let’s go back a little first though. As my previous post mentioned, it’s been a tad wet here in the West Country. When it rained again on Wednesday evening, the ensuing shiny patio that I saw upon drawing back the curtains on Thursday morning did not bode well.
And yet……somehow the ground staff managed to get the surface ready for the scheduled start time on Friday morning. The first bag pack and clothing choice of the season can be tricky. Thankfully I managed to get it just about right. In the ground I soon met up with “S”, who was clearly concerned about his clothing options. The next day he was there with a much larger bag. It’s good to have strength in depth when it comes to bag options. As we know you need have clothing to cope unexpected heat, freezing cold and unexpected downpours. Actually, is that a thing anymore? Surely, we expect downpours on even the brightest of days.
As is usual, there was a healthy smattering of travelling Yorkshire fans around us. One of them dully informed me that Glos had won the toss and asked Yorkshire to bat. The Yorkshire side was a strong one. How great to see England stars Joe Root and Harry Brook in the side. Then there was Adam Lyth and captain Shan Massood to contend with. The final member of the top five was the young opener Finlay Bean who only just failed to score 1,000 runs last season. This was going to be a test for the Gloucester bowling attack, especially as Tom Price and David Payne were not around.
Well, that’s what we thought would be the case. Yet before lunch Yorkshire had been reduced to 90 for 5, with only Massood still hanging around. The bowling had been, controlled and hostile, the fielding sharp. A tangible buzz was in the air.
By now “S” and I had been joined by “J” and “I” then fairly soon “M”. A few of us are regular attendees at the fabulous Walkers and Talkers events that Andy Brassington put on. There was though still some catching up to be done. This increased on a couple of strolls around the ground. It was good to see “M” taking a break from training for her forthcoming half marathon. Also bumped into a host of others who I have got to know through W&T, it’s such a great way for Glos supporters to keep in touch. Later in the day, I had a chat with “D”, a Somerset member who happily pops us to Bristol from time to time. Having taken out membership with Hampshire as well, he is now able to use the reciprocal membership arrangement between Glos and Hants to get in for nothing.
Earlier we had been talking about the reciprocal membership arrangements. Given the need to boost crowds for County Cricket, we wondered if a general County Membership could work. Your membership could get you into any county game in the county. Maybe that would encourage folk to travel to a few more games. They would probably buy a drink, or some food as well, boosting funds for the counties. Could it work?
Anyway “D” blew my mind when he advised that Leicestershire have agreements in place with 14 counties. How brilliant, being centrally located it makes a lot of sense for them and is great news for their fans. Something for the other counties to look at?
The afternoon session did not go quite so well. Whilst all round him had floundered in the morning, Yorkshire captain Shan Masood had looked comfortable. This continued after lunch, and he was to become the first centurion of the season in Bristol. One lofted shot landed fractionally short of the boundary just in front of us. In a clear indication of how damp the outer edges of playing surface were, on landing it barely bounced, failing to even the reach the ropes which were less than a foot away. Eventually he was dismissed for an impressive 140. Seeing your first century of a new season is an important milestone, so to get one on the first day of watching was good. The other milestone is the first bowler to grab a five-fer, and the young Glos bowler Zaman Akhter managed to do that. A pretty good set of scalps as well, Root and Brook amongst them.
The Glos reply to the Yorkshire total of 326, started with a tricky short spell, at the end of the day and they didn’t get off to the best start. Both Chris Dent and Ollie Price were back in with pavilion with only 19 runs on the board. It had been an enthralling start to my seasons viewing. Almost 350 and 12 wickets, the game had ebbed and flowed but Yorkshire looked on top as we said our farewells and headed home after a full day of play.
Obviously, my match fitness was not quite there yet. Getting home after my short walk from the ground, I was absolutely shattered. Maybe, I should have spent more time sitting on a park bench, staring into the middle distance. I Would have needed someone alongside me to discuss topics as diverse as, what was the first alcoholic drink to be advertised on British TV (Babycham in 1957), the strange love that Malaysians have for drinking tepid water, the miraculous way that long forgotten foreign words and phrases pop back into your head when you are abroad. But most importantly, where have all the mobile toilets gone at the ground? If you are sitting at the flats end of the ground, you need to be a much better judge of your journey time, than used to be the case.
The next day was a tricky one for me. I could only be at the ground for the first session of the day. Once again, Glos won that period of play thanks to some excellent trolled batting from Cameron Bancroft and Miles Hammond, the morning session saw only one wicket fall. Our gathering was joined by “P” who boldly decided to wear a pair of shorts, in April! Brave, foolish or just wildly optimistic? Although I wasn’t there for the later stages of the day, I gather he himself admits the error in his decision. My reason for not being at the game was linked to another West Country v Yorkshire sporting clash. My good friend “R” is a dedicated supporter of Huddersfield Town, even though he lives in London these days. Every time his team visit my team (Bristol City), we have a meet up, along with other pals from his time in Bristol thirty odd years ago. Post-match when we met up, I think I may have slightly calmed his anger at his team being pegged back by a controversial penalty for City in the 10th minute injury time. Yorkshire had managed to bowl Glos out for 263, and hadn’t lost any wickets that evening. Another 2-1 on the day in term of sessions won for Yorkshire. Sunday was already looking like a make-or-break day.
Once again the weather held firm, though the approaching balmy temperatures of the previous days were disappearing fast. Although I was aware of this, sensibly popping a pair of gloves into my jacket pocket, the jacket itself was in truth far too lightweight for the day. Lesson learned. All part of the getting up to speed process for any fan at this stage of the season.
My discomfort in terms of clothing, was little compared to that of the Glos bowling attack, as the Yorkshire batters sent about from a position of strength. They started the day 120 ahead with all wickets in hand. Everyone in the ground had a theory on how quickly Yorks would look to acquire an unassailable lead. The weather forecast for day 4 wasn’t great, so we assumed that with the considerable talents at their disposal, some fireworks would be in order.
Although they didn’t drag their feet, the declaration came much later than anticipated. By the lunch break they were an ominous 194-1 with Adam Lyth becoming the latest centurion in the match.
There was a brilliant piece of collaborative work between the Glos team, and the ground staff, in a mid-morning attempt to slow the run rate and break the concentration of the batters. As yet another boundary shot spend towards the fence of the Mound Stand, which disappointingly feature was populated by fewer spectators than the small number of Dot balls we had seen, it was suddenly lost from sight. And so it stayed for several minutes. A couple of Glos fielders were unable to locate the ball, members of the staff joined in. Damp covers were lifted, shaken and moved, yet still no sign of the ball. Maybe the much discussed Kookaburra had some sort of self-destruct option if it makes contact with something that is too wet? Were the players just looking for a breather? Eventually the umpires tired of this classic piece of club cricket action and called for a replacement ball. Shortly after the original did emerge to a warm cheer, was thrown to the umpires, who promptly rejected it.
After lunch, which required a thawing out session in The Thatcher’s café we got ready for the Yorkshire. They kept going though, Glos skipper Graeme van Burren added to his wicket before lunch, with two including a great stumping by James Bracey. Still Yorkshire went on.
For a while we had the treat of watching Joe Root and Harry Brook batting together. It was a mini masterclass, the sort of thing that fans of the county game have been denied over recent years. We were lucky to see it. We were even more luck to see the magnificent one-handed leg side catch that Bracy took to remove Root off the bowling of Zaman Akhter. There was much debate in our gang regarding the nature of the touch that Root had on the ball. Had he “feathered” it down the leg side or was it “tickled”. Answers on a postcard please.
On Yorkshire half century’s being scored in quick time, yet still no sign of a declaration. The tea break came and went, the “free after tea” crowd members joined after waiting patiently for the first ball of the evening session to be bowled. It seems odd that they can’t be allowed in at the start of the tea break, maybe buying a drink or a slice of cake to bolster club funds. But no, they must wait outside. “What if the first ball after tea, is called as a no-ball, after they have inadvertently been waived through?” someone asked. Would they need to be round up and escorted from the stadium before the next ball could be bowled?
Anyway on and on Yorkshire went. The length of the inning stirred memories of risky wedding anniversary idea that “S” had a couple of years into his marriage to “E”. He thought it would a superb treat to take her to see the Wagner opera Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg, which clocks it at around four and a half hours, despite “E” having expressed not interest in seeing it. Happily their marriage did survive this most robust test of sitting technique. It was concluded that the approach that Yorkshire were taken to building up a suitable led was positively Wangnerian. On and on they went. Though with fewer aria’s then Wagner would have liked.
Eventually with lead at 497, there most have been a corpulent lady singing somewhere. It was finally over. We laughed at the idea that Glos could get anywhere near the 498 that would secure victory. 26 overs were possible that night and by the time of their conclusion the mood had darkened amongst the Glos fans. We were 96-4 and even the most optimistic of us was probably secretly hoping for heavy overnight rain to put us out of our misery.
Well, the rain did come, I’ll admit that I wasn’t dreadfully disappointed when it woke me at around 7:30 am. It had though stopped by the time I had made it downstairs. Then at around 10:30 I had a message from “P” saying that play was due to start at 11:30, just 30 minutes late. Incredible!
I had a message from “S” who quite rightly said that going along today seemed like an act of “fatalistic devotion” and he was looking at other options for his fun. Hard to argue with him. However, at 11:30 “P” and I had taken our seat in front of the pavilion, and despite a further brief shower, the players were on the field. We were playing.
Ollie Price and James Bracey were at the crease, surely just to delay the inevitable defeat. We found ourselves sitting next to a young overseas student, he was originally from The Punjab, this was his first visit to the ground in Bristol and was obviously thrilled to be there on a cold day, with a howling gale watch the day play out. He started as a neutral but as the day wore on, he was as much of a Glos fan as “P” and I. After what we saw, it couldn’t have been any other way. Some people say that the 4 day game is only for us “mature” types. Yes this young man proved that it really is for everyone. I think we have ha new Glos fan in our ranks.
Price and Bracey were simply magnificent. Resolute in defence, and keen to take the chance to score as well, they went on, and on, and on. Price was eventually out for a wonderful 147, his highest first-class score. Bracey also made a century, before departing for 102. So great to see him back making a Championship ton after a tough time last season. Even when those two went there was still a lot of work to do but Graeme van Burren (51) and Ben Charlesworth (43) batted beautifully to take us past 400 with only 6 wickets lost. A great day for Glos, with them winning all three sessions. Something it would be great to see as the season moves on.
On and there was one other thing that amused us during the game. On day two I noticed that Joe Root had some sort of hand muffler strapped behind his hips, allowing himself to keep his hands warm between deliveries. Genius. By the later stages of the game, he was wearing on his waist in full view of everyone. Om the very cold final day we noticed that Yorkshire skipper Shan Masood was sporting one as well. Very sensible work by these two. I look forward to the Glos marketing team producing a range of these in club colours for the forthcoming nippy days, especially at the end of the season. If the weather isn’t that cold, it would also be a great place to a nice baguette, so that crumbs don’t fill your bag. It’s going to fashion of the season.
Anyway it’s great to be back watching cricket again. Lovely to catch up with old friends. And so great to see some standout performances from players on both sides during the game. Lets hope that Mark Alleyne can keep Glos performing, and that some better days are on the way.
Finally huge credit to all the ground staff, who some enabled us see a virtually complete 4 days of cricket. Also credit to both teams, I’m sure that some areas of the outfield were pretty wet at times. They played on, doing their best to give us a game to remember. They succeeded.
It may have been released in 1969, but the atmospheric magnificence of the Scott Walker classic “It’s Raining Today” perfectly captures the situation, during the recent Winter and Spring months. Actually, Bob Dylan may have been even more accurate with “A Hard Rains A-Gonna Fall.
For not only has it rained, almost without pause during this time, it has done so with a thunderous glee that must have left cricketing ground-staff dreaming of changing to less stressful jobs. Maybe running the customer satisfaction surveys for Thames Water, potentially being the person in charge of the Pothole repair plan for virtually any county in the U.K. could be easier. It could be that trying to tell Kim Jong-un that the rice crop is in danger of failing in North Korea could be a good option.
Any of these occupations are surely more likely to give a good night’s sleep, than preparing a cricket pitch that will be available for action, for four consecutive days before June. Off course once we reach June, they can relax a little, hoping the occasional single dry day will be enough for a game to be completed.
Many of you will know that the first 4-day game of the season for Glos, away against Derbyshire, was abandoned without a single ball being bowled. Our first home game is scheduled to start this Friday in Bristol against Yorkshire. This has been the opening fixture in Bristol for the last two seasons. Last season, we didn’t see a single ball, can it be different this year? The forecast isn’t bad, in fact there is even a chance of sun on Friday. The problem will be how the predicted, relatively small amounts of rain over Tuesday and Wednesday are absorbed, into the gigantic soggy green sponge that is the Gloucestershire ground.
Talking of the ground, my last post on here (back last year) discussed the potential relocation of the cricket club. I understand that the hierarchy of the club will be looking to recreate the Bristol match day experience as closely as possible when the move does take place.
With this in mind, I can exclusively reveal that three locations are topping the list of a possible location. I can’t say who gave me this information, but I believe it to be true, and I congratulate the club on its determination to make the move as easy as possible for fans.
The current favourite is within the Cotswold Water Park, sitting amongst the 180 lakes that make up the wetlands landscape. It’s thought that it could provide a mirror image feeling to an April day at the Seat Unique Stadium. The major advance with this site is the plethora of boats that are available to move both players, and spectators around the ground.
Next up is the Slimbridge Wetland Centre. Again, there will be no problem will the amount of dampness available. The one worry though is the that the large number of Flamingos, with their brilliant pink plumage, may confuse fans into to thinking that an enormous T20 Vitality Blast game is taking place. The other major concern is that the Beaver population could start building dams which would interfere with the run up of Marchant de Lange.
A third, a more radical option is a move to the man-made surfing lake just north of Bristol, known as The Wave. This does produce some exciting options as the incredible technology at The Wave, allows the staff to control the speed that the water moves, and indeed the height of the waves. Something that the current staff in Bristol can only dream of. It’s also thought that both Zafar Gohar and Ollie Price would be able to cause great difficulties for batters on the beach like surface, in front of the current clubhouse. Of course, the thrill of being able to surf to the wicket when batting has been a major factor in tempting a new wave (sorry!) of Aussie cricketers to the county.
We await the final decision with keen anticipation.
Back though to the current day, and the match that is due to start on Friday. Glos fans are delighted to see the return of Mark Alleyene to the club, in his new role as Head Coach. A popular and unifying figure around the club, he feels like exactly the right appointment after a couple of very difficult seasons.
Regarding the difficulties of the last two seasons. I can’t help feeling that I must take a share of the blame. Prior to my returning to the fold as a Glos member, things had been going reasonably well for the county. Since I’ve returned, we have seen successive bottom of the table finishes in the County Championship. I feel I need to take some of the blame, bringing with me a long history of supporting underachieving sporting teams, has obviously influenced things. I hope for better levels of performance from myself and the team this season.
Finally, I can’t end this first post of the year without mentioning a couple of sad losses. Firstly, the man who embodied Gloucestershire cricket in my youth, the incomparable Mike Procter. A man who gave so much pleasure to cricket fans, no matter who they supported. I feel truly fortunate that my introduction to the game coincided with his time in the West Country. He was still a regular visitor to Gloucestershire and I’m thrilled that I was able to shake his hand a couple of years ago, thanking him for the joy that he gave me, and thousands of others.
The other loss is more personal but just as strongly felt. My schoolboy friend, with whom I first experienced the joy of watching and playing cricket, sadly passed away after an illness that restricted his ability to come to games last season. Spending time sitting alongside Clive once again, watching hours of cricket together, as we had done over forty years ago was a great joy. I thought Clive and other teenage friends would have the good fortune to do this together for many years. Sadly, I’ll never see him produce that enormous Tupperware container of food again. We shan’t talk of cricket, football and music but his memory shall live on whenever I watch Glos in action.
C’mon Glos let’s do it this season for Proccy and for Clive.
Enjoy the season everyone. Enjoy the friendship that this ridiculous game generates.
Well, what an extraordinary time to be a fan of Gloucestershire cricket. Here we are on March 1st 2032 for the opening day of cricket at The Acton Turvile Arena. The new home of (South) Gloucestershire County Cricket Club.
How apt that the stadium opening should coincide with the first season, to be seasonally adjusted in line with latest Climate Emergency protocols. This year the season will run from the start of March to the end of June, before pausing during July and August as it is now unsafe for players and spectators to be at games during the extreme heat period. The season then picks up again between Mid-September and the end of October. Isn’t it funny to think about the way people complained when the ECB bravely protected fans of the Championship game in the early 2020’s by refusing to stage games during the height of summer. What visionaries they were.
The good news is that the new stadium is built with maximum spectator comfort in mind, should the “Summer Furnace” arrive early. More on that later.
Today we see the start of a 5 day championship game. Again, a first as the new 15 minute advert breaks every hour, on the live stream comes into effect for the first time. Of course, during the lunch interval there will be the money spinning 50 ball game between South West Solar’s and Tasmania Tornadoes who flew in from Australia yesterday. It’s expected that the 20, 000 capacity will be reached for that hour, before crowd numbers drop back to the normal numbers in the low hundreds.
As expected, the Gloucestershire squad, will for the first time, be entirely made up, of members of one family. It’s actually rather odd that it took Gloucestershire so long to work out that this was the way towards sustained success. Way back in the late 19th century the club lead the way with the Grace brothers, W.G, E.M, G.F and the oddly named Henry, plus cousin Walter Gilbert (of whom the less said the better). The pattern was occasionally pursued but started to come back in fashion in the 2020’s with firstly the Taylor brothers, who were then joined by the Price brothers and the Charlesworth brothers. Results started to improve, though some cricketers from families with no cricketing siblings complained, the hierarchy at the club had the vision to see that domestic bliss could lead to cricketing success. There may be some potential for confusion amongst commentators, fortunately though the players will be using their initials and sponsor names. There are high hopes for C.D.G TikTok and P.W.J. Amazon for the coming season. It is though understood, that sadly , the surprisingly youthful Ian Randall has asked to stand down, as he fears that the potential for mistaken identity is too high. A sad loss for the county, after many years of service.
What then of the stadium? Well, every seat is padded, and has an optional recliner function. There is also a 15” tablet to allow viewing of the live stream. Drinks and snacks may be ordered via the tablet, then will be delivered by drone, with payment being added onto your membership card. For the colder days, unlikely but still possible, the seats can be heated, and a complimentary thermos flask can be requested.
There is great excitement amongst the dwellers of the flats in the old Seat Unique stadium. A series of hydraulic trucks will move the recently “loosened” flats from Bristol, along the M4, dropping them into the south facing end of the ground. The test run was mainly successful, though it was pointed out that having reached the new ground smoothly, the footings that the flats were dropped onto had been curved the wrong way, meaning that the flats were facing the fascinating vista of distant Pucklechurch, rather than the playing arena. Reassurances have been given that this issue has now been resolved.
More good news for fans, is the fleet of driverless vehicles that has been arranged to ferry them to the slightly isolated new stadium. New Transport manager Andy Brassington will coordinate the fleet. Collecting fans from a convenient pickup point, allowing them to drink all day, then be dropped home again. It’s understood that former player, and current legend Jack Russell Will make his own way to games as he does not want anyone to know where he lives.
As we also know, each captain will have the right to have two “fan votes” on appeals during each innings. It is commonly accepted now that in the past, experts have had far too much influence over deciding the key moments in cricket. The chance for the public to play a more active role in determining the outcome of games, is long overdue. Britain has a long and successful history of public referendums. From Bexit to Eurovision, the people has shown that although they may not get everything absolutely right, they relish the chance to tackle a complex situation, making a decision, without taking too much time thinking about the consequences. At last, this concept can be bought to the game of cricket, with Gloucestershire proudly at the forefront.
For the traditionalists amongst the crowd there will be a special area set aside, where any ground announcements will be muffled and delivered slightly late. This retro feature is expected to prove popular with some of the younger crowd, who look to replicate the experience that their parents talk so fondly of.
All then is set fair for the next chapter in the history of the “Glorious Glosters”. What can possibly go wrong?
So that’s it then. My cricket watching has ended for this season. Finishing with a gentle whimper, there were though some high points during the game between Glos and Derbyshire.
As my regular companion at games “S” noted, there was a slightly melancholy air at the end of play on the first day. That took place on a Sunday, so for those friends who are only able to make it along to weekend or evening games, their season ended then. We said our farewells, wished each other a good winter and promised to gather together again in the spring.
It put me in mind of a favourite song of mine called Journey’s End by The Montgolfier Brothers. Much like a good game of cricket, it takes it’s time. The first minute, being an atmospheric wash of synth sounds, before the plaintive voice enters with:
“Skylines change, memories still remain. Some friends stay, some make their escape.”
Later come the lines:
“I think about you, from time to time.
From summer showers ’till winter sunshine.
You can’t stop time. Hard as you might try.
We’re not here long, and then you’re gone.”
Now, I’m certain that this isn’t a song about the creeping torpor and gentle sadness, that ensues as the final home match of the season, gently unfolds before you. It’s a sad, slow, mournful song of regret and loss. I can’t see it cropping up anytime soon during a H******D game. But for these shortening days, when autumn creeps towards us, it’s a beautifully hazy farewell.
Friends slipping away, not to be seen again for half a year. We’ve certainly had our fair share of summer showers during Glos game, the winter sun that often follows will no doubt provoke a rueful smile when we think of what “could have been”.
What then of the game itself? Well, it was something of a microcosm of the Glos season. We saw rain spoil the game again. Some promising batting, followed by a tumble of wickets. Youngsters making an impact. A rush of wickets taken by Glos bowlers teasing us to hope for victory. But most all, it saw another superb innings from player of the season Ollie Price.
The weather was overcast when play started at 10:30 but Ben Charlesworth and Chris Dent got the Glos innings off to a decent start. The conditions got darker and then a flash of lighting saw the players taken from the field with 11am looking more like a summer evening 11pm.
The early start had caught out “S” the proud holder of the “Minister for Rain” title. “J” and I, had already taken cover under the flats when he strode in to join us. Right on cue the heavens opened. Once again, he had fulfilled his ministerial brief and there would be a delay whilst we waited for the rain to stop and the outfield to dry.
The players took an early lunch and once the rain had stopped, we walked around to the “The Thatcher’s Bar “to meet up with some “P”, “T” and “M” Now on this occasion “M” had a special guest with her. At Cheltenham “R” had arranged for a few folks to cover the cost of a Lifesize cardboard, flat pack version of her favourite Glos player Zafar Gohar. So now, “M” always has Zafar on hand for those quiet nights in, or indeed, days out at the cricket.
Rather wonderfully, the previous evening “M” had won a Pakistan shirt signed by Zafar in a raffle. This was at an evening arranged by Glos stream commentator Dan Whiting to raise funds for the Melanoma UK charity. Virtually everyone in the room knew about the wonderful bond that “M” has with our talented allrounder and were thrilled with the outcome of the raffle.
So, Sunday was the perfect chance to show the cardboard Zafar off, in his kit. Which “M” did to fine effect, prompting a few confused looks, alongside many knowing laughs.
The clouds lifted and the sun began to shine, and only 13 overs were lost. The Glos openers continued to play well before Dent fell with the score on 80. As is so often the way, one wicket quickly became two as Charlesworth also departed.
We saw Bracey and Hammond get off to decent starts but then getting out before they could really take advantage of the improving conditions. We then saw skipper GVB join the unstoppable Price for a glorious spell of batting from the pair.
What can I say about Ollie Price, we’ve watched in awe as he improves almost incrementally match by match. He’s is now a very reliable number 3 and on this occasion, we once again saw him score a majestic century. Once again we saw him using sweep shot to great effect, both the conventional version, and the reverse sweep which has become almost a relax shot for him this season. At this rate he will become the most famous master of the sweep since Dick Van Dyke. By the end of the day Ollie had overtaken his previous highest score of 115 and was still going strong. We ended the day on 333 for 6 after 83 overs. A fine day.
Even more surprising than the Glos batting was the shock of the Soundsystem in the ground, suddenly becoming audible at the “South of France” area. This had been preceded by a loud boom. Just like somebody plugging something into a live circuit. We were shocked, and amazed. Rather typically though after a few minutes, we were already complaining about the announcements being “too loud” You can’t win sometimes.
As the end of play approached, we said those farewells that I mentioned earlier. For a few different reasons, none of the chaps that I started attending games with at the start of last season were around for this match. All the people that I sat with or chatted to (with two exceptions) on this, and later days were people that I hadn’t met at the start of last season.
Thanks to the Wednesday Walkers and Talkers sessions, and people that I’ve got to know through doing this blog, I have a met a great group of like-minded folks who are fun to watch cricket with. They are positive and funny people who represent all that good about the cricket watching community. I’m very fortunate to have found them.
A smaller group of us returned on Monday morning, hoping that Glos could push on past the 400 mark. It wasn’t to be though. Wickets fell quickly Ollie Price was finally out for 132 thanks to the first of two excellent caught and bowled dismissals. Derbyshire were determined to wrap things up quickly. They were delayed by another rain break – Yes, the Minister for Rain was in! It actually gave “S” and I a good chance to get away from a group chat which was starting to feel a little uncomfortable. They were just on the cusp of the “that Enoch Powell made some valid points” statement, following a discussion about things “We aren’t allowed to say anymore”.
We decided that we didn’t want to listen to how things would develop from there and moved away.
When play did resume Glos were all out for 377, slightly under what had looked possible at one stage. Credit to Derbyshire bowler Anuj Dal for a splendid return of 6-69, a magnificent effort. There was time for 5 overs before lunch, which the Derbyshire opening pair saw through without difficulty.
The afternoon session was a fruitless one for the Glos bowlers. A few chances were missed, young bowler Luke Charlesworth being particularly unlucky. At tea Derbyshire were a commanding 128 for no wicket. A combination of the heat, the lack of spark from Glos, and the imminent return home of his partner after some time way, saw “S” decide to head home. Well, sadly for him, he missed quite a session.
I mentioned before about 1 wicket becoming 2. Well on this occasion, Glos suddenly took 6 wickets in the after-tea session. A remarkable turnaround, the highlight of which was a brilliant run out from the fielding of Miles Hammond. As the players left the field in brilliant warm sunshine, as they had done the previous evening, there were thoughts of a possible Glos victory. Derbyshire were 261-6 after being 132 for no wicket. Dare we dream?
That would need quick wickets and a good 3rd day. The weather forecast wasn’t good. But they have been wrong before haven’t they?
Sadly, they weren’t wrong on this occasion and most of day 3 was lost to rain. In the time where play was possible, the Derbyshire batters led by Leus de Plooy played really well. Gradually Derbyshire moved ahead, and an intriguing battle took place over a possible additional bowling point for Glos or batting for Derbyshire became a new contest as the overs ticked by. Brilliantly debut player Ed Middleton had Watt stumped to claim the additional point for Glos, Derbyshire left just 2 runs short of the 400 score that would have earned them an extra point.
What then would the final day bring. In all probability a draw. First we needed to wrap up the Derbyshire innings, Which Zafar did, claiming a 5 wicket haul in the process. The lead for Derbyshire being 26 runs. Could Glos score quick runs, to set up an afternoon chase? Or would they play it safe for a tame draw?
Well they got off to a decent start before losing Charlesworth with the score on 68. Then Bracey was out to the last ball before lunch. Straight after lunch Dent was out, then Hammond, then Price!
Memories were coming back of the home defeat to Leicestershire, which was surely the low point of the season. On that day a careless batting performance of the last day, saw potential victory, or near certain draw, turn into defeat. It couldn’t happen again, could it?
As Glos struggled there was talk of “S” and his coastal walking in Devon and Cornwall. Then we spoke with another keen walker, who is the father of a friend who attends often. It turned that we had played football against each other in the glory days of the Bristol Casual League. I think my legs may have flinched as an automatic reflex, as memories on Sunday trips down to Abridge came back.
Memories were shared of tackles, sloping pitches, and pubs that provided a good feast after the game. He had climbed Kilimanjaro despite some altitude sickness issues. I, on the other hand, own the album Kilimanjaro by The Teardrop Explodes and it has never caused me to have any sickness issues. I think that you can draw your own conclusions on what constitutes a sensible pastime based on this evidence.
There was also talk of the romantic poets, the films of Hitchcock plus the novels of Daphne du Maurier. Especially the wonderful film that Hitchcock made of her book Rebecca. This was prompted by “S” talking about the flats end of the ground bring the great film Rear Window to mind. Is easy for your mind to wander, as the clouds drifted gently overhead.
Back to the game disaster was averted for Glos when Ed Middleton joined GVB. They finally saw off the stranglehold that Derbyshire spinners Watt and Thomson held for a long period. With time, and indeed overs running down, a draw, once again became the likely outcome.
Derbyshire 12th man Zak Chappell briefly entertained us by throwing an extraordinary array of balls around the area between the fence and the boundary rope. He had all the pent up energy of a 12 year old boy, on holiday with grandparents. They just want to sit on the beach with their book, leaving the child desperate for entertainment. Actually more like a puppy that makes its own fun by chasing after a ball, that it has “thrown” itself.
There was an attempt to “count the crowd” instigated by some gentlemen sitting a few rows behind us. The total was too low to mention, even if you included the dog that was with them, and the players that were watching from the balcony. A few of the fans had decided that this was the perfect place for the North Bristol outdoor reading club.Maybe the handful of Derbyshire fans in the ground should have launched into a rendition that favourite song for the away football fans “Is this a library?” In which case the answer could have been “Yes, Shhhh!”
“S” nipped off to the toilet, whilst he was gone handshakes were suddenly being exchanged on the pitch. Both sides settling for a draw. How could do that when he wasn’t watching?
That was it. The season was over for me. And for Glos, as far as home matches are concerned anyway. Not just the season, Summer was over.
Time to go back to normal life. A life that doesn’t involve watching a game that take 4 days to reach a situation where nobody wins. A life that doesn’t involved nods and smiles with casual friends, and comments like “I think we are about 50 – 60 short.” A life that doesn’t involve trying to work out what is happening with the “cut off time” in white ball games. A life where you probably won’t get soaking wet, accidentally kick your coffee over, then get get sunburnt a few hours later.
A life where you won’t see a wonderful young talent like Ollie Price, blossoming week by week. A life where you, and summer, whatever that represents at any time, are as one.
The journey from April to September was completed.
Well, five months ago a new cricket season was about to begin. There was optimism in the air, sadly there was also rain. After just 4 balls of the Glamorgan v Glos game the players were dashing from the field in Cardiff. The talk turned from early wickets to early lunch. A pattern which we saw repeated, far too often in the early stages of the season.
And now, I’m getting ready for my last Glos game of the season, when they take on Derbyshire in the County Championship, starting on Sunday. They then have one more away game to play, but it feels as though the band are already tuning up for the last waltz.
When the North American group The Band decided to go their separate ways, they arranged a farewell concert, called The Last Waltz, with a myriad number of special guests joining them on stage to mark the occasion. The likes of Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Muddy Waters, Van Morrison and many more made the trip to San Francisco on November 25th 1976.They even arranged for the esteemed film director Martin Scorsese to film the whole shebang for posterity.
It was a time of change. The leering, snotty face of Punk Rock was already looking through the window, shouting at the old timers to get out of the way. Within a few weeks The Sex Pistols were conducting the most infamous tea team TV interview and the world was about to change.
I don’t think that the end of this cricket season, will mark such a dramatic turning point. Gloucestershire and their fans though, may well hope that it does. Since I last wrote on this site, the very entertaining One Day Cup campaign that took Glos to the Semi-Finals has come to an end. Beaten by a recently reinvigorated Leicestershire side in a low scoring game. Credit though to the young Glos side, they had played some bold, adventurous cricket along the way. I’m pleased for Leicestershire, it’s nice to see them in serious contention for some silver wear for the first time in over a decade.
The picture at the top of this piece shows some of the accoutrements that have seen me through the season. My old backpack, covered with a multitude of bag check tags from white ball games. I quite like the way the club determinedly stuck to purple tags, apart from one game when the green one was dragged out. They had a plan, and very nearly stuck to it.
It is though the last season for the bag, during the Leicestershire County Championship match, it suffered a near catastrophic zip failure. Like most folks, I always try to squeeze in as much as I can to get me through the day. So, this being England that means a compact umbrella and a small towel, in addition to sun protection. The all-important “additional layer” for those cold snaps. Some sort of waterproof jacket and space to put your “normal layer” when the sun gets hot.
You may be able to make out the Glos earpiece in the middle of the picture. I really do find this to be a fantastic addition to the days play. As we know a lot of the action at cricket, takes place a long way away from where you are sitting. It’s great to hear Dan or Ian describing what has actually happened, as opposed to me blindly guessing. A lot of folks still don’t seem to know that you can pick these up in the club shop. You may need to replace the battery at some point in the season, but they really are a great addition to the cricket experience.
The scorecards also get stuffed in the bag. I’m not one of those who religiously fills it in at the fall of every wicket. There were a couple games when I didn’t grab one, so my record of attendance is incomplete. Somewhat disappointingly, we aren’t always given the full run of players initials these days. A quick glance at the cards that I do have, show a few with 3 initials prior to the surname. CRJ Dent, JMR Taylor and MAH Hammond being amongst them. Hampshire had AGH Orr and TGR Clark, Glamorgan added JAR Harris to the list. Hopefully next season we will see someone with the holy grail of 4 initials plus a surname.
*Important update*
After posting the original piece, I discovered another scorecard at the very bottom of the bag. Having looked at its detail, I realised an update was needed. It was for the Glos v Leicestershire, Championship game in June. Having looked at the scorecard, I now understand why Leicestershire had that extraordinary victory charge on the final day. In their side were no fewer than 4 players with the classic 3 initials plus surname combo: PSP Handscombe, LPJ Kimber, TAR Scriven, and CJC Wright. I think we can all agree that they fully deserved their victory in that match.
*Update ends*
Back to the contents of the bag. Then add some food and I have both frozen and ordinary tap water. This can all lead to a pretty busy bag, if this isn’t kept under control, you will be looking at a broken zip or worse. A replacement has already been sourced and may well get a runout at the Derbyshire game.
Talking of injuries, because surely that’s what the broken zip is? It’s been a tough season for Gloucestershire, particularly on the bowling front. It would have been reasonable to expect the experienced and effective pair of David Payne and Marchant de Lange to have been leading the line, but it seldom happened. Sightings of them on the pitch, were as rare as those days when our water companies weren’t flushing raw sewerage into our rivers and oceans.
That has though enabled some new faces to get some serious experience under their belt. I’ve really enjoyed watching Zaman Akhter and Ajeet Singh Dale worrying batters. The endeavours of this season will surely stand them good stead over future years.
Can they and the other youngsters such as the Price brothers and the Charlesworth brothers start to set a new agenda over the next few seasons? They certainly aren’t the wild-eyed punks of the late 70’s, they are the exact opposite in fact. I do though have the sense that they are ready to push on to a higher level. Obviously, the Price brothers are further down that road, what exciting players they are.
Off the field it’s been great to spend time in the company of so many good people. Cricket, particularly County Championship games give you the chance to spend a lot of time sitting with people. Whilst the cricket is the important thing which draws us to spend time with each other, it would get pretty dull if we only discussed the sport, no matter how magnificent it is. The chats are often wide ranging.
The folks that I spend time with are a mixed bunch. Some I’ve known for around half a century, others for only a few weeks. Happily, several that I have spent time watching games (or rain) with, came as a result of them reading these posts. People often say that men don’t talk, well I promise you that we certainly do talk at cricket.
Amongst the group there is a lot of shared knowledge and experience. That could be on topics like, the best way of getting support for your elderly mum, it could be on what is the best stretch of The South West Coastal Path to walk. It could be on best way to watch Italian second division football for free. Maybe you want to know the best place to park in Cheltenham. What is the real situation with those controversial allotments in Abbots Leigh? What on earth is going on with the tomato crop this year? What can we do, to provide a unique “moving in present” to someone who has been through a very challenging time? Where can you get the best Indian food in Bristol? It all comes up, and much more besides. We also spend a lot of time with smiles on our faces, no matter what is happening with the cricket.
One of our group has had a particularly tough time this season, health issues meaning that they have been absent for the second half of the season. Hopefully the worst is behind them and next season we can once again be back discussing the relative merits of 1980’s bass players. It will be good to have you back mate.
Sadly I didn’t get to see Western Storm in action this season, hopefully I can rectify that next season. It’s been a pretty exciting season of Ashes cricket for both the men and the women. World cup action is on the horizon as well. Cricket doesn’t really stop these days.
I’ll be running a series of interviews again over the winter months. Happy to say I’ve already got some interesting people lined up, some good chats to share with you.
I hope that you have been able get along to at least a day or two of cricket this season. If you haven’t why not try to do so next season. You are always welcome to join us watching Gloucestershire. The view are good, the people even better.
What a few weeks it’s been for Glos fans. After a challenging season the Metro Bank One Day Cup, has been something of a revelation. The nature of the competition is that many younger players are able to play for their counties, there are few finer things in sport than watching young players coming to the fore. Sometimes, these youngsters appear to be unburned by expectations or dare I say defeats. I wouldn’t say that they are foolish exactly, but they can play with a freedom that is a joy to watch.
The song, “Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy” springs to my mind when watching the exciting crop of emerging talent, that are starting to make an impact for Glos. The version playing in my head in the 1968 is the one by The Tams, clocking it a smidge over two minutes, it’s a joyous blast of soul/pop which could probably even provoke Aussie Steve Smith into some nimble footwork, should he venture onto the dancefloor.
Between August 13th and 25th Glos won five games in a row, propelling themselves into a semi-final clash with Leicestershire next week. They didn’t just win these games though; they won by handsome margins. Scoring large totals when batting first, bowling teams out well within the 50 overs on several occasions, chasing down targets in explosive style. It’s made us all very happy.
Having turned 22 just over a couple of months ago, Ollie Price is having a season to remember. Having scored a century against Worcestershire in the last championship game at Cheltenham, he has weighed in with scores of 116, 109 and 85 all not out, plus a 95 and 77 in the One Day Cup. So strong has his form been that there was a slight air of confusion amongst the crowd when he was out for 39 against Lancashire in the quarter final. Only 39? That’s odd, we all thought.
He’s also bowled very tightly, whilst taken the odd wicket or two. When he’s not doing that, he’s likely to be casually taking ridiculous catches, or running people out with direct hits. During the Lancashire game I did propose the thought, that if we could somehow get him into government, he would soon sort everything out. Inflation would tumble, the housing crisis would be solved, NHS waiting lists would disappear, you would even be able to make an appointment with a dentist. It’s a tempting prospect. There is even a perfect campaign slogan, “The Price is Right”. Because he always seems to be the right person for any job that he’s asked to do.
There was an interesting twist in the victory over Durham in the last group section match, which saw another young player thrust into the spotlight and responding brilliantly. Just 7 minutes before the start of play, Ben Wells was called into the team, replacing birthday boy Graeme van Buuren who withdrew because of an injury. Wells who only recently turned 23, turned in a sensational performance, despite sustaining a hamstring injury which means that this was to be his last action of the season. His injury had forced him from the field early in the Lancashire innings. Yet when he strode out to join Ollie Price with the score at 85-3, there was no sign of any discomfort during his explosive innings.
Chasing a Durham total of 267, the game was very much in the balance at this point. Not that it appeared to bother this pair of youngsters. Wells in particular set about the Durham bowlers with all the relish of a junior cabinet minister being asked to take on a, one day a month “advisory role” for a £30,000 salary, for a company that may just get lucky when it comes to winning a very lucrative government contract.
So in control were they, that soon the question changed from would Glos win to which of them would make a century. Ollie Price was on this occasion happy to play second fiddle (no political pun this time), to Wells. Their partnership was unbeaten on 184, when victory was clinched with Wells having scored a magnificent 108 from just 76 balls.
Whilst not quite so young, it’s also been great seeing James Bracey and Miles Hammond weighing in with runs. Indeed, the quarter final victory over Lancashire saw Hammond blitz the Lancashire attack with 109 not out from only 85 balls. Once again Ollie Price was part of a century partnership to set up the win.
It’s been lovely to watch these games with a group of friends, many of whom have put in many years of active service as Glos supporters. Some excellent wide-ranging conversations have taken place amongst, and around us. Credit to “M” for coming up with the nickname of Paul Wickets van Takeren for our lively bowler Paul van Meekeren who now has a very hand 17 wickets in the competition this season. There were some very chatty gents behind us for the 1st innings of the Durham match. My personal highlight from their conversation came after a very lengthy chat about virtually every pub in Gloucestershire and associated breweries and beers. A couple of them cheerfully saying that they couldn’t really distinguish one beer from another in a taste test. Good to hear though that they are still putting in extensive hours of research.
Credit also due to “S” and “E” for cheekily bringing forward a long-booked lunch reservation, so they could get along for the second half of the Lancashire match. Also worth recording that it was a record breaking meal for them. A recent health drive from the pair of them, meaning that this was apparently their first meal out together without alcohol passing their lips. We were shown a picture of the bill to confirm this achievement. Another important part of this record breaking One Day Cup run.
I’ve been at the ground in Bristol a lot this week. In addition to the games against Durham and Lancashire, I’ve been along for the regular Walkers & Talkers session on Wednesday. Then Sunday evening sees a 20 over game against New Zealand.
The W&T event was another remarkable morning. The guest this week was former Glos and Durham player Phil Bainbridge. Very much part of my early years watching Glos, Phil gave us a very entertaining run through his career. Loads of very funny stories and some very touching and poignant ones as well. We had a bit of a first for W&T as well, as Phil bought his guitar along. He played a personal song that he had written for the wedding of his daughter, Then he ended his chat with a very touching version of the classic Eric Bogle song “And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda”.
It’s been covered by a great many people over the years, and first came to my attention when The Pogues recorded it. If you haven’t heard the song, it’s worth searching it out. It’s a song that packs a powerful emotional punch. Around that time there was another powerful song about the tragic aftermath of war, “The Green Field of France” as covered by The Men They Couldn’t Hang. Oh yes, we knew how to have a good time in the 80’s.
Next week the guest will, I think be the first time that the father of a previous guest will appear. Last summer Richard Gould spoke to us, at the time he was still the CEO at Bristol City, shortly afterwards he moved onto his role as CEO of the England and Wales Cricket Board. Very much looking forward to hearing the thoughts of his father Bobby Gould. During his career as a footballer he played for both the Bristol clubs amongst many other teams. He also had a successful managerial career, who can forget his time as manager of Wimbledon?
I’ve met him once, that was when he came along to a charity football game that I was involved in. The game was to raise funds for both Portishead football club after they had been the victim of some vandalism at their ground, and a local children’s charity. I was involved because one of my teammates in Bryan Munich, our Sunday morning football team was Geoff Barrow from the band Portishead. Geoff came up with the idea of a Portishead (the band and friends) v. Portishead football club game to raise funds. At the time I was managing Bryan Munich (occasionally getting to play), so Geoff asked me to manage the “Band” team. We had a fantastic collection of guest players, the likes of former Bristol City player Scott Murray, Glos cricketer Mark Alleyne, Daddy G from Massive Attack, Nathan Cleverly the former Light-Heavyweight, champion of the world, actor Simon Farnaby, and many other from music, media and sport, with the Bryan Munich lads making up the rest of the squad.
Bobby Gould lived in Portishead, and he came along to support the event. As did the likes of former Bristol City player Louis Carey, and most bizarrely Kelsey Grammer the American TV star, who was there as his father-in-law Alan Walsh (formerly Bristol City) was guesting for Portishead football club.
I had the tricky job of controlling the rolling substitutions, to ensure everyone had a good runout. I did manage to sneak myself on at the end, so managed to play in a game with two of my Bristol City favourites.
The Bryan Munich centre half was a robust fellow, who bore more than a passing resemblance to Edward VII. Not necessarily the most mobile, he was undeniably excellent in the air. Though his head may have been short on hair, it appeared to be made of granite, and he could head the ball huge distances. When the game finished Bobby Gould made his way across the pitch to congratulate our centre half on his performance, exclaiming that he would have loved to have had him at Wimbledon during those heady (no pun intended) days of the Crazy Gang. The thing with Bobby was, you knew he meant it. What’s more if time travel had been possible, with his ability to get the very best out of players, he probably would have made it work. It was lovely to see his genuine enthusiasm that day. I’m sure Wednesday will be very entertaining. Walkers and Talkers really is a wonderful initiative from Andy Brassington. Worth checking out if you are free any Wednesday morning.
Let’s hope the Glos side can continue with their recent good form on Tuesday. Leicestershire have been excellent in the One Day Cup. Isn’t great to see two of the less fashionable clubs in a semi-final.
And forget, Be Young (that may be tricky for some of you), Be Foolish, Be Happy!
Back in 1960 jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery released an LP, modestly called “The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery”. It’s pretty amazing though, that the record does live up to that title. Track four on the record, is the wonderful “Four on Six”.
Along with the rest of the album, it’s so brilliantly cool that just by listening to it, you are transformed. That perfectly cut Italian suit, now fits and flatters rather than highlighting your imperfections. The hat that you bought on a whim, now actually looks good on your head. Also, you are suddenly surrounded by moody wisps of backlit smoke , curling around in seductive monochrome beauty, as you move around your hip penthouse apartment. Be careful with those Jazz cigarettes though!
What the supremely talented Mr Montgomery couldn’t have predicted back then, was that over sixty years later James Bracey and the rest of the Glos batting line up would seemingly use the song as a tactical instruction, rather than just a stylistic manifesto. The 50 over Metro Bank One Day cup game against Somerset, saw some prodigious hitting take place.
Bracey alone hit 30 fours and 5 sixes, whilst carrying his bat for an impressive 224. By a distance, it’s the highest score in a List A game for Glos. The Glos total of 454-3, was unsurprisingly the highest ever recorded by Glos, in a List A game. Unsurprisingly Glos won the game by a whopping 198 runs.
There were more records made in the game, than were made in the Hitsville U.S.A. studios in Detroit that produced all those Motown hits. So many in fact that I’m not going to list them all here. You can easily look up that stuff on sites that are focused on that sort of stuff. Let’s talk more about the feel of the game and why it mattered.
I thought that a pleasant day could be in prospect pretty early. On my way into the ground, I overheard a grandfather and father, explaining to a young lad, the crippling embarrassment of the “Father Ted trapped in the lingerie department “episode. The hope for the boy is that it may never happen to him, thanks to the rapid decline of the whole Department Store concept. Also, the scorecards were free, as they had been printed on Cheltenham related card, rather than Bristol. The sun was coming through. The omens were remarkably good.
Having taken my usual position beneath the flats, I was soon joined by my multidenominational mates (that’s followers of both Glos and Somerset). There was “S” and his partner “E”, “P” from Thornbury but formerly of Chipping Sodbury. “S” and “D” from Nailsea. Then finally we joined by “D” from Yate and “Big A” from New Zealand via Hotwells. Brilliantly “P” and “D” soon realised that they recognised each other from the drinking dens of Chipping Sodbury and had mutual friends as well. Isn’t it great to live in a small town.
The news filtered through that Glos were batting. We would soon see how this young-looking Somerset bowling attack would get on. Especially as they had taken a bit of a mauling in their last couple of games.
I must mention the fact that Somerset had lost a whole team, and more of players to the H******D and injuries, so we recognise their pain. Glos were little more fortunate, only losing half a team to those factors.
Initially James Bracey was fairly circumspect with his batting, that was fine though because at the other end Christ Dent had got off to a flyer with a 6 from the first ball that he faced. When he did depart, he had already taken 65 runs from just 38 balls. Setting the stage perfectly for Ollie Price to join Bracey at the wicket. What a season young Ollie Price is having. Looking more composed with each innings, he has become a key player in the team. Not only that but he has done it every format that has been thrown at him. Just like his brother Tom, he has a developed a steely determination, which when aligned to his excellent shot selection and execution, makes him an increasingly formidable opponent. He also takes wickets and has good control with his spin bowling. If that isn’t enough, he’s up there as one of the best catchers at the club as well. This season, he has seemed to get incrementally better, with every game he plays. Wonderful to watch his development. A couple of days later in Cardiff the Price brothers saw Glos home to victory with an excellent partnership. This time Ollie made a century, reaching the landmark in style, with a thumping straight 6.
These two put on 213 in less time that it takes to get out of the car park at the Bristol Balloon Festival Night Glow. When Price was finally out, I had my first sighting of Harry Tector, the Irishman that impressed many Glos fans at Cheltenham before he went on his holiday. Well, he caught the mood and with the help of some unorthodox, inventive, and powerful hitting. All the while Bracey just kept going.
Since his deserved call to the England team a few years ago, he hasn’t had the best of times. There have been some great knocks and his wicket keeping is still excellent most of the time. But everyone was desperate for him to find some real form.
When he got to his Ton, we celebrated joyously with him. “S” was ecstatic to finally see someone get a century. Even more so, that it was made by James Bracey, a dedicated cricketer, who has come through the ranks here, and has a lovely personality. He wasn’t happy with the ton though and kept going blasting the Somerset bowlers to all corners of the ground. Whilst batting with Tector, he made it to the magical 200. Everyone off their feet, it was really quite an emotional experience.
The Glos supporters know what James can be, we all want him to be at the very top of his game. He played himself to that situation during this innings. It was a thing that many of us will remember for a long while.
As will the people whose cars would hit by the 6’s that flew way beyond the fence. And the person in the top floor flat, whose wall took an almighty whack from one straight 6 from Tector. When Tector did go for 37 off just 17 balls, Graeme van Buuren came in and went even harder with 35 from just 12 balls. In total 81 came off the last 5 overs. It was carnage!
James Bracey finished unbeaten on 224 from only 151 balls. Remarkable stuff. At least he could put his feet up now for a while…. Oh no. Get the other pads on and keep wicket now for the Somerset innings! Somerset had a thankless task. Initially they were doing ok on equivalent runs per over, but were losing wickets, burned by the incredible acceleration that would have been needed at the end. Resulting in the comfortable Glos win, that we could not have predicted at the start of play.
I want to say something about the young Somerset bowler JT Langridge, only 17 years old and called up from Ilminster Cricket Club for the One Day Cup. It He bowled with heart on what must have been a chastening experience. It was brave of Somerset skipper Dickson to ask him to bowl the 49th over, with a shortish leg side boundary. The last four balls of that over went 6-6-4-6, leaving him with 1-95 after 8 overs. After that over he made his way to the boundary and not for the first time, he received conciliatory claps from fans from both sides. I hope he, and the other youngsters aren’t damaged by the game.
Someone asked why we Glos fans were celebrating quite so much, at the end of the Glos innings. Given that Somerset were understrength. It was pointed out that sports fans in Bristol, don’t often get much to celebrate. The pickings can be quite slim. To see a much-loved local lad play the innings of life, in the midst of a record breaking innings is truly a time to celebrate.
Going back to the imperious Wes Montgomery, he has a great song called S.O.S. which features on a live album that was recorded in 1962. Was it my imagination, or did I hear it coming from the Somerset dressing room midway through the Glos innings?
Colin Babb has written “1973 and Me” a fascinating book that talks about the influence that the 1973 West Indies tour of England had on him, and the wider community of Caribbean people in the UK.
It’s much than that though. Providing an insight into the day-to-day life of Colin, his family and his school friends. He describes himself as “BBC” a British Born Caribbean and this book opens the door to his life in London. That includes football, music, food and politics, making for a very entertaining and informative read.
Colin Babb at West Indies v India T20I at the National Stadium , Providence, Guyana, August 6 2023
Thanks for finding the time to have this chat Colin. The first thing that I wanted to ask is, how old were you in 1973?
I was eight, going on nine, born in the mid 60’s. At the time I was living in an area of South London called Streatham, with my great grandmother who was from Guyana, my mother who was also from Guyana and my father, who was from Barbados. We were living in a housing association flat/maisonette. We lived upstairs, there was initially a Jamaican family living downstairs. When they moved out, then a Guyanese lady moved in.
It was a fairly mixed street. We had an Irish family to our left, a Jewish family to our right, with a general mixture of working class and lower middle-class English, Scottish, Irish and West Indian.
I was at a talk a while back where the footballer Liam Rosenoir, spoke about the eclectic mix of backgrounds in his part of London when he was growing up. He went to talk about the way that they would come together at weekends for parties at his parents house.
I would say that our community wasn’t always friendly. There were tensions between the different groups. We didn’t always get on, as kids we had our little differences with each other. But, by and large, we held it together. You know that wherever you go in the world, there isn’t a place on the planet where people aren’t divided by things such as religion, money, class, language, territory, history, politics, race. We are always divided by something, because we are tribal.
You spoke earlier of your great grandmother and the rest of your family. Were they cricket fans?
I would say that my great grandmother was not particularly interested. My mother wasn’t either. My father was, and I probably took a lot of influence from him. Although I was evolving into a cricket fan myself, both consciously and subconsciously. When I was growing up, we used to sometimes have gatherings at our flat, my friends or family would come over. They would be from different parts of the Caribbean, Guyanese, Bajans, Trinidadians, Dominicans all around the region with different racial backgrounds. Cricket was often the talk of the day.
So, I heard a lot about Wes Hall and Charlie Griffith, also going back to the days of Learie Constantine, Ramadhin and Valentine, Weekes, Worrell and Walcott. I hadn’t seen them play, but I’d heard about them, they were in my subconscious just through being talked about in the house.
I was living in an interesting social setting, where I felt very West Indian, because I was brought up in a West Indian household. But when I left the house, I felt West Indian, I never felt British and I think the West Indies team reinforced that with trips over here every three or four years. It was a way of connecting with “back home” for some of my parents family and the rest of us who were longing for home but couldn’t get there enough. So, when the team came, that was our connection with home. This was one of the reasons why the grounds were filled by West Indians. Many of whom, were not cricket fans but it was a great social occasion.
It was emblematic of the culture that they had left behind.
Yes. Mike Phillips, the Guyanese cricket writer said to me once, that cricket was a unifying force, and also a dividing force between the West Indians and the English. It was something that they could hold onto together. They both came from cricket loving communities. Yet, they didn’t always get on with each other during, or after a match. But there was a connection there, and a weird sort of appreciation as well.
A lot of West Indians revered Dickie Bird the umpire for example. My Dad would have conversations with him from our sofa when we were watching cricket on TV in the 70’s. If Dickie Bird didn’t give a decision that my dad expected, let’s say Keith Boyce appealing for LBW against Dennis Amiss, he’d shout out “Dickie, Stick your finger up!”
Some gentle words of advice!
Yes, exactly.
Did any of your family play club cricket?
Not that I’m aware of. Though my father had a friend who briefly played for Gloucestershire, it’s in the book! My father was at school with Keith Boyce, but as I’m aware there wasn’t anyone in the family that played to a high standard. Most of the family that were in Britain, especially the men who were Guyanese were though, very connected with cricket.
Did the West Indies tour of 1973 prompt you to start playing? Did you have the chance to play in school?
Yes, I did play, though there wasn’t a formal structure around playing games through my primary state schools. We just had cricket practise, and lads versus Dad’s matches. Then there were after school games between ourselves, that a teacher would organise. At my secondary school we had some friendly matches against other schools. None of us attended private cricket clubs, I wouldn’t have even known what they were. The only clubs I knew, were West Indian clubs, which I occasionally went to watch matches at.
I didn’t meet anyone who went to a fee-paying school until I went to university and work. I first started playing cricket in a Sunday league team when I was about 19 or 20, with a friend of mine. Almost the entire team were private school guys. So it’s through cricket that I had a connection with that kind of world.
Interestingly, about 3 or 4 years after those Test games in 1973 I ended up playing at The Oval!
Wow!
I’d joined the Boys Brigade, which was like a more formal version of Scouts. I’d joined after meeting a friend on the street, who said he went as they used to run around playing games, sounded great to me. So, I joined as well. Then I discovered that they met in a hall that was literally at the top of my street, which I hadn’t been aware of. Then I found out that they had a cricket team for under 11’s. I ended up being the captain, opening bowling and opening batsman. I just wanted to do everything!
Then I joined the seniors as one of the youngest players. I didn’t really do much batting then. Came in at 9,10 or 11 in fact, hardly ever came in. If I did, I was just holding up one end. Probably bowled about 3 overs in the whole season but I was included in the final of the cup competition. It was a London wide Boys Brigade under 18’s cup and the final was at The Oval. I batted at either 8 or 9. I got a duck! But we won the cup!
We used about half the ground, as The Oval is huge. I couldn’t throw the ball to the wicket keeper as he was so far away. I threw the ball to someone else, who then threw it to the Keeper. I really couldn’t understand how someone could really engage with the game if you were fielding on the boundary in a proper first-class game, you are so far away.
I noticed that the first Test of that West Indies series was played at The Oval. I tend to think of it as the location for the final Test of the summer.
Yes, it was only a three-match series that year. The West Indies did though play the majority of the counties on that tour, as there was more time in the schedules.
I really miss the days when the touring teams would go around the counties, giving everyone the chance to see these great players.
Yes, it’s such a shame that it doesn’t happen anymore. There are new competitions and more international cricket these days. We’ve just had The Australians here, no real warm up games for them. It’s the modern way. I do miss the old touring schedule. That West Indies tour in ’73 started against Essex at Chelmsford and went around the country from there.
When you were sitting down to watch the Test games on TV, was that a family event, or would you be watching it on your own?
It was mainly me. Dad would have been working. He was in the army, so away a lot. He was though around that summer, which I remember very well. Generally watched during the day, as they always seemed to be played during school holidays. Now if there does happen to be a Test out of term time, it’s on Sky, so lots of kids can’t see it! It used to be so easy when it was on the BBC as part of the licence fee. You got up, got ready for Soul Limbo by Booker T & the M.G’s and you’d watch every ball.
If it got a little boring, I’d go upstairs and listen to it on the radio, or maybe pop out and play with my friends for a short while. When I got older though, I’d watch every ball, either with my father or by myself. My mother didn’t watch it. My grandmother would sit there and look as though she was watching. But wasn’t really doing so. She did though make the odd comment. Although the two of them weren’t really cricket fans, they always wanted the West Indies to win. It meant a lot to the Caribbean community.
And this is a myth I’d like to bust. Certainly, in the Caribbean community in the 70’s, not everyone was a cricket fan, some liked it, some didn’t. But that cricket culture was so strong that even if you weren’t a cricket fan, you’d watch it on TV, or even go to the ground, to be part of something. I’ve heard stories of people going to places like Trent Bridge, The Oval, Lords or Edgbaston and meeting people that they went to primary school with back home in the Caribbean, probably not knowing that the other person had moved to Britain as well. It was that kind of experience. A great outdoor meeting place, a place to socialise. You’d have people selling little plastic tubs of rum, a guy outside The Oval selling vinyl records, a thriving business. Some people would share their food round. It’s making me feel hungry just talking about it!
When I used to go to watch the West Indies in 1976 or 1980, I would go with my father, or friends. It would be a mixed crowd, some West Indians, some English, we were all friends. We’d watch the match together, hanging out, having fun. There wasn’t any racial tension between us, or hostility. As we got older, you wanted to get on the pitch, touch the ball, throw it back, get on the TV.
Funny enough I was looking of some old footage this of the first Test in 1973, loads of kids running on to the field to congratulate Clive Lloyd on his century, when he’d only reached 99!
Yes, that’s in the book. It’s noticeable when you watch clips from that time, that a lot of 4’s weren’t really 4’s as the ball didn’t reach the rope before some youngster picked it up! Sometimes the crowd fielding was immaculate, you wouldn’t get away with it now.
There’s that famous Lancashire v. Gloucestershire Gillette Cup semi-final from 1971, sometimes the ball is in the air heading towards a fielder, kids are running past him as he gets ready to take the catch!
Yes, I write about that game in the book! The reason I did so, was that the book covers the 70’s in general. That was probably the first game that I can remember watching. For some reason it sticks in my brain. I remember Procter annoying the crowd. I remember the darkness and David Hughes (Lancs) hitting the ball everywhere.
Thinking about West Indies players from that 1973 team, wow what a list of great names. Rohan Kanhai, Clive Lloyd, Gary Sobers, Roy Fredericks, Vanburn Holder, Alvin Kallicharan, Keith Boyce and more. Incredible players, were there any particular ones that you gravitated towards?
For me it was the Guyanese players, having the family connection with the country, I gravitated toward them. There were six Guyanese players in the squad in 1973: Steve Camacho, who got injured in a county tour match v Hampshire, so didn’t play in a Test, Kallicharan, Fredericks, Gibbs, Lloyd and Kanhai. So a heavyweight line-up from the Guyanese. Not only that, Kanhai was captain and Gibbs was the vice-captain. So, I think that’s what attracted me to this side.
Also leading up to the ’73 tour, I was arguably more interested in football. But two things lead me into cricket, that ’73 tour and the John Player League because it was free to watch on the TV on a Sunday. It was my introduction to the game; I learnt a lot. It was my learning tool about the game, I really enjoyed watching it. My football was Match of the Day on a Saturday evening, my cricket was the John Player Leagues on a Sunday. Weekend sorted.
The John Player League introduced me to a lot of West Indian players, so I got to know them really through that competition, and those great Gillette Cup matches. Lloyd at Lancashire, Holder at Worcestershire, Warwickshire had a serious West Indian collection, Fredericks at Glamorgan, John Shepherd at Kent, I guess those were my learning years.
One of the reasons I wrote about this tour though was that when you look back, the West Indies hadn’t won a Test series between 1968-73, they’d lost or drawn them. After this tour, they were unbeaten in England until the early 90’s. So what I’m trying to say in this book, is that the role of Kanhai was pivotal in changing West Indian fortunes but has not been recognised. Also the ’73 tour is not discussed. People talk about the “grovel” tour and the “blackwash” tour but not this one.
Also, I wanted to write about the lead up to the ’73 tour. The 60’s was a great time for West Indian cricket in this country, it’s not talked about enough. You could argue that the role that Frank Worrell had when he leads the team in 1963, was actually far more important than what Lloyd did in 1976. It seems that it’s just not really mentioned. Going further back I write about other factors in the build-up to 1973. The great win in 1950 the first time the West Indies had won a series in England. Also 1963 when the West Indies won here, 1966 when they won here again. Then the disappointment of 1969 when they lost. I think it’s important for the book to give people an historic context for the tour in ’73.
Isn’t it odd how you form opinions about people that you never meet. Rohan Kanhai, much like Mike Brearley, always struck me as an intellectual figure. He didn’t really look like a sportsman, if that makes sense. He could have been your Geography teacher; he had that sort of calm authority about him. Clive Lloyd obviously did a great job as captain, Kanhai though just seemed a bit more professorial.
The thing about Kanhai, was that he was the first Guyanese to captain a West Indies team through an entire series. That was an historical moment, which I feel attached to. Also, he was the first West Indian of Indian heritage to captain the West Indies. Really very important, especially when you look at the political turmoil in Guyana in the 60’s and 70’s. The racial, political, economic and social divisions at that time were very problematic. I think it’s important, when I look at that squad, to highlight the fact that it was a multiracial one. People like Kallicharan and Kanhai were of India heritage. Some of African heritage: Gibbs, Lloyd and Fredericks. Then Camacho, who was of Portuguese heritage. So it was a mixture of people and cricket is one of the few ways that the Caribbean can showcase the different ethnic makeup of the region. Let’s not forget Tony Cozier the journalist and commentator, who shocked many people when he appeared on TV for the first time in England. People had assumed that he was not white. Cricket is one of the few avenues where people can get, not just into the soul of the Caribbean, but also an idea of what it actually looks like. I think the ’73 squad did that unintentionally but very well.
The book itself though isn’t just about cricket. It’s about football, comedy and much more from that period.
Picture of Radio Times taken from Colin’s book
The West Ham footballer Clyde Best is featured in the book. Certainly a player I remember from his days at West Ham. A fine footballer, and a brave man who was very much at the forefront of things as one of the few black footballers at that time.
Yes, he was at the forefront. I interviewed him for the book, and was also involved in a documentary made by a Bermudian TV company about him, which is hopefully coming out next year. His father was a cricket connoisseur and he passed that onto Clyde. When he was younger, he was quite a decent cricketer. There’s more about him the book, so you’ll have to read it!
You mentioned food earlier. From your memory was food an integral part of the whole cricket experience?
Yes, bringing your own food and drink was part of it. Once the cans of drink had been emptied, you would use them to make a rhythmic noise! Actually, that wasn’t such a big thing in ’73, more so in ’76, that and 1980 saw more of the can banging experience. 1973 was more about the crowd invasion side of things. In fact I think that at Edgbaston they may have put a fence up to deter people. Back at Lord’s though, people were coming back on the pitch again. Not just West Indians by the way, England fans were doing it as well. Mainly young boys. There was a great bit of commentary regarding that invasion when Clive Lloyd got to that 99 you mentioned earlier. I think it was by Alan Gibson, when he says “And some of these older boys really should know better!” Absolutely fantastic, sort of telling them off like a head teacher would.
You’ve given me a much greater understanding of the importance of this tour. What do you think that the impact was on the Caribbean community in the London area, and indeed the wider diaspora of the UK?
The reason why this tour was unique, was that by the early 1970’s we had an established Caribbean community in Britain. Not just in London, but in our major cities. Also, the emergence of a second generation, not only were they born here but they were coming to an age where they began to appreciate cricket (or not), and also young people who came here with their families. So, you had a first- and second-generation connection, which I don’t think was a strong in the 1960’s. So, whether or not you had a strong relationship with your family as a West Indian born here, or growing up here, you could make that relationship through cricket. Everybody wanted the West Indies to win, regardless of you being a cricket connoisseur, or not.
There was a way of connecting generations. You saw that in the ’73 tour, a lot of young people, mainly boys, and their fathers, uncles or aunties celebrating cricket, or going together just because it’s a day out. In those days, when you were growing up, virtually everybody had a connection with the cricket community, regardless of them liking the game, or not. They wanted the West Indies to win.
Also what was important about this tour, and the rest of the 70’s and the 60’s, was that cricket unified people from the Caribbean. For those 5 days at the Test match, it didn’t necessarily matter if you were from Jamaica, Trinidad, Barbados or Guyana. We all wanted the West Indies to win.
The book as a whole though is not just about cricket. It’s about growing up, it’s about nostalgia, it’s about family and migration. Also comedy, television, music, football even Sacha Distel gets a mention! There are elements about racism that I had to battle with, but there’s humour in there as well.
Also, it’s not just my story, there are lots of other people stories as well. They talk of their memories of what life was like at that time and the impact that cricket had on them.
There is a Q&A with Dickie Bird, and pieces on Inshan Ali and Ron Headley. It was great to talk to so many people when putting this book together. In total I interviewed 60 people, doing that was the back rock of this book and a great thing to do. The likes of Frank Hayes and Dennis Amiss, gave me their time as well. It was a wonderful experience.
Thank you so much for your time Colin. The book is a fabulous read, and will trigger many memories for those of a certain age. Plenty in there for younger readers as well, it will certainly give you an understanding of life in 1970’s Britain.
You can buy the book, and find further information from Colin’s website:
Back in 1980 with his perfectly coiffured long hair, gleaming smile and California glow, American singer songwriter Jackson Browne was the antithesis of all that I held dear in music. I had completed my journey from Prog to Punk, hiding those records that had got me through my school days. What did the Californian lifestyle have to say to me? I wanted songs to tell me how bad things were, not how beautiful the flowers were.
What a chump!
I now find out that his visionary talent, came to the fore that year with his song “Call It A Loan”, surely the most important song about the current situation in County Cricket.
Yes, there are worries about The H*****d, the precarious state of finances around the counties and the fact that we seem to have seen more inches of rain this summer, than we have of runs for any of the county players.
Yet, more than those it seems to me that the strangest problem facing the current game is the loan system. If we can even call it a system. Many of us fans of the County game, put down the franchise setup because of the transient nature of both players and eventually teams.
How can anyone really care how The South of Birmingham Barklice are doing against Middle England Manatees, when to quote Billy Bragg, in his classic song Greetings to The New Brunette”, “When You Don’t Even Know Who’s In The Team”. We proudly held the upper hand, we knew the team, we knew those on the fringe who should be playing, we knew those whose names were whispered in hushed tones as the most exciting 15 year old prospect that had been seen since the previous wonder kid. Inevitably, when that named was mentioned, there would always be someone saying “but his 12 year old brother is even better.” We knew it all.
Jackson Brown saw the future though. That future is here, it’s the loan player. And boy, does he get around. Football does have a fairly sensible process for dealing with the short-term need for a new face or two, in the struggling side. Loan deals are arranged for fixed periods of time, maybe even for a whole season. It works pretty well, everyone knows where they stand.
Cricket though has taken a very different, scattergun approach to the situation. Here at Glos we had Danny Lamb on loan from Lancashire, then suddenly he returned to them and he was set for a move to Sussex. Now he is on loan at Somerset but only for the One Day Cup games, if the game starts on a day with a “T” in it.
There are also the crazy one game deals. Glos were party to this recently, and successfully when Irish batter Harry Tector popped into Cheltenham, on his way to a holiday in France to play one game. He smashed 86 from 69 balls having picked up some useful spending for his holiday. We won, so everyone was happy. But are we really? When does the loan player or the short term contract player become simply a “ringer?”
It’s been heading this way for a couple of years, in the T20 Blast, players suddenly appear, hopefully find the right colour shirt to slip into, and off they go. There was also the famous Glos Championship game against Somerset last season, where no fewer than 3 players were suddenly drafted into the Glos side from other counties. We still got hammered though.
How long before we see the one innings loan, where the batter or bowler is only on the field for his specialist skill set. Let’s take it a stage further. Those medium pacers aren’t getting anything from the wicket that’s suddenly turning sideways, no problem, Sammy Spinner can pop along for 5 overs and win the game. If you are a talented all-rounder, you can expect to see yourself bowling to yourself within the next few years, as the need to wait until the next match before making a change drops away. Next it will be midway through the innings, then midway through the over. It’s madness.
Anyway, I’ve been up in Scotland for a while, missed out on some cricket at Cheltenham, and struggled to keep up with the Test Match situation whilst out and about. On the Saturday of the Oval test, I happened to be at a music festival where my previous interviewee for this site, Chris Geddes was also in attendance. Every now and then, we’d bump into each other whilst checking our phones for updates.
My regular pal at Glos games and Walkers & Talkers gatherings “S” had a ticket for the 5th day, an optimistic purchase, given the speed at which Test games move these days. I was delighted for him that he was rewarded with a sensational final session, after a patient wait.
As for Stuart Broad. What can I say, which hasn’t already been said. We won’t see his like again. It’s been a joy to see him play the game, doing it in the way that we would all love to.
In my absence Glos had a mixed time at a rain affected Cheltenham Festival. They did though finish with back-to-back wins, in exciting games. Today they had a bit of a walloping at the hands of Warwickshire. I was hoping to make my first visit to Worcester on Thursday to see Glos in action, and sample some of the legendary cake from the Ladies Pavilion. Sadly though, that will have to wait as my elderly mum has to be taken to the dentist, maybe she has been sneaking up there to eat the sweet stuff in my absence?
So, I will be back in action in Bristol on Sunday, when Glos take on Somerset. I’m really looking forward to seeing Somerset youngster James Rew in action. What an incredible season the 19 year old has had. The weather forecast isn’t great, so we will all be hoping for the best. These days that all we can do.
Talking of these days, that leads back nicely to Jackson Browne. When I was happily dismissing the work of him, and the Californian sun-drenched laid-back crowd. I was blissfully unaware that he had written one of the songs that spoke profoundly to my young existential dreams. The moody magnificence of Nico, and her solo work, and with the Velvet Underground was the perfect soundtrack to our black clad misunderstood youth.
How odd then to find out this evening, that “These days”, one of the high points of her recorded work, was written by Jackson Browne when he was just 16 years of age. There are endless versions of this poignantly beautiful song from all sorts of artists.
It’s like they all took it on a short-term loan deal when they needed something special. And now, Cricket imitates Art. Nothing can stop people borrowing something good, I suppose!
Well then, I finally made it back to Cheltenham, after a gap that’s almost as long as the wait for DRS to decide if that catch was cleanly taken, or did it touch the turf first? Actually, that’s rather harsh, it’s been around 40 years since I was last there, those DRS checks don’t take (quite) that long.
In a massive change from recent decades, I’ve managed to find one whole day that I could spend at this near mythical citadel of cricket. The sun always shines, the wickets are true, Batters never play a false stroke and the bowlers only leave their perfect line and length when producing the extraordinary delivery of the century. The crowds are always large, knowledgeable, and extremely good looking, their wit only bettered by Noel Coward and Oscar Wilde. The Setting is worth the admission price alone, which is lucky, as sadly on this day, there wasn’t a great deal of cricket. Someone at the Met Office, obviously forgot to check their emails regarding priorities for the day. Rain came along and like a Tory culture minister, it outstayed it’s welcome.
Let’s go back a bit though, When I picked up my travel partner “S” from the seldom seen back streets of Frampton Cotterell at around 9:20 the sun was shining, Marquee Moon by Television was playing through the stereo. All was good in the world.
While we are in the big F.C. as all you hipsters call it, It’s worth mentioning that the multi zillion selling LP from the late 1970’s called Frampton Comes Alive. It’s a classic concept album of the time, based upon events in the previously sleepy South Gloucestershire village. For a brief period previously unknown levels of creativity and artistic expression swept through the village. The bakery was the centre for a revolutionary poetry movement, based on 47 line poems where no single word could be repeated. The main road was turned into a theatre with a stage that was 400 yards long, the audience desperately dashing along it’s length, as the action moved around. It was an exhausting but apparently exhilarating experience, resulting in only a handful of deaths from exhaustion.
Of course, these days the cynical, conspiracy theorists say that it’s all nonsense. None of this happened. You are a fool to believe it. Frampton Cotterell was always a sleepy backwater. Then they go onto tell you that that the album was inspired by events in Frampton on Severn. Maybe they have a point. We will probably never know.
Our journey north was a charming one, taking us through delightful Cotswold scenery, the highpoint of which was Leyhill Open Prison, an emotional place for all Bristol City Fans. Back in 2006, an unusual loan deal saw three of our players – Steve Brooker, Bradley Orr and David Partridge turning out for the prison team after an unfortunate incident outside a nightclub.
After draping a City flag on the perimeter fence, we sped north and before 10:30 were parked up a short walk from the ground. Hats off to “J” for a brilliant parking tip.A true Festival regular “J”, he has been visiting games there from a time, before the majestic college was even built.
With “S” and I being Members we were able to use the entrance next to the pavilion, fortunately it was the first one that we encountered. We decided to establish base camp in the small stand in front of the pavilion, before having a quick look around the ground. Compared to my previous visit all those decades ago, there were a few obvious changes. A large temporary stand was in situ opposite the pavilion. Near it. was a one the large screen scoreboards that many grounds have these days. This is fortunate, as the fixed scoreboard, which is touchingly named in honour of former Glos player Martin Stovold, is both tiny and cunningly placed out of view from any of the “Members” areas of the ground.
In addition to these facilities there are marquees, loads and loads of them. It’s somewhere between a military base, and low-level music festival. Many of these are the exclusive preserve of business folks being wined and dined. A few provide cover and sustenance for the average fan.
As players from both teams went through their warm up routines, we set out in anticlockwise direction around the ground. Virtually immediately we saw Dan, Ian and Jim who provide the streaming coverage of the game. Their tent was a buzz of nervous energy, with more cables, leads and gizmos on display that the first Apollo moon landing had access to. What could possibly go wrong.
Then we saw “R” the excellent photographer, and her group of people. Soon we were joined by Benny the only canine who holds Glos membership. Sashaying behind the corporate marquees, we then bumped into regular Walkers & Talkers host “S”, who impressively already had a pint glass in hand, and it was by no means full. We made it back to pavilion area by the time the first over of the day had been bowled, Glamorgan batters at the crease. The layout of the pavilion at Cheltenham means that you must walk behind the players that are watching the game from the benches in front of the dressing rooms. It all feels magnificently low key. There is a steward with a piece of string, restricting your access whilst an over is in process. When the over ends, he lowers the string, and we scamper through. It’s not a system that we would work and Old Trafford (cricket or football) and it’s brilliant for exactly that reason.
Glamorgan got off to a steady start, and we soon realised that the very short boundary on our side of the ground really made you feel part of the game. In fact at one point Dom Goodman was so close to us, whilst patrolling the boundary that I felt guilty about not offering him a piece of my pork pie.
The very useful large scoreboard, somehow became stuck, although the time kept updating, leading to some confusion in my feeble brain. Luckily “S” was on the ball, and by leaning forward and bending over, we could make out small portions of the small scoreboard, if none of the players sitting on the benches inf front of the dressing room stood up. It kept us supple if nothing else. A Glamorgan fan sitting in front of us started a rumour that a naughty fox was the source of the scoreboard problem. In fairness Leicestershire did give us a lot of problems in Bristol in our last home championship game. So it could have been true.
Lunch arrived with the Glamorgan opening pair still in place. One difficult dropped catch being their only real worry, apart from the helmet of David Lloyd being clattered by a lively delivery by Paul van Meekeren. Lloyd batted with fluency whilst Zain ul Hussan played the anchor role with ease.
After lunch the first breakthrough came, Zafar getting ul Hussan out. Sadly there was soon to be another first as rain started to fall. For a while we toughed it our with another pal “A” in the members stand by the small scoreboard. Eventually though we had to allow common sense to take over and head for cover. The tents were busy, and on entering one of the larger ones, the combination of the smell of wet grass, and noisy chatter, instantly took me to memories of the Glastonbury music festival. We found “T” and discussed the issues of the day and rain grew heavier. Then the rain stopped and we had the classic cricket experience, of sunshine with a wet outfield.
“S” and I continued our laps of the ground at a slow pace, bumping into the likes of “S” from Walkers & Talkers, “M” who, living in Gloucester was enjoying a rare short trip to a game, it was also great to chat with one of the most passionate voices in support of the county game, the brilliant Annie Chave, still on a high after Somerset’s deserved triumph in the Vitality Blast competition.
Having lost a couple of hours, play did start, Glos picked up another wicket. Infact they thought they had two but we had one of those “catches” where we could have done with a DRS check. It was though, given not out, sparking a little grumpiness.
Then of course the rain came back. We took cover for a while but at around 4:45 decided that the days play was probably up and headed for the car. We were right, no further play took place. It was though somewhat annoying that after driving for about 10 minutes, we realised that the ground was bone dry. Not a drop of rain had fallen. Still we were able to amuse ourselves, listening the extraordinary and very rare occurrence of an Australian side being run ragged by England.
Back in sunny Bristol, the washing was on the line, sun shining. Ah well, wrong place wrong time. But even though we didn’t see a lot of actual cricket, we had a lovely day. Hopefully it won’t be another 40 years before I head back.
There have been two terrific Ashes games over the last few days, and as it stands the Aussies have their noses in front in both the men’s and women’s contests. The conclusion of the men’s game at Edgbaston was a nail biter, which was Test cricket at it’s best.
For the final few days of that game, I was away in the Lake District, mostly just checking in periodically on the score, letting the glorious beauty of that part of the world distract me. It was though, a game of classic twists and turns leading to that frenetic last afternoon. We were staying in Bowness-on-Windermere, and on that day, had decided to take the short walk to Windermere itself for an early evening meal.
Things were getting tighter and tighter, isn’t it great to go into the final session of a game with all outcomes still being possible. This was causing me to check my phone for updates with increasing regularity as we looked for somewhere to eat. After a little lap of the central area, we opted for the classic Cumbrian night out: Mexican food at Bandito Burrito. We ordered a couple of Margaritas to calm the nerves and waited for our Burrito’s to arrive. The target for Australia getting ever closer, England needed wickets. WhatsApp groups were buzzing with moans, groans, yelps and joy.
Soon my phone was permanently out of my pocket, flitting between various websites, Twitter and WhatsApp. Long gaps when nothing updated. Have I lost the internet? How long does it take to get back to the start of the bowlers run-up and deliver the next ball, especially if it’s Joe Root bowling! And yes, is it really Joe Root leading the bowling attack?
Then huge excitement as Khawaja falls to Ben Stokes. I’m trying to concentrate on my Burrito and join in with the conversation that my wife and a friend are having, whilst the chaos is unfolding. Then a message comes in from “C” a cricket loving pal in Scotland, asking if I’m watching? I explain my situation. He’s the first to advise me of the next breakthrough: “Another Wicket!” Carey smashed it straight back at Root but he held onto it this time!”
All I can say is “!!!” A brief discussion then about the way the Aussies seem to be using Root as target practise, howitzers hurtling towards him at terrifying speed. Miraculously he finally caught one. He goes onto to explain that he’s watching the game in a pub with no sound, so he may be missing out on some of the finer points. As his wife is from California, he also quicky checks in the quality of the burrito. Excellent, I happily confirm.
I see that 14 are taken from an over, Aussies getting close.
Message from Scotland: “It’s mayhem. Another chance down as well. Stokes at square leg. Again, a tough one, he was diving at full stretch but got his hand to it.”
I’m on to ordering desert now, with concentration failing desperately.
Disastrous update from “C”: “The sky box has gone off in the pub!!”
What a time for that to happen! We pay the bill and walk back to our accommodation. By now, I am listening to the TMS commentary. “C” in Scotland is doing the same, having been robbed of the TV coverage.
As we step into our room at about 7:20, Cummins hits the boundary that clinches the 2 wicket victory. What a fantastic innings from him, played big shots with bravery and skill. Great performance to win a great match.
It got me thinking of the other times that I’ve relied on TMS to see me to the end of a great game against Australia. Before that though some other memories.
In a previous post, I’ve written about listening to England getting a pasting in Australia when I was a kid. My first experience of this would have been the 74-75 tour. Waking up in the early hours of freezing cold winter mornings, my hand sneaking out from underneath the bedding to grab the transistor radio, on the wooden unit next to the bed. It was probably placed on top of one of the Alfred Hitchcock and The Three Investigators books, as I was completely enthralled with them at the time. I remember convincing a friend that we should set up a detective agency to solve crimes in the Fishponds area of Bristol. I also suggested that our “office” should be a wooden den, in a piece of local overgrown wild land. It was a brilliant plan, to this day, I’m shocked that we didn’t get any cases to solve!
Unknotting the white lead for the plastic earpiece, before switching the radio on. There would always be a lot of static on the line in those days, and the signal would gently come in and out. Then the period of trying to work out the state of the game, from who was bowling or batting. Finally when the overall picture of the game was given, inevitably England would have been torn apart by Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson, if they hadn’t done the damage, Max Walker or Ashley Mallett would have sent our batters packing. If the Aussies had been batting, Ian Redpath, Doug Walters and the Chappell brothers would dismantle the English bowling attack. The six-test series saw Australia win 4-1, the England victory coming in the last Test, maybe the Aussies had eased up by then?
It was a cold and depressing start to the day, I would drift back to sleep with images of these invincible Australians flitting through my dreams, or were they nightmares?
Fast forward now to August 1975 with the Australian team touring England. The third Test of a 4 match series takes place at Headingly in August. I’m on holiday with my mum and dad, staying on a large working farm in Mid-Wales. During the day, Dad would drive us around to places of interest, TMS playing on the radio, broadening my knowledge of Forestry Commission land, huge and powerful looking dams that helped to supply water to people in England, and the finer intricacies of cricketing culture. By that time, I had moved on from the Alfred Hitchcock books, now throwing myself excitedly into the world of Agatha Christie, reading from the back seat as mum navigated, often with a pub featured in the CAMRA Pub Guide, as a destination for a lunch or early evening stop off.
England need to win the series to take The Ashes. The Aussies had won the first test, the second ended in a draw. So, England would need to win both the remaining games to take back The Ashes. The first inning saw England heading towards a large score, only to be pegged back by the left arm swing bowling of Gary Gilmour. A couple of years later, I was initially confused when punk band The Adverts had a hit with the excellent “Gary Gilmore’s Eyes”, the subtility of the different spelling passed me by on first hearing it.
Australia collapsed in their first innings, when the England second innings after a decent score, meaning that Australia were chasing a large total of 445 to win. They had started well though, when play ended on day 4 they were 220-3, the next day was set to be a classic.
It wasn’t to be. We awoke to the news that rather than Rick McCosker (95 not out) or Phil Edmonds (5-28 in the first innings on his debut) making the headlines, the news was full of the name George Davis. And he didn’t even play cricket. People protesting at what they saw to be his wrongful conviction as part of an armed robbery gang, had changed the agenda. When the covers were removed on the morning of the last day, it was discovered that the pitch had been vandalised, holes dug into it, and oil poured upon it. No further play was possible, so the draw ensured that Australia would retain The Ashes. I remember that the radio was full of frustrated cricket chat that day. I also remember in my naivety, wondering why they couldn’t just play on one of the adjacent wickets, cue a long lecture from my dad.
Next, we march forward to the famous 2005 series. My first TMS memory of the series, was the extraordinary morning of the fourth day of the second Test. The day started with Australia needing 107 to win, with just 2 wickets in hand. We had made plans to visit my mother that day, probably for lunch, so I was hopeful that England could take the required wickets early. It wasn’t to be though, the Aussie tailenders batted brilliantly, edging ever closer to the target. Eventually, I had to drag myself away from the TV and we made the journey across Bristol to my mum’s house with TMS taking us through the desperately close game. When we reached her house, the game was still in progress, I could have gone in and watched the game on her TV but couldn’t drag myself away from the radio.
We parked up, my wife went into the house, with me saying I’d follow shortly. The Australians continued to chase down the target. Into single figures, then less than 4, then just 3 runs needed. I stayed in the car, gripped by the game, unable to move. Finally, Harmison has Kasprowicz caught behind and England had won by 3 runs. I rushed inside to watch Flintoff consoling Lee, who had batted so well, the overriding memory of that brilliant series for me.
A few weeks later the final test of the series took place at The Oval. A draw would be enough for England to secure The Ashes, but going into the last day the game was still finely balanced. This time we were in the lovely city of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. We had an attic apartment, right in the centre of town. It was from here that I listened to the final phase of the game (probably through the World Service). Once the draw was confirmed, we headed to the narrow streets of the old town for a celebratory meal. Sadly, though not unsurprisingly, I didn’t find anyone who wanted to run through series highlights with me.
I don’t have Sky TV, so once again this summer, I will be relying on radio commentary plus web/social media updates to keep me in the loop. Let’s hope that there are a few more memorable days ahead.
Whilst I was away, Glos were home against Hampshire in the T20 Blast. And of course, as I wasn’t there, they won. Of course, they did. Some cash incentives were offered for me to extend my stay in the Lake District, therefore missing the Thursday evening game against Sussex. Foolishly, I declined these and took the 200 mile journey back to Bristol, arriving in plenty of time for the game. A few regulars were in, “S” had also brought his wife “E” along this time, she has been a keen cricketer herself, and is looking to rekindle her playing time having returned to the West Country. They had been up to Edgbaston for the 4th day of the Test and had obviously had a brilliant time. Also there was “J” who had made arrangements to hook up with a social media friend of ours “P”, that neither of us had met in the flesh before. After some texts and photo exchanges, we duly found each other, on another very warm evening.
Pretty soon, I was thinking that I should have taken the money. Glos lost wickets with the regularity of the Bank of England announcing the latest hike in interest rates. 15-3 after 3 overs was not the start we were looking for. Roelofsen and Ollie Price managed to form a run scoring partnership taking us up to 65 after 8 overs, then wickets started to fall regularly again and we were 8 wickets down having only just reached three figures on the board, looking that we may fall short of batting for the full 20 overs. Matt Taylor though played some decent shots, and when he was last man out, we had at least reached 140 after 19.2 overs. None of us thought that it would be enough.
During the break between innings, I nipped round to the front of the pavilion to catch up with a very old friend. “J2” was paying his first visit to the ground. He recently started a new job as a support worker, one of the chaps that he helps (D) is a big cricket fan, though has not been able to get to games previously. It was clear that “D” was thrilled to be there, rather optimistically he thought 140 could be a reasonable total. “J” was happy to admit that he had absolutely no idea what was going on! It’s quite an effort for folks like “D” to get to a game, so it was great to know that he was enjoying it, and that Glos had facilitated a good viewing position for him.
I sped back around the ground, not wishing to miss any of the action. Good job I did, as the Sussex batters were certainly not hanging around. Unlike the Glos innings, they scored quickly, without the distraction of losing wickets. When they did finally lose one in the 7th over, they already had 83 on the board. It looked like they were hoping to catch last orders at the bar, back in Sussex somewhere.
At one point “E” casually asked if the ball ever hits the flats behind us? Yes, sometimes, we said. To prove the point, Harrison Ward the Sussex opener, smashed one which flew directly over our heads, and into the window of one of the flats, with an almighty thump. The glass does get hit there from time to time but on this occasion the toughened glass was actually broken by the impact. Impressive hit by the batter.
Ward only faced 27 balls, of those 5 went for 6 and 2 more went for 4. When he was out for 51 in the 9th over, Sussex already had 95 on the board and the game was as good as won. And it duly was, after just 13.2 overs. We all knew that the Glos social media pages would be a frenzy of hyperbolic activity that night.
The very next evening Glos were away against high flying Somerset. To say the fans were pessimistic, would be a huge understatement. Credit to Glos though, after another tricky start, they put in a very good effort, only to be beaten at the death. Pride was restored, even if it did come in another defeat.
It’s confirmed though that we shall not be winning the Vitality T20 Blast trophy this year. Who knows though, maybe 2024 will be our year?
It’s been quite a week in Bristol. We shared the joy of a Glos triumph fifty years ago, and watched with increasing anxiety as the current team had some less than glorious sessions. Let’s start with the good though.
After the carnage against Somerset in the last Blast game, we looked forward to the prospect of a sedate 4-day game against Leicestershire. A game that that looked winnable, a chance to get the season back on track. The weather forecast was a mixed bag, maybe though we would see some decent cricket in a relaxed setting.
There was a small gathering of friends in place on the Sunday morning for the opening session. Good to see “C” back in the ground, he has been avoiding games with larger crowds for health reasons. No problem with that today! Also, in situ were “S” and “J”. Glos won the toss, batted and did so pretty comfortably for forty minutes or so, Dent and Charlesworth taking us to 38 without loss. Then as “S” was in the ground, it started to rain, as it seemingly always does when he is around. “S” is the modern-day equivalent of Denis Howell the Labour MP, famously appointed to deal with the long drought of 1976, with a week of his appointment the UK was hit with heavy rain and flooding. He turned from Minister for Drought to Minister for Rain. Should such a crisis arise again, I nominate “S” who will certainly produce precipitation.
The rain was heavy enough to look for cover in the pavilion area. Whilst we were heading there, news emerged of some unusual pre-match antics, which most of missed. The flats that we normally sit in front of have large balconies, perfect for watching the cricket from with a few friends. Sunday though saw a couple take advantage of the available space to run through a vigorous workout routine, that involved neither clothes nor embarrassment. I was shown a picture of the Leicestershire players on the outfield, looking towards a very different opening pair. As I understand it, they were in and out several times but unlike the cricketers, that wasn’t because of the rain!
There was a lengthy break in play. Fortunately though there was a fantastic treat instore for us. The day was scheduled as former players day, a popular day each season. This one though was extra special as 50 years Glos had won their first trophy, in the shape of The Gillette Cup. Andy Brassington had advised us a couple of days earlier that several of that team would be in attendance, including the stars of the that special team Zaheer Abbas and Mike Procter.
True to his word they were both there, suddenly a group of middle aged folk like me, were giddy teenagers again. Memories of bottles of squash in haversacks, playing cricket on the outfield during breaks, watching Zaheer play the most effortless, elegant drives, cuts and flicks. Procter flaying poor bowlers to all corners of the ground, then storming in to scare batters to death when he had the ball in his hand. What times we had, what a team they were part of.
The players spoke of their memories with great warmth. They spoke of their colleagues with great love. The decades rolled away; they were part of the team again. A bond unbroken, held together by a treasure trove of memories of hot summer days, when these West Country folk (no matter where they were born), would take on any team in the country, with skill, passion and fun.
The rain did eventually abate but to be honest I didn’t see much of the last session. Players were happy to chat and I found myself in group including Andy Brassington, Jim Foat (yes the legend that is Foaty), Mark Alleyne and others. Uproarious tales of their youthful hijinks, dodgy landlords and being denied entry to grounds for games that they were playing in. A wonderful afternoon.
I returned on Monday to find Glos starting the day on 108-3. I arrived to find a footballing pal “H” already in place, having arranged a day at the cricket as a birthday treat for his dad “C”. the pair of them are part of the group that I sit with at Ashton Gate for Bristol City games. It was to be the first vist to a Glos game for “C” and it was good to tempt “H” up as he has been leaning towards Somerset following his return to the West Country from his time in London.
Fairly soon, “S” joined us, and it was great to hear of the shared London experiences and locations that he shared with “C”.
On the field things didn’t start well, the skipper GVB departing to the first ball of the day! Not long after James Bracey got one that kept low (as they do when you are struggling for form) and were in trouble at 118-5. Enter the Price bothers Ollie and Tom who calmed our nerves, with skill and determination. Fairly soon ‘M’ had joined us well. Soon another topic emerged, guess the height of the young looking Leicestershire bowler. Various bids came in regarding the 18 year old Josh Hull, ranging from from 6′ 3″ to 6′ 6”, it was confirmed at 6’7”. Though as he is probably still growing it was suggested that he would be 6′ 8” after the lunch break. More on Josh later.
When Tom Price did eventually fall, Zafar joined Ollie and another good partnership was formed. Our chat was wide ranging: the array of train journey options from Yatton Station. The best thing any of us had done on our birthday, which “C” won with the casual “I shook the hand of Pele in Mexico on my birthday”. OK, that wins! The changing face of Gloucester Road since “H” had last been there, also cropped up. All the while runs were accumulating, whisper it softly we were getting within touching distance of a batting point. However, Ollie Price eventually went for his highest Glos score of 85, when Zafar went we were still 28 runs from 250 and that batting point and 8 wickets were down.
Danny Lamb and Ajeet Singh Dale batted superbly, gaining in confidence as the runs started to flow. When Lamb did fall for an excellent 70, Zaman Akhter strode to the wicket. Maybe he would be nervous a pair in his last (and only) outing, but it didn’t show. He played the shot of the day to his first ball, a perfect cover drive, racing to the fence before the Leicestershire fielders could even twitch a muscle. This was fun! Ajeet then completed his maiden 50 and incredibly Glos had reached 368 all out, with 3, yes 3 batting points. Leicester finished the day on 23-0. A brilliant day of County Championship cricket.
The third day was to provide some very unusual events in another gripping days play. The weather was very, very hot indeed. So much so, that I had to move from my normal spot in the sun, to take refuge in the shade of the large scoreboard that towers over the Mound Stand. I was pleased to bump into Twitter pal, Mister Shambolic, lover of Somerset, European second division football, train journeys, continually adding to his pile of books to read and records to listen to, and most appropriately cricket matches being played in front of small crowds.
Leicestershire got off to a decent start, looking like they would look to build a lead and put Glos under a bit of pressure. Gradually the run rate slowed, and the game became attritional. The highlight in the Glos bowling attack was newcomer Zaman Akhtar, who bowled with pace and control, snaffling a couple of wickets for just 5 runs in a 5 over spell. We like the look of this young man.
After lunch the strangeness began. As the third wicket fell, a booming alarm sounded from the pavilion, along with a message to evacuate the building. Off course for a minute or so, every ignored the instruction, tutting about the noisy interruption to the match. Eventually it was clear that an evacuation was required. Quite tricky for some of the more mature members, especially as the lifts could not be used. The players reacted calmy by taking the chance to hit for the turf and soak up some rays. Mister Shambolic and I did discuss the chance for Techno Remix of the booming alarm sound. He confirmed that as long it was on vinyl, he would happily purchase it. Could be a money-making plan for cash strapped Glos. After a ten-minute delay, the alarm was turned off without signs of any damage to the pavilion and Leicestershire cracked on again.
Mister Shambolic headed back to Somerset and I moved again to escape the blistering sun. This time I sat in front of the smaller scoreboard. This meant that Leicestershire batter Kimber had his back to me, whilst facing the bowling of Ollie Price. Thankfully I had my earpiece switched on listen to commentary from the stream. What looked like an innocuous delivery, elicited a confused looking appeal from a few of the Glos players, and a shout from Dan Whiting on the mic of “He’s caught it, that’s handled ball. He’s out obstructed the field”. The umpires confirmed, and yes it was true. For the first time in around seven years a batter had been dismissed in this way. Can’t believe that I saw it! As a disappointed Mister Shambolic mentioned later, in a few years’ time, thousands will tell the story of what they saw that afternoon. Almost all of them, just like him will not have seen it “live”. They will have seen it though as the video clip went viral. I think that Dan Whiting is now regarded as one of those social media influencers. Expect to see the exciting range of male grooming products that he will soon be launching.
Suddenly everything moved up a notch.Lewis Hill completed his painstaking century with a loud yelp, only to fall soon afterwards to the lively Ahmed for his second wicket of his post-tea spell. Then before we knew it Leicestershire were 350 all out and Glos had secured maximum bowling points and small first innings lead. They ended the day by adding nine runs to that, so 27 ahead in total. A draw still the most likely outcome but some creative thinking from the captains could produce something interesting the last day.
The next morning, everyone was discussing the potential permutations, that could create a result. Early declaration, gung-ho batting to set up a run chase, the naked couple be asked to perform again to distract the batters everything was possible. “S” was back at the ground and remarkably the sun was shining. It could be an interesting day.
Glos got off to a decent start with Chris Dent starting to get a surge on, when the aforementioned Josh Hull had an optimistic LBW shout approved. Hammond and Ollie Price looked to up the run rate, then crucially just before lunch Hammond was out, 132-3. A lead of 154 with 65 overs to come. What would the afternoon bring?
Short answer, misery. A dreadful collapse from Glos, which threw the game firmly into Leicestershire hands. I’m not going to focus on the detail of the afternoon, prefer to talk about a nice aspect that came from it. “S” and I continued the move around the ground plan of the previous day. At the end of the Glos innings, we went up on the roof above The Thatcher’s Café, should be a great view but a couple of things put me off.
I always feel that I’m a very long way from the action. It’s not exactly the top tier of the away end at Newcastle United, but I’d rather be a bit closer to the action. Secondly, it’s where the Olympic quality moaning and groaning seems to take place. Don’t get me wrong cricket fans enjoy a moan almost as much as a Russian oligarch enjoys buying houses in central London, just so they can leave them empty. Around the rest of the ground most of the comments are fairly good natured and self-deprecating. Up on the roof, it never quite feels like that. There is a degree of self-importance that Donald Trump would bulk at.
Consequently, we didn’t hang around for long, we moved to the benches at pitch level near the small scoreboard, where we met up with our friends “I” and ‘T”. I took the chance to nip off to the toilet. When I came back, “S” pointed me in the direction of a lady on a nearby deckchair and said, “It’s the mother of 6’ 7’! Took me a moment to realise it was the previous mentioned Josh Hull’s mum that we were sitting by.
So as Leicestershire made their way toward a victory that at 12:45 was extremely unlikely, we had a lovely chat with her about her son’s route into the game. It was lovely to see her joy and enthusiasm about the huge steps (literally in his case) that he had taken in the last few months. We spoke about the impact the social media can potentially have on players both young and old. The ability that Josh has, to get himself “in the zone”, which can lead to some pretty dull car journeys, the decisions that he made around his contract which were guided primarily by the fact that he just wanted to be a cricketer with a bit of security, in terms of length of contract rather than look for the biggest deal he could. He sounds like a good lad, and when the Glos defeat was confirmed, we wished her well, maybe in his victory excitement, Josh may even have had a chat with her on the way home.
That game finished on Wednesday evening and tempers were fraying amongst Glos supporters in the various social media areas. One of the cricket bloggers who was mentioned in this years Wisden is Pete Aired. As luck would have it Pete wrote a fine piece about social media criticism of the Somerset players after their recent defeat against Essex you can find it on the link below.
I shared this piece in a couple of places. Then Pete got in touch to say that, as part of a family celebration, he would be in Bristol for the game on Saturday evening against Kent. We duly arranged to meet up. The game was another poor one from Glos, short on runs after being put into bat, it was always going to be a struggle. There has been a mid-season reshuffle of the captain and team, but the result was another loss, in a season that is quickly slipping away from us. Even the new warm up routine for the Glos team failed to change our fortunes.
The chat with Pete during the change over was great, it’s always good to know that what bonds us as cricket fans, goes beyond any County affiliations.
As I write this on Sunday evening, I hear that Glos lost again today, this time against Glamorgan in Cardiff. We aren’t quite at Middlesex levels of despair (they are now on a run of 13 straight defeats if you include the final games of last season) but we aren’t going to be qualifying for the knockout stage of The Blast.
Two more home games this week. I’m away for the Tuesday night game but will be back on Thursday to see the game against Sussex Sharks. Then it’s a quick dash onto Gloucester Road, to The Golden Lion, to see our friends The Lovely Basement playing a gig. Hopefully, I will get there in good spirits after a Glos win.
Currently if seems like we are a very long way from that wonderful team of 1973, that we celebrated a few days ago. Things will turn around, they always do. It could take a while though. Maybe we need to hitch a ride to future in the ballon that passed over the ground on Saturday.
Don’t forget to visit Pete’s excellent blog which covers cricket and much more its at: https://peteaird.org
Ok, my last post may have been a little optimistic. The last few days have been a chastening time for any Glos supporters. Yet despite the actual results in the two games we have played, I have had a lot of fun and have enjoyed some very memorable times.
Firstly, let’s roll the clock back to the big local derby game, against Somerset in the Vitality Blast on Friday evening.
A warm evening, a sold out crowd, everything was in place for a classic. We didn’t really get a classic game, but we did see a classic Blast innings.
This game has something of a reputation for having a rather boisterous crowd. So much so, that I’m aware of a few people who decided to give this game a miss. For me though, it was a great chance to meet up with friends from both sides of the rivalry. I was meeting quite a few people there, with an even split between of allegiances between us. I arrived at the ground early, to try to ensure that I could snag enough seats for us all to sit together.
As is usual for Blast games, bags were searched on the way in. The young lad who had a look inside mine, shot me a withering look, before saying. “You’ve got a jumper! Why would you bring a jumper on such a warm evening?”
I mumbled something about it being sensible, to prepare for the slight chill later in the evening. The withering look that he sent my way confirmed, should there have been any doubt, that my days as a rebellious, devil may care person were well behind. Good job he didn’t spot the towel that I have in the bag in case the seat gets wet!
There were plenty of options for those seats as I wandered towards the Mark Alleyne Stand. I picked out a row, and started to place items a few seats apart. Another reason for taking the jumper! To my left, a chap looked at me with a knowing smile. “How many you holding?” Between us we were looking at about 16 seats. Could we pull it off. Short answer, almost.
As I was chatting with this man, two folks came into the end of the row and picked off the end two seats, with the casual nonchalance of a David Gower waft to 2nd slip. Ah well, still plenty of options around me. My seat holding buddy was joined by some of his party, he visibly relaxed. Then thankfully my friends started to arrive and take their seats. We would end up spread over two rows, but that actually works better in my experience.
I turned to “D” a friend from way back, who reconnect with at these games, as he is a Somerset fan.
“What’s Smeed been like this season?” I ask.
“Pretty dreadful” he replies. “Though he has been getting better in recent games.”
Of course he has! And he moved slightly beyond the realm of “better” in this game. In fairness he didn’t hang around for very long. A mere 35 balls in fact. Of those though, almost half went to the boundary, in an even split between 6’s and 4’s. 80 of his total score of 94 came off just 16 balls. It was brutal. He bullied the Glos attack more ferociously than Dominic Raab dealing with a junior Civil Servant. He wasn’t just rough on the bowlers, one of his huge 6’s even took a chunk out of the tarmac in the car park.
Will Smeed will soon be setting up his own demolition company. No need for Jack Hammers or Angle Grinders, Will just needs a willing bowler and a reasonably sized target. Thirty minutes later the wall will be reduced to rubble.
When we did get him out, Tom Banton quickly followed but with Somerset on 122 after only 10 overs, the game was probably already lost. So it proved to be. Although nobody else could match the strike rate of Smeed, (That name does sound like some sort of derivative of Smote, which according to my dictionary, is to “strike with a firm blow”. Sounds pretty accurate to me), they all managed at least a run a ball, with several well over that.
The final total was a daunting 231 with Glos looking pretty ragged in the field. the bowlers were knocked off their length, substitute fielder Ben Wells went one step further and almost knocked poor Zafar Gohar out completely, when they hurtled into each in search of a late catch.
The chat amongst the Glos fans was along the lines of “Oh Christ, we are stuffed”. In fairness to my Somerset pals, there was no gloating. Much like us, they have seen certain victories turned into catastrophic defeats. They were confident, but not cocky.
Rather sensationally Glos did get off to a good start, Hammond and Charlesworth in particular storming along at a pretty decent strike, the ball regularly being dispatched around the ground.
At this stage of the evening, we were also well into the wandering about phase for some of the crowd. Stand up, just as the bowler is about to release the ball. Walk along the crowded row, ideally kicking over someones drink. Getting to the end of the row and remembering that you haven’t got your money. Edge back to your seat. Get your wallet. Back out to the end of the row, then remember that you can’t remember if the round that you and your mate was getting was 3 lagers and 5 ciders or the other way round. Then after a lengthy wait at the bar they return with a fair amount of the drink spilled on the ground. Finish the remaining drink. Time for an Ice Cream, so off they go again. Come back. Watch (I use the term loosely) two or three balls. Then it’s time for the toilet. Come back, sort out another round, then off they go again. It’s like they are on some sort of sponsored walk.
As anticipated, Glos could not sustain the required strike rate, 123-3 was soon 137-9. Finally they were all out for 157. Somerset had spanked us by 80 runs. I’d popped that jumper on for the walk home though, so that I left feeling I’d achieved a small but important tactical victory.
A remarkably successful weekend in Bristol, saw Glos win their games on Friday evening and Sunday afternoon. Earlier on Sunday, Western Storm contributed to a Hat-trick of victories, for the home teams. Those two victories for Glos mean that they now have three wins, from the last four games. We’re on the move. We’ve got the groove!
Friday evening saw a very large crowd gather in the sunshine. Was the size of the crowd down to the away victory against Middlesex on Bank Holiday Monday, the lure of the Surrey superstars, or the chance to watch a glorious sunset after a couple of glasses of something alcoholic?
After thinking that I would be missing out on this one, due to a clash of calendar events (see previous post), I was suddenly thrown a late lifeline. Family meal finished early, so I was able to take the short walk to the ground, having heard that Surrey were batting first.
As I made my way into the ground, the scoreboard was showing 29-1. Three balls later I claimed my first ever Hat-trick, as both the Curran lads fell to Matt Taylor in the final two balls of his over. From the fist ball of the next over, David Payne removed Evans. Pandemonium in the ground! Although technically, I played no part in any of the dismissals, surely my very presence had inspired something magical to happen.
I don’t think that any other sport can produce the drama of a cricketing hat trick. Yes, it’s great to see a footballer score three goals, but they are spread out over the course of a game. Therefore lacking the intensity that a cricket one provides. Well they are normally but as I started to write that, a quick bit of research tells me that Egypt’s Abdul Hamid Bassiouny hit three goals in an astonishing 1 minute 57 seconds against Namibia in a qualification game for the 2002 World Cup. Oddly, those were his only goals for the national team even though he played thirteen times.
So, that may have been similar, if not even shorter, than the length of time for a cricket hat trick. What it lacks though, is the anticipation as the bowler pushes off from the end of his run up. The roar of the crowd, growing louder with every stride. If it’s a Test Match, or a well attended white ball game, this can get very loud. Even if it’s a division 2 Championship game, old Bill will make a noise as he tries to fold his newspaper away, without knocking over his cup of coffee, freshly poured from his tartan flask.
Then, if the third ball takes a wicket, there is the emotional explosion. Joy is unbounded, thrilling shouts of excited nonsense, and yes, maybe even tears. It’s akin to the feeling a Tory MP has on being asked to do one days “work” a week by a company looking to get their dodgy export license sorted. Even if the ball doesn’t result in a wicket, which is normally the case, I love the polite applause that rings around the ground afterwards.
Rather surprisingly, nobody rushed to congratulate me, as I made my way towards a seat at the flats end of the ground. Maybe they all just got lost in the moments. That’s ok. I’m happy to look at the bigger picture. It’s a team game, I’d done my bit.
Surrey mounted a recovery of sorts, but after a bit of a stand for the 5th wicket, the batters were walking back to the pavilion at a pretty regular rate. Also the run rate, which was decent before “my Hat-trick” slowed to virtually a trickle. This was like the Glos of old. Tight, well controlled bowling, backed by some excellent fielding. Nothing was being given easily. Surrey finished on 124-9. A total that was much lower than they would have expected.
I took advantage of the changeover period to catch up with a couple of friends, who were a short distance away. I moved along to sit with “M” and “J” for the Glos innings. Whilst delighted with the restricted total that Surrey had posted, we all knew that this would be no easy stroll. The Surrey bowling attack, is one of the best around, the pitch was looking increasingly sticky, it was going to be a tense one.
Well the Glos batters did well, most of them scoring at around a run a ball, which was all that was needed. There was though, inevitably the occasional lose, forcing shot which would cause a wicket to fall. A key partnership of 36 between Ollie Price and Bobby Bracey put Glos in the driving seat but a little flurry of wickets gave Surrey a sniff again.
At this stage of the evening the crowd were getting very vocal. There were some lads on the balcony of one of the flats who obviously thought they were absolutely hilarious with their “banter”. Poor chaps showed their colours early, with their complete inability to tell the difference between Ollie Price and Zafar Gohar. Now anyone can get players names wrong, I certainly can. My master stroke though in these situations, is not shouting out the wrong name very loudly and very often. Sometimes lads, less is more.
Back to the chase. The Glos tail did well, and when Tom Smith tickled away a leg side delivery from Chris Jordan, we had won with five balls to spare. A big win indeed for a determined looking Glos side, though a little more discipline from some of the batters, would have made for a more comfortable last five overs. But 20 over cricket seldom seems to be about discipline.
Saturday was a day of rest, before the Sunday afternoon fixture against Middlesex. Interestingly, a much smaller crowd at this one. Couldn’t blame the weather , which was glorious. I expect though that people without club membership were picking their games. With Somerset coming up this coming Friday, that’s three games in a week. No disrespect to Middlesex, but I guess the games against the normally all conquering Surrey (before playing us!) and local rivals and current table toppers Somerset, would always mean that in this case, the Vitality Blast sandwich would see a meagre slither of supermarket own brand fish paste (Middlesex) encased in a expense Focaccia (Surrey) on one side and a rustic but glorious Sour Dough (Somerset) on the other.
I managed to get to the ground for the final eight overs of the Western Storm innings, as they looked to chase down 135/6 total that Central Sparks posted. They did just that with some very composed batting from Prendergast and Luff. A textbook, whittling down of the total, saw them easily achieve the target.
I joined my mate “S”, he was my expert on the women’s game, having been fortunate to see a couple of games in the World Cup in South Africa. The weather in Bristol was heading into South African levels of heat, more friends joined us as the start of the Glos – Middlesex game drew closer. I also managed to catch up again with “M” who travels down from Gloucester for games with some mates. We sat together for the nervous Glos innings on Friday night. Our nerves were just about back intact after that one. We hoped for a more straightforward afternoon this time.
It was also great to be joined by one of my oldest friends, for the first time this season. “S2” (as he will be for this post) is restricted to only having one day membership this year, as there are important grandparent duties on his roster this summer. It was with him that I undertook a big part of musical education back in the late 70’s and early 80’s. Seeing bands like Joy Division, Killing Joke, U2 and many more. He also fully opened the door to reggae, that John Peel had unlocked for me.
I have brilliant memories of going to the Europa Cinema in Old Market, for a Jamaican film all nighter. The cinema was attached to, what was then called The Holiday Inn, next to the roundabout which dominates that part of town. There was a bridge, with escalators to whisk you over the traffic. It seemed like the modern world but the escalators seldom worked, and the area at pavement level became Bristol’s most popular open air toilet. The Europa was a two screen cinema, one of which was a “private members” cinema, in every sense of the word!
That particular evening we went along to see, a late night showing of what I think, was a triple bill of The Harder They Come, Smile Orange and if I’m right a documentary on The Mighty Diamonds. All the dialogue was richly, Jamaican and a little tricky for us to follow. There may have been subtitles but the air was so thick with smoke from the copious amounts of ganja being smoked that we wouldn’t have been able to read them anyway! We eventually made our way home as the sun was rising, in a very relaxed state.
One of the things that I love about watching cricket, is seeing people from different parts of my life come together. The two “S’s” are a case in point. One I’ve known since the late 1970’s, one I’ve known a few months. They both love music and Bristol Rovers, pretty soon they were sharing beers and talking music and the specifics of where they stand at the football. Even in the seemingly, blink and you miss it, world of twenty over cricket, new connections can be made.
There was talk of allotments and bus journeys. Catch up info on friends from the past that I haven’t seen for a while, the grudging acceptance that sometimes “tribute bands” may be worth watching. My favourite adapted name for such a band has to the magnificent “By Jovi”, even more wonderful when said in the manner of Brian Johnston describing a vicious bouncer from Michael Holding. Glorious stuff.
There was history to be made today. Sue Redfern became the first woman to stand as an umpire in a Vitality Blast game. She wasn’t afraid to make decisions, calling a wide against David Payne from the first ball of the match. A good and sensible step forward for the game.
Middlesex are having a tough time of it this season. They batted first, and I was relieved to see the dangerous Steve Eskinazi dismissed early on. It prompted some conversation around his surname. If I was a writer of fantasy, wizards, swords and running around type books, I would certainly have the Prince of Eskinazi, a land locked mountain country, where venomous snakes outnumber the human population by two to one, as a lead character.
Glos bowled pretty well, getting wickets at the right time. Once again a team from London was struggling to come to terms with the Glos attack and the Bristol wicket. Jack Davies scored a quick fire 46 but only Max Holden really made any additional runs and they ended on 139-9, which really didn’t feel like enough if Glos batted sensibly.
A few other friends joined us as the afternoon wore on. Firstly young “J” who in his first year of membership, is proving to be very adept at sneaking away from family gatherings to join us at the cricket. Then for the Glos innings two more “T” and “S” (another one!). I know “T” as she sits near me at Ashton Gate, her chap “S”, lives in in London, so was here in his capacity as a Middlesex fan and an off duty QPR fan, both huge music fans, they are out more often than good old Zak Crawley, though not as cheaply! Rather wonderfully it emerged that at different points in their lives two of the three “S’s” had signed on in the same dole office in London. What are the chances eh?
Glos batted very sensibly, maybe they watched Western Storm earlier in their run chase. Miles Hammond, Ollie Price and Zafar Gohar (higher up the order this year) all played well, leading to to the target being reached very comfortably. Another win! There were some Glos fans chanting “London, can we play you every week?” Which after seeing off Surrey and Middlesex I can understand.
As McFadden & Whithead sang in Ain’t No Stopping Us Now.
There’s been so many things that’s held us down
But now it looks like things are finally coming around
I know we’ve got a long way to go
And where we’ll end up, I don’t know
Yep, where this Vitality Blast campaign will finish we can’t tell at the moment. The next game is undoubtedly a tough one against a Somerset team that are writing their own scripts at the moment. Talking of Somerset, I’m genuinely saddened to hear that Jack Leach will miss the the whole Ashes series due to injury. I love watching Jack bowl, someone who really works at his game and is the ultimate team player. Very difficult for Somerset and England to replace him this season. I hope his recovery goes well.
Yes, that’s right Glos finally got over the line and won a game! So as The Impressions sang in 1967, We’re A Winner and the chorus goes onto talk about the fact that “we are movin’ on up”. So it must be true.
The win didn’t come against Glamorgan, in Bristol on Friday night though. Glamorgan deserved their victory that evening. It’s fair to say that as they got close to victory, a determined fight back from Glos, almost swung the game back our way. Then a couple of lusty blows saw the tide turn decisively, and conclusively in Glamorgan’s favour.
However the games come thick and fast, at this time of the year. So, on Monday afternoon we were able to grab an away victory against Middlesex, thanks to some brilliant bowling and fielding in the final few overs.
I say that there are a lot of games on at the moment, it’s actually on the edge of ridiculous. Between June 2nd and June 22nd Glos potentially have 10 days (including 20 over games) of cricket in Bristol. Then until September 9th there only 3 guaranteed days of scheduled Gloucestershire cricket in Bristol. It does seem rather daft. Part of that is due to several games being played in Cheltenham, which is lovely and good. But….apart from one Western Storm and one England – Australia Women’s one day international, it will be a very quiet height of summer in Bristol.
I’m a bit worried that I may be missing a game as I type this. Better check to see that there isn’t a game scheduled between 4am and 7am on Thursday. If you haven’t got a membership, it’s a very expensive time of the year. Wouldn’t it be great if these games could somehow be scheduled over the whole summer, maybe like the good old John Player League used to be? Don’t be daft, I hear you say. There must be at least one other competition to fit in, even if does only take place at a handful of grounds around the country.
As it stands, I have a lot of potential cricket clashes to resolve. Family members visiting, plant sales in very interesting houses (you’ll understand when you are older), gigs (although quite fortunately one of those is at The Golden Lion on Gloucester Road, a very short walk from the ground, where some friends are playing on the night of the Sussex game). Come to think of it, if dear old Joe Strummer hadn’t passed away, I would fully be expecting The Clash to reform, specifically to to play a 4 day festival in Bristol during the duration of the Championship game against Leicestershire. Of course the music would all take place during the daytime, providing me with ultimate Clash of Clashes!
But let’s enjoy what we have and make the most of it. The Glamorgan game attracted a decent crowd. We basked in the warm sunshine whilst Glos batted, gradually reaching for additional layers, as the lovely sunset signalled the arrival of evening air that was of the nippy side.
Some of the traditional key players in Glos white ball cricket aren’t around this season. No Benny Howells, with his laser guided accuracy coupled with sublimely disguised variations in pace, when it comes to bowling. Also no Glenn Phillips this season, we will miss his hugely destructive batting and brilliant fielding, what team wouldn’t?
This does mean that Glos are,like most teams that I support, a team “in transition”. This means that you get to see lots of promising young players, alongside some wise, older heads. The hope is that a few of these will grasp the chance to become the big name players of the future.
Friday evening saw Ben Charlesworth hit an impressive 56 on his Blast debut. Ollie Price also contributed well with the bat, as well as taking an excellent catch off his own bowling. These are the sort of performances that we hope to see more of.
My little group of mates was somewhat depleted due to a variety of reasons. The joy though of being a regular visitor to the ground these days, is that I still bumped into several mates, without making any real plans to do so. I watched the game in the company of my friend from Ashton Gate, fondly known to all of us as Mr Pick N Mix due to the half time treats that he shares with at the football. Another friend joined me for a while, so I had the brief moment of, do I go with the nickname when introducing them to each other? Why not, in fact I’m not even sure of his real name, so I didn’t have much choice really.
Mr P and M, to “nickname his nickname” was a little confused by the music that several of the Glamorgan batters entered the field to. I though thought it was rather impressive. If you saw anything of the celebrations around the Welsh football team qualifying for the last World Cup, you probably would have heard the stirring song that was used on Friday.
The song is question is Yma o Hyd sung by Dafydd Iwan. It dates back to the early 1960’s when the Welsh language was actively being pushed aside by the ruling political forces from England. A song that speaks of the determination of Welsh people to survive, with their own language and culture in tact. In recent years it been picked up as a powerful unifying song in Wales, coinciding with a huge resurgence in the Welsh language itself.
My mum is from South Wales, so although I’m a devoted Bristolian, I have a great deal of love and respect for Wales, and it’s remarkable people. I found it quite moving to hear the song blasting. Most around me though tutted about “that funny old song”.
Back to the cricket, fresh from the victory against Middlesex, Glos are off to Essex for their next game. This is quickly followed by games against Surrey and then Middlesex at home on Friday evening and Sunday afternoon. It looks like the “clash” activity will keep me away of Friday, but I hope to back on Sunday to see Glos win their 4th game in a row.
As Curtis Mayfield sang with The Impressions, We’re a winner, and if Cutis says it, that’s good enough for me.
Updated: Well we lost against Essex, so we won’t be winning 4 in a row. Still on for 3 out of 4 though!
It had to happen eventually, at long last Glos have lost that drawing feeling (apologies to The Righteous Brothers). Since I last posted here, our long run of drawn matches has come to and end, and in a pretty convincing manner. In recent days, we have played two and lost two. At least I was able to watch, almost three full days of cricket though, and very good cricket it was.
First up was a 4 Day Championship game against top of the table Durham. This looked like a potentially challenging game, that suddenly went up a couple of notches when I read the team news on twitter, on my short walk to the ground. A trio of expected starters were absent from the starting XI. Captain Graeme van Burren, opening bowler Marchant de Lange and bowler/all rounder Tom Price were all missing. This was not the news we were hoping for. I also heard that Durham had won the toss and would bat first. The sun was shining, the pitch looked good, a tough day was on the cards. I shared the news with a couple of friends who were sitting in front of the pavilion, basking in the unexpected treat of a warm morning at a cricket match.
They were surprised that I had so much information, as no announcement had been made in the ground. Indeed, nothing was announced until play was due to start about 30 minutes later. The replacements for the missing trio, were Josh Shaw, Jack Taylor, and debutant Zaman Akhter. It was also going to be our last sighting of our opener Marcus Harris before he hooks up with the touring Australian side.
I scanned the Durham team sheet for Ben Stokes, of course there was no sign of him. He was still in India, though not playing very much cricket. There would though be a chance to see Mathew Potts who had forced his way into the England side last year. Also in their ranks was the New Zealand Test spinner Ajaz Patel, who is one of only three players in the history of the game to take all 10 wickets in a Test Match innings. Seeing those two in action was certainly something to look forward to.
I made my way to the Mark Alleyne stand in front of the flats, the first of my group of regulars in that section. I plonked myself down in the row in front of some Durham fans, who had very impressively made the long journey from the Northeast. In front of me were a few Glos fans, already in a state of high dudgeon about the lack of announcements from the P.A. The Durham lads were a good set, pretty soon we were discussing our respective football teams (Bristol City, Sunderland, and Newcastle), their overnight accommodation (Alveston) and very much else as well. We even touched upon cricket sometimes.
Whilst Glos have been racking up the draws this season, there have been some encouraging improvements from some of the players. One of the most notable is young fast bowler Ajeet Singh Dale, noticeably quicker than he was last year, it’s great to see his development. He was soon causing problems for the batters, and I was letting out an involuntary yelp as he made a mess of the stumps which Michael Jones was supposed to be protecting.
At the other end, when Akhter was introduced he soon became used to seeing his delivery’s flashing away to the boundary in his first spell. He was though very unfortunate to see a straightforward chance be spilled at slip, then he had a decent LBW shout declined as well. Welcome to first class cricket!
Durham gradually increased their run rate as Zafar Gohar settled in for one of his marathon bowling sessions from the pavilion end. I sometimes wonder what happens when Zafar is asked by friends and family back in Pakistan, “What is Bristol like?”. I’m pretty sure that he can describe every blade of grass around the wicket at that end of the ground, he probably knows when the inhabitants of the flats that he faces, change their wallpaper or curtains, maybe even if they buy a new vase to display some flowers. He keeps going, and going, and going. And we love him for it. We loved him even more when he leapt to take a superb catch from the bowling of Josh Shaw, to send a rather unlucky Lees back to the pavilion.
The lunch break came and it was time to venture to The Thatcher’s café for my first Pieminister Pie of the season. I decided to go for the pie, mash and gravy option. I did have some worries about potential seepage of gravy through the cardboard box, but these were soon dismissed. The box being as solid as a 200 run partnership. Nothing leaked, nothing spilled. I fully endorse this option. This was a relief as I had nipped around to the cafe just after 11, to get a bacon bap, only to discover they had already run out of bacon! The sausage bap that came off the subs bench was good, but when you’ve set your taste buds to prepare for a bacon bap, nothing else is quite the same.
By this stage the game had fallen into a pattern, Durham would score reasonably quickly. Then, Glos would nip a wicket or two. Things were pretty even until the early part of the final session when Durham suddenly zoomed away. Then when we least expected it, a flurry of wickets, including 4 for Zafar Gohar and a deserved one for Zaman Akhter, saw Durham finish on a very strong 393-9, even a early wicket the next day would leave Glos with a big task.
Friday dawned sunny and warm, so much so that I opted for sandals (no socks obviously), a big marker in any cricket season.
Additional friends had joined us for the 2nd day. The broader mix of people drew a wider variety of chat from in-depth analysis of travel plans to reach most of the football teams in England, travelling from either Sunderland or Bristol. The life changing impact of seeing Led Zeppelin as a teenager in 1975 for one of our group. Back in the days when you could buy a ticket a face value, from your local record shop. No anxious wait in front of your computer, tablet and phone for the digital clock to show 9:00 only to find that the gig has “sold out” by 9:04. Actually I’m quite fortunate to like “unpopular music”, so I’m not troubled by huge sell-out gigs very often.
Maybe it’s another reason why County Championship cricket appeals so much. The thought of stressing over getting a seat at a game, is not one that I can see happening any time soon. It’s also pretty easy to meet up with people from the social media world. A vague description, a general idea of what part of the ground you are in and 10 mins later, you will be having the “Are you…?” conversation. Fortunately, I have a 100% accuracy rate so far. One day though, there is sure to be the confused look and the quick departure.
After a swashbuckling morning from the Durham final pair, lunch arrived with Glos 66-1, chasing the 445 that our guests finished with. Suddenly the weather remembered that there was a game of cricket taking place. What was all this blazing sunshine about? It got a little darker, a few spots appeared on the ground. “No need to move. I’ll finish my sandwich.” Then suddenly a huge downpour. Normal service resumed.
The extended break (13 overs were lost in total), gave me the chance to catch up with a twitter pal from Somerset. After a successful identification, an in-depth chat followed on record shops, East German nostalgia chic, Belgian 2nd division football and the joy of having too many books and records. Perfect. Just like the good old days of TMS, when those venerable old timers would chat for ninety minutes about nothing in particular, whilst waiting for Derek Underwood to adjust his marvellous combover hairstyle, before taking full advantage of a wicket that was left uncovered.
Thankfully the sun decided to reappear, and the Glos batters were back at work, and looking reasonably comfortable. I had to nip out for a planned visit to the dentist just after play resumed. Isn’t it sad, that it feels almost like boasting to say that I went to the dentist, whisper it softly an NHS one as well! The fact that it is only a 10 minute walk from the ground, really is the icing on the cake. The cake that I shouldn’t eat, or I’ll be back at the dentist, sooner than I should be.
On my return just in time for the Tea-Break, we had just lost Harris, but doing ok at 139-2. The rest of the afternoon though was a bit of a disaster. Ben Charlesworth (71) aside, the others fell with little to show for their efforts and suddenly we were 227-9 with the aforementioned Patel causing all sorts of problems for us. Josh Shaw managed to get us over the 250 line, therefore clinching a rare batting point which was greeted with loud cheering. We ended on 255-9 and in some serious trouble, 190 runs behind at that point. Once again, a poor final session had hit us very hard. Credit though to Patel who bowled very well indeed.
Saturday was to be the last day that I could attend, so I was hoping for a major turnaround. Things started brightly with the final pair taking their partnership to 65, thanks to some excellent hitting from Josh Shaw. Durham did not enforce the follow-on, so they started again with a lead of 153. The Durham support was reduced, as one of them had headed back North, so that he could play cricket himself the next day. Those that were left were quietly optimistic regarding the next two days.
Pretty soon the lead was up to 273 without the loss of a wicket. Then the game got very fast. Durham hurtled on as a couple of wickets fell. They then declared on 272-4. Leaving Glos an unlikely 426 to win. Fairly soon we were 58-4, there was a chance it could be all over that evening. James Bracey and Marcus Harris had other ideas though, until Bracey got an unplayable delivery from Durham skipper Scott Borthwick. Zafar followed soon, stumped for the 2nd time in the match and we ended the day on 181-6 and in big trouble, on a pitch that was proving very to be tricky. The long sequence of drawn championship games looked to be coming to an end.
Sunday was the 4th day, and one that I spent watching on the stream whilst packing for a short trip away. We were heading down to Burgh Island in Devon, to stay in a lovely Art Deco hotel, which has to be reached by a sea tractor when the tide is in. Day trippers need to ensure they keep an eye on the tides or else they could be marooned on the island, once the magical beast stops running for the night.
Whilst ironing shirts for me, and tidying the house for our traveling companions, I watched a determined regard action from Josh Shaw and Marcus Harris. Eventually though Harris, like those unwary travellers to Burgh Island was left marooned on 122 not out, as Durham wrapped up a deserved 125 run victory. A first defeat of the season confirmed, we were soundly beaten by a Durham team that had good contributions from everyone.
On my return from Burgh Island we had our second defeat, with a disappointing T20 Vitality Blast performance away against Kent.
Friday night sees the first home Vitality Blast game, as we take on Glamorgan. Hopefully, we can get our first victory of the season, to lift the mood of some of my fellow Glos fans. The lights will be shining on the colourful clothing, the music will play, and new food options will be available. Bish, Bash, Bosh and hopefully a win!
At last, after much delay my season of cricket watching is underway. Despite the rain clouds trying to disrupt things I was finally able to see some live cricket, as Gloucestershire took on Sussex in a 4-day championship game in Bristol.
Of course, we didn’t get the full 4 days of play as the weather did intervene. I was never going to see the full game as there were a couple of clashing events that were already scheduled for me. Of which, more later.
With the previous championship game at Bristol being abandoned without a ball being bowled, and their two matches on the road, a relatively short road admittedly, as they only had to travel as far as Cardiff and Worcester, were both curtailed by the rain. There was a real feeling that Glos needed to get their season going with a proper long form game, one which had the chance to ebb and flow. Well there was some flow, sadly though, once again it involved flowing water and delays to play.
Unlike those rain affected draws in Cardiff and Worcester, this time the rain may have helped Glos to a draw, rather than stopped them winning the game.
Just briefly, I have to note the incredible day that Tom Price had on the 20th April, which from now will be the Tom Price Bank Holiday. To score a century as a number 9 is one thing. To do that when your team are 45-7 when you come to the wicket is quite another thing. To score that century from 93 balls with four 6’s and eleven 4’s is yet another thing. To then, a short while later that same afternoon, take a hat-trick with all the victims caught behind by James Bracey! Well, that is a thing almost unlike any other thing, that has ever been a thing! Preposterous, incredible and life changing. Suddenly cricket fans all over the country and beyond, knew what us Glos fans were getting so excited about last season. This young man is really something special.
Although the forecast for the opening day of the was not great, I hopefully made my way to the ground. Being in game of cricket in April, I was of course suitably attired. Warmest coat, scarf, gloves (thick) and umbrella in my bag. I was set for whatever the weather could throw in my direction.
The opening home game is a chance to catch up with friends that you may not have seen much of over the winter months. I remember writing in this blog last year about the first day at home of the season, listening to some long-term fans who were sitting near me as they ran through a roll call of attendees and updated each other on the reasons for any absences.
Sadly on this occasion, a couple of my regular partners for cricket in Bristol were absent for health reasons. I’m at the age now where friends do fall foul of health complications with increasing regularity. One has been hit with a situation that a few years ago could well have been terminal. Fortunately though, medical advances mean that with the correct treatment, he should be comfortably around to see Glos clinch their record breaking 5th County Championship winners pennant in 2033. He does though need to be a little more cautious about things in the short term, so he will need to pick and choose his visits and keep away from large crowds. The crowd size for Championship games doesn’t create an issue there, so on the second day he was able to attend.
Of course with the red ball game, you are siting alongside someone for a good deal of time (as long as the rain hasn’t caused you to dash for cover), so it’s a perfect chance to talk things through. With the occasional “Shot”, “Ooh” or “Great stop”, being inserted into your chat. It probably also helps, that you aren’t looking at each other most of the time, eyes forward watching the game, as the conversation gradually unfolds.
I had a health scare a couple of years ago, a sudden issue with passing a lot of blood. Then great difficulty with passing water, led to some prompt and brilliant medical attention. I was poked and prodded, things were inserted into intimate places by people who I hadn’t shared eye contact with 15 minutes earlier. Embarrassment melted away as I placed myself in the hands of people who had seen it all before and wanted to help to find a solution to my ills as quickly as possible. After a myriad number of procedures, it was confirmed that I had prostate cancer, thankfully at very low levels. A few years on. I’m still being monitored but the levels have not increased, I’m in no discomfort and everything is looking good for me to celebrate in 2033 as well (and hopefully long after that).
Why mention it here? Well, I suspect that the majority of readers are male, and potentially of a certain age. Some may be anxious about some hints that there body is giving them. If that is you, I have just two pieces of advice. Firstly, and most importantly talk to your Dr as soon as you can. Secondly, don’t be afraid to talk about it. It’s not your fault that it has happened, and your conversation may prompt someone else to take medical advice. That could save someone’s life. That’s pretty good.
Another pal was absent due to an eye problem which required urgent action, which will keep him away from games for several weeks. A third will be restricted this season, due to grandparenting duties. Fortunately, other pals are around, one of them I’ve known since before we started school, which incredibly was before Darren Stevens started playing for Kent!
Also, in the last year, I’ve made friends with quite a few people whilst watching cricket and also attending the Walkers and Talkers gathering at the ground every Wednesday. Additionally running this blog and the associated Twitter page has brought me into contact with some brilliant people. Some of whom I spent time with during this match. Amongst those was “J”, who I met last season, he joined me for the morning session. Though much younger than the folks I mentioned earlier, he had been through the mill during with the winter with a serious health issue which required an operation. Maybe cricket is just a hazardous game to be aligned with?
Right then, back to the game. At last, I hear you cry!
Play on the first day started on time, but as hinted earlier, it was never going to be a day for nodding in the hot sun. It was though my first chance to new see signing Marchant de Lange, storming in from the pavilion end. He got an early reward as well, taking the wicket of Haines, before the opening pair for Sussex had reached double figures. Sadly though after just 16 overs the anticipated rain started to fall and the umpires fired the starter pistol for the players dash to the pavilion. That was pretty much that, the rain gradually got heavier.
I took cover in The Thatchers café and enjoyed a very tasty bacon roll, though I was seriously tempted to have one of the splendid Pieminister Pies which are the big signing for the new season. We chatted with a charming Bournemouth based Sussex fan, of advanced years. He told us of his plans to drive around the country in his camper van, taking in Sussex games along the way. Soon though, we all called it a day, and I was back home in front of a warm fire by the early afternoon. The joys of the summer game.
Friday morning saw a bright looking light peeping through the curtains. When I pulled them back though it was clear that our small back garden was very wet, prospects for play starting on time disappeared straight away.
Soon enough the Glos social media accounts confirmed that there would be an inspection at 11am, then another at 12:30 so I delayed my walk to the ground. Play did eventually start at 1:50pm, I decided to fall in line with the players and to take my lunch at the ground.
On arrival, I immediately bumped into the man known as Mr Pick & Mix. Many years ago the area of the Ashton Gate stadium where I stood to watch Bristol City games, had seats installed and my group of long term match buddies found ourselves sitting next to a lovely chap, who always shared his Pick & Mix selection around at half-time. When the ground was redeveloped a few seasons ago, we managed to arrange for about 15 of us to move together to seats in the newly built stand. To this day, approximately 20 years on from first being seated together he is still known as either Mr Pick & Mix, or if we are in informal mode, it’s “P&M”. I mentioned before that there is a strong Somerset contingent amongst the City fans, so it’s nice to have another Glos member in the fold.
We sat in front of the pavilion and chatted whilst eating. Pretty soon I’d been able to catch up with Dan and Ian who provide the excellent commentary for the Glos live stream. Also several other people that I’ve come to know, passed by for a chat. The weather by then was lovely, few things are as frustrating, as a sunny day with a wet outfield. It was clear though that we wouldn’t be waiting too long, indeed the final inspection at 1:20pm confirmed that play would start 30 minutes later.
I made my way around to the flats end of the ground, once again “J” joined me there, followed soon after by the friend I mentioned previously. We saw the bowling opened by spinner Zafar Gohar, who soon picked up the wicket of Orr. That though was not the signal for wickets to tumble. The warm sunshine providing good conditions for the batters, and left me ruing the decision to leave my hat at home. Fortunately I had packed the sun cream, alongside the towel and scarf, so rather unexpectedly given the recent weather, I was applying it liberally during the rest of the afternoon.
The rest of the day was dominated by the Sussex batters, lead by the Indian test veteran Pujara. He was patience personified in the early stages, a masterful leaver of the ball, he was in no hurry to score runs, or give his wicket away. Ajeet Singh Dale bowled well, looking a tad quicker than last season. Worth noting that alongside the Tom Price show against Worcester, he had picked up an impressive 6fer. From what we saw this afternoon, you could see that he was a threat. He did pick up a wicket, but then Sussex really took control. Pujara and the youngster James Coles batted very well and looked to be seeing the day out by increasing the tempo. Then in the final over of the day Coles maybe got a little over confident, dancing down the wicket , only to be stumped by Bracey from the bowling of Zafar. This left Pujara stranded on 99 not out overnight. Something that may have troubled less experienced players than him. I’m sure that he was fairly confident of moving to three figures on Saturday, especially as on the previous 6 times that he has reached 50 for Sussex, he has gone on to complete a ton.
Watching 4-day cricket, always involves a bit of compromise. Although it’s great to watch every ball of a match, sometimes it just can’t be done. I always knew that this was to be one of those games.
The Saturday morning session was due to be my last chance to attend the ground, during this match. On the afternoon, it was the last home game of the season for Bristol City, our chance to say farewell to the team and one young player (Alex Scott) who seems almost certain to make a big money move to a premiership club. Sunday was set aside for a gathering with friends, for a Japanese Afternoon Tea, part of the ongoing celebrations for my wife’s recent birthday.
There was though plenty to enjoy in the morning session, though not for the Glos bowlers. Pujara, duly completed his ton. He and Oli Carter (owner of a shocking mullet haircut, I can’t in all honesty call it a hair STYLE!) set about the Glos bowlers with some relish. Those two and Hudson-Prentice (after Pujara fell for 151), scored 153 in the morning session before declaring at 455-5. As well as sitting with “J” again, we had the pleasure of a couple of Worcester fans, who came down to support County Cricket. We had made a loose plan to meet up over twitter, then spent a couple of brilliant hours chatting cricket, music, football, flooding and much more. Such a great morning. Hopefully I can get up to Worcester at some point to see them on their home turf.
When I left the ground The Glos openers had successfully negotiated a potentially tricky little spell before lunch. Having lost so much time to rain, it seemed like Glos could bat of the rest of the day, with a draw the likely outcome, especially as rain was predicted for Sunday.
Well it wasn’t quite that straightforward. I kept up with a procession of Glos wicket tumbling, whilst at the football. It made for worrying reading. Then Alex Scott who I had been waxing lyrical about whist at the cricket, made an absolute howler to present league champions Burnley with the winning goal, just after we had equalised. Things were going wrong all over the place!
Glos got within 2 runs of their first batting points of the season, thanks to a great effort from Hammond and Singh Dale. When they were out, Sussex enforced the follow-on.
Still the rain would surely preserve the Glos unbeaten start to the season. Well yes, just about, in the end. On leaving our splendid Japanese meal, we were soon huddling at the bus stop as the rain lashed down. Yet just after getting home, somehow the players were back out and the final Glos wobble was stopped when Graeme van Buuren and Ollie Price combined to see the draw achieved.
So, after four potential games this season Glos are without a victory, and very low on bonus points. Yet we are 4 unbeaten, indeed that runs stretches to 6 games if you take last season into consideration. Which I am happy to do.
It was great to be back watching cricket again, seeing so many friends old and new. Maybe next time we can see a win as well.
Oh, I should also mention something that any of my twitter followers on @stopped_3 will already know. Rather remarkably, this blog has been included in the hallowed pages of Wisden as one of the cricket blogs of the year. I am still somewhat amazed by this! I’ve only looked at page 168 about 30 times so far.
Thanks to all of you who have taken the time, to read what I write. And to those who spared their time for the interviews that I published over the winter. Also thanks for the lovely and often funny feedback that has been sent to me as well.
There is a cricketing community which is warm and welcoming. I’m very happy to be part of it, after so many years away.
Almost exactly a year ago, one of my first posts on this site was to record my thoughts on the first home match of the season. It was a 4-day County Championship Division 1 game between Glos and Yorkshire. With a pleasing sense of symmetry, I should be writing about the opening home 4-day County Championship of this season, between those same teams, although both would be disappointed that it was in Division 2, following our joint relegation.
A year ago a young chap called Harry Brook was impressing me with a century for Yorkshire. After an incredible summer and winter, he is now one of the big names in world cricket. Sadly that means that rather than playing for Yorkshire, he is now out in India playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad. He certainly deserves the chance to make some serious money from his talent, but it’s a shame that he won’t be seen too often around the county scene this season.
Sadly, the English weather had other ideas about the match up between Glos and Yorkshire, and on what would have been the morning of the third day, the match was abandoned without a bowl being bowled. Thankfully that doesn’t happen very often but it’s a very disappointing start to the season. If you are a glass half full type Glos fan though, you can enjoy the fact that they now haven’t been beaten in their last five championship games over 2022 and 2023! Clutching at straws though I admit.
Over the last few weeks, very large amounts of rain had been falling in Bristol. Frustratingly, this meant the water table was much higher than normal, causing difficulties with the outfield being able to drain. As I write this the sun has been shining all day, on what should have been day 3 of the game, which just makes it all the more vexing.
Not the actual outfield in Bristol but not far from it!
We were pretty fortunate with the weather last season, with just one T20 Blast game being completely washed out in Bristol. Fortunately, I live pretty close to the ground, so that on dodgy weather days, I can wait at home and see how things are developing, rather than wait around at a cold, wet ground in the hope that play will start.
It was a little different when a friend and I ventured down to Taunton on the train last season. Hanging around most of the day, with very little cricket actually happening. We did have some excellent chips though.
My first real memory of being at a game when rain really had the upper hand was a john Player League 40 over game, back in August 1974. The opponents that day? Oddly it was Yorkshire! Looking at my Glos yearbook from that season, it must have been a wet summer. Of the last five JPL games, only one was actually played to a conclusion, two being abandoned without a ball being bowled.
Maybe, contrary to nostalgic beliefs, the summers weren’t always longer, sunnier, and warmer.
Back then to that Yorkshire JPL game. This was to be my first chance to see the legendary Geoffrey Boycott in the flesh. He was famous for having recently opted out of playing for England, something that my young brain could simply not understand. Why on earth would you not want to play Test cricket? Well, of course with my notable lack of both technique and natural ability, I would not have fancied it. But someone who was regarded as one the great players of the game, why on earth would they opt out?
Anyway here he was, on a murky Sunday in Bristol. The thought of Mike Procter bowling to Boycott, even off the shorter run that JPL games demanded (a maximum of 15 yards, rather than usual sight of Procter steaming in from threequarters of the way back to the boundary), was an exciting one. It turned out that Mr Boycott didn’t hang around for long, out for just 10. Mike Procter was involved in his dismissal, taking a catch from the bowling of Roger Knight.
You can see from the scorecard that after 17.2 overs Yorkshire were back in the pavilion and no further play was possible. That though, was when the real fun began for my friend “C” and I.
Collecting autographs is an important part of any young person’s development. Well it was back then, I suppose that these days getting a “selfie” with a star, is more important than an undecipherable scribble on a piece of paper. Then again in these days of purely digital images, will they have the joy of going through a drawer in twenty years’ time, finding a piece of paper that appears to have been scribbled on by a three-year-old, then spending a couple of hours trying (often without success) to work out who they had shared a precious moment with, in the past. Sadly, they probably will not. They will have to find some other way to fill their time.
Back in the 1970’s the old pavilion was still in place at what was then call The County Ground. The away dressing room was behind some tiered plastic seating on the roof of the building. If you were lucky, a player would sometimes stick his head out of the window, enabling you to thrust your scorecard, autograph book, cricket bat, or scrap of paper in their direction.
On this damp afternoon, when the players had been forced from the field by the inclement weather, we were taking advantage of our “Junior Members” status to wander around the pavilion area on the lookout for players. At one point the window opened, and Richard Lumb poked his head out, asking us if it was still raining? We rather optimistically mumbled that it had virtually stopped. Then, the face of Geoffrey Boycott emerged, looked towards the sky and said the immortal words “No, It’s pissing down.”
To my easily impressed, early teenage years, this was rather thrilling. Boycott had spoken to us. Rather more accurately he’d spoken in our vicinity. I claimed it as a conversation though, almost fifty years later, I’m still holding onto that.
We did also manage to get his autograph. One of us, and I can’t remember who, got him to sign our bat. Now if it was my bat, it would have had a perfect middle, as the ball never came into contact with it. There were scuffs and marks on the edges, but the middle would have been virtually as smooth as the day it left the factory. If it had been “C’s” bat, the reverse would have been true. He was always a much better player than I.
So, although the cricket had been a wash out, the day was still memorable.
Thinking about rain during cricket matches, my big discovery last season, was the joy of taking a small towel to the game. Sitting on a damp seat after a break for rain, is very little fun. Of course, some folk have cushions with them but they can be a little bulky when you already have clothing for every type of weather, food, drink and mobile phone charger in your bag.
What a fantastic feeling it is, to magically turn a wet seat into a dry one, basking in the glory of the impressed looks of those around you. It’s a game changer.
Although I failed to see any cricket this week, there will be plenty more opportunities to catch some proper game time. I thought it was great to see this posted outside the ground this week. Especially pleased to see dates for the possible quarter, and semi-final of the One Day cup. We live in hope! Such a good idea to list all the games of cricket that are taking place at the ground. There is obviously a notable lack of cricket in July, something that saddens and frustrates me in equal measure.
Of course in England we can have bad weather at any time. But to lose 4 days play already in April, which is always something of a lottery, and have virtually nothing scheduled for the height of summer, still seems to be incredibly short sighted.
Let’s hope that sunny skies and a dry outfield are in place for the game against Sussex, starting on April 27th.
I also hope that you will be able to get to see a day or two in the flesh, wherever you may be.
It’s coming! If you are lucky, you might be able to hear it. On Wednesday, I saw it! Feeling a little like David Attenborough, I caught a sighting of cricketers returning to their natural habitat after their winter migration. I saw them, dressed in their full finery (plus a bobble hat or two) nervously walking on grass, reacquainting themselves with the land.
Actual cricketers, County Cricketers, are getting ready for the new season. New grips are being put on bats, new boots being “worn-in”, players are already getting injured. Calendars are being checked, arrangements are being made, tickets have been bought.
On Monday 20th March, yes, March, the summer game is back. Gloucestershire have their first pre-season game, when Worcestershire come to Bristol. There could well be a need for thermals, three jumpers and maybe one of those little handwarmers snuck into the batter’s box.
So, a couple of days after writing the paragraph above, a couple of damp days has resulted in the Worcestershire game being called off. There are though, more friendly games in the calendar and I feel the clothing advice will still be relevant.
It was nice to see some players, out on the field, and in the nets when I visited the Seat Unique Stadium (The County Ground in old money) on Wednesday. I was up there for the regular Wednesday, Walkers and Talkers sessions, which have been such a treat over the winter months.
On this occasion, I found myself in the unusual situation of walking past the current Glos red ball captain Graeme van Burren, as he finished chatting with another Graham who was pretty handy with a bat. Graham Gooch had come along to have a chat with my fellow Walkers and Talkers. Andy Brassington started these very relaxed gatherings last season, blimey what an address book that chap has. We have been treated to some amazing guests, all of them giving up their time for free.
It was really interesting to hear former Glos bowler Jon Lewis talking about being a bowling coach in the England set up over the incredible summer last year. This was a couple of weeks before he became Head Coach of the England Women’s team. There have been so many others, from all sorts of fields, sporting, TV and well, anyone with an interesting story to tell.
Anyway, back to Graham Gooch. We fell in step, as we walked towards the museum, to hear Roger, the wonderful curator of this amazing little room. Each week, Roger puts together a brilliant little presentation on something in their archive. We’ve seen the ball that was used for the only recorded case of a Hat trick of stumpings.
We heard all about Gilbert Jessop the Glos batter who invented “Baz-Ball” before World War I. Letters from the family archives of W.G. Grace, and so much more. Genuinely fascinating and humorous chats.
Graham mentioned that he thought that it was on this ground, that he played his first game as a professional. It turned out that this was the case (he had played his first couple of games as an amateur prior to that), it was amusing to hear that he bagged a pair, just as he did on his Test debut. He didn’t do too badly though, the records indicate that after those two rather disappointing starts, he managed over 67, 000 runs in first class cricket (including limited over games), an extraordinary record.
On another occasion, a friend and I walked around the ground, chatting with former Glos star, Andy Stovold. He had just returned from a trip to Pakistan to watch some Test cricket in the company of his former opening batter partner Sadiq Mohammad. A brilliant conversation about cricket (and what cricket he saw!), his wonderful experiences with the people of Pakistan and their hospitality. Of course, if you are talking about cricket, Pakistan and Glos, you have to talk about one of the very best, the wonderful Zaheer Abbas. “Stov”, spoke so warmly about his experiences of playing with “Zed”. What a treat.
There have been so many Wednesdays like that, hopefully many more to come, as these gatherings go from strength to strength.
Aside from that, what else has been going on?
Well, some incredible Test cricket has been played, not just by England, it’s important to say. There new approach, seems to have sparked a response from other nations, leading to some extraordinary games.
I, like many of you I’m sure, am well versed in waking up, in the early hours of a winter morning, switching on the crackly radio, and trying to work out just how badly England were doing.
Now of course, things are very different. There was more than one occasion this winter, when I snuck the mobile under the bedclothes, ensuring that the screen glare didn’t wake my wife. Then there was the desperate flicking around for updates between the websites and twitter. Before I knew it, the quick 2-minute check turned into 40 minutes of incredible tension and excitement, during which I was able share the moment with folks who I will probably never meet in the flesh. Before I knew it, the early hours had become the morning.
Let’s be honest though, I haven’t been able to keep up with much of the white ball game after the Men’s World Cup win in November. There has been an awful lot, I must admit too much, for me to keep track of. Has there been any hour in the last 5 months when there hasn’t been a match being played somewhere?
One exception was the genuine pleasure in following the progress of Glos bowler David Payne as he became a key part of the Perth Scorchers team that won the Aussie Big Bash.
We have family in Perth, and it was a lovely joy to celebrate the success that David had, through some excited messages across the thousands of miles. David Payne is another one who took the time to come and chat to us at Walkers and Talkers. It was clear that he had loved his time in Australia. Also his desire to be part of the England setup again. He spoke about the thrill of seeing the way Jimmy Anderson performed over the winter, and the encouragement that gives to bowlers of a “certain age”. I bumped into him again last week, sadly he is currently on crutches after a recent operation. This means that he will miss the first few months of the season. Glos will miss him.
It was also good to keep an eye on the Women’s World Cup. The growth of the Women’s game is brilliant to see, so much exciting talent is emerging.
Of course there was much talk of the Strauss Review, set up to look at the failings of the game in England. Seemingly determined to take the heart out of the County game. You couldn’t help but laugh though, when the England team produced some of their best form in recent memory. Seeming to deliberately undermine the central premise behind the need for the review. The counties and their members dug their collective heels in, like Leach and Stokes at Headingley in 2019. The members and counties took the Jack Leach role, dogged, stubborn and just being determined to hang around. Ben Stokes, well he was just Ben Stokes, leading form the front as any thoughts about an inferior English team were smashed into oblivion. The proposed restructure just slipped away like a middle order batting collapse. That particular game was won. There will though undoubtedly be further matches to play.
Other than that, I was fortunate to spend a lot of time during autumn, winter and spring, talking with people about their love of cricket. I was so fortunate that twelve people decided to give up their time to talk about their memories of watching and playing. I think that twelve could form a pretty decent team, both on the pitch and in the stands. Hopefully, I’ll be able to feature more of these chats in the future. You can find all of these chats by clicking of the Interviews heading on any of these pages.
Soon then we shall be gathering again, hopefully the weather will be kind. A few more people will find themselves with a little extra time on their hands, as I did last summer. Old friendships will be renewed, and new ones forged as we struggle to work out who was fielding at first slip, and did that ball carry to them?
Hopefully you will be able to get along to game or two, find someone to chat with, and enjoy connecting again with our summer game. Don’t forget your gloves and an umbrella though!
Rain Stopped Play, inspection at 3 