A wet day in the Lower Ure Valley has persuaded me that staying at home is a better option than going into York to see St Peter's School take on MCC. Having spent the last two days in a room in Cambridge from which had Steven Finn stood on Chris Tremlett's shoulders he might have been able to see out of the window, I had been hoping to see some cricket but the forecast for the weekend is much better and I have plans to visit the seaside tomorrow.
In terms of time and the progress of the championship the season has pretty well reached the half way stage with all counties having played at least half their matches in the competition. T20 begins tonight but the senior competition is merely catching its breath for there are six matches listed for Monday week and thirteen altogether with starts in July. For many of our readers (71 hits yesterday) the first division table has a splendid if slightly surprising look with Yorkshire eight points clear of Sussex, both counties having played nine games. For most of those games the leaders have had to manage without Root, Bairstow and Bresnan which makes their form even more praise worthy. They are not in four day action again until they visit Queen's Park in mid July, a much anticipated fixture for many pcws or indeed anybody who enjoys cricket in lovely surroundings. Sussex meet Somerset before then and the table may have a different look before Yorkshire take on their Derbyshire rivals.
Durham, tipped by Cricketer magazine to finish bottom have won four of their eight games and in so doing have exceeded my expectations and, I suspect, their own. All of their wins could arguably have gone the other way and Collingwood is to be congratulated on squeezing every drop of effort out of his men. All this has been achieved without an overseas player and with Benkenstein sidelined with a long term injury. I am still looking over my shoulder rather than towards the top and another win should guarantee first division cricket next year. Given they have not faced bottom club Derbyshire yet they will be confident of confounding 'Cricketer's' predictions.
The fourth and fifth teams, Middlesex and Notts respectively, have games in hand on Yorkshire and Sussex. Middlesex miss out on the last round of games at the end of season and complete their programme the week before at Headingley. One to look forward to but let's not encourage those Job's comforters who are already talking about the nights drawing in, bonfire night
and Christmas shopping, it is still only June, just.
The teams occupying the next three places, Surrey, Somerset and Warwickshire, were tipped by 'Cricketer' to make up the top three on September 27th and so far have but two wins between them. Most disappointed must be Surrey with their expensive imports who have seven draws and no wins and changed coach last week: the kind of volte face more associated with football clubs. Yet only five days ago, shortly after lunch on Monday, there was more than a glimmer of hope that they might be the first club to beat Yorkshire since Sussex in early April. Assuming KP will be involved with England until the last LOI with Australia on September 16th they are not likely to benefit from his presence for the next few games. This prompts a thought which had not previously occurred to me but September 17th is the start date for the penultimate round of championship matches: will the ECB then allow all centrally contracted players to return to their counties or more contentiously only allow some of them to do so or will they all be 'too tired'? How about this for a scenario? Root will dash from Southampton to report to Headingley the following morning for a 10:30 start, only to be told he can't join in until he has rested for two days.
Finally Derbyshire who are cast adrift by twenty five points. Karl Krikken has questioned the fairness of umpires towards his 'small club' and talks of how his men will' keep fighting', one would expect nothing less but I have visited Derby twice this season and sensed little optimism amongst their members that they will not return to the second division in 2014. on either occasion. How significant is it that yesterday the club appointed a chaplain?
Second division review coming shortly.
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