Anthony McGrath??????

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

45.6 McGrath to Ervine, OUT: McGrath takes another! length ball angled across Ervine, and the batsman just helps that along rather than edges it to Trescothick at first slip

Zimbabwe 132/5, Partnership of 4
SM Ervine c Trescothick b McGrath 4 (3b 0x4 0x6)

Great minds think alike.

 

[Neil Pickup]

Mine doing the thinking two minutes faster than yours, however

 

[marc71178]

So what was the point in picking McGrath at all then?

According to the chairman of selectors:

We have gone for Anthony McGrath as a batsman who can share the role of fifth bowler with Mark Butcher.

Batsman - 69 runs.
Fifth Bowler - 3 wickets.

Next question?

 

[marc71178]

51.5 McGrath to Streak, OUT: and McGrath really startling here! the
bowler pitches it up and Streak is struck in front of the stumps,
no problems there, and umpire Orchard raises the dreaded finger

Zimbabwe 150/6, Partnership of 18
HH Streak lbw b McGrath 11 (13b 2x4 0x6)
GW Flower 23* (77b 4x4) A McGrath 5.5-0-16-3


Do you want your humble pie warmed up for you Rik?

 

[PY]

Pity he went off, could have had two different debutants getting five wicket hauls.....

 

[Neil Pickup]

The sub fielder doesn't look old enough to be out without his mum.

 

[marc71178]

The sub fielder doesn't look old enough to be out without his mum.

It's the England selectors - they've heard Rik's calls for young blood, and found the youngest person in the ground and made him 12th man (or 12th boy!)

 

[Rik]

69 at number 7 against wayward bowling and 3 cheap lower order wickets...Flintoff look out :rolleyes:

 

[Rik]

Do you want your humble pie warmed up for you Rik?

Let's look at who he got out...Taibu, Ervine and Streak...yes I agree, what a bowler :rolleyes:

 

[luckyeddie]

Let's look at who he got out...Taibu, Ervine and Streak...yes I agree, what a bowler :rolleyes:

For goodness sake, Rik. Talk about sour grapes. The guy was picked, he did a job very well indeed. The opposition wasn't up to much, but the fault in this game did not lie with the Anthony McGrath, and it certainly doesn't lie with the Zimbabwean batsmen. It was more a case of the bowlers (Streak apart who is the one class act in the side) allowing England to score 150-200 too many in the most seam-friendly conditions I've seen at Lords since 1995 when Corky tore the West Indians to pieces.

 

[Tim]

I agree with Rik..I mean Streak, Ervine & Taibu are handy batsmen but at County level they would probably bat 8,9,10 or even 11 so I hope for McGrath that he doesn't over-exceed expectations..get picked for the South African series & get hammered.

 

[Neil Pickup]

First Class averages:

Taibu 22.85
Ervine 36.13
Streak 25.23

Not great, but not useless. And that is 5-6-7 in the Zimbabwean order...

McGrath didn't do much wrong (except get out, but so did Vaughan, Trescothick, Hussain, Stewart, Key..) for me, I hope he keeps up that standard.

 

[Tim]

those are Zimbabwe First Class averages though where there are only about 2 decent teams..Mashonaland & Matabeland.

In NZ we are getting test highlights of this series so I am able to see how McGrath is bowling, and he's not too bad..its just that I think he might be getting a false impression of how he's bowling & come the South African series things might be different.

 

[Rik]

For goodness sake, Rik. Talk about sour grapes.

What? Your trying to tell me they are top-class international players? He did ok in this Test but as soon as Flintoff is back he's history, unless they get tired with Key, that and Craig White, when fit, and I cannot view him as anything but a wasted selection.

 

[Rik]

those are Zimbabwe First Class averages though where there are only about 2 decent teams..Mashonaland & Matabeland.

In NZ we are getting test highlights of this series so I am able to see how McGrath is bowling, and he's not too bad..its just that I think he might be getting a false impression of how he's bowling & come the South African series things might be different.

I hope he gets nowhere near, his bowling may be able to pick up wickets against this standard of batsmen but against SA it will be carnage.

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

He did ok in this Test but as soon as Flintoff is back he's history, unless they get tired with Key, that and Craig White, when fit, and I cannot view him as anything but a wasted selection.

I think that he my end up replacing Key unless Key can get a good score or two in this series.

 

[Rich2001]

Let's look at who he got out...Taibu, Ervine and Streak...yes I agree, what a bowler :rolleyes:

Gezz the guy can only get out those that are put in front of him.

I think alot of people have been put in there place with him doing well and can't cope... I spoke to Marc before the Test started and was quite suprised I found him and I too both think it was quite a good move, where everyone was condeming him before he even taken to the field.

Yet if the tables were turned and he got a Duck and 0/150 - I bet we wouldn't hear the end of it saying I told you so....

Ok everyone is allowed a view to say nope i don't think he should of been there, but quite frankly that's the sqaud and that's that! you should back your country whoever is playing, rather than sitting there going Oh I support England but Iam desprate for him and him to fail just so I can say "I told you he was pants"

Iam happy to admit when Iam wrong and I was very happy with the way Harmison bowled throughout, and I think it's a very high possiblity that now McGrath has shown some form and ablity Key will be dropped and both Flintoff and McGrath can play, leaving Nasser with endless bowling options.

 

[Neil Pickup]

Well said, Rich.

I was highly critical of McGrath's selection but he has performed well and has looked far more at home at Test level than Key has. I hope it continues!

 

[luckyeddie]

Hear hear.

I gave him (McGrath) some serious stick (well, the duck did) - yet I don't hesitate in holding up both hands and saying "I was wrong."

<quack> It'll take at least two tests before Rampers gets back in now.

The biggest asset any player can have in international cricket isn't skill (although McGrath and Anderson seem to be well endowed) - it's character, and they have that in abundance.

 

[Top_Cat]

Maybe if he'd taken all twenty wickets in the Test, scored 500*, stumped a few of the batsmen himself and took a few catches himself would he get a gruff "Well done" from Rik.

No-one is expecting him to be a world-beater. Not every player in a Test team can be. But he did his job which was to score some handy runs and pick up a couple of wickets.

And no matter what, those three wickets he took and 69 he scored are on his permanent record as a TEST player and that makes him better than all those other guys who haven't played Test cricket. You can argue ability all you want but performance is where it's at and this guy has it over everyone else at this stage. No-one can take those runs and wickets away from him, no matter how hard they try.

I say to Anthony McGrath, hear frickin' hear. Considering all the flak he's gotten from just being selected (something pretty much totally out of his control), to do what he did is a testament to the size of his pair as far as I'm concerned. Imagine what he'll do when he actually gets support! DAMN! But of course that'll never happen because people will be too busy pointing out all the things wrong with his selection and will gloat when he doesn't do so well. If he gets 4 wickets, "He should have gotten 5"; if he gets 80*, "He should have gotten a hundred". Mark my words.