Away Day Happiness

By Gary Watton
September 12 2016

The race for the 2016 County Championship took an unexpected turn when Somerset proceeded to trounce champions Yorkshire in their own backyard inside three days in a surprisingly one-sided encounter. As a consequence the team from the west country have closed to within one point of the Tykes, going into the final round of matches next week. Somerset also possess the advantage of a home fixture against relegated Nottinghamshire, whilst the white rose protagonists must redeem themselves at Championship hopefuls Middlesex! At least Yorkshire's flagging fortunes were revived by the failure of Middlesex to win at Lancashire. The wins have now dried up for Middlesex, but it may well be Somerset who look set to defy the Championship-chasing Tykes in a week's time, unless struggling Nottinghamshire do us a favour and stoutly resist Somerset's Championship chase.

YORKSHIRE versus Somerset; in Leeds; Monday the twelfth to Wednesday the fourteenth of September 2016; YORKSHIRE elected to bat first.

YORKSHIRE first innings: 145 (Allenby 3-16, C.Overton 3-32)

Somerset first innings: 390 (Gregory 73*, Trescothick 73, Rogers 63, Allenby 50; Sidebottom 5-51, Rashid 3-99)

YORKSHIRE second innings: 286 (Lehmann 116, Plunkett 73; Leach 6-64)

Somerset second innings: 44 for 0

Somerset win by ten wickets. YORKSHIRE three points, Somerset 23 points.

Lyth - Caught behind twice by Davies, he did at least supply sixty-three runs and caught Chris Rogers during their reply. Lythy was one of our better players.

Lees - Twice caught by Allenby for a duck and then nine runs, Alex was one of many Yorkshire players who had a performance to forget.

Ballance - With scores of three and then one, Gary couldn't have chosen a worse match in which to produce two dismal failures.

Gale - His decision to bat first proved to be a catastrophe, and then to make a bad situation even worse, he could only muster a 29 followed by an innings of two.

Lehmann - 147 runs, including his maiden Yorkshire century, was a brilliant result. Such a pity that the other batsmen could not emulate Jake's heroics.

Rashid - Adil fails to justify why he bats above Bresnan, as his scores of one and sixteen demonstrated. He also conceded 99 runs from his twenty-two erratic overs.

Bresnan - The big man averaged forty-two with the bat which compensated for an underwhelming bowling performance in which he conceded 74 off 19 overs.

Hodd - Andy took one solitary catch and one stumping and produced a duck egg and one run in an effort that went horribly wrong for him and the rest of the team.

Plunkett - Eighty-three runs was a fine contribution. He also bowled Trescothick, but otherwise was incapable of improving his very poor bowling average for 2016.

Brooks - Jack couldn't work his magic this time, with a duck egg and a 7 and a bowling effort that produced only one wicket at a cost of 108 runs from 24 overs.

Sidebottom - Siddo didn't let anyone down. His bowling amounted to five wickets, costing 61 runs from 25 overs. He was definitely the pick of the bowling attack.

BATSMAN CHARTS (minimum of one hundred runs)

Bairstow: average - 88.83; 533 runs; two hundreds

Root: average - 80; 240 runs; one hundred

Lehmann: average - 54.86; 384 runs; one century, three fifties

Plunkett: average - 44.9; 449 runs; one hundred, three fifties

Lees: average - 42.41; 1145 runs; three hundreds, seven fifties

Lyth: average - 41.42; 1077 runs; four hundreds, three fifties

BEST BOWLERS (minimum of ten wickets)

Sidebottom: average - 19.73; thirty wickets

Brooks: average - 26.19; fifty-three wickets

Patterson: average - 27.54; 39 wickets

Bresnan: average - 30.46; 28 wickets

Rashid: average - 33.84; thirty-two wickets