Sax's Blog - The Final Home Game
20 September 2013
Last weekend I made my way down to Devonshire with my girlfriend, Gemma, for a little break away from the city of Bristol. On Saturday afternoon we hired some bikes from Barnstable Station and cycled The Tarka Trail. The trail follows the Taw-Torridge estuary, starting in Barnstable winding its way down to Instow and then onto Bideford. It does keep on going past Bideford but after 11 miles out we decided to make our way back for a 22 mile round trip. By the time we found ourselves with a couple of miles to go, the saddle soreness had really started to take effect. In the evening we made our way to Northcote Manor in Burrington for a well-earned seven course taster menu, a couple of glasses of wine and a nice comfy bed. We woke Sunday to light drizzle so we made our way back to Bristol for an afternoon in front of the rugby courtesy of my new best friend, BT Sport.
The lads were in Monday for preparations for the final home game against Lancashire. The week off last week provide some essential rest so all looked relatively fresh in practice. A warm up followed by squad nets and a bit of fielding meant all were up to speed by the time they left at about 1:30pm. A quick bite to eat and a cup of coffee on the way home left all involved with an afternoon to dispose of. I was left in the office making sure all of my responsibilities were under control – I cannot wait to be back out there playing again so that I can call it a day just after lunch…
Lancashire arrived Tuesday, Michael Klinger won the toss and decided to have a bowl. Will Gidman struck twice before the forecasted rain brought a close to the days play with the visitors on 33 for 2. Rainy days can be a bit of a drag for the professional cricketer as the changing room does not really provide a great deal of entertainment. Someone will do a paper and magazine run normally accompanied by a few bags of sweets, table top games will be played and sometimes the cards even get brought out. Some however relish a bit of the wet stuff as it means they can sit with their feet up watching the overs gradually get reduced, knowing that they won’t have to spend the time lost stood in the field.
Lancashire batted all day Wednesday as they only lost 5 wickets in the 96 overs faced. We had them in trouble at one point at 105 for 4 but a 159 run partnership from Luke Procter and Tom Smith got them back on top ending the day on 292 for 7. I spent Wednesday recovering from my new gym routine. My shoulder has really come on over the past few weeks so the phsyio and fitness coach have reviewed my programme and really stepped up the exercises. By Wednesday evening I had stiffened up quite considerably and I found myself stretching on the living room floor in front of Grand Designs before I went to bed.
Yesterday the rain intervened again, only allowing 7 overs to be bowled in the morning and afternoon sessions. By 3pm it had cleared however and the grounds-men set to work ‘mopping up’. With the new drainage system here at Nevil Road and the Blotter working continuously for an hour things soon dried up and play resumed at 4:30pm leaving 25 overs left in the day. Lancashire declared and by the close of play we were 90 for 3, Alex Gidman and Hamish Marshall steadying the ship after a slightly shaky start.
Today is the final day of cricket here at Bristol for the season. The weather has been set fair with the sun shining since play commenced. Unfortunately the morning session didn’t quite go to plan as we were bowled out for 209. Matt Taylor and David Payne getting us past the follow on after being reduced to 155 for 9. This was Matt’s first bat in first class cricket; I saw him nervously walking around the changing room as the wickets fell. However a flourish of boundaries when he got in saw him race past 20 finishing 26 not out as our innings closed, David Payne the final wicket; caught off the bowling of Newby. Tonight there are drinks being held in the Premier Lounge to bring a close to the Home season. Michael Klinger also departs tomorrow so the team and the club as a whole will have the chance to wish him well for the winter. He has been a fantastic leader, scoring runs from the front. His voice will be greatly missed throughout the next 6 months but he is back next summer to lead again. Let’s hope when he returns to Bristol, he continues from where he has left off.
Sax
