1989/90 season. The first ever away series shown in full on UK TV. Young Lions are Gonna Roar was Sky's tagline. We'd dropped Botham and Gower and made Gooch captain. We won 1st Test in Jamaica (this photo) and should have won 3rd in Trinidad but for some shocking time wasting from stand in captain Des Haynes and rain. We also lost Gooch with a broken hand.
He knew it was coming as he mentioned it in his post match interview. It does seem crazy but something has to be done about over rates. Fines didn't work, can't say I know the answer. Penalty runs would be wrong imo.
Make the bowling side stay out there until they complete their overs. Just the bowling side mind you. Everyone else can go home. Even if it's dark or raining.
Then again I much prefer penaltly runs. In a right game you wouldn't want to be chasing an extra 20 or 30 runs. Funny how in 20/20 you see the fielding side running inbetween overs if they are on the clock so it must work.
Got my Guyanese best mate giving me grief over whatsapp. He's been looking forward to this series for ages but thought they was going to be on the wrong end of a hiding.
Got my Guyanese best mate giving me grief over whatsapp. He's been looking forward to this series for ages but thought they was going to be on the wrong end of a hiding.
Can’t get fella with cup in front of face at front or fella at back with hand in front of face and fella back left behind GG I recognise his face but can’t put a name to it aaaah
Can’t get fella with cup in front of face at front or fella at back with hand in front of face and fella back left behind GG I recognise his face but can’t put a name to it aaaah
Can’t get fella with cup in front of face at front or fella at back with hand in front of face and fella back left behind GG I recognise his face but can’t put a name to it aaaah
The physio Laurie Brown.
The Tommy Docherty Laurie Brown I assume.....
Unless I got the wrong end of the stick I thought it was Mary Brown that Docherty had the affair with.
But yes it was that Laurie Brown. And Docherty is still married to Mary.
Grim reading - England openers since Andrew Strauss retired (number of innings / average):
Cook - 144 / 42.5 (retired) Root - 11 / 41.7 (refuses to open) Haseeb Hameed - 5 / 32.0 (currently struggling to hold a place in Lancs 2nd team) Compton - 18 / 31.1 (retired) Robson - 11 / 30.5 (averaged 27.52 in the CC Div 2 last season) Carberry - 10 / 28.1 (retired) Stoneman - 20 / 27.7 Hales - 21 / 27.3 Burns - 10 / 26.1 Jennings - 29 / 25.9 Duckett - 4 / 23.0 Lyth - 13 / 20.4 Moeen Ali - 6 / 14.0 Trott - 6 / 12.0 (retired) Denly - 2 / 11.5
15 openers and either retired or simply not good enough. There's a big opening there for any young lad (or older ones such as Roy for example) who can demonstrate an aptitude to open.
The issue is that a number that have been identified have been offered the "cushion" of batting at 4 or 5 to avoid having to face the new ball in May and September which is when most of our CC matches are being played - in seam friendly conditions that suit medium pacers.
Roy is the next "cab off the rank" apparently. It looks like the management will throw anyone in regardless of suitability or experience regarding opening. As I said last season can Roy do any worse? What a mess. We now have months of T20's and ODI's and just two Tests before the Ashes, one on Saturday and one V Ireland.
Grim reading - England openers since Andrew Strauss retired (number of innings / average):
Cook - 144 / 42.5 (retired) Root - 11 / 41.7 (refuses to open) Haseeb Hameed - 5 / 32.0 (currently struggling to hold a place in Lancs 2nd team) Compton - 18 / 31.1 (retired) Robson - 11 / 30.5 (averaged 27.52 in the CC Div 2 last season) Carberry - 10 / 28.1 (retired) Stoneman - 20 / 27.7 Hales - 21 / 27.3 Burns - 10 / 26.1 Jennings - 29 / 25.9 Duckett - 4 / 23.0 Lyth - 13 / 20.4 Moeen Ali - 6 / 14.0 Trott - 6 / 12.0 (retired) Denly - 2 / 11.5
15 openers and either retired or simply not good enough. There's a big opening there for any young lad (or older ones such as Roy for example) who can demonstrate an aptitude to open.
The issue is that a number that have been identified have been offered the "cushion" of batting at 4 or 5 to avoid having to face the new ball in May and September which is when most of our CC matches are being played - in seam friendly conditions that suit medium pacers.
Grim reading - England openers since Andrew Strauss retired (number of innings / average):
Cook - 144 / 42.5 (retired) Root - 11 / 41.7 (refuses to open) Haseeb Hameed - 5 / 32.0 (currently struggling to hold a place in Lancs 2nd team) Compton - 18 / 31.1 (retired) Robson - 11 / 30.5 (averaged 27.52 in the CC Div 2 last season) Carberry - 10 / 28.1 (retired) Stoneman - 20 / 27.7 Hales - 21 / 27.3 Burns - 10 / 26.1 Jennings - 29 / 25.9 Duckett - 4 / 23.0 Lyth - 13 / 20.4 Moeen Ali - 6 / 14.0 Trott - 6 / 12.0 (retired) Denly - 2 / 11.5
15 openers and either retired or simply not good enough. There's a big opening there for any young lad (or older ones such as Roy for example) who can demonstrate an aptitude to open.
The issue is that a number that have been identified have been offered the "cushion" of batting at 4 or 5 to avoid having to face the new ball in May and September which is when most of our CC matches are being played - in seam friendly conditions that suit medium pacers.
Nick Compton in retrospect doesn't look too bad!
I think he knew the game was up when he found himself playing for the SLPCC last March - that's the Sri Lankan Ports Authority Cricket Club!
Now that I can’t get flagged.....ballance with a test average of 37 (only root has better out of the current squad) doesn’t look too bad. Him at 5 to steady the ship wouldn’t be any worse than what we have got.
Now that I can’t get flagged.....ballance with a test average of 37 (only root has better out of the current squad) doesn’t look too bad. Him at 5 to steady the ship wouldn’t be any worse than what we have got.
His overall average is slightly misleading though:
Against India at home, a poor West Indies side and Sri Lanka it is 70
Against New Zealand, South Africa and Australia (i.e. attacks that have pace) it is 17
Might as well say sod it, in for a penny and open with Roy and Hales, at least we would be 60 for 2 after ten overs not 16/2 as we have been.
Not unless we try to tell them to bat that way - when Hales played previously he was so concerned about not getting out that he would not hit balls that he could. And then, because of the scoreboard pressure that produced, he would go for something that wasn't there to hit and get out.
And it's not the way forward anyway. We want players who can occupy the crease and see off the new ball. If that means, as the West Indies were, being 30-0 off 20 overs then so be it.
Well I doubt that they are going to pick Leach unless the pitch looks totally different. So, if those three plus Rashid are all out, it would have to be Wood and Jennings - though I suspect that the latter would bat at 5 rather than muck Denly about.
But they would still have to pick Wood too otherwise our only seamers would be Broad, Anderson and Curran and the latter isn't threatening enough. That would also mean Wood batting at 8 followed by Broad, Leach and Anderson.
Foakes has been dropped which is slightly unfair on him. Stokes fit with Wood and Jennings in 12. Rather hope that they are going to play Wood and not Jennings but will Bairstow be batting at 3 and keeping wicket?
Comments
Then again I much prefer penaltly runs. In a right game you wouldn't want to be chasing an extra 20 or 30 runs. Funny how in 20/20 you see the fielding side running inbetween overs if they are on the clock so it must work.
He's been looking forward to this series for ages but thought they was going to be on the wrong end of a hiding. I reckon I can name 11 in that photo. What year was it? Late 80s? or was it early 90s?
But yes it was that Laurie Brown. And Docherty is still married to Mary.
Cook - 144 / 42.5 (retired)
Root - 11 / 41.7 (refuses to open)
Haseeb Hameed - 5 / 32.0 (currently struggling to hold a place in Lancs 2nd team)
Compton - 18 / 31.1 (retired)
Robson - 11 / 30.5 (averaged 27.52 in the CC Div 2 last season)
Carberry - 10 / 28.1 (retired)
Stoneman - 20 / 27.7
Hales - 21 / 27.3
Burns - 10 / 26.1
Jennings - 29 / 25.9
Duckett - 4 / 23.0
Lyth - 13 / 20.4
Moeen Ali - 6 / 14.0
Trott - 6 / 12.0 (retired)
Denly - 2 / 11.5
15 openers and either retired or simply not good enough. There's a big opening there for any young lad (or older ones such as Roy for example) who can demonstrate an aptitude to open.
The issue is that a number that have been identified have been offered the "cushion" of batting at 4 or 5 to avoid having to face the new ball in May and September which is when most of our CC matches are being played - in seam friendly conditions that suit medium pacers.
What a mess. We now have months of T20's and ODI's and just two Tests before the Ashes, one on Saturday and one V Ireland.
Against India at home, a poor West Indies side and Sri Lanka it is 70
Against New Zealand, South Africa and Australia (i.e. attacks that have pace) it is 17
And it's not the way forward anyway. We want players who can occupy the crease and see off the new ball. If that means, as the West Indies were, being 30-0 off 20 overs then so be it.