Hampshire Cricket History

If you visit the main BBC Cricket site today and click on scores and fixtures (including September’s Results) all you get is the IPL. No BWT update, no county scores from last week.

It’s possibly a computer glitch

But perhaps it speaks volumes …

At the start of the 2019 season I published the second edition of Hampshire County Cricketers which was of course out-of-date as soon as that season started. Over the winter I plan to publish on here updates of all the players who have continued playing with Hampshire 2019-2021, plus all the new players, in all formats.

I’ll probably just do one or two each week and will be pleased to get any comments or additional information. I am considering publishing the whole list as a supplement at the start of next season – same format as the Kyle Abbott booklet.

The book was alphabetical, so here we go with the first (A) entry:

Albert, Toby Edward (T20) born Basingstoke, 12 November 2001. He is a right-handed batsman who made his debut for Hampshire in two T20 matches in 2021, both against Somerset, scoring 13 & 5 (semi-final). He played also in the same season for Berkshire in four matches in the Minor Counties Trophy, having played for them in junior matches before his first season for Hampshire under-17s in 2019. He played first for Hampshire’s Academy in 2018 and in club cricket for Finchampstead from 2019. He made his Hampshire 2^nd XI debut age 19 in April 2021 and played in seven matches in the side that won their Championship, with two half-centuries and a highest score of 93.

His figures for Hampshire:

T20: 2 matches; 18 runs at 9.00; HS 13.

Maybe not

The Guardian reports that there is a meeting of the county chairs tomorrow at which the ECB will propose the Conference system is retained for 2020 while the Bob Willis Trophy will be “quietly put to bed”. I think that has to be right – last year in the rain the winner over five days was based on first innings lead while this one (with rain again threatened) is absurdly one-sided.

Incidentally the Sky commentators have been commending Will Rhodes on his “first Championship century of the season” but Cricket Archive distinguishes between the Championship and Bob Willis Trophy in career records. That only impacts on this match in 2021 but last year there was NO county championship, just the BWT. If it does disappear I think it would make more sense to reinstate last year’s career records except for the Lord’s Final since that is the only BWT match not played under Championship regulations (bonus points etc). Those two matches would just be first-class games – as, for example, in 1961 was the Champion County v the Runners-Up at Scarborough.

Never to be welcomed but bitter-sweet in that it gives me more time & space to catch up with various tasks, some of which are annual ‘duties’ only possible once things go quiet.

Yesterday then I was updating the names of players to go on the two boards: in the Atrium first-class debutants and in the Robin Smith Suite Championship centuries and ‘five-fors’ at the Ageas Bowl. That job is done and the information passed on.

Also, every year, I keep a scrapbook mainly about Hampshire but also including any items of broader significance (e.g. The Southern Vipers, The H*****d, The fifth Test being cancelled, prospects for the Ashes tour etc) and occasionally local clubs.

In the Archive we have scrapbooks going back to the 1950s and covering most years since (plus a couple much older than that) which is why I keep one each year to add to the set. Mind you, as county reports in newspapers diminish they might get thinner – scissors & Prit Stick aren’t much good with websites!

The recent book sale has freed up significant space in the Archive (which was looking more like a store room) and we are hoping that next year we might be able to open it up and show people what’s there. I’ll keep you posted.

That last ball at Liverpool I’ve been thinking thank goodness we didn’t finish second. I’d have enjoyed Lord’s this week basking in glory but not as ‘losers’ and I thought it might to tough for Lancashire to motivate themselves.

Having finished the work on those records for the Boards I had a quick look on TV at the game – Lancashire had only lost four wickets at that point (!) but after 45 minutes it’s six now and it looks very tough! Apparently at 12-6, they are not even one third of the way to the lowest ever first-class score at Lord’s (38).

Good job there are five days to finish the game!

So Vern’s Top of the Class – now it’s players’ numbers

I’m updating our records including (I hope) the Players Board in the Atrium. We had five first-class debutants this year and I need to complete shirt numbers please (we started recording these earlier this year):

Colin de Grandhomme ?*

Nick Gubbins 31

Mohammad Abbas 38

Tom Prest ?

Cameron Steel ?*

*It’s possible these two did not have shirt numbers

Bob Murrell has sent me an intriguing Quiz Question but without poring through my record books I’ve no idea of the answer, so you have a go …

Can you guess the player?

Born in Southampton in 1989 and played 116 first class matches. Has never played in England.

A couple of clues: his brother played for Hampshire seconds and his cousin played for Hampshire.

White Ball competitions

RL CUP (50 Overs)

(During The Hundred so some players not available)

Nick Gubbins 318 runs (1st) @ 53.00 (1st); Tom Alsop 238 runs (2nd) @ 39.66 (2nd)

Best strike rate: James Fuller 113.63

Ian Holland 8 wkts (1st) @ 23.75 (2nd); Scott Currie 6 wkts (4th) @ 22.00 (1st)

Best economy Kyle Abbott 5.03

T20

Joe Weatherley 410 runs (1st) @ 37.27 (1st); Vince 373 runs (2nd) @ 31.08 (2nd)

Best strike rate de Grandhomme 153.06

Scott Currie 19 wkts (1st) @ 12.84 (1st); Brad Wheal 17 wkts (2nd) @ 20.82 (2nd)

Best economy Liam Dawson 7.11

(A Bo Diddley crackerjack)

I saw an entry on the ‘County Cricket Matters’ site asking which of your county’s players most disappointed this year. I don’t much like that normally but it occurred to me that if I go back to April the simple answer is Sam Northeast!

But what about Hampshire’s Player of the Season? I’ll tell you my choice later in a Comment so you can ignore me while you decide but here are some four day figures that might help. I’ve excluded ‘occasional’ players (eg: de Grandhomme took 6-68 in the Championship):

COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP

James Vince 816 runs (1st) @ 40.80 (1st); Ian Holland 766 runs (2nd) @ 33.30 (2nd)

Kyle Abbott 46 wkts (1st) @ 21.65 (3rd*); Mohammad Abbas 41 wkts (2nd=) @ 15.87 (1st)

* Keith Barker 41 wkts (2nd =) @ 18.41 (2nd)

DIVISION ONE

Vince 327 runs (1st) @ 40.875 (1st); Keith Barker 145 runs (2nd) @ 18.125 (3rd*)

Barker 21 wkts (1st) @ 16.90 (3rd**); Abbas 14 wkts (2nd) @ 15.72 (2nd)

* Brad Wheal averaged 19.75;

** Mason Crane averaged 16.00

PART TWO FOLLOWS: WHITE BALL

Hampshire on the front page this morning – Gower speaks much sense, Michael Carberry warns England’s openers, Danny has one headline and the Vipers are the main picture. I find that interesting – future historians might note that less than two days after the conclusion of the 2021 men’s County Championship, the front page picture in the specialist weekly cricket paper is of a women’s white ball team (and not their main competition).