v Gloucestershire Pro40 @ Taunton Saturday 23 August 2008

Scorecard

Phil Tottle is on the ground so there should be some kind of coverage on Somerset Sound/Radio Bristol or the internet.

Faith is a wonderful thing and we seem to have lost of it.  The side for today is;

Langer, Trescothick, de Bruyn, Hildreth, Durston, Kieswetter, Suppiah, Banks, Jones, Thomas and Willoughby. 

We've won the toss and have decided to bat.  I'll leave the debate about our one day specialists (albeit PT isn't bowling considerable amounts at the moment) being left out of the 40 over side once again to the forum because personally I think all the issues have been debated and form/prowess and results seem to make no difference to the plan whatsoever.

Anyway the eleven gentlemen will take the field with the bat first in about 15 minutes and we shall see what we shall see.

Out they come.  Marcus standing tall against Kirby and takes 6 off him (first 2 was a bit scratchy, flipped into a gap in the slips).  Lewis is in to Langer from the OP and the skipper takes a single off the first.  We get to 9 before the first real chance is offered - good going for us!  Luckily, Justin hits it to Taylor...who drops an absolute sitter and we move to 10.

But it doesn't do us any good because he straight drives one to Ali later in the over and takes the single but is run out by a direct hit to the OP End and we are 13 for 1.  It's a slide and via a replay but he called and he moved the moment he hit the ball.  Ali was just quicker.  Kieswetter is in rather than de Bruyn so we may be looking to push this along a bit.

That seems to be Banger's view as he takes Kirby apart with 5 consecutive 4's off the last 5 balls of the over - 4 to the offside followed by one to the leg as Kirby tries to vary angles and pace.  34 for 1 after 5.  Full length balls dispatched with ease.  Good to see Kirby come back in the 7th and tie our man down a little more.

But in the 8th, Craig gets into Lewis on the offside, first he goes over the infield to the new scoreboard for a one bounce four and then drives him for another with his next ball as the England man tries to cramp him up.  The young man just walks away and smacks him through the field on the ground.

Kirby watches the 50 arrive as Trescothick hits his seventh four to the Botham stand boundary. He no balls but keeps the Somerset man down with a yorker only to be sixed on his next delivery to the old scoreboard.  Then a four off a no ball with a free hit to come.  69 for 1 after the 9th.  5 overs for 53 with 42 off 2 of them..."Welcome to Taunton Steve - the bloke at the other end used ot play for England you know!"

And our man goes to 50 off 31 balls with 8 fours and a six.  Now he faces Hardinges from the River at 74 for 1.  He seems to fare no better however as Marcus peppers the new River stand with a couplle of one bounce fours and we move into the 80's. Lewsi tries to indimidate our keeper and is absolutely thrashed out of the ground as Craig  hooks him imperiously to take us into the 90's.  The visitors don't seem to be learning that you can't bowl short or wide to these blokes because they'll drive you all day.  We've had 3 free hits already and the 100 comes up with another powerful cut to the Brewhouse boundary.  100 after 12 and the Bristolians need to go back to the drawing board as our pair take 17 off the 12th.  Awesome stuff at the moment. 

North comes on to provide some slow stuff at the OP and Craig introduces him to the churchyard off his third 126 at the end of the 14th.  Kirby comes back on at the River end and thanks the Lord that MT takes a single off his first.  A much better over though - but the moment Tresco is back on stike the ball bounces off the CA just above the Somerset dressing room.  He bowls yorkers to Kieswetter and then two slow balls to the big man who puts him away for 10!!  Why? 138 after 15 overs and Gloucestershire don't really know what to do with a 125 partnership off 70 balls with 19 fours and 4 sixes - a second wicket partnership record against the Bristolians!!

North gets some of the initiatvie back as he foxes Marcus and nearly has him out of his ground and stumped.  His partner Dawson joins him at the River end for the 17th. Craig goes to a really good 50 (35 balls 2 sixes and 5 fours)off his first ball.  He doesn't look as confident against Dawson though coming up the wicket and misjudging the flight and trying to cut him late but not getting bat on ball - could be something for the visitors.  He goes for 5 which is an improvement. 

The 150 arrives in the 17th and Dawson has put the brakes on at the River, especially in relation to Kieswetter. Although he has opted to take his helmet off and play in his cap a la his captain.  Halfway and we have 161 - big score on the cards you would think!!  Marcus on 91 and Craig on 58 but the spinners have got the rate down to 4.5 from 9 in their 5 overs and the press is on as much as it can be.

But the boys keep on milking the score and we have the odd deftest of touches from the master including a beautiful late cut to the CA which wonderfully placed and moved him on to 95.  The 150 partnership came off 105 balls and it wouldn't have gone any further if Taylor hadn't put down a second sitter off Kieswetter on 64! 

Brown is on at the OP for the 23rd and our opener moves to an emphatic century off his first ball!! 177 for 1 with Trescothick going through the landmark off only 68 balls with a huge 13 fours and a six within it!!  Majestic - not a lot more that can be said, just a privilege to watch!  180 for 1 after 24 - brilliant stuff up to now!

And on this great day I lose the last 16 overs of immense information as a glitch sends it into the ether!!

Marcus Trescothick and Craig Kieswetter hit 300.  The highest scores at this ground and the highest partnership for any wicket anywhere in this competition!!

Kieswetter more than played his part while scoring his first ever ton with an immense 121 off 107 balls with 9 fours and 5 sixes.  No second part here!  He was an equal partner of an awesome exhibition of batting from both men.  They passed Cook, Rose, Gooch and the visitors had no answer to it. 

What can you say about Marcus Trescothick? The sixes off the scoreboard were huge and his own landmark score of 184 off 112 balls with 20 fours and 6 sixes was one of those things you see few times in your cricketing life.  He placed balls or hit them with almost superhuman power, he drove, he swept, he pulled and he hooked and Kirby needs some mention because he kept to his work even though he was the man who took great punishment in his early spell - coming back to 87 for 3 off his 8 having gone for 42 off 2 was to his credit.  He had to bowl at the end as well.

Craig and Marcus took 302 off 33.1 overs - what more could you ask for?

333 for 4 off 240 balls...we ought to win this one!!

The Reply

Marshall and Ali face 334 to win with Charl bowling the first and with the help of a Chinese cut they get double figures off the first and they start their account with 13! Alfonso opens from the River end and they have 24 by the end of it!  Game on?

The 50 arrives in the 5th and we are on for a big game unless something calms down.  Why is Alfonso taking the new ball?  Steffan instead?  Gloucestershire are well ahead of the run rate at the moment...now there's would be a story!

The 300+ is certainly looking on at the moment with the likes of Arul, Wes, Zander, Steff, Omari and James ready to get the game back on an even keel with some tight bowling.  Good job we left Peter and Ian out if you ask me.

It's becoming a problem and Justin turns to Arul to pull it back into some semblence of reality in the 8th from the River.  Unfortunately it doesn't quite do the trick as Marshall and Ali move to 88 at the end of the over.  They need 8+ an over and they are going at 11.  So the skipper looks to Steffan to do something at the OP in the 9th and he does the business with his second ball and has Marshall LBw for 43 at 89...Thanks be to Jehovah!

Hardinges is next in.  Jeremy Coney was talking on SKY about the Gloucestershire bowling to MT and how no-one seemed to have the guts to bowl Yorkers at the start of the innings.  Jonesy has the guts and provides 5 in his first innings. They score 3 in the over....maybe Mr Coney was right. Charl now switches ends and is much more effective from the CA. 

Nevertheless the Gladdies reach three figures in the 11th and there is still a game very much on here as Ali goes past 50 in the 12th.  We're pulling it back but we've allowed them a real good platform here with loose bowling in the first quarter of the game.

We keep gradually pulling this back into line and by the end of the 15th it's 140 for 1.  Arul returns at the River to see if he can further improve the press that Jones in particular has put on the Bristolians.  But it doesn't work and the 150 is up.  Justin now turns to Zander to bowl some medium pace with no close fielders in sight.  They still need 7.6 per over to win but it is a lot easier than the 8.4 they needed 16 overs ago.  Nevertheless, de Bruyn  only goes for 4 so we can't complain.  Until of course Arul goes for 12 off his first two balls from Hardinges.  However, Durston sends one in and Ali is run out not grounding his bat!  73 runs and can't run his bat in!!  167 for 2 but Hatinges has 44 and in comes CRAIG SPEARMAN to put this game beyond us!

A one day embarrassment is on the cards and on the telly at the same time.  We really aren't an impressive unit I'm afraid.

Omari is on at the River against Spearman and he's nearly stumped off his first.  But Hardinges goes to 50 in the 21st (42 ball 3 sixes and 4 fours) and they have 188 at the start of the 22nd.  This is really really on and our bowlers want shooting because the bowling is awful.  They could pass 200 in this over and we're allowing them to stay in this game when we shouldn't have.  137 off 18 is a gettable target with 8 wickets remaining and they look like they'll get it I'm afraid.  In the end we keep them to 199 at the end of the 23rd.

Alfonso returns for the 24th at the River with a real job to do...please someone put the brakes on! They still need 7.4 but look in no great danger of NOT getting it and we can't put two bowlers on the park who can hold them at BOTH ends.

Our score was down to excellent batting, theirs is down to mediocre bowling, except for Wes who hasn't been given the pill yet - but there's still time.

It's 214 with 15 to go after a good over from Mr de Bruyn and they need to get 14 of those left out of the way within the next hour!  Lots of dicussion about field placings, but to be hnest it hasn't made much of a difference up to now and it doesn't here as the first goes for four down the legside.  A wide follows before we get that rarity...a dot ball.  Thomas has a legside field which has 3 men on the rope.

The rain is coming down halfway through the 26th, it's dark and the visitors are well ahead of the D/L (presently standing at 204).  They may very well retire to the pavilion .  That is if Thomas manges to finish his over as he fires down his third wide of the over.  223 after 26.  They need 'Nelson' off 14 - entirely gettable.

Then a glimmer of hope as Langer picks up the ball aat midwicket and 'exocets' Spearman's stumps with the international well out.  223 for 3 - is that the turning point?  Not until Hardinges has gone will it look any better from up here!  He may have been released by his county but he's certainly seeing it like a football at the moment. But a brilliant piece of crickt from the captain who only saw one stump and destroyed it from 15 -20 yards.

North is now at the crease and Hardinges is still connecting far too well with far too many deliveries although the D/L has been made a little healthier by the wicket.  Nevertheless they are still ahead of the required rate as the drizzle has turned into steady stuff with the umpires discussing it.  Omari only goes for 4 in the 2th but the officials are having another discussion and we are off with the D/L in the Gladiators favour.  236 for 3 off 28.

The rain came down and we lost 6 overs but it started to rain as soon as they took the field and they went off again.  The visitors needed 283 of 34 but that's academic now.  10 minutes delay and Gloucestershire will win by 12 runs.  Which they probably would have done anyway.

A better defeat?  To be beaten by the rain and the D/L?

Nope.  A marvellous innings by a magnificent duo is devalued by our inability to hold a poor side because we couldn't bowl to a plan to hold a side needing over 300 to beat us.  It just about sums up our one day capability but marginalises a stupendous effort by Marcus Trescothick and Craig Kieswetter which was the highlilght of a really poor game even though we've seen 569 runs in the day.

The weather won at 7:20 and Gloucestershire took the game by 12 runs on the D/L and I can't see anyone arguing with that.  The Man of the Match was Marcus and other than Craig Kieswetter there wasn't a lot of quality to talk about.

The floodlit game on Thursday now becomes a relegation battle for us after our fourth defeat in this tournament.  See ya there.

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