Hampshire Cricket History

Not many but:

Brad Wheal (2nd right) walks off after finishing the Middlesex innings with his 4th wicket and

Sean Terry acknowledges the applause for his half-century

He is to be made available to other counties on loan although remains a Hampshire player. I’ve seen various statements including one that Briggs is now first choice spinner. Liam’s batting form has not been what he would want for some time and is odd because he generally looks OK but he bowled quite nicely in the last game.

There may be a certain ruthlessness emerging in the light of this year’s performances – who’s next? Carberry and Smith average in the mid 30s, Adams and Terry 10 fewer and Vince under 20. Vince and Dawson together leads to a sad tale at present – Hampshire have invested very heavily, economically and in time, in its age group and Academy system and it hasn’t really paid off very well. Consider in addition to Bates, Dawson (Wood?) these names, all of whom came through and won some kind of contract in the past few years: George, Griffiths, Howell, Miller, Morgan, Ravenscroft, Riazuddin, Roberts, Rouse, Sheppard.

Next? Alsop, Barber, Crane, McManus, Taylor …

I have Cricket Archive & Cricinfo but I’m hoping to track down more information on him. He’s a former Middlesex player and as far as I know is still alive. He, plus two Hampshire men, John Manners and Leo Harrison are the only cricketers alive who played before the War. Maybe posting this will attract a random search and more information.

Yesterday the Middlesex Committee who were in attendance knew nothing of him.

The partnership was worth 111 and Compton was on the Aussies’ ‘Devil Number’ (87) when Briggs got him – should have been Bird (who almost immediately dropped Simpson off Briggs on 46).

Nonetheless it is the hope that hurts most – at one point this morning Hampshire were clawing their way back in, but they need four quick wickets now. Middlesex don’t have a great score but they’ve had one century and one fifty partnership while Hampshire’s best was 32.

PS: Gatting was Hampshire’s 18th player in this year’s Championship – with two more used only in the T20

PPS Hampshire’s Championship second innings this year: 285, 339, 29-0, 143, 185-5 (v Middx), 126-4, 262. Only a repeat of or better than the 339 (at Edgbaston) will be enough to avoid defeat in this match with the weather set fair and Middx still batting, seven down and 110 ahead.

Gatting off for tea (Yorkshire variety?)

Kevan gets a good view

Hampshire fans not moving a muscle

Wheal’s first ball – there may be a few more today!

The sun’s out, it’s warming up, it must be a perfect day for bowling!

(Sorry my mistake)

Hoping for a decent day today as I’m at home and going tomorrow, assuming the score at 7pm tonight makes it seem worthwhile …

But at least it is Gatting better

Once again Hampshire’s top scorer came in at number seven (as did both the season’s centurions). A lot of supporters were surprised to see Gatting in the side on Friday and again today but he’s been in good nick for the 2nd XI and he was the only one today to get past 30. Here he walks off 64 not out after the dismissal of Bird finished the Hampshire innings. By the close, Middlesex were a third of a way to Hampshire’s total without losing a wicket.

to replace the injured Ervine (who might have bowled in the circumstances) with Gatting (who didn’t) rather than Dawson (who could have). Simon Walter (Echo) noted that for the second week running there was a partnership against Hants in the three highest ever in T20.

It’s not enough to prove a point but I’ve thought for some time that even Division One Championship cricket does not match up to standards from the past – probably in particular the 1970s and 1980s when the best overseas players and all the England team took part.

This is just a single case, but yesterday Notts lost by an innings to Yorkshire. Stuart Broad played what I suppose will be his only county game this year and in that innings defeat he top-scored with a combined 84 and took 7-84. It suggests a rather wide gap between run-of-the-mill county players and the best.

I felt much the same as we struggled against Worcs and Somerset; decent enough teams but the way they outplayed us was alarming. The Sussex batsmen are out of nick and their attack was Magoffin plus a few hopefuls, replacing the various injured.

Notts lost by an innings and Worcs drew (dull stuff) so we’re only equal bottom and just two points adrift of Worcs

Only significant if we start playing well of course

There’s a T20 match at Chelmsford on Friday but I’m thinking about Lord’s, as Hampshire start the second half of their Championship campaign in poor order. They won that terrific match at Hove of course but the last two performances at home against so-called relegation rivals have been dispiriting.

If you look at performances over the past three Championship matches then on current form, perhaps only Berg and Wheater are certainties. Of the normal top five, only Vince with 76 at Hove has passed 50 in a total of 27 completed innings by Adams, Carberry, Dawson, Smith and Vince – add to that Terry’s 62* at Hove and it’s still not terribly good is it? Will Alsop get a chance or maybe McManus?

In all probability Vince will come back in place of Sean Ervine whose finger is broken. He’ll miss two or more weeks and Jimmy Adams last night described that as a “shame” because “he has been in great nick”. He started the season very well with 66*, 42, 0 & 102 in the first two matches, but since then in eight completed innings (six matches) he has scored 159 runs at just under 20 per innings with a best of 48. It’s not really “great” is it?

After Berg come the three bowlers Briggs, Bird and Tomlinson. With Ervine missing (7 wickets this year at around 60 apiece), Vince might bowl a bit more and Dawson too – he bowled quite nicely on Sunday. Wheal and Wood were in the last squad, Barber is showing some form for the 2nd XI and off-spinner Brad Taylor too (runs as well as wickets).

We must wait and see.