Was I ever on it?.. Oh go on then, good luck too Fats.... I don't know if you remember, but in the first season Jacksk1 was at the top of the table the whole season until about April, then I came in and pipped him, felt a bit guilty ever since...
Cheers @Saints_Alive Yeh, it's taken a while to get back to the top. Was all over it that first season but over the last few seasons have missed making predictions for too many odd weeks to stay in contention. Hopefully I can hang on but I'm sure @fatletiss will have something to say about that
Given the overcast conditions today and yesterday, and the fact that we're facing Essex, we've done very well so far to have only lost one wicket. (Not that it should play any part in the final result, mind. By all accounts the weather will ensure that this game finishes a draw.)
More batting points than any other team. More bonus points full stop than any other team. Yes all eight sides aren't on equal comparable ground, but this never happens to us!
Bad light cost so much lost time...... probably spoilt a potentially good match between the two sides. Still 3rc place in table is a good start point
https://www.bbc.com/sport/cricket/43973537 A penny for your thoughts Brendy, Tom, Dell, and Saints Alive and any other devotees of the game? In a way the 4 day game needs massive reform in terms of organisation (divisions, when to play). It seems ridiculous to have such an early start, knowing that in April and May it is cool and extremely changeable. Then another 4/5 games at the end of August and into September where bad light can have a massive impact on the outcome. And as for the two divisions, well it is stagnating the game. You sense that the likes of Leicestershire are there forever, which is not good. I feel the Conference system could make the movement of counties much more fluent which would be healthier for the game.
I've been calling for three leagues (with divisional structures or conference structures) for a few years now. Even just cutting D1 from nine teams to eight teams has had a real impact. As for tomorrow, Northeast has had surgery and will be out for six weeks (so that's him out of the one-day competition shortly) and Berg will miss one final game, having finally become a father a few hours ago.
Good start for Fidel and Hants, Notts are 52/3... Quality stream of the action here... http://live.trentbridge.co.uk/?result=success#stream
And a runout breaks the partnership. The run rate may be rather high but I'd rather Notts were 120/4 instead of 60/0.
A rather strange day of cricket. If batting that aggressively is Notts' strategy this season, they might struggle as the season goes on. No Broad and easier batting conditions will mean that aggressive 300s from them won't cut it. Just about Notts' day. Especially given that we don't have batting from Northeast and Berg to come. But if one of these two can big...
I'd like to see Hashim moved to open against Somerset next week, he doesn't give his wicket away cheaply and Rilee dropped for Slug.
Weatherley should be much closer than Rilee to the door. Rilee and red ball might not go particularly well together, but at least he has shown that he can score runs at times. I've not seen that from Joe. The biggest issue for me isn't either of them; it's Dawson. His bowling keeps him in the side, and I completely understand that. But in red ball cricket, he's pretty much a number 8 these days. I can very begrudgingly accept him at number 7 when he has Berg and Abbott (and ideally Holland or Wood) to all come after him. But not only do we not have that in this match, even worse is that he's up at number 6.
Six weeks we'll be without Sam (albeit mostly white-ball cricket during that time, when you presume Alsop will come in - although Joe may keep his place, given that Jimmy doesn't always play white-ball cricket these days).
This session has probably finished off the game. I didn't mind the Surrey defeat too much, but these opening four sessions of this match have been pretty awful by us.
