Injury Update

Over winter we anticipated a bit more carnage in winter nets. As it happens .... er.... nothing much happened. So we got to the first game of the season in fine fettle.

Something was up on Saturday though. The Netherlands had just beaten England. There was definitely something in the air as we drove over to Alloa for our ESCA Division 4 game ...

1. When we kicked off, the skipper wasn't on the park 'cause he was running late on the trip from Edinburgh.

2. Third ball - our keeper gets a lifter in the mush and is off to A&E for some stitches in the face.

3. After 4 overs, our opening bowler pulls up with a muscle strain and is limping through slips for the rest of the game.

4. In about the 15th over - one of our key all-rounders attempts a catch in the covers, and splits the skin on his right hand. Off to A&E for some stitches.

5. Two overs later - the skipper staves his thumb in the covers. He'll be unable to open the batting.

6. In the 30th over - our stand-in w/k (and other opening bat) staves the middle finger of his left hand. He'll also be unable to open.

We don't have subs.

As it happens - we very nearly chased down the 250 they put on. We got to 243 all out (8 wickets). Cow Corner's very own Steve Colvin got 102 not out.

I survived unscathed, though there's still that terrible chafing on my left heel ... And what's left of my dignity took a battering in my 1-over bowling spell.

Sunshine?

As usual, April is a tease: we've played both of our scheduled matches!

OK, our first pre-season friendly (18th April) was a bit chilly, but it was dry and we even got a BBQ going. And we actually got a bit of sunshine last Saturday. Here's photographic evidence.




I've got a new camera, so this may turn out to be a well documented season ...

Budget 2009: Cricket authorities to offer "old-player" subsidy

Cricketing authorities are offering up to £2000 for old players when traded in for newer, shinier versions.

The committee of one local team, Kirk Brae CC based in Liberton, has expressed caution, saying the scheme may result in many serviceable members being scrapped. "There's no doubt that new members would greatly improve efficiency both on and off the pitch, reducing carbon emissions" said one government spokesman.

Anthony Nuttella, Chairman of a local "green" Rapid Response Action Group, disputed the evidence behind government claims. His group suggests that the plan is a thinly disguised ploy to boost spending on cricket-related items and would actually increase total emissions of hot air. Nutella claims that huge amounts of resources are used in the creation of single new member of a cricket club and it is therefore much more efficient to use aged, decrepit or generally unenthusiastic players "until they can't see the ball".

The subsidy will be available from the end of the current season.

Lots of new match balls

This picture shows a batch of 600 new ESCA league balls - all packed up and ready to be delivered to the pre-season League meeting. As we watched my old car strain under the weight, we couldn't help thinking about the exciting life ahead of these balls.

So, COW CORNER has commissioned some scientific analysis on the subject.

Initial research tells us that each ball is likely to hit stumps 4 times and hit pads (in cast-iron certain LBWs) 9 times. Early indications are that each ball will be dropped 6 times. That gives us the following figures for my car full of balls: 2400 stumps hits, over 5400 straightforward LBW decisions, 3600 dropped catches.

Our researchers have put together this helpful graphic to illustrate these amazing numbers -
We'll post more research as soon as it becomes available.

Helmet

So, all the new gear is now in stock at Cow Corner. Our favourite is the Newbery “Grizzly” bat, which comes with a striking pink grip and bear 's claws across the back . Very tasteful! But what item has proven to be the best seller so far in 2009? The humble helmet of course. As clubs begin pre-season training on hard indoor surfaces, the protection a helmet provides is invaluable. However, is outdoors a different matter?

In the East of Scotland our grass pitches bear no relation to the fast bouncy indoor environments. Replicating our wickets indoors would require slopping huge quantities of mud up and down the net’s area beforehand. On our slow, early-season wickets a batsmen often has the chance to have two or three swings at the same short pitched delivery.

This is demonstrated brilliantly in the following diagram. Please note the detail in the cloud.

Most expensive overs?

A great story in the Guardian at the weekend! John Morrison, former coach with Wellington, talks about a single over in first class cricket where 77 (yes, SEVENTY SEVEN) runs were conceded!

Two teams were playing in New Zealand in 1990. One was closing in on the championship and needing a win. The other had nothing much to play for and looked content to see the game out for a draw. The would-be-champions were desperate and wanted to try anything in order to encourage their opponents to make a game of it. With two overs to go and 90 runs to get, Bert Vance stepped up. He proceeded to toss up no-ball full tosses. Lots of them.

The scorers and umpires (and the little fellas clambering all over the old-fashioned score board) were in complete disarray: "no one knew what the hell was going on". It's thought one batsman scored 85 runs in the final two overs. And it ended in arguments as no one was really sure what the score was. Officially it was a draw.

Vance must have bowled something like this - 6 (NB), 4, 6 (NB), 6, 4 (NB), 4(NB), 6, 4(NB), 2, 4 (NB), 4 (NB), 6 (NB), 2, 6 (NB), 4.

Is there someone in the lower reaches of ESCA cricket who could come up with a similar story (except maybe it would be unintentional)?

I know my glorious return to bowling (after "a number" of years) saw me taking a very long opening over and get hit for at least 12. I hit the batsman, bowled at least 2 no balls and 2 wides, got hit for a boundary and ... took a wicket. Off a full toss, naturally.

Or we know of one "Shawbags" who disgusted his regular bowlers by dishing up pies galore - and finished with seven wickets. His last over saw wides and no balls a-plenty (must have been in excess of 15 runs?), with the captain beseeching him to just get through it any which way he could. Of course the over also saw the seventh wicket fall: a huge, skier, straight into the (tiny) hands of our opening bowler.

It's the only time I've seen the ball thrown down with disgust as soon as it was caught.