v NOTTINGHAMSHIRE OUTLAWS @ TAUNTON 19 AUGUST 2002

Revenge or apathetic acceptance of our fate?  The second of these games must determine our run in to the end of this season.  We are in deep gunge and only just have our eyes above the mess.  One more defeat and the rock bottom despair that the team must be feeling will be very very difficult to deal with.   We did see Marcus Trescothick with a bat in his hand so I suppose things are looking up!

Gallian and Johnson face Francis and Johnson.  No Bulbeck or Caddick.  One doesn't seem fit and the other one if fit again and so leaves us to it to join his other team.  We take first blood with Gallian going with a score of 17 off 16 balls as he snicks it to Turner off Johnno's second over.  In comes Affzaal to the 'Benny Hill' theme.  By the 5th over Notts have got to 33 for 1 - 8 of them coming off the last three balls.  The bowling is tighter than we've been experiencing with Francis looking particularly thrifty.  The fifth ball of over 5 sees a brilliant diving take by Noddy to save a four down the leg side and the next ball is sent directly down Woody's gullet and Johnson leaves.....to be replaced by Pietersen, not a lot of applause for him after the incident yesterday on 48.

Johnson looks good and there is a lot of discussion about why he didn't play yesterday.  Half fit he's got to be an asset - I wonder if they'll use him with the bat today?  Jones comes on at the River End and fires it in, so Johnno does the same, gets some bounce, Affzaal snicks, Bowler juggles and it's 3 out for 49.   It's looking good, we are in with a chance - well it's better than yesterday!   Shafayat causes some commotion upon the multi-cultural crowd of Taunton when he strides out to something distinctly Moslem but it seems to work for him!  The 50 comes up in 8.5 and the Outlaws have reached 59 at the 10 over mark.  Pietersen seems to be carrying on where he left off yesterday and having the same luck - at the end of the 13th, he flashes hard and Peter Bowler fails to hold on to a very sharp chance, which he got both hands to.  It could be costly one thinks!

There is a distinct difference in the perception of the two teams.  Notts are away from home but the batsmen seem to have a mission and are constantly geeing each other up between deliveries and overs.  Somerset are on familiar ground but there is almost no communication at all between them.  It is a characteristic of Cox as a captain that he seems disconnected from the side as a whole when things are difficult.  I am sure that he is talking to people and I am sure that everyone has a plan and knows their place within it but there is no feeling of a man in charge out there who is ready to kick arses if things don't get done and support those who are having a rough time.  The boys who seem to be on their toes and up for it are the out-fielders; Wood who is having an excellent match in the field, Francis who takes over the bowling at the Old Pavilion in the 13th and delivers a storming maiden over, Johnson who just seems to be happy to be on the field, Turner who holds the whole 'back of the wicket' area together on his own for most of a one day game.  I was not over the other side of the pitch but everyone else seemed subdued.

It could also have something to do with the inevitable way in which Pietersen seems to be accumulating runs.  Batting without a helmet he strokes and weaves his way between the fielders for boundaries and twos with Shafayat offering strong support at the other end.  Disgruntled members of the crowd make comments about the lack of drive on the field and PA's management off it.  The best comment was from someone who replied to the cry of; "Careful, Peter Anderson is coming around" with the quip; " If PA is coming round it means somebody didn't knock him out hard enough!"

The 100 arrives at 18.5, we've pulled them back a bit but an ominous sign is that it also brings up the 50 partnership.  Dutch starts the spin attack from the River at the end of the over and Parsons takes over at the other as 'nelson' (111) appears.  Pietersen's 50 is not long after it off 41 balls with 8 fours.  At halfway we are looking at a score in excess of 250 - 128 for 3 gives them set batsmen and wickets in hand.  The 100 partnership appears at 149 just before the 150 and the two Notts boys manage to reach 158 for the fourth wicket before Shafayat is finally Johnson's third victim when he puts one out to Jones in the deep for 66 with the score on 207.  The 'South African' is still there though and reaches his second ton in two days against us at 235 in the 38th.  Yesterday he hit 122 off 100 balls, today he looks like doing something along the same lines unless someone can get a handle on him and no-one seems to be able to do that.

Chris Read doesn't seem to be keen to hang about and he and Pietersen look to get the score shifting along.  The wicketkeeper help to put on 60 in 29 minutes before he is bowled by Jones, just after Pietersen is dropped by Johnson as he tries to straight drive.  Unfortunate with about 4 overs to go and the score on 260.  Read departs with 267 on the board and in comes Paul Franks.  With one over to go it's 285 and the last one is a doozy!

Ball 1 - Pietersen deposits over the boundary by the shop for 6!  Ball 2 - he goes trying to so the same thing to the hands of Francis off Burns.  Everyone is on their feet to applaud the 147 off 101 balls, the 16 fours and the 5 sixes.  We all clap a great one day knock that has probably taken this game away from us! Ball 3 - MacGill arrives at the crease and receives a wide.  Ball 4 - Franks is caught by Dutch for 10 292 for 7 in comes Randall.  Ball 5 - 1, Ball 6 - 1, Ball 7 - 1.  296 for 7.  Big total, Big task. Expectations vary from " we can get this" to "we'll not get over 100"

Bowling?  Johnson - excellent with 3 for 41 from 9.   Francis did well for his 11 for 48 off 7.  He is better but could we afford to sacrifice half a season of one day games to get him here?  Burns 2 for 48 but the 2 came in the last over and the 48 came off 6 overs.  Jonah got 1 for 60 off his 9, he was on early at the start but bowled well at the end.  Dutch 0 for 56 off 8 and Parsons 0 for 39 off 6 made up the rest of the figures.  The drop was crucial and Pietersen made us pay again but this time it wasn't the error of the umpire that put us there.

The place is heaving but the lights are on late - I thought they were put on before the sun sank to get the players acclimatised but they were not switched on until the start of the Somerset innings and the light deteriorated a lot before Notts finished.  But the pitch is cleared and here comes some interesting thinking.   Out strides Peter Bowler and RICHARD JOHNSON to take the first balls!  I applaud this.  Johnno has always given the ball a good whack and with the stability of Bowler at the other end we can give him his head at the start of an innings where we need about 8 an over rather than asking him to swish at it in a mad dash with the old ball at the end.  It also conserves the strokeplay of Blackwell until the innings is underway.  It is a bit sad therefore that the experienced opener decides not to play his role and comes swishing at the second ball he faces by Logan with absolutely nothing on the board.  Just what we need with our present record of play in an important game.  Where the hell was your head Peter?  Johnno has been sent in to do a job and been undercut by a man with that much experience - don't you despair?  What will be said about that bit of stupidity in the post game analysis?  Does Peter want it any more?  It doesn't give the impression to the watching public that he gives a toss!

0 for 1 and out comes Cox to play the anchor role.  Johnno does what he's been told and smashes 26 off the second over of Lucas with 3 fours and two huge straight sixes.  We're 34 for 1 at the end of the 3rd!  Up with the run rate or what?  Then we receive appalling umpire decision number one.  A ball pitches outside the corridor, looks to be going down the leg side and umpire Clarkson gives Buzz out LBW for 2.  34 for 2 - I know he isn't in form, but don't please compound the problem by giving him out before he gets a chance!  The strains of "The Boys of Summer" have hardly died away and we are now listening to U2 as Burns strides out to put matters right and give the pinch-hitter some support.  As that dies away, Burns is on his way back.  LBW first ball to a less dubious but high decision and we are in familiar territory at 34 for 3.  All this seems to have upset Johnson's concentration because he then proceeds to play all around a straight one and it's 35 for 4 as he is bowled for 25 off 8 balls.  He has done his job, but he has been let down again by the top order who have contributed 2 - though not all their fault.   Why Wood did not come in at number 4 is a debatable question.  The man is a traditional opener and finds the flexible one day role difficult.  If you're going to pick him then let him anchor an end - therefore send him in after Bowler and before Cox and Burns - who are more flexible players and feel more comfortable facing a softer ball with some runs on the board.  But the next guy in is Parsons to join up with Blackwell in a pairing that must get to grips with this total or we all go home early.

Blacky arrives to "Stuck in the Middle" and that's what we want to see.  We need a flat track bully to put a big score together.   45 runs in the first 5 overs means we are up with the required run rate.  It's the wicket bit that is the problem so we need these two to stick around and get some runs!   The crowd are getting into the spirit of a floodlit game and as the first "Taunton Wave" zooms around the ground - FIVE TIMES - the two Somerset boys get on with the job.  We're at 80 in the 9th over when Lucas gets one through and Blackwell says goodbye for 31 off 22 balls.  Not what we wanted but better than some innings in the past few weeks.  And finally, in comes Matt Wood with a mountain to climb in unfamiliar territory.  KP looks semi-comfortable at the other end though.   Logan makes loads and loads of friends with the fifth ball of over number 12 with an unintentional beamer at Wood who manages to save his head by fending it off.   After lots of apologies and a bit of treatment, Wood resumes and Logan bounces him next ball.  Making a mistake is one thing - taking advantage of it in order to get someone out is another.  It isn't in the spirit of this game and shouldn't be tolerated by county management or the officials.  The supporters make their feelings known and Logan never again ventures to the boundary.  If he's never seen on this ground again, it will be too damn soon for me and the sooner he is dispatched from this game to obscurity the better!

Wood nurdles and drives, the 100 arrives off a boundary shot from him in the 14th.  'Nelson' appears for us some 5 overs before it did for the Outlaws and this game begins to get interesting.  MacGill has to be risked at the River End for the 16th, the 50 partnership comes at 133, KP moves to 50 at 138 off 45 balls with 8 fours and with Spin on at the other end in the form of Randall, we are halfway to the required total at the halfway stage of the game.  150 at 22.5 is fol.lowed by 159 at 25 - we need 138 off 30.  Hopes are high but are dashed when Keith Parsons receives crap decision 2 - given out LBW as he passes umpire Clarkson after completing a run.   He looks at the official in disbelief and we are not allowed to see the replay because we may 'disagree' but the TV spends a lot of time on the umpire who looks decidedly sheepish at the end of the over.  171 for 6 and Rob Turner arrives on the mountain with tons still to do.

Rob 'flick/sweeps' a 2 and then is down the wicket to one he misses.  We think the stumping has been missed but the umpire gives him out bowled!   180 for 7 and it's coming unravelled.  Woody is doing his job but no support again!  Dutchy arrives to "Pass the Dutchy" (what else could it be?). and we pass 200 with 11 and a bit left!  Wood arrives at a really dogged 50 with only one boundary in it.  This emphasises his role in one day games, if he has one.  He does not score quickly, so his job is at the start of a run campaign.  Give him Peter B's job...he doesn't seem to want it!  Great fighting knock though.

But the run rate needs to be maintained and Dutch tries to do that with some straight hitting.  Unfortunately the hitting is straight to a fielder and we are 225 for 8 needing another 70 off 8 overs.  It's getting away from us and Simon F is the last chance to get it back.  They get it down to 62 off 7 and you begin to feel that if these two can knock it about and get the odd boundary, just get it into the 30's by the 41st, then we still have a chance.  At 237 this hope is dashed when Wood is bowled by Franks for an excellent 61.  Steffan Jones comes out to Sum 41 but is dragging his bat behind him and looks like he expects a first ball duck.  He discusses the situation with Franky, they need 60 off less than 7.  Tall order, but give it a go boys - no-one will blame you for the end!  Jonah faces, and gets what he expected, a limp shot misses the ball and Franks celebrates Jones' duck and the end of the game 60 runs short!

We were beaten by the prolific form of one of those "Euro-professionals" that everyone is moaning about.  Added to that we faced another top order collapse when we didn't need it - though with a little help from poor umpiring.  The rescue package was scuppered by another bit of dubious officiating before the tail capitulated with some apathetic and poor shot decisions.   We are a mere shadow of any team I've watched here in the past few years.  At our worst we had more fire than this sorry bunch of professionals.  The squad seem to have lost all vision of a way out, they have no heart that we can see and seem to care little about anything but getting to the end of September with as little effort as possible.  We've seen worse performances but not in such concentrated quantities.   Our batting wasn't always brilliant last year but the middle order held us together and the bowling worked it's butt off.  Nothing seems to be going right in the second half of this season, except in the C&G and Kent had to help us get through that!

I want to win the Final, but we must not allow a victory to paper over the cracks of this extremely bad season.  I say again, the decision to re-sign Cox as a batsman should be re-considered and some of the top professionals at this club need to prove their desire to perform before they are offered a berth for next season's re-build.  If they don't want it, give them their P45's and get the youngsters in - show some fight, lose with dignity if you have to but show some guts for heaven's sake.   This was a fighting performance, gauged against others we have seen in the past few weeks but we still gave up with a whimper in sight of a win - will there be a heavy duty post-mortem with lots of harsh words and positive action to stop it happening again?   Or will the ego's explain it away and allow us to watch the same again, later this week, into next week and, perish the thought, at the home of cricket in a couple of weeks time?  Warwickshire on Wednesday - something easy to get our teeth into!

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