Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Sad news, this will be my last SMS of 2013, I can feel your pain all ready! 

So here are my Christmas and New Year hopes and wishes: 

1. Somerset to win the County Championship.
2. Jamie Overton to take 50+ First Class wickets.
3. Marcus Trescothick to hit a ton!
4. Lewis Gregory, Adam Dibble, Alex Barrow, Jack Leach and James Regan to come of age and return the faith Somerset have put in to them.
5. Craig Meschede to improve on last season and become the leading all rounder not only at Somerset but in the country – Sorry Tregs, give him some sort of target and hopefully emulate you at some stage, congrats on your recent ton and 500^th First Class wicket.
6. To go to a final and actually enjoy it. Well if Somerset get to a final, I won’t enjoy it!
7. The sun to be out on May 6^th so as I can enjoy my birthday, while watching Somerset, having a pint of cider or two!
8. Pick up a tidy some from the bookies in September when Somerset win all three competitions.
9. Over Stowey to get promoted to Division One.
10. To get this blog promoted on TV – tried a few times. The funniest being my encounter with Rob Key, at a Lord’s final. I had a few flyers to give out around the ground, I decided to try the TV pundits, Rob was walking from the pitch to the press boxes, I handed a flyer to him and he looked at it, signed it and gave it back! 

This piece was written a day before Graeme Swann decided to hang up his cricketing boots - mixed reaction to say the least. Was he pushed, did he jump or was he being sensible.

Take it from me your cricketing body can only go on for so long and Graeme’s has had its day. He is not the potent force he was two years ago, and by looking at his body language especially in the last Test, you sort of knew his time was up. 

For me he is being sensible, the Ashes are lost, England need to rebuild, he won’t play in another Ashes series, so why not bow out and give someone else a chance. I hear that Monty was sent to play Grade cricket as he was told he would be playing on Boxing Day and needed to get some match practice in.

Now with Jonathan Trott back home in the UK, Swann now not far behind him, who will be next? Jonny Bairstow for Matt Prior? Surely they must pick Gary Ballance?

Anyway, I’ll be back on 6^th Jan, by then England might of come to their senses and appoint a new head coach. 5.27, time for a Thatchers in The Cottage Inn, see you in the New Year.

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

At about 7.00 am Tuesday morning England’s new hero Ben Stokes will bring up his double century to secure victory in the third Ashes Test, and then no doubt my alarm will go off to wake me from my dream! 

Even though Ben has given us supporters some hope on the fourth day, I do think he is delaying the inevitable. The Ashes are lost; there is no doubt about it, so let’s move on.

 

What next for England, or should I say who’s next? Well they have two more Tests to play, some pointless One Day Internationals and T20 games and then a trip back to Blighty – some might say on the slowest steam ship you can find. 

 

Between the Aussie trip and the English season in 2014, England have some ODI’s in the West Indies and then it’s World T20 series, but this is just a bit of fun before Test series against Sri Lanka and India next summer. Who will survive between the inevitable in Perth to the first Test in June at Lord’s? 

 

There are players in the current squad who have distinguished careers and their Test record proves this. But some are getting near or even past their sell-by-date. So is it time to say to some of these guy’s thanks and goodbye. Or should we question the coach, Andy Flower, and his back-up team, have they past their sell-by-date? 

 

Yes, it’s prediction time, or should I say my point of view. The Ashes are good as lost, so why not experiment with some players who have not featured so far in the series, or even look at some guys who are playing in the Academy out there in Aus. 

With Jonathan Trott now missing from the fold, there is an opportunity for someone to step up and come in to the England set-up and make number three his own. I don’t think Joe Root should be there at three, he is an opener, so let him open. Michael Carberry has had his chance, made a few scores, but not gone on to make a telling score.

 

I would like to see England give Gary Ballance an opportunity at three, Kevin Pietersen at four, Ian Bell at five, and then comes six and seven, seven being the wicketkeeper. Matt Prior should now give way. He has had an absolute nightmare series, with the bat and especially behind the stumps. Missed stumpings, catches he should be going for, sloppy keeping letting byes go between his legs etc. The wicketkeeper is a central part of a fielding unit, if he does well behind the stumps; the whole team aspires to this. Jonny Bairstow should be given a chance in Melbourne.

 

Ben Stokes will keep his place at six for now, the England need to decide what they want from him, a third seamer who can bat, a genuine all rounder or a batsman who is your fourth seamer. I must admit I do like the look of Ben; he has impressed me with his aptitude, his desire and his never say die attitude (yes have a go at Warner, Johnson and co.). 

 

If the batting is a problem, the bowling unit is a nightmare. I just can’t see where the next wicket is going to come from. Boyd Rankin should now step in, if Broad is fit or not. You must keep James Anderson in the side, and for now continue with Tim Bresnan. Then after the series is over have a look at other options.

The next two Tests I would line-up as: Alastair Cook, Joe Root, Gary Ballance, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Tim Bresnan, Graeme Swann (just), Boyd Rankin and James Anderson. When finished say goodbye to Flower and co. 

Then for the first Test against Sri Lanka in June: James Harris for Bresnan, Danny Briggs for Swann and Jos Buttler for Bairstow. Then tell the likes of James Taylor, Eoin Morgan, go back to County cricket and heavily nudge the selectors. And also tell the likes of Matt Prior, Ravi Bopara, Samit Patel and Chris Tremlett, goodbye! 

All this may seem that I’m hitting the panic button, but what I’ve seen and heard over the last three Tests changes need to be made. Look at Andre Villas-Boas, two thumping’s and he’s been sacked (had to have a dig at Spurs!). 

Anyway, enough of my point of view, I may off calmed down by next week. Time for a Thatchers me thinks, well it is 5.27!

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Another humiliating defeat in the hands of the old enemy, what more can I say. Shall I try to break it down, a lot of other critics, experts, drinkers in the Cottage (experts then) already have!

 

·         Mitchell Johnson – Taken 17 wickets so far this series, the majority of them the English lower order. He is not as threatening as people make out, he only bowls in short spells, just need to see him off, aka Ian Bell

·         Dismissals – 21 of the English wickets to fall have been caught in the leg side. A very high percentage being caught and an even higher percentage on the leg side. In other words poor shot selection.

·         Can’t catch – how many more dollies?

·         Twilight of career - Some off the English players have already reached the top of the game, now they are in the slippery slope downwards, and not much is coming in behind – sound familiar?

·         Not enough depth – Who is going to replace the likes of Anderson, Swann, Prior, Trott, Pietersen? From what I can see in reserve, not much.

·         Andy Flower – Thank you for what you have achieved for England, now time to move on.

·         Unsure of best side – The side which went out in 2010/11, the 11 which started in Brisbane was somewhat a done deal! Now we don’t know who is going to open, go in at three, five and six, plus what bowling attack to use.

·         Shortcomings in the summer – 3-0 was the score to England, but it was a lot closer than that. The Aussies could and should of won at Trent Bridge and they had England on the ropes at Old Trafford and Chester-le-Street.  

I could go on, but what’s the point, need to move on. First thing is to get the selection right in Perth and not lose! I believe England have only won once there, and that was against an Australian 3^rd XI some 40 years ago. 

Then win at Melbourne and Sydney, happy hunting grounds recently, so the series will be tied and the Ashes retained. Then all what I’ve written above can be binned (but not forgotten).  

But will this really happen? Well this current crop of English players have surprised me in the past (notably India last winter), so why not or am I being optimistic? 

Ok, 5.27, time to get some much needed sleep, no skittles or Thatchers tonight!

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Again the ECB has come up trumps with the 2014 County fixtures - a home game for Somerset on my birthday! In fact day three off a County Championship fixture against Nottinghamshire. I can already envisage a hot day, with a birthday cider slipping down my throat as I’m sat on Gimblett Hill, with Somerset chasing a mediocre score to win – role on May.
 

Somerset have a tough start to the 2014 County Championship campaign, opening up with fixtures against last year’s runners-up and champions, namely Yorkshire and Durham.  Ok, games in Division One are difficult whoever the opposition, so if the mighty Set have any aspirations for 2014, then there is nowhere better to begin than the top two from the previous season. Need to walk the walk, not let us go through hell and the prospect of relegation.

On reflection, it seems that I’ll be watching a lot more cricket during 2014. A lot of County Championship games start on a Sunday, so days two and three will be on days that I finish early at work! T20 cricket mainly falls on a Friday; again that falls in nicely with my work pattern. The only concern is the 50 over competition, it looks as if I will miss one home game, due to work commitments, but hey I can take a days’ holiday.

Has anyone any idea what the batting line-up will be for England for the second Ashes Test which starts on Thursday (midnight on Wednesday)? The only certainty is that Alastair Cook and Michael Carberry will open the innings and Kevin Pietersen will bat at four. So who at three, five and six? Ian Bell and Joe Root will take up two of those positions, probably three and five, which will leave one more space, the number six slot. So who will it be out off Gary Ballance, Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow?

To be fair, the England batting order needs a good shake up, so it may not be a bad thing having to make changes in the top six. This Test will surely show the character of the tourists, especially suffering a heavy defeat in the first Ashes Test; then losing such an important player in Jonathan Trott. In contrast the Aussies are buoyant and by judging from the press down under, oozing confidence.

With all the talk about batting, England still need to get the bowling attack right - an attack which needs to take 20 wickets. It looks as if Tim Bresnan will feature in Adelaide; so I assume he will take the place off Chris Tremlett. No room for Monty? Somehow I think he may be needed.

If Monty does play, I just hope we don’t have the same stadium announcer as the one England had in their tour match in Alice Springs. For those of you who don’t know, Monty was introduced to the crowd by the announcer in a mock Indian accent, in which he was then subsequently suspended. I believe the row is still ongoing.

Ok, 5.27, no skittles, so no Thatchers. But a trip to Portishead instead for a 21^st birthday party (on a Monday!), now I wonder if they have Thatchers there?

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Don’t Panic! I know England got a hammering in the first Ashes Test, but the score is 1-0, if we lost by 20 runs it would still be 1-0 (am clutching already?!?).  

Since the defeat a lot has been written in the media, said on social networks and discussed over a few pints in the Cottage Inn; it seems that everyone has an opinion, including me. 

But I am not here to rip in to selection, individual performances, who should play in Adelaide, lets look at the positives……………………………. Ok, let’s rip in to them or should I talk about flower arranging instead! 

What annoys me the most is that I tried my best to stay awake through these cold winter nights either listening to TMS or watching the coverage on Sky. All that practice I done in arranging my sleep pattern, don’t the England players know what sacrifices us dedicated supporters go through for the sake of English cricket. 

The news of Jonathan Trott leaving the tour because of a stress-related illness has certainly put the game into perspective. The comments of David Warner saying Trott’s display was “poor and weak” and he had “scared eyes” was certainly disrespectful at the time they were made, it has now added more fuel to flames the next time these two meet in under a fortnight’s time. On this occasion Warner has certainly got it horribly wrong. Trott has certainly made the right decision to return home, and I hope to see him back in an England shirt whenever he is ready. 

With Trott on his way back to the UK, his departure has echoes of the 2006/7 tour where Marcus Trescothick left the tour for the same reason, and England went on to lose the series 5-0. The backbone of the side was horribly exposed during the first Test, now it is surely broken. 

Trott along with Alastair Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Matt Prior, Graeme Swann, Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson have been the main cogs in this well oiled Test side in recent years. After the first Ashes Test some of these cogs have seemed to have got rusty. Swann and Prior are not working like they were 12 months ago; the batsmen, who have wonderful Test records, are not going on to score big runs to take the team total over 400; and the bowlers are no longer performing as a unit. 

On the subject of bowlers, Stuart Broad. Why does it take some awful journalism to pump him up and make him unplayable? Surely pulling on an England shirt should be enough, not some shoddy newspaper articles. 

Time for wholesale changes? Well someone has to take Trott’s place at number three, probably Ian Bell will be promoted and one off Gary Ballance, Jonny Bairstow or Ben Stokes will go in at number six. Apart from that I wouldn’t do much more, but Prior needs to step up his game before it is too late and the Ashes are lost. Who is in the performance squad that can put pressure on his position, well none other than former Somerset player Jos Buttler. Food for thought? 

The first Ashes Test was a great advert for Test cricket, how a game can suddenly change in one devastating spell, shame it was Mitchell “porn star tash” Johnson and Australia, during an Ashes Test. Can England bounce back, let’s hope so. 

On a domestic front, great to see James Hildreth appointed Somerset vice-captain for the 2014 season, richly deserved. Trescothick will still lead the County for another season and with David Nosworthy ringing the changes on the coaching front – Andy Hurry moving sideways, Dave Houghton and Jason Kerr taking up batting and bowling coaching positions respectfully - the 2014 season already beckons to be an interesting, but exciting one. It seems that Nosworthy is going to be more hands on in the day to day running of the team. 

Ok, 5.27, time for a Thatchers or two before skittles.

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Quality from Kevin Pietersen, just before the first Ashes Test, tweeting “No one has heard of Brisbane outside Oz!” It seems that KP and Stuart Broad are having a bit of banter with Aussie journalist on Twitter.

KP was pictured walking alone, listening to ear phones and wearing a rucksack as he arrived at Brisbane airport on Monday. Brisbane’s tabloid newspaper, The Courier Mail, put a picture on the front page with a headline stating “he’s so arrogant even his own team does not like him”.

KP thanked the reporter for the story. He wrote: “putting me on the front page does wonders for my ego! You've done me proud. Thank you x” then adding “I would have preferred a Sydney front page.....No one has heard of Brisbane outside Oz!”

Broad on the other hand, was somewhat different, as he was accused in asking that two spectators be ejected from the SCG for heckling him.

Broad was defending himself from accusations by Jimmy Smith, a former rugby league player who is now a radio journalist in Sydney.

Broad answered “If you're gonna make stuff up to get attention for yourself you may as well make it half decent. Pathetic.” Smith defended his claim by saying "not making it up Stuart. Heard directly from a witness. No knowledge of this then?" to which Broad replied “I think you can answer your last question from my previous tweets. Have a good day.”

This all stems from Broad not walking in the recent series here in the UK, where he edged the ball to slips and didn’t walk. Darren Lehmann, the Australian coach, then stoked the fire by asking the Australian fans to send “cheating” Broad home by making him cry following his refusal to walk in the Trent Bridge Test.

Somehow me thinks that this series could be a bit vocal, with loads of chatter, banter, abuse, sledging, whatever you want to call it. So who is going to have the last laugh? We will soon find out as the Ashes begin Wednesday night / Thursday morning, now how is my sleep pattern?

Nick Compton, who should be in Australia, has been keeping himself busy over the winter months by doing some excellent ambassadorial work.

He has visited a place called Compton, a suburb of Los Angeles. Just three years ago the FBI ranked it the 15th most dangerous place in the US. In the last six months alone there have been nearly 700 violent crimes. It is under gang rule and covered in their graffiti, the birthplace of drive-by shootings and drug warfare. In other words, the Compton name in LA is plains away from Lord’s, the home of the cover drive and the flick off the hip.

So why is Compton in Compton, well, there is a Compton Cricket Club, and Nick was intrigued and accepted an invitation to go over and see if he could help in a place rendered helpless.

In Nick’s words: “To give you an idea — three of the original Compton Cricket Club have since died and that is considered a pretty good survival rate in these parts. One of the victims, Jesse Cazarez, brother of fellow players Emidio and Ricardo, was killed in a drive-by shooting outside his home in February 2009, aged 20.”

“It was always my grandfather’s dream to give children who were deemed ‘at risk’ the opportunity to travel and go on tour, and reap the benefits of cricket with its sportsmanship and camaraderie. He wanted to convey the message of peace and cricket that the original members of the Compton CC have done. I’d like to realise my grandfather’s dream. It may not be the Ashes, but it’s certainly an exciting new adventure for me and not a bad way to spend the winter.”

The Daily Mail website has some very thought provoking pictures and more to the story about Cricket in the Hood! Well worth a look.

Nick is also an ambassador for FRANK Water, which saves lives through funding innovative and sustainable clean water projects in developing countries, and has recently come back from India, where he first become of their work during England’s tour last winter. More of this over the next few weeks, but anyway, well done Nick, great stuff.

 

Anyway, 5.27, time for skittles and Thatchers up the Cottage. Come on England!

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Have you ever volunteered for a task, thinking how difficult could it be? And it ends up being a bit of a headache!

Well, yours truly has been tasked with searching the Over Stowey Cricket Club archives so as to document who held what position within the club since the war. The last 30 odd years since I have been associated with the club are easy to document (just some trouble with dates), however going back before that is a bit troublesome.

So where do I start, old minute books are favourite, but who has them? I first approached former club Chairman, Steve Little, for some help, guidance and direction. Firstly he has no minute books, secondly he believes that the great pavilion flood some 20+ years ago wiped out all records, but he did give me other names in who to contact.

My second port of call was another former Chairman, Simon Pickard, who gave me a bit more hope and guidance. He believes that the flood only wiped out score books, not minute books (phew), and he gave me a more positive lead in someone who to contact – my next step this week.

I now have names going back to the late 70’s and early 80’s to the present date, one or two holes to fill and one or two question marks over names in the right position within the club. Was Steve Darch ever 2^nd XI captain, me thinks he was.

Also, putting names on a piece of paper makes you think whatever happened to these guys? Where is Steve Holley now? Does anyone remember Jim Holden? Is Robin Moiser still scoring the majority of his runs behind square?

As you can see, I have more questions than answers, but I am confident things will unravel itself over the winter months. But is there anyone out there who can help?

Anyway, Ashes, just over a week away, and only one more warm-up game to go. Matt Prior is an injury concern, Michael Carberry looks as if he is favourite to open the innings, Joe Root will thus fill the number six spot, but who will be the third seamer? Has Graham Onions been called up yet?

Selection will become clearer during the final warm-up game over the next week. In the mean time I will start getting my Ashes practice in, adjusting my sleep pattern! So how will I do this, get home from work and straight to bed, wake up at 11pm, watch the first few hours under the duvet on my iPhone, then back to sleep for four more hours, then awake for the end of the last session before going to work. How difficult can it be?

Well, there are a few spanners, skittles Friday and Monday, so, no sleep before the start of play, thus missing the whole days’ play I expect. Plus I have the problem of work, in fact driving to work, something not to be done when tired.

A simple solution to all this is give up work, book up the next available flight to Australia and clear off for two months, now that would be nice!

Ok, 5.27, time to get ready for skittles, Thatchers et al!

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Why is Graham Onions playing First Class cricket this winter in South Africa rather than International cricket in Australia? Answer: The English selectors have made a very grave error in overlooking the leading wicket taker in the English 2013 county season. 

I believe nearly everyone who knows something about cricket asked the question in why Onions was omitted from the Ashes squad.  Are the selectors really banking on Tim Bresnan being fit? If so, short sightedness comes to mind. 

Chris Tremlett, Boyd Rankin and Steve Finn are supposed to be vying for the third seamer spot. On the evidence of the first warm up game against, effectively a Western Australia 2^nd XI, I would put them on the first plane home back to the UK, 2^nd class with at least three changes in some remote airports in countries ending in “Stan”, where the local goat farmer acts as passport control! 

Ok, not really hitting the panic button yet, but between them they sent down 66 overs in the first innings for 300+ runs for just two wickets, not really International standard. Stick Onions on a plane to Australia now! 

Let the Ashes phoney war begin. Shane Warne has accused Alastair Cook being a negative captain. “I think he needs to be more imaginative," said Warne. "If Australia play well and he continues to captain the way he does, I think England are going to lose the series. I don't think he can captain like that. I'm not the only one who thinks Alastair Cook is a negative captain." 

I believe he said something similar before the last Ashes series last summer. Must I remind Mr Warne off the score? Ok, I will, 3-0 to England. Just stick to poker and eating burgers please. 

No doubt there will be other former players giving their opinions over the next fortnight before the first Ashes Test in Brisbane. Accusations, followed by counter claim, a few predictions then let’s get on with it and let cricket do the talking. 

I see Somerset have re-signed Alviro Petersen for next summer, nice one. As South Africa have no international commitments next summer, Alviro will be available for the majority of the 2014 campaign. Expect a lot of South Africans in County Cricket next summer me thinks.  

With the 2014 membership going on sale today (prices have been frozen), the news will no doubt encourage supporters to renew their membership, I know I will. Will 2014 be the year for Somerset? Just need to find a bowler who can take 70+ wickets, Jamie Overton, over to you. 

Ok, 5.27, skittles is back tonight, more Thatchers please.

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Predictions for the upcoming Ashes series please?  

The first Ashes Test starts in under four weeks time so we have plenty of time to make predictions: series score, leading batsmen, bowlers, England’s line-up etc.  

So here are my predictions for the forthcoming Ashes series: 

1. England will retain the Ashes.

2. Australia will win at least one Test match – probably in Perth.

3. David Warner will attempt to make peace with Joe Root, but he can get stuffed as far as I’m concerned.

4. There will be no urinating on the SCG pitch after the 5^th Test.

5. Steve Finn will play in Perth and will knock over the stumps in his delivery stride.

6. Kevin Pietersen will be the leading run scorer – he is due a huge series.

7. DRS will be used poorly by both sides.

8. I will attempt to watch the first day of the first Ashes Test on my iPhone but will fall asleep by lunch time.

9. England will win the toss at Brisbane and will bat, so no more Steve Harmison / Nasser Hussain rubbish.

10. Nearly all the commentators will say that Adelaide is one of the most picturesque grounds in the world.

11. It will be raining in England while the sun beats down in Sydney, making me contemplate my plans for next winter. 

Ok, 11 to go on with, there will no doubt be more to come from various sources over the weeks leading up to the first Test. But the most important XI will be who will start for England in Brisbane. 

For me there are two places up for grabs, the number six position and the third seamer spot. The other nine places have somewhat picked themselves, just hope there is no complacency within the ranks. 

Alastair Cook will open with Root, Jonathan Trott at three followed by Pietersen and then Ian Bell. It will be either Jonny Bairstow or Gary Ballance at six, which will probably go to Bairstow, but it should be Ballance. Matt Prior at seven, followed by Stuart Broad (why?), Graeme Swann, Jimmy Anderson and then one other. 

Three players are in contention for the one other spot: Steve Finn, Chris Tremlett and Boyd Rankin. I would off thought that Finn will get the nod over the other two, but he did have a bad summer against the Aussies, so he is not really nailed on to start. 

England have three four day warm-up games before the first Test, starting on Thursday in Perth, which is about right, not too many and not too little so as to be undercooked. So no doubt the trio of seamers will be busting a gut to get the nod for Brisbane. Only, 23 more sleeps before the first Test, not that I’m counting, come on England! 

I also see that the Vatican City has launched its own cricket club and is looking to play a Church of England XI next year at Lord’s (how apt). I wonder if Adam GilCHRIST will play! –The best I could do, can you do better?  

Ok, enough of that, it’s 5.27ish, no skittles tonight, so no Thatchers at the Cottage. Will have to watch University Challenge instead!

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

The English cricket team will soon be jetting off to Australia to defend the greatest prize in sport – The Ashes. But can you cast your minds back to January 2003, in fact January 2^nd – 6^th 2003, a Test match to remember - Australia v England at Sydney, the 5^th Test.

With Britain in the grips of a big freeze, I had just come off Bondi Beach after an early morning dip, well getting rid of my New Year’s hangover, and a journey to the SCG beckoned.

England were already 4-0 down in the series and the Aussies could sense a whitewash, so a dead rubber with hell of a lot to play for, in fact a very exciting Test unfolded, with incident on and off the pitch.

Day 1 – England won the toss, decided to bat, lost two early wickets, Nasser Hussain and Mark Butcher resumed some control, with Butcher smashing a ton. England closed on 264-5. That’s enough about the cricket. My ticket for day one was for the infamous Sydney Hill area of the ground and on a hot day liquids had to be consumed. I did part-take in a few watered down lagers and so did a few hundred Aussies and English. So much so by the last session all you could see was beer snakes and a lot of jollity. This continued after the close all the way down to Sydney Harbour in the evening.

Day 2 – “Ticket for non-alcohol stand please!”  – As hangovers go, this one was quite horrendous, was dehydrated, head thumping, it was baking hot and the only seats available in the shade were in the non-alcohol stand, which was fine by me. Plenty of water and ice-cream and by mid afternoon I soon perked up. Thankfully I did as an enthralling days Test cricket developed. England battled their way to 362 all out. Andy Caddick then turned up the heat taking three Aussie wickets and there were only 50 on the board – England could smell blood.

However, the number five batsman was Steve Waugh – cometh the hour, cometh the man. Waugh dug in, and quietly started to consume runs. Two more wickets fell; the Aussies were on 150-5. In any normal Test side if five wickets are down you are usually into the tail or one wicket away from the tail, but not Australia as Adam Gilchrist walked to the wicket. These two started to compile runs, and compile them quickly. 

Waugh passed 10,000 Test runs, and as the day drew to a close a century beckoned for Waugh. The noise rose, every run for Waugh was cheered immensely. On his home ground, the Australian captain drove the final ball of the day from Richard Dawson to the cover boundary to complete his 29th Test hundred, equalling Sir Donald Bradman's record. The Aussies closed on 237-5, still behind but back in the game.

On leaving the ground that evening I had to pass the Sydney Hill, and there were a lot of drunken Aussies. All you could here was “Steve Waugh, Steve Waugh” being shouted to any Englishman who walked by, combined with the smell of BO, alcohol and urine, exiting the ground that day will be one I would never forget.

Day 3 – Saturday – Got a ticket from tout, something I wouldn’t usually do, as the demand to get in that day was very high especially from Aussie public. After purchasing my ticket, I noticed the date was for the previous days play. I grabbed the tout, asked for money back, a face value ticket for today or I would get the police involved. Funnily enough he agreed!

With all these Aussies cramming in to see Waugh push on, they were soon heartbroken as he was out in the second over of the day. Gilchrist shouldered on, he smashed the ball all round the park, he made 133 and the Aussies were all out for 363.

England’s response was quite remarkable, some backbone which was sorely missing in the first four Tests, they closed on 218-2, with Michael Vaughan unbeaten on 112. But my biggest memory of the day was this family of five sitting in the row behind. They all got ejected for being too drunk, all five of them, and did we give them a very English send off.

Day 4 – Back in the non-alcohol stand – No more touts, went to the ticket office and the only seats left were for you know where! Vaughan continued where he left off the previous day, and when he was out for 183, England were already 344 runs ahead. One thing I do remember about that innings was the six Vaughan hit into the crowd. This spectator caught the ball leaning over a safety rail, however the momentum took him over and he ended up in a heap at the bottom of these stairs – ouch! England declared on 452-9, setting the Aussies an unlikely 452 for victory, but anything could happen in this Test. The Aussies closed on 90-3.

Day 5 – Ladies Stand – Yep, in the Ladies Stand, the members enclosure, how? Well got a bit lucky. However the day belonged to Somerset’s Andy Caddick. He took five wickets on the day, including the dangerous Waugh, seven in the innings and 10 in the match, leading England to victory. Unknown to him at the time this would be his last Test for England – very harsh indeed.

After all that excitement, is now 5.27, time to get ready for skittles.

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

I would like to start by wishing Over Stowey cricketer Rhys Satchell a speedy recovery from his horrendous car accident on Saturday morning. I know all from the Cricket Club and those from Bridgwater and Albion RFC wish him well.

Rhys was due to pick up an award on Saturday evening at the Cricket Club awards evening, most catches for the 2^nd team, but alas this was picked up by Phil Rich on his behalf, who promptly dropped it! Apparently there was talk on Saturday evening for a new award with Rhys in mind, most wides bowled in a season, thus Rhys would be a permanent winner of this award.

I know I haven’t done a blog for a few weeks, holidays and moving and since there has been a lot of going-on’s in the cricketing world. Four major things come to mind:

1. Somerset finished sixth in Division One of the County Championship, avoiding relegation, and thus sending down Derbyshire and Surrey.

2. Jos Buttler has buggered off to Lancashire – you can understand why.

3. Sachin Tendulkar has retired from all cricket.

4. Over Stowey held their Presentation Evening.

A lot has been said about the first two and there is a lot of divided opinion about Jos leaving Somerset.

As for Tendulkar, he was one of the greatest batsmen to play the game, smashing all sorts of records throughout his illustrious career. Apparently there are 1 billion number one Sachin Tendulkar fans in India; I wonder what they are going to do now! I have only seen the “Little Master” bat live once. It was at Taunton during the World Cup against Sri Lanka, he was out for single figures – I just can’t understand what all the fuss is about!

The Over Stowey presentation evening went with aplomb on Saturday evening, good food, good company, good cider, awards going to the right people and nearly everyone was thanked for their hard work throughout the year.

For me there were two awards which not only went to the right persons, but the two recipients’ thoroughly deserved to be recognised.

Firstly, Mark Sortwell, who won the 1^st Team Player of the Year award. He had a great season, all ways ever present, never lets the side down, scored runs and took catches. It is also a tribute for the hard work he has put in to his cricket over the years and to the work he has contributed towards the cricket club throughout; a much deserved award.

Secondly, Carl Woodley, who won the Players Player award. This award is special because it is voted for by his fellow players on the night – albeit Dave Rowsell who wrote out the slip and forgot to put it in the voting box. Carl has probably the most difficult job in the whole club: 2^nd XI captain. The position has a bit of a double whammy when it comes to team selection, not only does he lose players due to them dropping out at the last minute, he will also get a call from the 1^st XI captain saying he wants a player or two on a Saturday morning, leaving Carl to phone round to see if he can get eleven players. I know how he feels, having been 2^nd team captain for a few seasons, but mobile phones weren’t invented then.

Carl would select his side for Saturday the previous weekend, with a list of players he could call upon if players drop out. When it comes to match day he would have nine different names in his starting XI. Thankfully he hasn’t had to go to number 42 on his list, yours truly!

Anyway, 7.27pm, time for skittles and a pint of Thatchers or two!

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Surrey are relegated, national holiday follows, well celebrating in the streets of Somerset instead. Goodbye Gareth Batty, you’ll not be missed – unless there is another twist to the tale.

With time being lost during the Surrey match against Warwickshire and with relegation looming, “Money bags” Surrey managed to persuade Warwickshire to do some declarations, thus set up a run chase. Surrey knew the only way to have a chance of staying up was to win the match, and those declarations set up a run chase in which Surrey had to bowl out Warwickshire was the only way to do it. But it failed, as Warwickshire knocked off the runs.

It did leave me a bit bitter on Thursday to see what was happening, did the Warwickshire captain, Varun Chopra, understand the implications on other counties when he agreed to this? But it seems to me that he backed his batsmen to score the runs required and they did. Now, no favours for Derbyshire this week, please.

Yes, it’s the final round of matches this week, and with Durham winning the County Championship last week – well done to them – focus is now on who goes down. Derbyshire are in the relegation spot, 15 points adrift off Nottinghamshire and 16 off Somerset. So basically Derbyshire have to win, if they win then bonus points come in to play between all three counties. There are so many different scenarios, ifs and buts etc; there is even a scenario where all three teams could finish on the same points. I am sure we will have a better idea after the first innings have been completed, knowing who has scored what points, but who knows? Come on Somerset.

Ashes squad announced today – good to see Gary Ballance and Ben Stokes in the squad; why did they pick Monty Panesar and Michael Carberry? Also no place for Graham Onions and Nick Compton, did the selectors have a look at the County Cricket averages for 2013 before selecting the squad? Somehow I think not. Onions omission is crazy, top of the averages, taking wickets for fun which helped Durham win the County Championship, and surely he is better than Chris Tremlett and Boyd Rankin, surely? And surely Compo is a better opener in the longer form off the game than Carberry. “The door is not closed on Compton” - Yeah and I’m a Dutch virgin – to quote legsidelizzy on Twitter!

The Performance squad looks exciting, especially as they have picked some players worthy of the main squad itself, players like Moeen Ali, Chopra, Sam Robson and David Willey. Off course we must mention Jos Buttler and Jamie Overton who have also made that squad, well done guys, and Jos, just sign that new contract please.

Ok, that’s it from me for a couple of weeks – on holiday and then moving to Kilve. Don’t worry Rocket, only moving house, not moving my allegiances to another cricketing village, unless they give me a better offer!

5.27, time for a Thatchers before skittles. Have a good couple of weeks.

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Calculators at the ready, nails ready to be bitten, hold on for a bit of a rollercoaster over the next two weeks, Somerset’s 1^st Division status in the County Championship is in a little danger.

Victory against Surrey last week has helped immensely; especially as Derbyshire threw away their match against champions elect Durham. And with Nottinghamshire drawing against Middlesex, they have now been dragged into the relegation dogfight.

 

So let’s look at the relegation contenders and their run ins:

Surrey – Two games left, maximum points available 48, to play Warwickshire away and Yorkshire at home, likelihood of relegation: pretty much nailed on unless they do something which they have only done once all season – win and win convincingly. In other words goodbye and good riddance.

Derbyshire – One game left, maximum points available 24, to play Warwickshire at home, likelihood of relegation: out of their hands somewhat, a win with maximum bonus points will make things very interesting indeed.

Nottinghamshire – Two games left, maximum points available 48, to play Durham away and the mighty Somerset at home, likelihood of relegation: very unlikely I would say as they should pick up enough bonus points in their remaining games to be safe.

Somerset – One game left, maximum points available 24, to play Nottinghamshire away, likelihood of relegation: in the balance. If Surrey fail to win this week the mighty Set just need to pick up one more bonus point than Derbyshire to be sure. If Surrey do manage a win, then the calculators will be out again.

The other factor will be the weather and the forecast is a bit indifferent indeed this week. Looks like rain in Birmingham on Tuesday and Thursday (bad luck Surrey) and good weather in Durham.

The bookies, who know a thing or two, have made both Surrey and Derbyshire certainties for the drop, both 1-100 favourites, and both Somerset and Nottinghamshire 1-33, with all nearly all the good money going on the former.

Anyway, enough of that, I have a headache just thinking about it (or was that from Bomber’s stag party on Saturday), 5.27, Thatchers and skittles in The Cottage.

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

Is this the most important week in Somerset’s season thus far? After the disappointment in losing against Derbyshire in the County Championship last week, Somerset have two massive games this week, starting with a YB40 semi-final against Nottinghamshire today, well in about 10 minutes, followed by a must win County Championship against Surrey.

Two victories this week may still not be enough to save their season, but will go some way in repairing in it.

I am not one to have a Spanish Inquisition in to why Somerset lost against Derby last week, unlike some others on the social media websites; in fact they nearly turned the game around on its head and forced victory. This shows some good fighting spirit, which they will need over the coming weeks, but the damage was done in the first innings.

Marcus showed some great faith in his side in winning the toss and deciding to bat. The old adage in sticking a side in during the month of September was thrown out of the window, but instead, get a big score in the first innings and let the spinners do the work, especially a quality spinner in the guise of Piyush Chawla.

Steve Waugh, who was one of the best captains in the modern era even though he is an Aussie, always backed his team – ok he did have a bunch of world class players at his disposal, but they still had to come up with the goods. I remember one Test in India, it was a misty morning, perfect for bowling, Waugh won the toss and batted, which bemused nearly every expert, critic alike. But Waugh knew two things. One, get through the first session, the sun will break through and it would be wonderful batting conditions. And secondly, the pitch will deteriorate quickly and would be perfect for spin; who did Waugh have in his side, Shane Warne. Runs vital, batting first vital, and it worked, the Aussies won.

That game against Derby, I believed Somerset had done enough in the second innings to win the game. However it took a world class player, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, to dent Somerset’s victory march and lead Derbyshire to a vital win, just.

Ok, tonight’s match and a trip to Lord’s to face Glamorgan in the final beckons. Pete Trego and Steve Kirby back from injury, Jamie Overton released by England (Jos Buttler isn’t, what’s the difference?), nearly at full strength. Nottinghamshire are favourite to win according to the bookmakers, so were Hampshire on Saturday, no pressure there then.

So a long afternoon is assured, ebbs and flows no doubt, and the final few overs of the game will be bowled while I am playing skittles, oh Skygo, how I do like you as an app.

Right, 4.00, time for you know what, come on Somerset!

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

As batting performance go, Aaron Finch’s 156 was one of the most remarkable I have seen for some time. It was just literally raining sixes, as he smashed 14 maximums in total – and quite disappointedly I didn’t see one being caught by a spectator.

For once in my cricketing life I felt myself semi-cheering on that Aussie for him to hit a double century – the games effectively lost anyway.

I suppose we had to let the Aussies win one token match this summer, a T20 match is not a bad one to lose, especially the way just took the English bowling apart – Joe Root’s over didn’t quite go to plan, only 27 came off it. And why oh why do England still pick Ravi Bopara? Poor bowling, with painful batting, he is just not good enough to play for England; there are much better players out in the Shires who can do far better than Bopara, to be fair it is not exactly difficult.

So England wrap up the Ashes Test series with a draw at the Oval and thus retaining the Urn by three Tests to nil. Some might say that the score flattered England a bit, but for me England were the better team by far in all departments. Thoughts now turn to the trip down under and who will be in the touring party. Somehow I can’t see Simon Kerrigan making the trip, perhaps time back in the Lions will suit him while he get his confidence back. England will need to take another spinner to back up Graeme Swann, but who Monty? Treadwell?

The top five batsmen we saw at the Oval will be the same for the first Test in Brisbane, but who will go in at number six? Recall for Jonny Bairstow? Keep with Chris Woakes? Or take a punt on Gary Ballance.

The three mentioned should go on the plane, but Ballance is guy who has been scoring a shed load off runs for both Yorkshire and the Lions. His opportunity surely must come this winter. It is also healthy to have competition like this, not only for the number six slot, but also to keep the top five on their toes.

With regards to the seamers, I just hope Tim Bresnan is back fit, he is the perfect foil for Jimmy Anderson and we can then drop Stuart Broad (only a personal thing). Chris Tremlett should also be on the plane along with Graham Onions.

But anyway, just my thoughts, there are still four weeks of the County Championship season left, and Somerset have some must win games coming up if they remain in Division One. They have three games left, Derbyshire this week, followed by Surrey and then Nottinghamshire in the last week of the season.

With Somerset hammering Middlesex last week, a much needed win, victory over the bottom two sides over the next two weeks surely should be enough to keep them up. However both Derby and Surrey are also fighting for their lives, so there should be interesting cricket being played over the next few weeks. Another factor is that Somerset will be without both Jamie Overton and Jos Buttler, as they have been selected to play for England in the One Day Series against Ireland and Australia. Good luck to you both, but I wish they had a Somerset shirt on instead of an England one.

In the middle of all this County Championship action Somerset has a YB40 semi-final coming up against Nottinghamshire next Monday evening. Nervous times ahead, just try being a Somerset supporter, they certainly put you through the emotions somewhat.

It is really difficult to comprehend that the 2013 season is nearly over; Over Stowey has just one game left to play and that will be that for the year. It feels like the season has only just started. We do have a few things to look forward to: presentation evening, AGM to name just two.

Oh well, it is skittles season now, and guess what we start tonight. So at 5.27, time for a warm up pint before the trip to Stogumber.

Sellsy's Monday Supplement

I have heard some reasons before for non-selection, but, to quote: “the club’s insurance won’t cover you!” is one I have never heard before.

 

Having made myself available for the first time this season for Over Stowey’s home fixture against Buckland St Mary I found out that I wasn’t picked for the reason stated by the club’s Chairman. Ok, admittedly I am nowhere near match fit (to be fair not even fit), plus there was an abundance of players to choose from, I was somewhat bemused or even amused by the above reason.

A couple of pints of cider later I was soon laughing about it and I wondered if there are any other bizarre reasons why players have not been picked? Something to look up over the coming weeks. But hey, both Over Stowey games were called off at the weekend, so it didn’t really matter anyway.

One thing I found quite unbelievable at the weekend is how many league games Over Stowey have left, three for the 1^st XI, and just two for the 2^nd’s. Where has the season gone? It feels like it has only just started, thankfully a lot more games have been played this season, and the club managed to hold its annual outdoor fund raising event plus hold the League KO Cup Final. So, yes, a lot of cricket played, probably that’s why it went past so quick.

Off course Somerset play on right until the end of September, a very crucial period indeed. Survival in the County Championship must be paramount and there are still five games to be played, starting tomorrow away to Warwickshire. I know they have a chance to reach a Lord’s final, and I expect they would like to win every game they play – winning becomes a habit – but surely priority must be given to County Championship. The signing off Indian leg spinning all rounder Piyush Chawle may help, he needs to hit the ground running and take hatful of wickets asap, but has his visa been granted? I suppose victory against Gloucestershire next Monday may be a welcome distraction, and that will be enough to see Somerset through to the semis.

On the subject of finals, well done to Northamptonshire who won the T20 final on Saturday, destroying, in fact hammering Surrey late on Saturday night. What was even more pleasing was to see Jade ‘Girls Name’ Dernbach being smashed all around Birmingham by David Willey, Alex Wakely and former Somerset player Cameron White.

I am surprised Willey hasn’t been called up by England, however what he said about Dernbach after made me smile. To quote: “I don’t particularly like the bloke; he made an idiot of himself.” Yes we agree here in Somerset.

It’s well known that I, along with quite a few Somerset supporters, am not great fans of Surrey. Pinching our CEO, the manner that they beat us in the Lord’s final a couple of seasons ago, Gareth Batty and the one that really gets my goat is the deserter Zander de Bruyn.

The 2010 season is one I would never forget, Somerset going in to the last game off the season needing a win to make sure of their first County Championship, but du Bruyn buggered off to South Africa to play in some Mickey Mouse competition. ZDB had the knack of picking up wickets when it mattered and it showed that was sorely missed during the second innings against Durham, when not only did Durham score runs, they also took tome out off the game. Eventually Durham was all out, leaving the mighty Set an impossible target to chase down as they didn’t have enough overs or time to win. With that Nottinghamshire won the league by virtue of winning more games.

Ok, 7.50, time for a cider.  I think not, am on a diet!