It is Saturday September 1st and I have had a good and varied life experience since returning from the Olympic Games in the first week of August. While my attention is already devoted to the Paralympics where the Opening Ceremony was on Wednesday and the building up events to the 50 Gold medal competitions being held or culminating today there has been non stop other sport over the past three weeks.
I begin with cricket. I booked to visit Nottingham to watch Durham play the County side and to visit family before the season commenced because of the opportunity to book some inexpensive Travel Lodge Accommodation. A month before departure I wondered if I would bother to attend the match as Durham had not won a game and appeared anchored at the bottom of the Championship Table. I heard members speculate that we could go though the season without winning a game. Just before setting off for the Olympics I had attended part of the home tie with Middlesex having gone to Lords for the match of season only for the weather to prevent a win and where Graham Onions demonstrated that he would become a bowling force over the season. At the home match I became irritated by one man who had I had not seen before who spent over half an hour slagging off the Durham team so I was delighted when he departed and expressed the wish that he did not hurry back to the applause of other members around me. I understood the pessimism after they had failed to win a game.
It was a close game against Middlesex which Durham won by 15 runs as the overs were coming to their end. Durham had made 102 in the first innings and Middlesex 185 a lead of some 60 runs. While Durham made 200 in their second innings this only left Middlesex to get less than 120 to win. That Durham bowled them out the same score as their first innings of 102 is testament of the progress made once Paul Collingwood was appointed Captain.
I missed the amazing win at Nottingham because I decided to return home at lunchtime when the game looked drawn and I wanted to watch the opening game of Newcastle’s season which was being shown on Sky. I thought I had made the right decision as travelling through Nottingham the rain poured forth but either it missed the ground or the delay was a brief one.
The highlight of the game was the bowling of Graham Onions on the second day and third day days. I went to the ground on the first day in the knowledge that the local forecast was persistent rain to commence at 1pm and at one pm persistent rain commenced and there was no further play. Notts had taken what appeared to be two curious decisions when first they played on an old wicket which looked as if it had been glued, the first time I or the Notts Members had seen this at a First Class County game. The second was to decide to bowl at Durham when common sense suggested that they ought to bat and let the Durham bowlers minus Onions do their worst.
Onions was at the Test Match wanting to know if he would be in the side. It was agreed in advance that if not, he would join his colleagues after lunch on the second day. Durham made 194 runs. Onions then had an amazing bowling spell spread over the afternoon and following morning in which he had his best ever figures taking 9 wickets for 67 runs of 16.3 overs. He also was the fielder who ran out the batsman for the remaining wicket. The lead of 40 runs was to prove important as it became evident that with sunshine the “old” wicket was becoming slower and even paced. Durham made 325 for 8 in their second innings with Stoneman an excellent following on his lead score of 46 in the first innings. Collingwood supported with 59. It was Collingwood who wise did not declare overnight as the locals and some neutrals anticipated and the decision appeared a good one when Notts set about getting the required 366 to win with great confidence. Wessels 98 and Hales 101 followed by Mullaney with 60 looked as if they would make fast work of the required runs. With 168 before the first wicket fell long after I departed. There was another very close finish with Durham winning by some 16 runs compared to 15 at the previous one.
I was therefore more confident of the game at the Riverside with Worcestershire, fighting themselves to avoid relegation. This proved an excellent game which I enjoyed over three days. Worcestershire was asked to bat on the first morning when a cold wind led me to move from a position high above the wicket to the lowest tier. The visitors lost 5 wickets for 26 runs and were 86 for 8 but then rallied a little to end their first innings on 120, and although Onions took 3 for 27 in 10.1 overs it was Rushworth 5 for 44 in his 10 overs who took the honours. Durham did not have it all their own way losing their first two wickets for 8 runs as Smith failed yet again and it is difficult to see how he is going to hold his place in the team after yet another miserable season. It was Stokes with some fine hitting who reached 78 who formed the backbone of an innings which totalled 234 and a lead of 100 runs, However an innings of 104 by Hughes enabled the visitors to reach 264 leaving Durham only 154 to win. There was an air of panic when Durham lost their first four wickets with the total only 35 but Benkenstein and Collingwood kept their cool to achieve a four match straight win, equalling the club record.
I had contemplated going to Liverpool again where Lancs had moved the schedule match with Durham from Old Trafford but had missed the cheap rooms at the Lodge located across the road from the ground. Bad weather spoiled this game so a draw was inevitable but Durham managed to get five batting bonus points after Collingwood made a century to 114 supported by Borthwick with 60. Lancs made 264 and therefore Durham increased their league position over Lancs by three points.
Durham has only one more to play. When I return from my trip to the London Paralympics next weekend. They therefore have to sit out the coming week when the three teams below them in the Table all play. Worcestershire now with 93 points play the likely Champions this year, Warwickshire, but at home and knowing their attitude and commitment from previous seasons they are unlikely to surrender. Worcestershire is then away to Somerset which will be difficult for them to more than draw. Much will again depend on the weather,
Lancashire the current Champions are having a very unhappy season, losing in yesterday’s semi final of the one Day competition, They are away to Middlesex at Lords who having also played 15 games like Durham, and will want to end their first season back in the top division with a win. I have mixed feelings about the position of Surrey of in third position from the bottom. Obviously I do not want them to threaten the position of Durham but as my former boyhood club I would be pleased if it is Worcestershire with Lancs who go down. Surrey is also at home to Notts who are safe. As this is the last game of season at the Oval they will want to end on a high note especially as they are then away to Lancs at Old Trafford and which is then likely to be a make or break game. Durham will need to lose their last game and two of the others win both of theirs for Durham’s position to be threatened. I suspect there will be major changes at the club in the period before the start of the next season when Australia will play England in a full five day ashes.
Before moving to another sport I want to comment further on my trip to Nottingham this year where I stayed at Riverside Travel Lodge in the City. This is located 15 minutes from the ground and has a lift. A short distance away there is a large Boots which has excellent sandwich and snacks outlet. The restaurant Inn next to the Travel Lodge is expensive. Unfortunately the Travel Lodge has introduced a new TV system to coincide with the move to Digital and for some reason they are restricting the number of TV station available to five. In this instance they had not used the 1-5 former Terrestrial channels but a mixed bag leaving four of the Terrestrial channels very difficult to see. Although I complained no action was taken during to the visit and I have since complained directly to their central office.
I had an excellent lunch on the day before arrival at an Inn frequent before which does Two meals for the price of One or two two course meals with reduced portions for £9. I enjoyed a large bowl of chicken and bacon salad on my lunchtime visit and then a chicken breast with Barbecue sauce plus apple crumble with ice cream on the second and early evening visit. I also hosted a family party at a comparatively new top notch restaurant open in what used to be a traditional village pub. We went early evening and by the time on leaving it was packed out with quality food in a great atmosphere, and where the prices are justified for once. Otherwise I had taken some mini salami sausages for cutting up and placing in rolls for my other meals. I had purchased four olive ciabatta’s for £1 so it seemed appropriate take a carton of olives with pimento’s which I combined with the Salami to make three excellent lunchtime meal at the cricket. There is a local Coop just across the ground which provide more rolls when required and drinks as well as the 20p daily newspaper. I also treated myself to large bacon Bap and coffee in the Member’s Pavilion on the final morning with just a coffee on the other three. I resisted the excellent cream tea served in the afternoons.
At Nottingham by arriving early I park free in a residential side street five minutes away from the box office where the price of admission has risen from £5 to £8 for concession over the past four years although at Durham non member adults of all ages are charged the full price of £15 a day. This year at Durham there was only one working meter of the five on the three sites around the ground. I moved from the double site where the queue was of fifty on the first morning to the one by the River and the Rowing Club only to find the ticket machine was also out of order. Fortunately a member of the public had telephoned the advertised number to report the position and relayed the news that there would be no enforcement at this site on the day. The machine was repaired for the second visit. The other moan is that for some unexplained reason the police no entry notices on the hard standing coach park remained in operation after the One day International. Coaches do not use this site as the Team coach parks within the stadium area. By the second morning when there were no spaces for families coming to park to go under the road bridge into the large riverside park where in addition to the usual excellent play facilities for young children there was a commercial fairground for the holiday.
I had returned to my vehicle to lunch as usually when the food is taken into the ground I consume shortly after arrival. When I finished the meal I moved the police bollards to one side and waited to see what happened. By the time I left to attend the afternoon session three of the four rows of vehicles which can fill the area were completed. I had told a steward who made the point that his duties were restricted to the inside of the ground area.
In the Member’s lounge Coffee has got up again this season from £1.10 to £1.20 but is still reasonable. If you order a take out version you get more coffee than with a cup! It is still good value compared to what one has to pay usually. Coffee at Nottingham is £1.30. However I did note that for Internationals and 20 20 matches beer was advertised at £3.40 a pint compared to £4 at Durham and a glass of wine £4 compared to eye watering £6 at Durham.
I cannot move on from cricket to other sports without first mentioning the position with the English (and Welsh) national team. I attended and enjoyed the One Day series with Australia which confirmed their position as the number 1 team in the world although South Africa were hard on their heels as they were pressing hard on England’s number one spot in the Test arena. In middle July England were humiliated by South Africa in the first of three Test matches losing by an innings and 12 runs being bowled out for 385 and 240 after facing the South African score of 637 for 2 wickets. I will repeat that 2 wickets with Captain Smith 131 and Amla not out with a massive 311 and Jack Kallis 182 not out.
The second Test match at Headingly went much better and was drawn. The South African Petersen made 182 in their opening innings of 419. Our also South African born Piertersen made 149 with Prior 65 to edge the game at this point with a total of 425. South Africa made 259 for 9 and with time running out England made 130 for 4 in 33 overs. England then lost the third Test and their number one position in the World ranking system.
South Africa opened at Lords with 309 and England with four wickets down for 54 things looked bad, however Johnny Bairstow hit an excellent 95 missing out on his first 100 to enable a little lead of 6 runs. It was Amla again who did the damage in the South African second Innings with 121 with a team total of 351 and while Trott 63 Prior 73 and Bairstow 54 with Swann 41 all could be said to have done well they were all out for 294 giving the visitors a win by 51 and a series win by 2 wins and a draw. Young Bairstow of Yorkshire demonstrated that he will be a Test player for several years to come. The disappointment was the performance of Taylor from Notts with 10 and then run out for 4.
However the main interest was off field. Kevin Pietersen was dropped and may never play for England again. The situation has been simmering for years since his short unsuccessful spell as captain and the emergence of Andrew Strauss of Middlesex who has won back to back Ashes series here in England and then in Australia and took the team to the number one spot as a consequence. The first sign of trouble was when Pietersen indicated that he did not want to play in the 1 day series to concentrate on 20 20 games and a potential lucrative involvement in the Indian 20 20 Premier League competition. He was told that he would not play in 20 20 Internationals as a consequence
He was then said to have sent a number of Twitter message to South African players which were not only disloyal to team members but which criticised Strauss. He was therefore dropped from the third Test.
In the first of the one day games the first match was abandoned because of persistent rain after England had reached 37 for no wicket. In the second England were humiliated once more losing by 80 runs after Amla scored 150 and side made 287 for 5r in their 50 overs. England all out for 202 with ten overs still to play. They lost their top ranking in one day games as a consequence.
However they regained their position after winning the third game England were able to dismiss Australia for 211 at the Oval with 3 overs to play and Anderson 4 for 44 the outstanding bowler. Then Trott 71 and Morgan 73 were the backbone of the win with two overs to go and four wickets in hand after a shaky start with three down for 64.
regained their top spot and hope to confirm their position in the fourth tie at Lords today. England won the toss and elected to bowl. South Africa managed to score some good runs in the final five overs after losing three quick wickets when the total had reached 100 for 1 100 for 2 106 for 3 and 116 for 4/ However the commentators felt this was still 20 to 30 run short on the wicket, Cook who has lost his batting touch with the captaincy of the one day side was out for 2 but then Trott and Bell added 141 runs for the second wicket at a faster run rate than required. After they were both out Morgan and Kieswetter settled in before 8 fours brought the game prematurely to an end with Kieswetter scoring the winning runs with a six. The win takes England two points ahead of South Africa in the rankings and even if they lose the last match in the series they will remain nummero uno.
Andrew Strauss has now resigned as captain and from playing all cricket. This has come as a surprise. Cook has replaced him so now takes charge of the Test and the one day side. It has also been announced that the English Team Manager is to meet Pietersen to discuss his future as an International Player. It has been suggested that he is willing to apologise for his recent behaviour and committee himself to playing at all levels. In the meantime he has been playing well for Surrey although he was bowled out first ball in the one day game at Hampshire.
Hampshire won the 20 20 competition against Yorkshire down at Cardiff. The game should have been played at Durham but was switched to Cardiff with Durham getting the 20 20 game because of the opposition by locals to the placing of permanent floodlights similar to those at Nottingham. It is understood they will have to retractable ones similar to those at Lords which add considerably to their cost. Just as with the main stand extension which was to go as far as the Media Pavilion, the announcement that there would be fixed seating instead of the temporary for the Internationals and that the Hotel building would commence, all has come to naught suggesting deep financial problems.
Yorkshire commenced the day with an impressive win against Sussex, This was Yorkshire’s first appearance at finals unlike former winner Sussex, and who I supported in the one day competition final at Lords three years ago and where they lost. It was Johnny Bairstow fresh from his triumphs for England who made the decisive score with 68 not out helping his side to an impressive 176 for six wicket. Miller contributed 47. Despite an innings carrying knock of 80 by Nash of Sussex only Goodwin with 15 reached double figures and they ended their 20 overs at 136 for 6. The wickets were spread evenly among the Yorks bowlers and fell at regular intervals after the early success at 15 for 2. I paid less attention to the Hampshire game against Somerset hoping Somerset would win given my antipathy to the Rosebowl stadium after my visit there for 20 20 final at which Durham featured. This was a tight game with Hants getting the 126 runs required with the last ball of the 19th over. The wickets were spread between bowlers.
After winning the toss Hants elected to bat and achieved 150 runs. Under the floodlighting Yorks could never keep to the run required as they lost early wickets at 23, 34, 38 and 47. After a rally of 40 runs for the next wicket and then another 50 it was the amazing Miller with 4 sixes close together who appeared to urn the match but a difficulty getting the stroke and some exceptional bowling by Hampshire meant that although he ended the day 72 not out, the team failed reaching only 240. However as with previous years there was great excitement as it looked they might make it. By reaching the final both team are invited to participate in the World Club 20 20 Championship. I will do another cricket report at the end of the season.
It has been a super Sunday in several respects with Jensen Button winning the Belgium Grand Prix clear of a might shunt behind him which tool out several high ranking drivers including team mate Lewis Hamilton. Newcastle managed a home draw against Aston Villa while Arsenal beat Liverpool at Anfield and a Van Persie hat trick saw Man U beat Southampton at the new Dell. However it has been a truly amazing day in the Paralympics where I have lost count of the successes with two Golds in Athletics one field and one track, an individual and team Gold in Equestrian, and unexpected coming from behind to win in the Pool and a UK one and two in cycling plus a host of other silvers and a bronze. There have been disappointments and at the last time of checking Laura Robson looked as if she was going out in the last 16 match at the USA Grand Slam. More on these and other sporting events soon.
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