The Cricket Thread

Irresponsible is what I call it.....playing football FFS!!...

 

Hants 453/9. End of innings as Edwards will not bat.

 

Fidel has gone to hospital. Oh ****.

 

I going to assume you're talking about a cricketer, and have not announced in haste the news of the ill-health of the former President of Cuba?

 

Is there a limit to how many loans we can get in?.....We can only loan from Div 2

 

Tom would be celebrating that news...

 

Yes, that's true.

 

Wood's bowling so hopefully he's OK.

 

Apparently Dale Benkenstein is fielding.

 

Edwards out for 2 months.

 

I have never known an injury list like this before. Early suggestions are two months out for Fidel, as Tom says. So that is him, Topley and Berg (three of our four main seamers!!) out for serious injuries, and I've fairly certain that we'll soon hear that Ervine is the same, once he has had his scan.

Fortunately we have a week off now. A chance for Wood and Dawson to rest up (given that Wood bowled today, he can't be too bad) - and by all accounts one more week off is all that Jimmy needs, and he'll be back for Middlesex.

There's also Stevenson, who I have to say I totally forgot about the other day when I was talking about our injuries. He too got injured in pre-season, and I have no idea what the injury is or how long we're talking. But that means of our 18 full time, 8 are currently injured. Basically a whole team: Adams, VACANT, VACANT, Dawson, Ervine, VACANT, Berg, Wood, Stevenson, Topley, Fidel.

Just goes to make this draw even better.

(If we had to play a game now without any of those eight, our side would look like: Carberry, Alsop, Vince, Smith, McManus, Wheterley or Taylor, Wheater, McLaren, Tomlinson, Crane, Wheal. With Whetherley or Taylor as 12th man. Apart from the kids who are some way from the first team, that it literally everyone else)

 

The last two days of this match we were outstanding. We dominated the champions with bat and ball. And that was without Edwards, a half fit Wood and no Ervine with the ball. After Monday we needed to restore some pride in our performance. Jesus we did that and miles more.

 

I remember this coming up last season. I can't remember though if I was proved right or wrong by jumping in and saying that loans can be made from other sides in your same division! (I know there was discussion that the ECB would bring in such a rule). But I've said had a read of the regulations - regulation 12, if you're as sad as me and would like a look http://www.ecb.co.uk/sites/default/...ation_and_registration_of_cricketers_2016.pdf - and I can't see anything in there which restricts us to Div 2 only. Similarly I can't see anything in there which restricts us to a certain number of loans.

Of course it shouldn't be forgotten that there are only nine Div 1 teams, and aside from Yorks (and maybe Warks), no-one can be ruled out of finding themselves in a relegation battle this season. So would our fellow Div 1 competitors even be interested in helping us out? For that reason alone it might have to be a Div 2 player. But who really wants someone who can't even get into a Div 2 team?

Lewis Hatchett at Sussex might be a goer? At least Sussex are only recently a Div 2 team. And there's not much shame not being able to get in ahead of the likes of Magoffin and Shahzad. Plus Jordan will be available for the for the next couple of weeks or so, I believe.

Alternatively, there is always the option of looking at Ireland or Scotland, and seeing if there's anyone there who wants to try and make it in country cricket. And we are currently giving a trial to a young lad called Hamza Ali, I think, who Goucs released from their youth team last season. Whether he impresses enough in the 2nds, we'll see.

 

Fidel Edwards has broken his leg.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/36101971

 

What did I say about looking at Ireland or Scotland?

http://www.ageasbowl.com/cricket/news/ireland-fast-bowler-craig-young-joins-hampshire-on-loan/

 

Hampshire sign former WI bowler Tino Best.

 

Just checking his recent outings, to get some sort of feel for how fit he might be and how he's going at his age. Just three first class matches since March last year (plus two List A matches and three t20s). Suggests that he'll be rusty, at best. But hey right now we've in no position to complain.

And actually it's so far so good, because he bowled one over with the new ball for the 2nds this evening, and took one wicket. That said, he did only manage 1 from 2 balls with the bat (slightly worrying that Alsop made 0 from 3 - but thankfully Jimmy made 117. Stevenson played too, making 65. Whether he makes the squad for next week may well depend on Tino's fitness, not to mention Wood's, Dawson's and Ervine's. Plus how Crane, Wheal, and Young all go with the ball).

 

Stevenson can bat but not bowl I believe. So it's highly unlikely he'll be in the squad.

 

Definitely last week he was only able to bat (made 90-odd not out I believe, so a couple of decent scores in a row for him), but I don't know if things have improved this week. I guess we'll find out over the next two days if he gets thrown the ball.

 

Dawson may not be fit to bowl however so Mason Crane may play.