Friendly 1 Cardiff Uni
No ITB
By Grockle
April 4 2008
And so we go. 43 minutes and counting as I post this. I was hoping to upgrade from the ground but I've left the magic box at home so you'll get the gist after 7 probably. It is an important part of the preparation and although the oposition is sometimes variable, turning your arm over and getting your eye in needs doing before we walk out for the first important game.
v Cardiff UCCE @ Taunton (F) 4 April 2008
No scorecard available I'm afraid
Some won't be there today, some will get a chance to chow they are ready and some will just be ironing out the kinks for what will be certainly the most importnat season of this century for Somerset.
The skipper isn't here yet and the VC is still getting back into the swing so to speak. Some people are getting over Dubai and that gives opportunity for others to show that they are forces in this squad and they've moved on frm second team regular placements to first team possibilities.
Edwards and Trescothick will open and scare (one hopes) John Francis gets a welcome early knock and it would be good to see something from him after a couple of lean years. James Hildreth will be able to take a look at Omari Banks and gauge him as a batting partner while Wes Durston can see what he's like as a slow man. Craig Kieswetter gets the gloves.
The bowling allows us to get to see Ben Phillips at home for the first time (I think) since we signed him in 2007! Steff Jones will be out there building on from the Middle East with Mark Turner but I don't know whether he will captain. The 'newbie' Andy Sutton also gets a run out in a bowling capacity only.
I don't know whether that means we're only batting to 10 or there's someone else to be added in. I'll find out in about an hour I hope!! It will also be interesting to see who gets the leadership roles in these games because one of the early discussion points is - who is being prepared for 2009 "skippership" - it all gets sooo exciting the moment April comes.
More later.

Am roughing it in Florida this week & you'll be pleased to know that the 'Countdown' is still on over here. According to the countdown on the Grockles Florida site, there is still another 4 hours 57 minutes to go before the Season starts.
So if anyone is at the County Ground watching cricket, it must be an illusion !!
Grizzzly
At 11.31 I said to my wife "The first ball of the season will just have been bowled at Taunton."
When I came in from doing exciting decorating jobs (!) I thought I would get the score, forgetting that cricinfo would not have a 'friendly' game listed.
[shaking head]
![[:wor kid:] [:wor kid:]](/phorum-5.1.15/mods/smileys/images/13.gif)
Somerset scored 281-6 off 40 overs
Trescothick 105
Kieswetter 71
Edwards 36
After 20 overs Cardiff are 85-4
Phillips 2 wickets clean bowled, sutton 1 wicket and had a couple of dropped off him in slips. Not sure on other wicket
Let's hope that our "slipers," have got their drops for the season out of the way in this one!
Yours
disgruntled of City of London.
Thanks.
I hear Cardiff University are a top notch outfit this year and we're taking them to the cleaners.
The Grand Slam is on the cards.
We're going to win the lot.
Hope it finishes soon.
It's raining here.
As for the developments, it all looks very tidy and rather, er, quiet. Gone are all the scenes of rubble and bits of buildings, in their place a tidy rank of stationary earthmoving vehicles behind the temporary fencing, and lots of space. I presume that work is still below ground level and that the new stand will suddenly rise phoenix-like in time for its mid-August completion.
Good to see Marcus get his first of many first-class centuries this season, and Phillips get his first of many wickets.
So the building work is well on course then.
What is the ground capacity going to be this season?

The bowling look decidedly `early season` against students who were obviously pretty well coached on the batting front. Omari Banks suffered more than most from the adjacent boundary ropes; Phillips bowled two batsmen with classic inswingers in three balls; Turner was fast and furious, but mostly pitched too short; while Sutton suffered from overpitching, although he had the misfortune of seeing two slip catches go down in two balls.
Overall rarting: 6 out of 10.
Turner
Banks.
Kieswetter.
Trescothick
Hildreth
Fisher bld Phillips
I hope the captions are correct.
Shouldn’t Somerset have one Red pad (Left) and one Grey pad (Right)?

The link to my Photos on Photobucket - [s1152.photobucket.com]Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2008:04:04:22:29:17 by Mike BOS.

it gave me a taster for the rest of the season.
It was very noticeable when the builders went to lunch, it got very quiet.
The link to my Photos on Photobucket - [s1152.photobucket.com]That kit is wrong.
Wrong I tell you.
It did have the feel of a practice match, Doc, the short boundary was ridiculous. But it allowed the venerable Frostie to work his heavy roller on a strip just off the southern boundary - to add to the continuous hum of heavy machinery going about their business.
It seems that some aggregate has been added as these monsters did look to be at a higher level than my last visit in March.
I got the to ground with about 4 overs left, but enjoyed each one. The boundary was astonishingly close to the 'non-developing' side of the ground, so you could hear all the chatter, which was all quite jovial. Banger was captaining nicely, and seemed to be giving Turner a bit of tutelage. Turner was a funny one - bowling overs mixed with long and short run-ups.
Steffan looked good, and keen. What with Philips in some sort of fitness I guess Jonah realises he is fighting for a place.
As for the development, hmmm. Lots of demolishing has been done and the view of the church is indeed pretty, but one wonders where many many people are going to sit.
Nice to see Grockle and Tractor though, at last - the season is here.
