Hampshire Cricket History

Hampshire have won very well again – well played Liam and Aidan in particular. At Chelmsford Danny Briggs has celebrated his birthday by scoring 37* and taking Sussex to an improbable victory from the penultimate ball, after they were 94-6.

It means that while the second and third teams Somerset and Sussex (both on 8 points) can overhaul Hampshire (10 points), Gloucs (6) in fourth can only finish level on points with them. The only other side that can overtake them is Middlesex (6). But their game-in-hand is tomorrow v Somerset (they also play improving Glamorgan and Kent)

Somerset’s other matches are against Hampshire and Surrey; while Sussex play us, Gloucs and Glams. The forecast is dodgy for Thursday – maybe one point would be OK for us …

Just back from a lunchtime skiffle gig – off again in 30 minutes to a Museum presentation, then fetch the car from the garage, so not following the day much.

I note that the 2nd XI are 112-1 with Soames going well again, while Mason Crane is nowhere (nor McManus). Are there injury problems? Alsop, having started in RL Cup with 180 for twice out, has now scored 0, 7 & 0 in last three innings. Markram equalled his top RL score, and Dawson is doing the business again.

PS 188-6 I’m feeling hopeful. Hampshire’s total is their second highest ever v Surrey and only the second time we’ve passed 300 (359-8 at the Oval in 2005)

Very good piece by Andy Bull in today’s Guardian “Leadership failure leaves Hales and England in a mess”.

It does not in any sense exonerate Hales, merely how it’s all been handled. The piece opens with a quote from the recent cricket novel The Test by Nathan Leamon (formerly the team’s analyst).

One of his characters is talking about the toilets in the ECB headquarters where on the back of one of the cubicle doors someone has written “500 people work for the ECB. At this exact moment in time you are the only one of them who knows exactly what he is doing”.

Good luck to James Vince who’s been added to the England squad. If he plays tomorrow, that will be it for the Royal London Cup – at least perhaps until the Final on Saturday 25 May?

The ODI against Ireland will take place in Malahide on Friday 3rd May with the IT20 against Pakistan to be played at Cardiff on Sunday 5th May. 

Eoin Morgan’s squad then begin their five-match series against Pakistan on Wednesday 8th May, before the Ageas Bowl on Saturday 11th May. Matches at Bristol and Trent Bridge follow before the series concludes on Sunday 19th May at Headingley. I guess he might miss the IOW too.

They’re starting a week v Middlesex at Newclose today. Weatherley went cheaply (5) but Soames (50*) & Harry Came (31*) are going well at 94-1 in the 20th over.

There’s no Holland of course (loaned to Northants) or Wood (injured) and no sign of our RL reserves Taylor or Donald. Barker and Stevenson (again) are also absent, so perhaps some speculation about changes for the Oval tomorrow?

Middlesex include two men who have played for Hampshire: Tom Barber and Ollie Rayner.

HAMPSHIRE: 307-5 from 50 overs (Organ 91, Came 88, Soames 70, Middleton 23*)

Middlesex going well at 36-0. Our bowlers are Dan Goodey from Bashley and AS Dale from ???

We also have ODW Birts who bowled for Middlesex last year (have they loaned him?), O Southon from our age group sides, and CG Harrison from Oxford University (played against us this year). Either side of WW1 we had a GC Harrison (he’s in the book!)

Two wickets each for Dale & Goodey and one for Southon but we’ve been stuffed through centuries for Holden and Harris. Very inexperienced bowling attack – seven used and only Weatherley has bowled for the first team.

(I remembered Elvis, and changed the title)

Three Southern Division matches today and the three lowest teams won them all. Somerset’s defeat did less harm to their run-rate than Hampshire’s while Gloucs and Essex are now back in contention, with three teams on six points behind us, including Sussex with a game in hand (and the same run-rate as us). Next up, as we play Surrey on Tuesday, Essex v Sussex and Gloucs v Glams might shake things up again.

The season’s averages are interesting. Vince (80.40) is 13th in the country, but top of those who have been out five times. Rossouw averages 53.75, but Northeast, having started with a century has scored just 40 in his last four innings. Alsop (46.75) & Markram (37.40) each have one big score, while no one else averages over 20 except for Dawson on 31.00 and his bowling is superb: 11 wickets at 17.73 and an economy rate of just under four per over.

Otherwise our bowlers are quite expensive. Six-an-over = a total of 300 (+ extras) and that’s mostly the story. Abbott goes at 5.64 and has 11 wickets at 20.00, while Markram – not used today – concedes at less than five, but Crane (six wickets at 39.67) is going at 6.49, Wheal (three wickets) at 8.40, Wood (two wickets) at 6.32, Fuller (one) at 7.33, while Berg isn’t listed since he has not yet taken a wicket. He has 0-100 in 17 overs at 5.88.

Bopara and Ten DS have (easily) broken the Essex 5th wicket partnership record v Hants, despite another fine spell from Dawson and an improved performance from Fuller.

PS: Except I went for a walk on the seafront with four overs to go and he took a hammering. The Essex total is the highest by either side in any List A match between Hampshire & Essex.

PPS: Before today, Essex had won eight of the last nine List A matches v Hampshire played in Essex – back to 2002. I think (212-7) they’re winning today too.

I wondered whether James Vince would be whisked away by the England training camp, but apparently not, so it’s same again with Donald and Taylor also travelling. I was told last night that Chris Wood has an injury and is out for six weeks.

Danny Briggs has a couple of quick wickets at a very gloomy/windy Lord’s (bright sunshine here, although blowing fiercely). It’s not obvious yet which result would suit us – other than a tie!

I must confess that punk was not really my thing, but I did see them around 1978 in Southampton (Top Rank?). I watched from the balcony while down below there was a lot of spitting.

Anyway, I digress. If Hampshire end up with an RL home quarter-final on Friday 10 May, they can’t play it, because the ground is needed to prepare for the following day’s international. In theory, they could play a home semi-final on Sunday 12 May but could not I guess offer practice facilities to the away side on the day before.

If we reach the Final on Saturday 25 May, it’s the same day that England play Australia in a warm-up at the Ageas Bowl.

I guess the question over those weekends will be, “Should I Stay or Should I Go?”

Two stars today. Under normal circumstances Liam’s innings, bowling and fielding would have made him Man-of-the-Match.

But then there was James Vince:

Early in his innings, Liam watching, James faces our former all-rounder Benny Howell

After a rain break, James scores the single that brought his century – but on he went.

Then, straight after play, there was surprise special birthday party in the Hilton, for star blogger and tweeter Jo – here with Liam and ‘Woodsy’:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JO!!