The county championship has worn its new coat with pride. 36 matches have been played mostly in sunshine, albeit often accompanied by a cold wind, and produced some interesting and exciting cricket. In this latter category there has been nothing to compare with yesterday's finish at Headingley when for only the second time in their history Yorkshire won a match by one run and just for the second time Northants were on the receiving end of such a tight finish. Thanks to the excellent streaming service that we can now enjoy I was able to watch the afternoon's play and with Parnell on strike and the deficit one run my money was on the tie or victory for the visitors. Enter skipper Patterson aided by keeper Tattersall to dismiss Parnell who will carry a mixed bag of memories from a match in which he took ten wickets and came so close to anchoring a remarkable victory .
The Headingley nail biter finished at 3:45 which left a couple of hours to fill before our evening meal and not being a snooker fan I settled for Gloucestershire v Leicestershire where the day had begun with The Foxes' as favourites but by tea a stand between Lace and Cockbain which started as a match saver had turned into a potential match winner. 52 for 3 became 276 for 4 and Leicestershire's fielding betrayed their anxiety. After a couple of scares Hankins and Smith took 'Glos' over the line for their third victory and to a clear lead in Group 2. They play local rivals Somerset, currently second in the group, at Bristol at the end of the month and I have match tickets and train tickets booked for this match. Those who know me well will know why.
These three wins and a draw represent Glos' best start since 1948, a piece of information that had me reaching for the relevant Wisden. Having started that season with a draw at The Wagon Work's Ground in Gloucester against Worcestershire they got their first win against Somerset at Taunton followed by victory over Sussex at Bristol. Match four brought Yorkshire to the same venue and things went well enough for the visitors to be able to declare twice, centuries for Harry Halliday and Ted Lester. Stand in
skipper Brian Sellars had reckoned without the batting of Charlie Barnett whose 141 dominated an opening partnership with George Emmett. The 389 'Glos' needed was reached with 43 minutes and six wickets to spare.
Gloucestershire came very close to extending this winning streak but lost their next match, against Surrey at The Oval, by two runs. So bad was the rain that this became a one day, one innings fixture and on a 'difficult pitch' Jim Laker took eight wickets. Gloucestershire go to Lord's on Thursday where they will fancy their chances of improving on their 1948 start.
Recognition at last
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