1. Log in now to remove adverts - no adverts at all to registered members!

[Non football] Do you think cricket lose some popularity in England?

Discussion in 'Manchester United' started by lupaowan, Feb 17, 2013.

  1. Cantbearsedwithnot606now

    Cantbearsedwithnot606now Active Member

    Joined:
    Sep 3, 2012
    Messages:
    415
    Likes Received:
    216
    I love cricket. There are few things better than going to a day of a test with a bunch of mates and a load of beer. Atmosphere is brilliant. I don't think its losing popularity, I think with the red not successes of the team and the push t20 one Odin's have had it is more popular than ever.

    Not in Wales, it would seem.
     
    #21
  2. Chief

    Chief Northern Simpleton
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    May 17, 2011
    Messages:
    37,146
    Likes Received:
    23,972
    Well certainly not in Matths area of Wales, where it is **** and a waste of time!

    The area where it is losing support is the county game, where not many go to a lot of the games. This format is needed to sustain the test team and for us to be good at it though, which is the paradox of it all as test matches tend to sell out and couldn't be more popular.

    There's nothing that gets on my nerves more though than ****ing premier league football getting started when there's still a summer test series going on. On the whole cricket is still going strong but it could do without football encroaching on its season.
     
    #22
  3. One of the lads

    One of the lads Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Feb 6, 2012
    Messages:
    4,906
    Likes Received:
    165
    I spent a couple of years working in cricket and was surprised at exactly how amateurish the county game is. Twenty20 and 40 over cricket (or 50 or whatever they decide to change it to next) has a chance because the time investment required from the spectator is reasonable. The 4 day game will always be played in front of empty stadiums as how many people can take time off on a regular basis to watch a 4 day county match during the week? Also, as the county season starts in early April it's not unusual for the first few rounds of matches to be non-events because of the weather. I remember going to watch the season opener at Lords, county champions vs MCC XI. There can't have been more than 200 people in the ground and it was absolutely baltic!

    As Chief says, the domestic game is needed to support the test team but the ECB don't provide the counties with enough support and don't make county cricket attractive enough for either the players or the fans.

    The relationship between domestic and international couldn't be more different in football and cricket. A handful of county cricketers will be on 100k a year, mostly ex-England players whose names still mean something in the county game. Most top county players aspire to earn around 60k a year. The run of the mill county players will be on more like 20-40k. I knew a few players who gave county cricket a whirl for a few years before ultimately packing it in as they could earn more money for their family doing something else. They also play a lot of cricket. Footballers moan about 2 or 3 games a week. County cricketers play most days throughout the English season and then a lot of them have to go and play in SA, NZ or Australia to top up their income. It can be a pretty miserable existence after the initial high of being a professional sportsman has worn off!

    On the flip side, once you're in the England "club" with your juicy central contract and appearance money for each international match you're comfortably looking at 300k-600k in playing wages plus endorsements, plus IPL, plus Big Bash, plus everything else that goes with it. After ten years the counties grant players a benefit year. The guys who need the money would hope to make 100k from dozens of events and appearances. The international boys rake in 500k+ (rumour has it Flintoff made 3million in his benefit year which fortunately for him was 2006 so soon after the Ashes were won for the first time in 20 years) and not much of it goes to charity!
     
    #23
  4. Chief

    Chief Northern Simpleton
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    May 17, 2011
    Messages:
    37,146
    Likes Received:
    23,972


    This is it, the whole county four day game needs a compete restructure to make it entertaining and competitive as the short forms are ok really. We had a decent test team by default and coincidence really, for all the reason you mentioned, as we've got a bit of a golden era of players and have had some great England captains who've had the foresight to see what is needed test wise, those being Atherton, Hussain and Vaughan.

    The truth is, to make the county four day game attractive we need a competition like the Australia sheffield shield where there are six states competing, not about twenty bloody counties plodding along in winter conditions.
    One major issue would be the Lancashire and Yorkshire connundrum as they are the twin behemoth of county cricket and would not merge with each other in a northern region but it would just have to go to an east/west situation or that those two are left on their own or just merge with one adjacent county.

    So you've got;

    North West - Lancashire and Derbyshire
    North East - Yorkshire and Durham
    South West - Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Glamorgan
    Central - Warwickshire, Notts, Leicestershire, Northants
    South East - Surrey, Middlesex, Essex
    South - Sussex, Hampshire, Kent


    One league, play each other twice over four competitive days in decent weather between tests. Job done.
     
    #24
  5. shwan

    shwan Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Nov 3, 2012
    Messages:
    4,648
    Likes Received:
    126
    that applies then on 95% of the world then (including your French neighbour) :D
    tbh is not played around the world for a reason , even USA had to shorten the ridiculous match duration for their baseball version ..i never seen a game played for that amount of hours and over that many days
    having said that .. i do enjoy the game when at break at the office (playing some flash game version of it) , and do watch it at times when nothing else on TV.. so it dose have its charm .. but the duration of a match is ridiculous
     
    #25
  6. Sweats

    Sweats Fat lives matter
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    May 20, 2011
    Messages:
    20,987
    Likes Received:
    8,523
    The duration is what makes it enthralling.. The game ebbs and flows, they're real skill in the game in out thinking the opposition and building pressure..
     
    #26
  7. Tobes

    Tobes Warden
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    Oct 23, 2012
    Messages:
    72,888
    Likes Received:
    57,325
    There's only 2 good things about cricket a) it's played in the summer b ) all day drinking
     
    #27
  8. Chief

    Chief Northern Simpleton
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    May 17, 2011
    Messages:
    37,146
    Likes Received:
    23,972
    With respect Shwan, you're French. This is way out of your zone!


    I wish the baseball comparison would stop too, they aren't even remotely similar. Like all American sports, baseball was invented by Americans for Americans so they could be the best at it. Then pretend the whole world plays it, world series my ****ing arse.
     
    #28
  9. Sweats

    Sweats Fat lives matter
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    May 20, 2011
    Messages:
    20,987
    Likes Received:
    8,523
    Plus baseball is rounders not cricket.
     
    #29
  10. Drogs

    Drogs Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 3, 2011
    Messages:
    17,870
    Likes Received:
    356
    always liked playing cricket but never watching it. Same with Golf. It's not the worst sport by any means though.
     
    #30

  11. Chief

    Chief Northern Simpleton
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    May 17, 2011
    Messages:
    37,146
    Likes Received:
    23,972
    Yeah, I love playing both those sports. In fact, there's not much I wouldn't rather play than football, I long ago fell out of love with playing footall, just does not interest me in the slightest.
     
    #31
  12. Drogs

    Drogs Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Aug 3, 2011
    Messages:
    17,870
    Likes Received:
    356
    yeah I know what you mean, I play 5 a side every so often but that's as far as it goes.
     
    #32
  13. Red Hadron Collider

    Red Hadron Collider The Hammerhead

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2011
    Messages:
    57,485
    Likes Received:
    9,843
    Stick to T20 if you want to watch 'smash and bash' cricket. Test cricket is poetry <ok>
     
    #33
  14. Chief

    Chief Northern Simpleton
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    May 17, 2011
    Messages:
    37,146
    Likes Received:
    23,972
    See post #24. What do you think of my regions?
     
    #34
  15. shwan

    shwan Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Nov 3, 2012
    Messages:
    4,648
    Likes Received:
    126
    fair enough <ok>.. i remember though we had some Baseball lessons in schools back in France but no cricket lessons.. don't know why ?
    as i said, cricket is an interesting game, i just think the world are not ready for the match duration yet :D

    certainly you have a point here ... but the same duration issue is what is putting off some others from playing the game too
     
    #35
  16. Red Hadron Collider

    Red Hadron Collider The Hammerhead

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2011
    Messages:
    57,485
    Likes Received:
    9,843
    Chess on grass <ok>
     
    #36
  17. Tobes

    Tobes Warden
    Forum Moderator

    Joined:
    Oct 23, 2012
    Messages:
    72,888
    Likes Received:
    57,325
    I'd need some top quality grass to sit through a day of that boring bollocks <ok>
     
    #37
  18. Red Hadron Collider

    Red Hadron Collider The Hammerhead

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2011
    Messages:
    57,485
    Likes Received:
    9,843
    Spotted that tunns. We'd be ****ed if we had to team up with Derbyshire, but as you say, us and the tykes would never happen. Good concept though <ok>
     
    #38
  19. Red Hadron Collider

    Red Hadron Collider The Hammerhead

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2011
    Messages:
    57,485
    Likes Received:
    9,843
    You only play 4 and 5 day matches if you're a professional cricketer. Clubs only play 40 and 50 over games.
     
    #39
  20. Red Hadron Collider

    Red Hadron Collider The Hammerhead

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2011
    Messages:
    57,485
    Likes Received:
    9,843
    You're a Philistine Boots <doh>
     
    #40

Share This Page