Grandmother scrubs up well.

Posted by John Winn
If one heard that one's grandmother had had a face lift then one might be a trifle nervous that on next seeing her she might look like breast of mutton desperately trying to pass itself off as spring lamb. Scarborough cricket ground and I have a relationship that goes back sixty years for it was on the 15th of August 1951 when I was VERY young that I first saw cricket at North Marine Road and when by a nice coincidence Yorkshire played Worcestershire. Yorkshire, missing Hutton, Lowson, Watson and Brennan, all on test duty at the Oval against South Africa, lost by 8 runs when with half an hour to play they had looked certain winners. It would be nice to say that I remember being gripped by the excitement of the finish but a lie, for I have only the vaguest memories of a large cricket ground and none whatsoever of the cricket. But I was there and today I was there again and it was good to see the ground looking splendid in the sunshine after its tasteful renovation and that seemed to be the opinion of most people I spoke to or overheard. Indeed one man gazed so fondly upwards in the gents' loos on the popular side that he might have been admiring the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
Normally I travel to Scarborough by train but as I mentioned in yesterday's posting, today I was able to take advantage of a lift with my friend John Gawthrope who also provided us with a splendid picnic lunch.
Depite the fact that the season has passed its halfway point Scarborough serves to reunite old friends who have not met since last year's festival, so unusual as it might seem, I heard the question, how was your winter?
A pleasant start to the day came when Andrew Gale presented Johnny Bairstow with his county cap and Gale's next important duty was to win the toss and put Worcestershire in on a pitch with more than a tinge of green. This worked even better than one dared to hope for by lunch Worcestershire were 60 for 6, despite some dropped catches in the slips.Batting became easier after lunch but when tea was taken early because of a shower Worcestershire were 8 down and shortly after tea Lyth and Root set about chasing a modest 168.Tragedy struck when Root was run out without facing and Lyth's dismissal made it 15 for 2. Gale and McGrath showed enterprise and put on 92 in 19 overs the highlight of which was when Gale struck Ajmal for five consecutive fours.
John and I left at six o'clock just as McGrath was lbw and by stumps Yorkshire had lost two further wickets to end on 135 for 5 and this important game in the balance, no pun intended.The first session tomorrow will be critical.
One mystery arising out of the renovation which intrigued me during the day was the purpose of a rather grand set of wooden steps leading up to the first floor of the pavilion, by the side of which was a stern warning 'Authorised Personnel Only'. As nobody climbed these steps between the hours of 10:00 and 18: 00 I can only assume no such authorised persons were present.
All this warm sunshine, large crowd and gleaming paint were in contrast with a couple of hours spent at Manningham Mills yesterday on a cold cheerless afternoon when Pudsey St Lawrence triumphed in an exciting finish to reach the final of The Priestley Cup where they will meet East Bierley. Scotchman Road could do with a bit of Tesco's cash if there is any left over after Scarborough's face lift.