Davey's On The Road Again

One Middlesex brave heart made the trip to Taunton. Sadly, we hear about an all too familiar story

I’d initially decided to drive to Taunton for the first day of the friendly match as the train fare was over £60. However, I checked First Great Western’s website a couple of weeks ago and discovered that the fare had come down considerably, so I travelled west on the 7.06 from Paddington, arriving in Taunton just after 9 o’clock.

After some breakfast in the town centre, I wandered over to the cricket ground. The weather forecast was not good, but it was bright enough at 11 o’clock for play to commence on time. We had won the toss and elected to bat.

Lewis Gregory opened the bowling for the hosts from the Old Pavilion end to Joe Denley and recorded a tidy maiden over. However, in the second over bowled by Craig Overton from the River end, Nick Gubbins got us up and running with a two followed by a cut to the short Somerset stand boundary for four.

Joe Denley edged Gregory through the slips for four in the next over, and followed this with an authentic square cut for another boundary. Gubbins kept up the good scoring rate with 12 runs in the next over, with boundaries either side of the wicket followed by a fortunate top edged hook over the slips for another four.

We continued to score heavily, taking advantage of that short boundary until the 7th over, when Gregory flattened Gubbins’ off stump for 19, leaving us on 41/1. Nick’s 19 runs were from 18 balls. Craig Meschede replaced Overton at the River end in the next over, and after bowling a beauty that beat Denley all ends up, he uprooted his middle stump the very next ball. Joe had made 22 from 24 balls and we were 41/2.

Captain Dawid Malan and Neil Dexter were now at the crease and looked to steady the ship. After another Gregory maiden, Dex dispatched him to the rope twice in his next over. Overton replaced Gregory at the Old Pavilion end and looked much more dangerous than he had been in his previous spell.  After AC had driven an uppish boundary through mid off from the bowling of Callum Stewart, he survived a big LBW shout in the next Overton over, but this reprieve was short lived as he was leg before the next ball for 20, with us now 75/3.

Adam Rossington was the next man in, looking to maintain the good form shown in Friday’s effort at Merchant Taylors. However, he was not at his fluent best, and after getting off the mark with a four from the 13th ball faced, he perished LBW from Stewart’s next delivery, reducing us to 86/4. John Simpson came in next and clipped his first ball square to the long boundary for four.

Simmo brought up the 100, driving Stewart through mid on for four and just before lunch, ex Middlesex man Josh Davey came into the attack. He started quite tidily, including a maiden to Dex. We took lunch on 109/4, with Dex on 25 and Simmo 15.

Summer is nearly here

The weather was getting increasingly cold and gloomy and rain did not look too far away. I went to the Long Room at the River end of the ground for some warmth and hot beverage and I watched the remainder of the day’s play from the balcony outside of it.

Gregory returned from the Old Pavilion end and soon had Dex caught at second slip by Trescothick for 28. Both he and Davey were bowling well, and batting appeared to be much more difficult in the fading light. Andrew Balbirnie was next to bat and was fortunate to get off the mark with an edged four through the slips. Simmo reached 22 before he was acrobatically caught behind by Alex Barrow from the bowling of Davey, placing us on 131/6.

The Iceman now entered the fray with the bat, but it was Balbo who fell next, with Trescothick taking another slip catch off Gregory. Balbo made 4 and we were 131/7. James Harris joined Bergy in the middle as we looked to recover our tricky position. After a couple of conservative overs, Bergy opened up and struck several boundaries before rain stopped play for the day. He ended up unbeaten on 22 from 27 balls, with Harry hanging on in there with 4 from 21. The close of play score was 157/7 in 46 overs.

Although batting conditions got worse as the day progressed, I guess we’d be disappointed that the majority of our batsmen appeared to get set, but none of them made more than 28. For Somerset, Lewis Gregory was the pick of the bowlers with 3/44 from 17 overs and I was pleased to see Josh Davey do well, with tidy figures of 1/14 from 7.

My slightly disappointing day was compounded by the Racehorse Inn being closed between 4 and 6, so I had to make do with a few pints of Adnam’s Broadside at the local Wetherspoon’s, namely the Coal Orchard, before the journey back to London.