Our Nemesis

By Way Out West
April 29 2019

Way out West reports on his emotional return to Lord's, in feezing conditions and an overall poor display by Middlesesx. We then hear about his marathon session the day after that was not a drinking one.   

Run Like The Wind(s)

Saturday April 27th

My first trip for two years to Lords despite being a member last season. A few of you may have met my father Allan, who sadly passed away in November 2017. It just didn't quite feel right going last  year. For this game, I took along my 7yo son Isaac for his first Middlesex match.

The 15 minute walk from Paddington was very cold and it would appear the covers were on and the start would be delayed. Murtagh got two quick wickets courtesy of some superb fielding as we alternated between the warmth of the Middlesex room and the occasional windy seats on front. A further flurry of wickets reduced Sussex to 102/5. At this stage I wasn't sure if I was more impressed by our bowling, fielding or Isaac’s stoicism in the face of the dropping temperatures.

Ben Brown now joined the well-set Luke Wright and it appeared very early on that they may be here some time. This period of play allowed me to reflect on what had and hadn't changed at Lords since my last visit. The Warner Stand is now fully operational and whilst very impressive and comfortable, the loss of the upstairs pitch facing bar to members is rather galling on a day like this. Have I mentioned it was bloody freezing? On a more positive note I was very taken by the large advertising style banners showing our winning trophies over the years. To reinforce the view that we are welcome tenants was the sign stating: “Lords home of MCC and Middlesex Cricket”.

In terms of what hadn't changed, it was very nice to see some familiar faces on the walk around the ground including the WOW report legend that is Tinny O'Clock. Oh, something else hadn't changed,  our ability to blow winning positions. Brown and Wright had added runs in a pretty serene manner and as Isaac kept mentioning, without adding any 6s. Cue mayhem as Wright went 6,4,6 to bring up his 100 off TRJ. Further maximums followed with Helm bowling some dross and the decision of Malan to bowl so late in the day rightfully punished by Wright, who was eventually out for an exceptional 166. Brown went the following ball and a full on collapse saw Sussex out for 298. For some reason I still felt confident.

A quick lap of the ground saw my wallet take punishment a la that given to Helm (£42 for a childrens pink Middlesex T20 shirt), before Stirlo and Malan began our reply. A bright opening by an increasingly balding Stirling soon ended with his usual out in the 20s. Max and Ross Taylor in particular, were out to poor strokes to Briggs and the writing on the wall was there for Middlesex and also me, as a very sleepy 7yo indicated enough was enough.

The trudge back to the station produced some colourful language as more wickets fell and we were all  out for a poor 176 by the time we were back to Thatcham. Despite the weather and inconsistent cricket it was a joy to be back at Lords.

Sunday April 28th

The early finish on Saturday gave me time to rest ahead of a 4.30am alarm call with the London Marathon on the agenda. What a day it was too, the support of the crowds was immense although I never managed to see Kev who was there supporting the charity Dementia Awareness. I was delighted with my time of 3:51:55 and also managed to fundraise a decent amount of money for Muscular Dystrophy, I hope Kev won't mind me putting my link at the end of this report!

www.justgiving.com/fundraising/andrew-berry1981