Your English Cricket Season: 2008

[Kweek]

Tazzies friendly debut on a decent dutch level!
0/31 in 5 doesnt reflect my bowling, the fielding dropped 2 catches, 2 sitters on the boundry(one went for 6 :/ )
and stupid keepers(who wasnt the keeper really) we scored 140/4(i was at 7 didnt bat)
only 2 VCC 1st XI players(Adeel Raja, hollands ex spinner shall we say:P) rest was 2nd team, and one guy who played hoofdklasse 20 years ago..now aged 62, we lost but we wouldve won if they didnt drop there 2 best batsman..on my bowling.
the ball was turning nicely, and my 1 crap ball n over went for 6.
the grass was damn high, and had no preperation at all.
they were impressed by my fielding, I was short cover most of the time, and I took everything that got to me, felt really nice.
can't wait for future matches!

 

[Neil Pickup]

The Magic of the Cup

 

[Jungle Jumbo]

Another update on A Jumbo Summer

County Championship season starts tomorrow: Lancashire v Hampshire, Old Trafford. Having looked at the forecast. I'd stack my entire junior bank savings, plus my piggy-bank on rain. And probably my parent's savings too. Not that I'd win a lot.

Today saw me roll around in my own cricket-infused mud again. A short trip to the aunt's house for some slightly belated easter-egg giving was sandwiched between multiple trips to check the scores on Ceefax, the sort of quick-fix shot of cricketing stimulants.

Now re-energised, the back garden beckons again. This time my little brother is on hand, and once more there is fustration. No, the Incrediball is not wedged in the flowerpot, as we are using the slightly more window- friendly tennis ball, suitably battered enough to nullify the bounce. Supposedly. It still manages to evade the top of the plastic stumps (admittedly designed for five-year-olds) , largely due to my recently-found height and hard-spun legbreak. However my more dwarfish brother has no such problems, his googly clattering into my off-stump first-ball. Back comes the Incrediball for the second innings, in all it's glory: seam fraying, plasticised coating peeling. Back goes my brother's off-stump; revenge is gained.

 

[Kweek]

http://kweek.cricketweb.net/blog/index.php
Cricket doing a dutch, my new blog hehe

Well then, Saturday saw my first cricket game of the season, and it went to say the least surprisingly well!

in the indoor nets, the balls havnt been turning, which dissapointed me alot, then in my first match the ball started turning a lot! still dont know how or why!

this winter, ive seen the most hours of cricket training ever, training twice a week 4 hours in total, it has never happend to me that I was in form before the season even started, now just hope it wont lose form!

I went to ask Tim de Leede today, if he reckoned my bowling went forward over the winter, he said yeah a lot !

to me it doesnt feel it does, but if the man says it, he's probably right.

VCC 3 will be my team this year by the looks of things, A lot of new players joined the club, and will play the 2nds, so there I lost my place, for now anyway! if i do well, I might get a few games overthere.

its funny In holland there is a shortage of spin bowlers, you'd think anyway, not at my club, 2 v. good spinners in the 1st team,

and 2 decent spinners in the 2nd time, guess i'll have to work on my bowling, and batting to get there, but I will!

ive been chatting with our coach and he reckons I shouldnt be captain this year, and I sorta agree with him, last time i was captain, it wasnt good for my cricket, I was to busy worrying, problem now is who is going to be captain, our skip of last year has a sort of bad attitude, wont come to training much, and isnt really serious with the game!

we might ask our Kiwi if he wants to be skip, he knows his cricket best of us all, but he's a quiet guy, like a lot of kiwi's I know really.

I had a glance at the teams were playing this year with the U18's

and i'd say we have a good chance winning! 1 team we already know, and we beaten it 2 of the 3 times we played them, the other 3 teams, are young teams, who just rolled out of the U15 competition, so they will have to survive this season, like we had at the start of last ones.

I can't wait for the season to begin, and I want it to be a good one, as ive put so many training both cricket and physical time in it, that I demand of myself it being a good season with the ball, and everything more then last year with the bat, thats a bonus!

 

[chris.hinton]

My first game was against Local Rivals and My former Club Highcroft, They included 6 first teamers and are three divisions higher then us, we included 2 First teamers. We won so if you like its an upset and i took 1 wicket ( A Mugging) bowling average after that.

 

[chris.hinton]

Open365

do you play for Liverpool cricket club?

 

[no1_gangsta_786]

I am going to be starting my first season with Blackheath cricket club (South East). Hoepfully i will be opening bowler......got a good indication from the coach who was impressed and kind of hinted that i would be. YAY!

 

[Scaly piscine]

Nothing too exciting here yet, just had lots of nets this year.

Had my first outdoor net of the year last Sunday, the outdoor nets are new - much to everyones dismay there was no sight screen or white sheet as background. The ball really sat up to hit when you were batting, which nearly compensated for barely being able to pick the thing up when it was hurtling towards you (the background was a combination of bush and trees). I got bowled for the first time in 3 nets because I played for too much spin and you can't really adjust when you can't see the ball...

Anyway I did hit the ball around quite nicely when it was pitched short. When this happened it was much easier to pick up the ball, as well as sitting up a bit as what generally happens with astroturf from my experience (astroturf was quite spongy as well). Anyway I'm looking forward to hopefully playing half a dozen or so matches over the spring and summer, it's a good diversion from Scrabble.

 

[open365]

Open365

do you play for Liverpool cricket club?

I do.

I would direct you to our website right about now, but it hasn't been updated for 5 years.

 

[Chubb]

My season starts on April 28th with my first game for Hutton CC in Essex for four years. Then I'll be going back to the UEA, though I do not expect to play cricket there, and at the end of May I'll be back in Devon at Upottery.

My goal for this year is to score over 500 runs, and to cement a position as opener for Upottery IIs. I do not intend to do any bowling at all.

Before I went to University I had a very aggressive style and a rather flamboyantly inept technique, with a very high backlift and a huge forward press. However, in winter nets at the UEA I have had to substantially alter both my general approach and my technique to cope with the increased speed, and, to be frank, skill of the bowlers. I only have a normal half-way backlift, and a small initial forward press. I haver been training myself to leave balls outside offstump that I would usually try to smash, and have cut out the pull shot which got me out more often than any other shot last year, though I can't put it away entirely because it is my best attacking shot. I will be trying to only use three shots: off and straight drive, pull and cut. I am hoping that I am on the way to being an attritional, grafting opener in the mould of Terry Duffin rather than a idiotic dasher like Vusi Sibanda, but I doubt it simply becasue I haven't tested this new approach in a game situation.

 

[Barney Rubble]

It's looking like my outdoor nets today are going to be moved indoors because of bad weather - damn it.

 

[Barney Rubble]

It's looking like my outdoor nets today are going to be moved indoors because of bad weather - damn it.

Well, they were - and they were horrifically painful. We did 90 minutes of hardcore fielding drills, followed by 90 minutes of nets. It hurt, a lot.

My batting was ok considering I could barely stand due to intense pain in my hamstrings and lower back; my bowling was just as rubbish as usual. My fielding during the drills, however, was surprisingly good - I think I impressed the people who matter with my attitude.

 

[open365]

Well, they were - and they were horrifically painful. We did 90 minutes of hardcore fielding drills, followed by 90 minutes of nets. It hurt, a lot.

My batting was ok considering I could barely stand due to intense pain in my hamstrings and lower back; my bowling was just as rubbish as usual. My fielding during the drills, however, was surprisingly good - I think I impressed the people who matter with my attitude.

Phhft..i could do that in my sleep, lazy Uni students...

Anyway, another Saturday, another possible game, did i play in it?

Find out.

 

[steds]

It's looking like my outdoor nets today are going to be moved indoors because of bad weather - damn it.

Had to read that 4 times for it to make sense. Kept reading "outdoor" as "odour"

 

[steds]

Phhft..i could do that in my sleep, lazy Uni students...

Nah. Just soft southerners.

 

[Jungle Jumbo]

A Jumbo Summer Continues, with a review of my day in Manchester, my first outdoor nets and a rare sighting outside the barbers

 

[Barney Rubble]

Had to read that 4 times for it to make sense. Kept reading "outdoor" as "odour"

Still drunk, Sean?

 

[steds]

Still drunk, Sean?

Don't think so...

 

[PY]

A Jumbo Summer Continues, with a review of my day in Manchester, my first outdoor nets and a rare sighting outside the barbers

Brilliant.

 

[Jungle Jumbo]

Cheers PY, competing with Mr Pickup, but he hasn't made an entry for ages