Tykes Round 2 - The TSL


Missing out Again?
By Grockle
April 24 2005

A chance to go away from Leeds with something. Will we see renewed vigour or a camp in disarray as the "doom police" expect. Calls for changes to the whole bowling line-up after three games and demands to put Wood in as an extra batsman are flowing in. Will Garraway listen? Nahhh!

v Yorkshire @ Headingley TSL2

There is a question he will have to answer though.  Will he find a space for Matt Wood in Sunday's line-up after the woeful performance of his batsmen in the CC game?  Where would he put him?  Well he could replace John Francis but after his sterling performance to carry his bat and hit a ton that is highly unlikely.  Get the confidence up while you can.  He could replace Burnsy but that is highly unlikely also after the hero's performance he put in last week at Edgbaston.  He won't replace Jayasuriya because that is what he is here for and that keeps Woody out of the top five because we will see  James Hildreth at 4 and Ian Blackwell at 5. 

The official website is talking up Keith Parsons involvement once again so there is number 6 and Rob Turner will keep and bat at 7.  Unless Aaron Laraman is not to be considered for one day games and that policy is continued from last week, he will be at 8.  Surely that can't be the policy though or Simon Francis, Gareth Andrew or Mike Parsons would have travelled down to ensure we were not a bowler short. 

The solution from some official pundits is to replace Nixon McLean with Matt Wood and bat him at 8 or 9?  Or move Parsons and Turner to 7 and 8?  Not really an option is it?  In order to ensure we have a spread of bowling we have to go in with 4 main 'seamers' - Caddick,Johnson,McLean and Laraman with Parsons as the change or option should one fail.  This is backed by the spin of Blackie backed up by the 'occasional' SJ.

There doesn't seem a place for Matt unless someone makes a very brave decision.  He could replace either Francis or Burns but will he?

Whatever the line-up, on form it is a handful but on results it is fragile and liable to collapse if pushed.  We shall see whether yesterday was a glitch or the destruction of the flimsy house of cards that far too many messageboard pundits are plumping for.  If we can't produce results then they are right to call for head rolling.  The problem is, where are the alternatives to major positions going to come from and how long can we give the inexperienced players to settle in?  The bare fact of the matter is that it is up to the majority of the players already in the frame for places and they have to produce the goods promised.

We should be a result up on last season already and we need to prove this Sunday that the batting performance against Warwickshire was the norm and our pitiful performance yesterday was the unusual one!

The Game

Well the prediction wasn't quite right.  Nixon did play but only because Aaron Laraman sustained a concussion.  Garraway reckons the pitch has little pace but has had to go with McLean having not called anyone else up from Taunton.  Matt Wood plays and has the opportunity to make a claim for a more premanent place anyway.

We bat after winning the toss and Burnsy comes out with SJ to start the process.  But the plan starts badly as the Sanath survives only until he reaches 9 and Matt is in the fray earlier than he expected.  But again, not for long, he survives 14 minutes and is then caught for 14.  We are 38 for 2.  It doesn't get better!  Burnsy goes at 74 and the usually solid KP fails to worry anyone as he is bowled by Bresnan for a mere 1.  John Francis is still there as the rock of the innings for the second game running and he is joined by Hildreth in a position he isn't suited for. 

With some advice from Mark G who brings the drinks out, the two settle the side by adding 53, but it isn't enough and when James goes at 127, we are far from providing a competitive score.  It is hard to identify what a good score is on this but the radio is saying anything under 210 won't be it. It's down to Blackwell to help JF get there.  Unfortunately, Frank Junior goes on 38 just 14 runs later and Blackie finds himself in the box seat once again with Rob Turner acting as the anchor.

The rot continues.  Noddy is not an anchor and doesn't bother the scorers.  The spinner is now facing the task with help from the bowlers only.  The 'extra' batsman solution simply hasn't worked as the batting collapses for the second time in three days against the same opposition.  Have we learned any lessons or are they just too good?

Blackie's 35 coupled with 33 from the bowlers...and a little help from Mr E.Xtra (20) gets us to 209.  It's not good enough but it might be close to something if we can make early in-roads into the Yorkshire batting line-up.  A big ask for the wrong seam attack (pace in Nixon) and the spin option with Sanath seeming yet to be really in the country!

It doesn't look hopeful.  Nixon goes for 9 and over in his first two, suggesting that the decision not to play him was the correct one!  Johnno is providing the goods and we get White with only 14 up but another 49 are added before he gets the second in Wood.  Caddick is going for a lot as well.  We seem to be missing the tight overs of AL on a day when the Cadman seems to be suffering from the pace of the pitch as well.

The spinners are on, then it's down to the medium pace of Burns and Parsons to get us home...and Harvey in the wings.  Not hopeful at 25 overs to go with Yorkshire on 93 for 2.  Hopes were not enhanced by the game that Jacques pplayed for his adopted county either.  This guy isn't even in the frame for the Oz team and he murdered us.  Fell short of his hundred but by the time he became the third wicket due to excellent fielding by 'man of the moment' John Francis, his 84 off 78 had effectively shoved us out of the game and we went on to lose with 5 overs left.

Johnson was the pick of the bowlers - a good point with 9 for 27 and 2 major wickets.  Sanath took his first and didn't do badly after a heavy over of 12+ in the Jacques mayhem.  The rest could have been better and this really wasn't a wicket for Nixon to bowl on (3 for 27!)....they really liked him.

So what do we come home with? 

It could have been better, it could have been worse.  But we failed because we would have come home with more if it had rained for the whole fourteen days.  That means we did not achieve the bare minimum required and therefore the jury is still out on this season at the moment!