Long way from home
One ray of hope
By Grockle
July 7 2003
Our dreams of this season and a return to the top flight lie in the Championship only now. Are we even good enuff there? Injury has decimated our ability to bowl sides out and our batting is still dire!
GLOUCESTERSHIRE CC2 @ Taunton 4th/5th July 2003
SUSSEX NCL2 @ Taunton 6th July 2003
Well, what can you say about these two games? We were in the driving seat to some extent at the end of Day 2 of the Championship match with a significant lead and two days to get in amongst them. But unfortunately we didn't do that. One of the problems of losing main strike bowlers is that we lose the '5 wicket' man in an innings. Although Laraman and Francis bowl manfully and Dutch and Suppiah can hold up an end and keep the run rate manageable, they do not take the bulk of the wickets in an innings every time. McLean is playing with injury - an a manful job he is doing of it as well, but we need the strike bowler and we simply haven't got him.
As a consequence, we can't bowl a side out twice and we can't put the squeeze on in the one day game when batsmen are set and wickets are available to take chances with.
Gloucestershire got to 611 and killed the game - great knock by Weston but the Bristolians killed the game stone dead and made the last day the usual farce it becomes in such a high scoring draw. Nothing to play for and no chance of victory - just play out the time and play for the personal average!! But 12 points is better than no points so we have to be happier than with a defeat.
So, on to the Sussex game. Two 'minnows' of the one day game this year meet to decide who is 'minnowier'. Welcome back to the County Ground to an old favourite in Mushtaq Ahmed - a leaner, fitter and hungrier Mushy than the one we remember from 5 seasons ago. Top wicket taker and attacking spinner once more. Murray Goodwin is also a dangerous man here, along with Martin-Jenkins who really put us to the sword here in the longer game last season with the bat.
We start the game with changes brought on by more injury. Aaron Laraman cried off at the start of the game and was replaced by Keith Parsons (why he isn't first on the sheet for every one day game is beyond me). Nixon McLean is not available - probably the resource that he is is better kept fit for the Championship now although I vehemently disagreed with this policy at the start of the season - he's all we have now! Michael Parsons gets the new ball and the chance to open the bowling because of this. James Bryant is no longer seen as the great white hope of the one day bat and his place is taken by Mr Peter Bowler. It's our usual batting line-up, almost but where are the wicket-takers coming from? Blackwell and Dutch play (although Dutchy for batting rather than bowling once more) and Jones returns to the fray after discussions mid-week about a lack of support from the management for a bowler in a slump of form. Sussex won't be worried but their one day form is nothing to write home about either. They win the toss and decide to go in first.
So, out comes Prior and Goodwin and on comes Michael Parsons to open from the River. Down goes the first ball and off goes Prior who nonchalantly pokes the ball to Burns, the mid-wicket fielder for a first ball duck. 0 for 1, Michael is over the moon and things are looking up! Enter Cottey - the smallest human being in the world and things start looking down again. Although we do a decent job of keeping them in check, you don't see the batsmen in any real trouble. Parsons bowls well and Francis passes the bat once but their run rate is held by some excellent close fielding which stops them getting to 50 until the 11th over. First change comes at 14 and 15, with Mike Burns on at the Old Pavilion and Steffan at the River - even then he has to be called on to bowl from the Old Pavilion boundary and is warming up as he jogs across to take up his bowling duties - why didn't he know he was coming on? It doesn't give the impression of a tight unit with a game plan that they are all in tune with. Blackwell spells his captain after 2 and Goodwin keeps on scoring through all this to reach 50 at 87 for 4 in the 17th off 67 balls with 8 fours. It's all relatively harmless!
The Sharks reach 100 off a one bounce four in the 20th but it isn't until 'nelson' that we break through with Cottey playing on to a ball from Jones. Out comes Chris Adams and on comes Keith Parsons for the first time with Dutch moving in at the River end to support him. Together they hold Sussex to only 50 runs off the next 10 overs with Goodwin well set and Adams looking to find a spell of form. At 177 for 2, Goodwin converts his score into three figures ominously and no-one looks remotely like making his life difficult (100 off 121 balls and 15 fours). The only thing you could say is that he could be scoring quicker so we are containing but that doesn't tend to win matches.
Too many times, Somerset seem happy to allow the 6 runs an over as long as there are no boundaries. Fielders are posted at points on the boundary and come in a long way to pick up the nurdled ball for one without pressing the runners to make their ground. Unfortunately, we do not have the quality of bowler at the moment who can keep it tight enough to not offer the bad ball that is also dispatched for a four or a six. Therefore we tend to go for 9 to 11 an over instead of the the 5 or 6 we aim for. This kills us in run chases as it does today.
Michael Parsons comes back on at 35 to put the pressure back on and Carl Gazzard drops Goodwin on the boundary with a dipping low one he just didn't get his hands under. It wasn't hard and it was done in front of a very vocal section of the crowd who immediately burst into "Why was he born so beautiful.." to Gazz's discomfort. Up comes the 200 and there are 8 to go - 280 could be on if we don't hold these two. To point that out, the hundred partnership and Adam's 50 arrive at exactly the same time at 211 (48 balls and 8 fours) but when KP comes on at the OP for the 39th, they get a bit too confident and Goodwin falls to fielders doing their job! The ball gets belted down to the Botham stand for a possible four. Blackwell stomps around and stops the boundary by kicking the ball infield where Jones picks it up and whistles it over the stumps. They've gone for a rather lazy third and don't get there! Goodwin run out. Now we can put the brakes on!
226 for 3, in comes Robin Martin-Jenkins but he only stays 6 runs as he is caught by Dutch and they are 232 for 4. Out comes Ambrose - another short- arse! Jonah returns for his last over stint and Frankie moves on at the OP but they continue to motor. 245 at 43 overs, 250 up four balls later, 19 runs added in the next 6 but Ambrose is caught by the captain off Francis straight away. The last over sees Innes and Adams move the final total on to 286 - 60 off the last 5.
Big total, lots of criticism of the home side - some areas of the support gave absolutely no positive comments throughout the whole fielding display. There was commitment out there. Dutch's fielding hasn't deteriorated and he nearly took a blinder of a diving catch in full flight. Blacky and Jonah's commitment that got Goodwin was top notch and Gazzard was uncharacteristically clumsy with the catch. But there was also drooped shoulders and bowlers getting little or no encouragement. There was no buzz in the fielding, no banter, no real indication of belief. Banger arrived at the ground during the innings and that was good to see, he's keen enough to make the drive from Bristol to see his side work - they just don't at the moment. Who would be Burns? Criticisms of is field placements need to remember what he is working with. He has no mainstream strike bowlers who can consistently bowl to a field setting or plan. He would be criticised just as heavily for constantly moving his fielders and then the bowlers putting the ball somewhere else and the batsman splitting the new field. I'm not impressed but I feel for the guy!
One could make the same criticisms of some areas of the supporting public in relation to commitment to the cause. They may not believe in themselves but we don't seem to believe in them either and that has to communicate itself to the squad as well. Tractor was suffering from almost two weeks of 'supporting' and was subdued to say the least. The replacements left a lot to be desired. There was a very vocal bunch down at the River end who were singing monotonously and stamping on the poor boards of the old River Stand but mostly it was criticism of almost everything - captain, bowlers, fielding, coaching, management - you name it it got a mention!
So off we go with the reply. Bowler and Gazzard. One seemed resigned to his fate and lo and behold his expectation was realised with a flip to Innes on 12 off Kirtly (immediately accused of throwing almost before he bowled a ball by those knowledgeable about this in the crowd). He trudged off literally as if he had the weight of the world on his shoulders! Cox arrived and departed almost as quickly caught by Cottey off Lewry, although it could have gone anywhere but when it isn't going for you then it does it in spades! 29 for 2. Burns was caught in the slips at 30 off Kirtley - not doing bad for a 'chucker' and Dutch didn't have too long with Gazzard because he was caught by Ambrose off Kirtley at 45. He went early but at least he had a go and wasn't afraid to take a chance. He has come on as a batsman - a positive in this debacle of a one day season.
So, the usual suspects are together at not much for 4, Keith Parsons and Keith Dutch doing it again before we reach 50. We do!! And without loss in the 11th. Daft as it seems, we are up with their run rate even though we are in a mess! KP and KD get to nurdling and the score rumbles on - we've got 93 at 20 - it is behind what we need but we are still in the hunt. That is until Dutch is run out at 97. He should have gone straight away but didn't and paid. Blackwell comes in to great applause with a need to give us the one day performance we have been waiting all season for. On comes Mushy at 23 but it's Lewry who gets Blacky trying to reverse sweep for 16 at 121. Not happening and his one day chance seems to be waning along with his form.
Rob Turner has started to move the scores along a little more in the past couple of games and Keith is still well set - but this is the last real hope of anything good happening in this game. By 30 overs we are 141 and we need 146 runs off 15 overs - 56 adrift of a run a ball!! At nearly 11 an over, there's no longer any time for dibbing and dobbing and we need big hearts and big hits every 6 balls. KP goes to 50 off 65 balls and the 150 arrives at 31.5 overs. he then puts a 6 into the River end and sets his stall out big and bold. We even get the rate below 10 for a second, but only for a second. The 50 partnership comes up as it moves back to 11 with 99 off 9 overs. You can only try - there's no point in holding out and losing by 20 or 30. Keith tries one too many and holes out at 74 in the 9th. Great effort and a good ovation.
Steffan Jones has been promoted!! He strides out at number 9 with 95 needed off 42 balls. He's caught with the score on 92. Simon Francis replaces him and flips one back to Mushtaq without troubling anyone - 196 for 9. Mike Parsons comes out to give his best, but doesn't face as RMJ gets a hand to a drive back from Noddy and the game ends in usual farce as Michael is run out backing up without a run to his name. 196 all out - a loss by 90 runs against the poorest side on the one day league which confirms that we now take their place. Thank God there isn't a third division - we'd probably be bottom of that as well.
The level of defeat sums up our abject situation. Not all our fault you have to admit but we've got into that "slough of despond" again where we fulfil our own level of belief in ourselves. We look like we'll lose, we play like we'll lose and we lose. The despair gets worse and we lose bigger which compounds the problem. What the root cause is can be debated long and hard but whatever it is is destroying us as a one day unit. We probably ought to use these games to blood the new boys now. Mike Parsons acquitted himself well today, except for one over which did his figures a lot of harm. Maybe Mr Munday, Suppiah, Edwards and Durston should join Gareth Andrew (where is he by the way?) in getting experience while it means nothing. The supporters couldn't complain any more than they already do and we could at least give the boys a look at some of the people they may be facing next year.
What happens at the end of this season, who knows? Some people must be looking to their future here or elsewhere. We need to think carefully about how we are going to rebuild this short form unit because this is the second season of this and it isn't getting any better at all. I wouldn't want to be on that balcony, but I'd like to see some strategy come out of this and some lessons learned before the start of the 2004 season. They did it in the last games last year - I personally would like them to bite the bullet and do it again in what is left of this one.