There's a Murtagh

By Fozzie
May 14 2014

Fozzie was privileged to witness another not entirely straight forward victory from fortress Lord's. We are privileged to hear about all the twists and turns of the day.

MIDDX v LANCS, 14 MAY 2014 (DAY 4)

For the first time in the match we looked set for an uninterrupted full day as play commenced in bright sunshine and under blue skies. Unless of course – who knows? – for the third consecutive match at Lord’s we would be congregating in Tavern for celebratory drinks before the tea interval….

Lancs resumed on 15-1, still 178 in arrears, with the nightwatchman Kerrigan facing Murts, bowling to a very attacking field. The first ball brought an appeal for a catch at slip as Kerrigan fended the ball off his body, and although the umpire ruled that it had come off his arm it set the tone for the accuracy and hostility of Murts’ opening spell. At the other end Toby was finding some variable bounce, and the batsmen were finding life very uncomfortable until in Murts’ fourth over of the morning Kerrigan was caught behind by Simmo (who was to have a day of mixed fortunes). In 25 minutes there had been only one scoring stroke, and although Kerrigan might feel that he had done his job by lasting that long the innings already seemed becalmed. Things got worse for Lancs in the very next over, from Toby, for even though it began with Simmo spilling what appeared to be a straightforward chance off Horton it ended with Brown trapped LBW for 0. 24-3, and Ashwell Prince joined Horton.

Murts had started with five consecutive maidens, giving way after eight overs to Dex the destroyer. Obviously the conditions didn’t offer Dex the same help that he enjoyed on Sunday, but he bowled a good steady spell, pitching the ball up and varying his pace, and on a number of occasions had Prince playing very uncertainly. Meanwhile Finny replaced Toby and soon got Horton LBW: it may have been missing leg stump, and certainly Horton was most unhappy, standing at the crease for some time before trudging off. A burly Lancs supporter, wearing a straw hat covered in big red roses and a replica shirt bearing the name of Luke Proctor, bellowed angrily at the umpire; and he must have felt even more down in the dumps just minutes later as the said Proctor came and went, brilliantly caught by a diving Simmo off Finny. Apparently Proctor’s squad number is 2, which is precisely two more than his contribution to the score sheet.

That was 45-5 with still three-quarters of an hour till lunch, and there seemed every prospect of a long leisurely afternoon in the Tavern. But Jos Buttler looked far steadier than any of the preceding batsmen, and he helped Prince get through to lunch at 65-5, still 126 runs in arrears.

Some Lancs fans were bemoaning what they felt was an overly cautious approach by their team, feeling that their slow scoring rate of well under two runs an over gave them no chance of overhauling the deficit and making Middlesex bat again, essentially meaning Lancs would need to bat through to close of play if they were to hold out for a draw. And that seemed to be the feeling in the Lancs dressing room as well, for Prince and Buttler came out much more positively after lunch – Prince in particular played with a fluency that was unrecognisable from the hesitancy he had shown in the morning. The three pace bowlers toiled away while Ollie looked steady but not particularly threatening. The runs mounted, and when Buck decided to throw AC into the mix Buttler dismissively hit his first two balls for 4, bringing up the century partnership and reducing the arrears to under 50. For the first time it started to appear as if runs might be a factor as well as time.

Murts returned shortly before tea, and immediately had Buttler edging, only for Simmo to spill the chance. The crowd groaned, the players put their heads in their hands. But the indefatigable Murts roared back, induced another edge from Buttler that AC clung onto, and charged up the pitch to jump into AC’s arms. There were hugs all round, including some consoling ones for the doubtless relieved Simmo; and in Murts’s next over Simmo atoned for his error by taking his third catch of the innings to get rid of Smith for another duck. That was 162-7, and the tea interval.

Any thoughts that the rest of the innings would be a straightforward procession were quickly dispelled after tea as Prince and Chappell came hard out of the blocks, and with a flurry of boundaries off Murts and Finny put on 50 together in just half-an-hour. Runs were now coming so quickly that it seemed possible that Middlesex might actually have to undertake a demanding run chase. But again the seemingly tireless Murts came to the rescue, dismissing Prince to another Simmo catch for a very good 86. The new ball was taken, and Toby quickly dismissed the dangerous Chappell before Murts bowled Hogg for a superb return of 6-60.

What a performance by Murts. In the morning I sat in the Edrich Stand behind the bowler’s arm, and was in a great position to watch his smooth, economic action, his consistent accuracy and the surprising amount of pace and bounce that he generated. Murts was the man to turn to at the moments when it seemed that the game might be slipping away, and he delivered.

So the final target was just 31 off a notional 19 overs.

Robbo statrts run chase

Chappell entrusted the new ball to Jarvis and Proctor, who obligingly sprayed it around and threw in a few no-balls for good measure. Accordingly, when Sam and Buck were able to lay bat on ball they made short work of knocking off the runs. Three wins out of three at Fortress Lords, and there was time for celebratory drinks after all!

Another home victory celebration. Time for drinks