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NOTTS RELEGATED
A very professional batting performance from Middlesex saw them get home by five wickets and in turn deservedly relegate Notts.
A very professional batting performance from Middlesex saw them get home by five wickets and in turn deservedly relegate Notts.
Jake Ball apart, Notts never really looked like getting a wicket today on a wicket that never really deteriorated. What was disappointing though was how easily Notts heads dropped once more and with disappointing ground fielding very much on the agenda. Peter Moores has a lot of work on his hands this winter to improve what looks a very bedraggled team.
Gurney and Ball opened up but carried no real threat. Tahir replaced Ball from the Radcliffe Road for the seventh over of the morning. In the eleventh over of the morning a chance was created as Eskinazi on 17 edged Gurney to Brendan Taylor at first slip who grassed an easy chance. Ball then switched ends and in his first over Eskinazi (30) edged him as Read took the catch, after an hour of hard toil a wicket had finally fell, 92 for four. Simpson then edged Ball through the slips just short of Mullaney. Compton got to a chanceless half century and then when went for a quick single off Tahir but Ball missed with his throw at the stumps. Patel replaced Tahir from the Radcliffe Road End and Compton hit the ball to Libby at mid wicket, Simpson sent him back and despite Libby's throw being above Read's head Compton was adjudged run out by umpire Millns. Compton out for 63 off 171 balls with six fours. Compton and Simpson had added 54 in 13 overs, as Notts heads had started to drop. Middlesex got to lunch on 151 for five with Simpson on 29 and Franklin on 0, it had been their morning.
There was no joy after lunch Tahir still could not get one to turn and the bowling became increasingly poor. Franklin and Simpson waited for the bad ball and put it away. Middlesex got home at 1426 by five wickets with Simpson on 58 and Franklin on 54. They had added an unbroken 89 in 25 overs for the sixth wicket. Jake Ball finished with 4 for 54, the rest of the bowling carried little menace. Another depressing day in a depressing season.
It was announced that Ben Kitt and Greg Smith have been awarded two year contracts covering the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Greg Smith is seen by the management as a white ball specialist who has potential in the longer format. He did score a 50 to guide Notts to victory in their sole championship win of the season, but following this never played a convincing red ball innings. Whether any team changes will be made for Taunton in 10 days time is very much open to debate but the batting continues to under perform with both Lumb and Taylor fortunate to still be in the championship team. MAG
MIDDLESEX ON TRACK FOR WIN BUT...
Gurney and Ball opened up but carried no real threat. Tahir replaced Ball from the Radcliffe Road for the seventh over of the morning. In the eleventh over of the morning a chance was created as Eskinazi on 17 edged Gurney to Brendan Taylor at first slip who grassed an easy chance. Ball then switched ends and in his first over Eskinazi (30) edged him as Read took the catch, after an hour of hard toil a wicket had finally fell, 92 for four. Simpson then edged Ball through the slips just short of Mullaney. Compton got to a chanceless half century and then when went for a quick single off Tahir but Ball missed with his throw at the stumps. Patel replaced Tahir from the Radcliffe Road End and Compton hit the ball to Libby at mid wicket, Simpson sent him back and despite Libby's throw being above Read's head Compton was adjudged run out by umpire Millns. Compton out for 63 off 171 balls with six fours. Compton and Simpson had added 54 in 13 overs, as Notts heads had started to drop. Middlesex got to lunch on 151 for five with Simpson on 29 and Franklin on 0, it had been their morning.
There was no joy after lunch Tahir still could not get one to turn and the bowling became increasingly poor. Franklin and Simpson waited for the bad ball and put it away. Middlesex got home at 1426 by five wickets with Simpson on 58 and Franklin on 54. They had added an unbroken 89 in 25 overs for the sixth wicket. Jake Ball finished with 4 for 54, the rest of the bowling carried little menace. Another depressing day in a depressing season.
It was announced that Ben Kitt and Greg Smith have been awarded two year contracts covering the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Greg Smith is seen by the management as a white ball specialist who has potential in the longer format. He did score a 50 to guide Notts to victory in their sole championship win of the season, but following this never played a convincing red ball innings. Whether any team changes will be made for Taunton in 10 days time is very much open to debate but the batting continues to under perform with both Lumb and Taylor fortunate to still be in the championship team. MAG
MIDDLESEX ON TRACK FOR WIN BUT...
On a sunny but windy morning Libby and Mullaney added a further 38 runs to the overnight score before Libby playing with the bat away from his body edged a ball from Roland-Jones straight into Simpson's gloves. Libby made 18 off 41 balls with two fours, 62 for one. Rayner came on just before lunch and in his third over had Mullaney leg before for 64 (104 balls with nine fours), 106 for two. Moores who played a glorious straight drive for 4 then edged one through the slips off Roland-Jones as Notts got to lunch on 114 for 2 with Moores on 23 and Lumb on 4.
Fifteen minutes after lunch, a sloppy shot from Moores (28) off Rayner saw him caught at short third man, the youngster getting a leading edge trying to play to leg, 121 for three. A shocking shot from Michael Lumb saw him slash a wide one from Finn and depart caught behind for 16, 141 for four. Another failure for Brendan Taylor followed as he was out leg before to Finn for 17, 162 for five. Taylor who never seems to get runs when needed had played too many loose shots but to be fair he was undone by a good ball from the Watford born pace man, full and straight and too good for the Zimbabwean who was trying to flick it to leg. Another capitulation was on the cards as Read edged Finn to second slip to depart for an eight ball duck, 164 for six. Roland-Jones who was bowling well off his long run up from the Pavilion End removed Patel's off stump, Samit out for 36, 193 for seven. Jake Ball was then leg before swinging across the line to Rayner, departing for an 18 ball 4, 200 for eight. Tahir hit the last ball from Rayner before tea for a straight six, Notts 212 for eight Hutton on 12 and Tahir on 11.
After tea, Tahir got to 15 when chancing his arm he was caught at wide long on by Roland-Jones off Rayner, 230 for nine. Hutton went for two off Finn but Gurney not the fastest runner was well short of his ground, Gurney run out 1. Hutton who batted intelligently finished on 32 not out off 85 balls with three fours. Notts 240 all out. As is the first innings Middlesex concentrated on line and length and bowled well but too many Notts batsman threw their wickets away. Rayner finished with four for 83 and Finn three for 57.
With the pitch showing little signs of wear Middlesex faced a relatively simple target of 235 to win. Twenty one overs were left in the day's play. Sam Robson elected not to take the first ball from Jake Ball this time round as Gubbins fell first ball edging into Read's gloves. Compton avoided a king pair and hit his second ball through the covers for three. Off the first ball of the seventh over, Ball got one to move in, Robson shouldered arms and was bowled for two, 13 for two. Four overs later Ball picked up his third wicket as left hander Malan was plumb leg before for 11, unlike the first innings he headed straight back to the Pavilion, 25 for three. Ball was replaced by Gurney from the Radcliffe Road having got figures of 7-2-20-3. Compton and Eskinazi added 23 runs in the remaining 10 overs to the close. Jake Ball apart the rest of the Notts bowling was steady but not generally threatening although Tahir swopping ends to the Radcliffe Road got one delivery to Compton to turn sharply in the last over of the day. Food for thought as Middlesex stand on 48 for three overnight. Their state of mind and Ball's form next morning will decide the outcome of this contest. MAG
HUTTON AND BALL PIN BACK CHAMPIONSHIP CHALLENGERS
Championship challengers Middlesex faced a determined bowling effort from Notts today. The home side closed on 24 for 0 with a lead of 18 after a passive batting effort from Middlesex saw them accumulate 247 all out at a scoring rate of just 2.59 RPO. Brett Hutton and Jake Ball in particular put in lion hearted bowling performances with the latter taking five for 66 and Hutton three for 54.
How Ball has been sadly missed for large chunks of the season.
Ball and Gurney opened up on another sunny morning but struggled to make a breakthrough. Read turned to Hutton to replace Gurney from the Pavilion End and with his fourth ball had Malan (13) leg before pinned on his stumps. The left hander was reluctant to depart presumably he thought he got a bit of bat on it, Middlesex 39 for four. Play though throughout the rest of the morning was very turgid as Middlesex decided to preserve wickets as they got to lunch on 65 for 4 off 39 overs.
Middlesex accelerated slightly after lunch but 15 minutes after the resumption Tahir bowled Eskinazi for 35, 81 for five. Gubbins and Simpson added 57 in 20 overs before Hutton removed Simpson's off stump for 27. Gubbins got to 50 in 187 balls, a very slow innings but invaluable to his team. Middlesex crawled to tea on 158 for six off 71 overs with Gubbins on 56 and Franklin on 11. Gubbins and Franklin took the score onto 197 until Gubbins' Tavaresque innings finally ended when he edged Hutton into Read's gloves. Gubbins had made 75 off 226 balls with seven fours. The wicket fell in the second over with the new ball. In the 91st over captain James Franklin fell to a catch at third man by Tahir off Ball. The former Notts man had made 40 off 91 balls with four boundaries, 227 for eight. The tail for once did not really hang around Roland-Jones was caught and bowled above his head by Jake Ball for 17. Ball having bowled a seven over spell limped off, presumably suffering with cramp. Finn got to ten before being bowled middle stump by Tahir (two for 61). Middlesex 247 all out with a lead of six having collected a solitary batting point. Murtagh six not out.
With the floodlights on Notts openers Mullaney and Libby managed to negotiate the final five overs as Notts closed on 24 for nought with Mullaney on 20 and Libby on 4. Notts had a satisfying day but the day as a whole will not linger much in the memory. Middlesex were just determined not to take any risks, but they paid the price for this lack of adventure. MAG
BALL BAGS A HAT TRICK, PATEL STARS WITH THE BAT AND PETER MOORES GETS A NEW JOB AT THE END OF THE MONTH
A tremendous first over hat trick from Jake Ball and a century from Samit Patel were the highlights on the first day of the last home championship game against Middlesex. However, the big news of the day was the rearrangement of the club furniture with the appointment of Peter Moores as head coach on a three year contract and Mick Newell taking a more ambassadorial role but keeping his job title. The future of the remaining plethora of coaches was not mentioned in the club press release which was posted on social media 30 minutes after the start of today's play. Moores promises more opportunities for younger players which is the way forward. He must also urgently address general team fitness which has lagged behind other counties in recent times.
Moores has an excellent CV at County level so must be given time, whether Notts should have gone for a younger coach is open to conjecture. Let's see what happens in the next few seasons.
On a sunny morning Middlesex decided to bowl; so no toss was required. In came Ball and Hutton and out went Fletcher and Wood from the line up used at the Riverside. Notts went into the game needing maximum point victories to stand any chance of avoiding the drop, but history was against them as their September championship record since 2009 stood at two wins, eight draws and 12 defeats.
Libby (5) was out to the first ball of the third over as he edged Murtagh to Robson at first slip, 11 for one. Finn replaced Murtagh from the Radcliffe Road End and removed the leg stump of the young left hander Tom Moores for 16, 35 for two in the 13th over. In his fourth over Finn had Mullaney (22) caught slashing outside off stump, Rayner taking the catch at second slip, 56 for three. Mullaney was presented the player of the month award during the luncheon interval. Notts managed to get to break without losing a further wicket, going to the interval on 74 for three with Lumb on 17 and Taylor on 10.
Forty minutes after lunch Michael Lumb (23 off 88 balls with three fours) fell to a reflex catch at silly point by Nick Gubbins, the left hander not for the first time falling to a spinner, Ollie Rayner the bowler, 87 for four. An indiscriminate shot saw the end of Brendan Taylor as he fell to a catch in the covers by Gubbins running forward, Roland-Jones the bowler. Taylor had made 30 off 70 balls with five fours, 117 for five. Patel and Read added 49 runs for the sixth wicket until Rayner who had just replaced Finn from the Radcliffe Road End bowled a short and wide ball to Read, the skipper hitting it straight to Murtagh at backward point. Yet another wicket had been thrown away Read gone for 24, 166 for six. Patel at least was giving entertainment to the fair sized crowd on a hot September day and he got to tea on 55 with Brett Hutton on two, Notts 181 for six.
The light was deteriorating after tea and the floodlights were switched on and Finn returned from the Pavilion End. Hutton was clearly struggling against his extra pace and Finn removed him with his third ball caught behind for 10 by Simpson. Hutton at least had shown some fight facing 61 balls, 204 for seven. Enter the rabbits, Patel decided to up the ante and hit Rayner for a six over extra cover, but in the same over Ball was caught behind off the off spinner for one, 219 for eight. The new ball was taken after two balls of the 81st over. Samit Patel got to his chanceless ton with a leg side four of Finn but perished in the same over caught on the square leg ropes by Dawid Malan. Patel 100 off 137 balls with 16 fours and one six, whilst all around him had failed, 237 for nine. What a shame Patel cannot be more consistent when he shows form like this. Imran Tahir (5) perished to a wild slash to third man as Murtagh took his first wicket of the innings. Notts 241 all out with Gurney one not out. Patel apart no batsman made a meaningful contribution on a good batting surface where a score of 400 would be considered par. Middlesex had bowled with great discipline sticking to the virtues of line and length which came straight out of the Angus Fraser coaching manual. Finn bowling fast finished with four for 54 and Rayner three for 46.
Middlesex had seven overs to bat but the championship contenders were rocked by a sensational opening over from Jake Ball from the Radcliffe Road End. Off the third ball Sam Robson edged a fine delivery to Mullaney at second slip. Next ball night watchman Ollie Rayner was adjudged leg before. The two wickets seemed to have taken the away dressing room by surprise Compton eventually emerged and immediately called for replacement gloves; we will never know whether the Brylcream was actually applied or not. After all the delay the crowd was in a frenzy clapping with excitement and they were not disappointed as Compton was leg before without playing a shot. Jake Ball had taken the first Trent Bridge hat trick by a Notts player since a 18 year old General took the Warwickshire middle order out in July 1997 (Trevor Penney, Dougie Brown and Graeme Welch). Middlesex 0 for three. How Notts have missed Ball who has spent most of the summer carrying the drinks for England. He picked a leg injury and although staying on the pitch only bowled one further over. Hutton opened from the Radcliffe Road End and Notts turned to Gurney and because of the poor light the two spinners Tahir and Patel. Middlesex closed on nine for three with Gubbins on there and Malan on four. They trail Notts by 232 runs. All in all an eventual day to say the least and with the temperature hitting 24 degrees Celsius too. MAG
Ball and Gurney opened up on another sunny morning but struggled to make a breakthrough. Read turned to Hutton to replace Gurney from the Pavilion End and with his fourth ball had Malan (13) leg before pinned on his stumps. The left hander was reluctant to depart presumably he thought he got a bit of bat on it, Middlesex 39 for four. Play though throughout the rest of the morning was very turgid as Middlesex decided to preserve wickets as they got to lunch on 65 for 4 off 39 overs.
Middlesex accelerated slightly after lunch but 15 minutes after the resumption Tahir bowled Eskinazi for 35, 81 for five. Gubbins and Simpson added 57 in 20 overs before Hutton removed Simpson's off stump for 27. Gubbins got to 50 in 187 balls, a very slow innings but invaluable to his team. Middlesex crawled to tea on 158 for six off 71 overs with Gubbins on 56 and Franklin on 11. Gubbins and Franklin took the score onto 197 until Gubbins' Tavaresque innings finally ended when he edged Hutton into Read's gloves. Gubbins had made 75 off 226 balls with seven fours. The wicket fell in the second over with the new ball. In the 91st over captain James Franklin fell to a catch at third man by Tahir off Ball. The former Notts man had made 40 off 91 balls with four boundaries, 227 for eight. The tail for once did not really hang around Roland-Jones was caught and bowled above his head by Jake Ball for 17. Ball having bowled a seven over spell limped off, presumably suffering with cramp. Finn got to ten before being bowled middle stump by Tahir (two for 61). Middlesex 247 all out with a lead of six having collected a solitary batting point. Murtagh six not out.
With the floodlights on Notts openers Mullaney and Libby managed to negotiate the final five overs as Notts closed on 24 for nought with Mullaney on 20 and Libby on 4. Notts had a satisfying day but the day as a whole will not linger much in the memory. Middlesex were just determined not to take any risks, but they paid the price for this lack of adventure. MAG
BALL BAGS A HAT TRICK, PATEL STARS WITH THE BAT AND PETER MOORES GETS A NEW JOB AT THE END OF THE MONTH
A tremendous first over hat trick from Jake Ball and a century from Samit Patel were the highlights on the first day of the last home championship game against Middlesex. However, the big news of the day was the rearrangement of the club furniture with the appointment of Peter Moores as head coach on a three year contract and Mick Newell taking a more ambassadorial role but keeping his job title. The future of the remaining plethora of coaches was not mentioned in the club press release which was posted on social media 30 minutes after the start of today's play. Moores promises more opportunities for younger players which is the way forward. He must also urgently address general team fitness which has lagged behind other counties in recent times.
Moores has an excellent CV at County level so must be given time, whether Notts should have gone for a younger coach is open to conjecture. Let's see what happens in the next few seasons.
On a sunny morning Middlesex decided to bowl; so no toss was required. In came Ball and Hutton and out went Fletcher and Wood from the line up used at the Riverside. Notts went into the game needing maximum point victories to stand any chance of avoiding the drop, but history was against them as their September championship record since 2009 stood at two wins, eight draws and 12 defeats.
Libby (5) was out to the first ball of the third over as he edged Murtagh to Robson at first slip, 11 for one. Finn replaced Murtagh from the Radcliffe Road End and removed the leg stump of the young left hander Tom Moores for 16, 35 for two in the 13th over. In his fourth over Finn had Mullaney (22) caught slashing outside off stump, Rayner taking the catch at second slip, 56 for three. Mullaney was presented the player of the month award during the luncheon interval. Notts managed to get to break without losing a further wicket, going to the interval on 74 for three with Lumb on 17 and Taylor on 10.
Forty minutes after lunch Michael Lumb (23 off 88 balls with three fours) fell to a reflex catch at silly point by Nick Gubbins, the left hander not for the first time falling to a spinner, Ollie Rayner the bowler, 87 for four. An indiscriminate shot saw the end of Brendan Taylor as he fell to a catch in the covers by Gubbins running forward, Roland-Jones the bowler. Taylor had made 30 off 70 balls with five fours, 117 for five. Patel and Read added 49 runs for the sixth wicket until Rayner who had just replaced Finn from the Radcliffe Road End bowled a short and wide ball to Read, the skipper hitting it straight to Murtagh at backward point. Yet another wicket had been thrown away Read gone for 24, 166 for six. Patel at least was giving entertainment to the fair sized crowd on a hot September day and he got to tea on 55 with Brett Hutton on two, Notts 181 for six.
The light was deteriorating after tea and the floodlights were switched on and Finn returned from the Pavilion End. Hutton was clearly struggling against his extra pace and Finn removed him with his third ball caught behind for 10 by Simpson. Hutton at least had shown some fight facing 61 balls, 204 for seven. Enter the rabbits, Patel decided to up the ante and hit Rayner for a six over extra cover, but in the same over Ball was caught behind off the off spinner for one, 219 for eight. The new ball was taken after two balls of the 81st over. Samit Patel got to his chanceless ton with a leg side four of Finn but perished in the same over caught on the square leg ropes by Dawid Malan. Patel 100 off 137 balls with 16 fours and one six, whilst all around him had failed, 237 for nine. What a shame Patel cannot be more consistent when he shows form like this. Imran Tahir (5) perished to a wild slash to third man as Murtagh took his first wicket of the innings. Notts 241 all out with Gurney one not out. Patel apart no batsman made a meaningful contribution on a good batting surface where a score of 400 would be considered par. Middlesex had bowled with great discipline sticking to the virtues of line and length which came straight out of the Angus Fraser coaching manual. Finn bowling fast finished with four for 54 and Rayner three for 46.
Middlesex had seven overs to bat but the championship contenders were rocked by a sensational opening over from Jake Ball from the Radcliffe Road End. Off the third ball Sam Robson edged a fine delivery to Mullaney at second slip. Next ball night watchman Ollie Rayner was adjudged leg before. The two wickets seemed to have taken the away dressing room by surprise Compton eventually emerged and immediately called for replacement gloves; we will never know whether the Brylcream was actually applied or not. After all the delay the crowd was in a frenzy clapping with excitement and they were not disappointed as Compton was leg before without playing a shot. Jake Ball had taken the first Trent Bridge hat trick by a Notts player since a 18 year old General took the Warwickshire middle order out in July 1997 (Trevor Penney, Dougie Brown and Graeme Welch). Middlesex 0 for three. How Notts have missed Ball who has spent most of the summer carrying the drinks for England. He picked a leg injury and although staying on the pitch only bowled one further over. Hutton opened from the Radcliffe Road End and Notts turned to Gurney and because of the poor light the two spinners Tahir and Patel. Middlesex closed on nine for three with Gubbins on there and Malan on four. They trail Notts by 232 runs. All in all an eventual day to say the least and with the temperature hitting 24 degrees Celsius too. MAG
I cannot believe what I've just seen at Trent bridge!!! Jake ball hat-trick in the first over of middlesex innings!! Unreal!!
ReplyDeleteprobably the longest over ever recorded in county cricket too. Compo should have been timed out
Genius Jake Ball a brilliant hatrick but what was Nick Compton up to?
ReplyDeleteWithout a shadow of a doubt The highlight of the season
DeleteHopefully we may yet be proved wrong on Day 4 but the mid-afternoon capitulation once again summed up the 2016 season and gave the initiative to Middlesex. Well placed at lunch with only two wickets down, we should have been aiming for a lead of 300, yet by tea we were struggling for a lead of 250, being the equivalent of 98-6 during the session. As MAG's report states, too many wickets were needlessly thrown away (a fear of failure perhaps by being too cautious and then picking the wrong ball to attack). Whilst Jake Ball in both innings has kept us in the match, I suspect Nick Compton may have the last laugh by playing a match winning innings. We shall see on the last day of cricket at Trent Bridge in 2016.
ReplyDeleteIn the main in 2016, only one team has struggled batting at Trent Bridge on Day 4 (3,2,1 as well).
DeleteRelegation to Division 2 was confirmed just before 1430 after a poor bowling display (Jake Ball excluded) coupled with instances of sloppy fielding. Imran Tahir who was brought to the club to bowl sides out on the last day failed to take a wicket or gain any assistance from a used pitch. Now that relegation has been confirmed, the Somerset game should be used to blood youth and drop the likes of Lumb, Taylor and Gurney who have not delivered in this match. Peter Moores should take immediate control of the team so that planning for a return to Division 1 starts now and not on the 1st October.
ReplyDeleteCarter, Root, Smith, Kitt in for Lumb, Taylor, Gurney and Tahir?
DeleteWhy not, it doesn't matter now, although Tahir is likely to bag a bundle at spin city Taunton. The last pitch, where the Bears were beaten, was said to be dusty and green
DeleteWe've not supported Samit Patel's hundred in the first innings and we were casual with the bat in the second innings
ReplyDeleteRead more at http://www.nottinghampost.com/nottinghamshire-already-targeting-promotion-to-ease-the-shame-and-embarrassment-of-relegation/story-29701261-detail/story.html#9L17Q1JVs87fuDac.99
How many times have senior batsmen got out to casual shots this season - more times than than being got out, in some cases. But what do expect when they have continually been rewarded for sloppiness and being too casual by not being replaced in the next game. I hope Peter Moores has got some strong boots, there's a lot of arse kicking going to have to happen.
DeleteGeorge Dobell's account of today's play can be found at http://www.espncricinfo.com/county-cricket-2016/content/story/1055965.html that contains the observations
Delete"Might a few have simply become a little comfortable? There are some on this staff who are an odd shape for professional sportsmen - sumo wrestlers aside - and their fielding on the final day let down an attack who will at full strength (and Notts expect to have Stuart Broad available a fair bit at the start of next year) prove some way above anything else in Division Two next season."
The Gurney misfield today in front of the Fox Road had to be seen to be be believed. Inept is not a fitting description. He was clearly thinking about something else, may be pulling a few pints in his pub? Moores has a big task on his hands....
ReplyDeleteCricketer or Publican? Times have moved on since William Clarke.
DeleteEven after the initial misfield, he had plenty of time to stop it trickling over the boundary but just appeared to give up on it. He really needs to take a lot of wickets to compensate for his inept batting / fielding and running between the wickets.
DeleteHis mind is elsewhere, it's an exciting new venture, you know!
DeleteHe always does take lots of wickets to be fair! Leading wicket taker again this season with 77 wickets.
DeleteOnly 41 in the Championship, needed 5 more today.
DeleteOnly 41? Harry & Jake 84 between them, no one else close!
DeleteNo one is denying that 41 championship wickets is good, but it's not earth shattering. No one is saying he should be playing for England, those four balls in every over for most spells this summer - some spells more latterly have been with better control but having played most games in a dire season for the club, there's no way he can come out of it smelling of roses, more likely beer and fag smoke. How many championship wickets has the ordinary, reliable county standard bowler in Keith Barker taken, also in a struggling season? I'm going to check now, but I bet it's more than 41.
DeleteBarker 54
DeleteThe top two Bear wicket takers, combined have taken 118 so far - not that proves much, as they have struggled too.
The problem with bowling hasn't been with the new ball, it's the change bowlers after 15 overs or so.
Poor Fletcher has lost his mojo, perhaps he dropped it on the A52 when he went for that loan spell at Derby. Newell "blames" Hutton and Wood for not kicking on from last season, not that he gave Woody an opportunity until the season was down the toilet and team confidence was rock bottom. Hutton is always first choice to be dropped because he's less senior to the other drop candidates if and when Newell wanted to look a bad-ass ruthless manager of people. Worryingly, what happened with Riki Wessels - dropped and then forgotten - should have played at CLS.
This is a great 'blog' were we can exchange frank views with each other all because we care about NCCC. Nottsviewer raises some interesting points in his last comments. It's pretty obvious he dislikes and doesn't rate HG for some reason. His comment 'those four balls in EVERY over for MOST spells this summer' I am sure are pretty far wide of the mark and if investigated (sorry no time) I don't reckon would be any worse than the other bowlers (maybe even better who knows), his average of just over 3 certainly does not support that theory. The answer to the question of Luke Wood not being given a chance 'until the season was down the toilet' is because of course his long term injury problem during the first half of the season. Stress fracture or something similar I believe. To be fair MN would probably have loved to play him earlier. The RW situation is very puzzling I grant you.
DeleteIt will be interesting to see who is awarded 'Player of the Season', perhaps they should cancel it this year!
HG views above might well be a slight exaggeration so you might need to read more of the blog because HG is generally regarded well by myself and other contributors to Nottsview. Harry has been the "go to" bowler this season, too much so - we have missed a strike bowler. Jackson Bird was a poor choice of overseas player as he offered very little threat but his selection kept the likes of Luke Wood out of the side at the start of the campaign.
DeleteIf Luke Wood was "long term injured" at the beginning of the season, then it wasn't well publicised. His injury, from recollection, only became "known" once he had been selected for a squad because the Bird was having a "planned rest", and then had to drop out and that was 5 or 6 games into the season. In any case it was Mick Newell that was lamenting that LW hadn't progressed in 2016 - for either reason, injury or non-selection - same result.
The harsh words on HG were in part to provoke comment and discussion, which it has done.
Player of the season....... Jake Ball, no brainer?
Jake Ball certainly a strong candidate on his 4 day form but did he play enough games for Notts ? Spent a lot of the season twiddling his thumbs and wasting his time with England!
DeleteFrom a batting perspective, both Steven Mullaney and Samit Patel are close to a 1000 championship runs. For a makeshift opener, this would be a great achievement for Steven; an example of a player making the most of their ability through hard work and effort. A good example to others that have greater natural ability of what can be achieved with a bit of application.
DeleteResponsability of relegation lies firmly at the door of top six batters and not the odd miss field! It has been obvious for the past couple of seasons that our top six are of second division standard which does not bode well for promotion next season. You don't win cricket matches with totals of around 250 in the first innings. Batting points total this season have been worse than poor!
ReplyDeleteMost counties in Div 2 haven't got more than 2 half decent bowlers. Taylor will flourish and Lumb will be a world beater. Samit alas, will continue to infuriate and frustrate. Libby will be scoring centuries and Alex Hales will get his England test place back through the weight of runs scored, when he loses it this winter
DeleteYou also need bowlers to be able to take 20 wickets and in a number of cases we have not been able to achieve that. There have been a number of occasions where we have taken early wickets and had sides struggling (Warwickshire @ Trent Bridge, Yorkshire @ Scarborough, Middlesex @ Trent Bridge)only for them to recover. It's been an Achilles heel for a number of years that we cannot finish teams off; yet our own tail rarely wags; however yes the batsmen need to score a lot more runs as well - only a couple are close to 1000 championship runs.
DeleteHaven't replaced Andre Adams who didn't need a new ball to take wickets. We need to persist with the youngster while they learn their trade. That's where Peter the white elephant Siddle might be of use.
DeleteDecision in 2014 and in the subsequent seasons to recruit an overseas bowler for red ball cricket rather than a proven overseas top order batsman has been a disaster. A precession of failures presumably on big money Hilfenhaus, Philander, Bird all very poor! Only Siddle you could say partly earned his money after a slow start and should be useful next season in div2.
DeleteMick Newell's call
DeleteWith regard to batting,I consider Hutton could cement a place at either 6 or 7 next season.Unlike the majority of the top order,he values his wicket and has a reasonably sound technique as illustrated when facing Finn on Thursday.
ReplyDeleteYoung Carter should play more next season and Kitt should be given the chance to find his feet .
Wessels will probably return after ironing out his weaknesses on off stump ,but Lumb would be better served playing white ball cricket only.
I agree with those points
DeleteA big thank you again for operating this website and blog. No, we haven't adequately replaced those who moved on or retired. No excuses for:
ReplyDeletelack of fitness (physical and mental often go in tandem)
loss of concentration and poor shots gifting too many wickets especially at crucial times
bowlers haven't operated as a pack or even in pairs
bws
Chris S