Healthy Scoreboard

By Barmy Kev
April 17 2016

Barmy Kev reports on a great start to our season mainly thanks to Robbo and a Bell clanger .  We also hear of some issues regarding entry to the ground and a not very uplifting experience. 

The season starts here.  I arrive at Lord’s full of excitement and anticipation. There is a long queue to go through Nursery Gates, is there a massive crowd anticipated, will I get a seat? I discover as I pass through without showing my Membership Card every person is given a bag and a scanning body search for our “health and safety”.  Is this really necessary for County Championship cricket , perhaps a topic of discussion on another thread? All I can say for now is, an advanced warning to members of change of protocol would have been helpful. 

I took my seat just on time. There is no cloud cover, forecast is cloudy the next two days , Warwickshire decline toss and elect to put us in.  Seemed an odd decision under the circumstances,  

1st ball of our season Barker to Robbo who plays solid forward defence back to bowler a big cheer from faithful in the  Lower Tavern. An even bigger cheer as next ball is pushed for single, we are off of the mark. We survive the first over and at 1-0. The cricket season has begun I’m happy and the ball-by-ball commentary on this report will now stop. 

An early boundary towards the Derelict ( Warner ) Stand settles early nerves. There was an occasional play and miss but Robbo and Gubbo really did not look in any trouble. After an hour of alarm free looking batting  we made 50 for none with consummate ease. Robbo makes his way to a chanceless 50, our century is up soon after. It was stroll to lunch.We are 120-0.  

Lunch break was amusing and scary. I met Rogers and Out and we decided to make our way to the new Middlesex Room Presidents Box in the Grandstand. We were advised by MCC Steward who looked clueless in his pointing to take the lift rather than stairs. There were 2 others going for same lift, we all wanted to go up the doors would shut and then slowly open. The official capacity of this lift was stated 8. The other 2 got out (none of us were grossly overweight), the lift worked in complete darkness which very scary.  We made it to the to our destination much to our relief. I’m glad what followed was marginally less frightening.

Our batting continued to be plain sailing after lunch. One alarm was an injudicious hook on 96 by Robbo that just evaded fine leg.  After that Robbo took his time and reached his ton met by ecstatic applause 

We are now at 180-0 and we are talking about declarations. I had a check of football scores Leicester City 1-0 up (against Council House tenants West Ham) in pursuit of their miracle. First chance of day Gubbo edges one, Rickety Clarke does a juggling act at 2^nd slip and eventually catches it. Very next ball Compo is out caught in gully. In that same period, phone updates, Jamie Vardy is sent off and now Council House West Ham are 2-1 up. Games can change in a few moments. I am now panicking of us being all out without a bonus point. 

Nothing to worry about as batting became easy again. Mala may not be happy about being bowled playing no shot and Voges played on, both off of Barker. It is goodnight from him. Robbo battted carefully to end to make an absolutely superb 175, quality throughout.  Credit to Simmo who circumspectly supported him to the close

We have had worse starts to the seaon. I am estastic. MIDDLE MIDDLE MIDDLE