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Post by karma on May 3, 2024 7:49:45 GMT
I try to stay clear of politics but found it amusing and ironic that ex-politician, B.Johnson, was turned away from being able to vote yesterday because, under legislation introduced under his Government, he failed to produce acceptable photo ID. 🗳
I'm sure he was the first to find this amusing too as he is a very positive and ebulient person who doesn't expect privilege or special treatment.
'Pure Karma'
(I think that was the name of the song written by an ex-Beatle)
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Post by newby on May 6, 2024 9:31:56 GMT
The cricket schedule isn't working, too many games and too much travel according to the PCA who seem to be using Joe Root as a front man.
The ECB seem to agree and it's the County Chairmen and their members who seem to be the enemy here once again.
I'm a long time retired but when I was working I think I might have voted to do less and get more money for it, who wouldn't
Cricketers are enormously privileged as it is, they now seem to be moving from privilege towards entitlement.
Of course I don't want to see any cricketer killed or badly injured driving home late at night after a T20. But looking at the context of normal life these are risks taken by thousands of ordinary working people on a daily basis, and not just in the summer months either.
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Post by slowleftarmer on May 7, 2024 10:16:25 GMT
and often teams travel on a bus driven by a professional driver who has limits on how often he can drive each day, which whilst still inconvenient for players, should at least mean they are not driving late at night as often
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Post by davemorton on May 7, 2024 13:42:02 GMT
I remember meeting an old friend of my father, Arnold Hamer, a good opening bat for Derbyshire. I think they were playing at Coalville; somewhere out in the sticks, anyway. After the game tonight, he said, he would drive down to Taunton in his Morris 8, and meet up with his regular B&B landlady, who would do his washing for him. He had to report to the ground well before the 11.30 start, tomorrow.
As an 'old pro' he did have a car, at least, and a landlady in every town on the circuit, happy to wait up until midnight.
There was a car parked at Headingley yesterday: JT12 TAT. I can't imagine who might own that one. A modest enough Seat, but a lot better than a 1940's Morris.
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Post by karma on May 7, 2024 15:25:02 GMT
And a really nice Porche has been parked there all week. Don't know who has Bean driving that. 🚘 🚔
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Post by newby on May 7, 2024 16:24:38 GMT
It does no harm to let the cricketers of today know how lucky they are, but thankfully working conditions for most have improved greatly over the years.
It seems to be the T20's, which the clubs want to play only on Thurs/Fri/Sat/Sun to maximise crowds, and the 50 over competition, which they are trying to squeeze into a very short space of time, that is concerning the players rather than the CC.
I don't think it's beyond the wit of man to smooth out these two areas.
It's nice to see some different teams of course but not regionalising the Metro bank 50 over competition does lead to some very long journeys and may need to be looked at. Setting up out grounds such as York with extra seating makes having two games in 3 days sensible for the host, but could create problems for the visiting team.
For the T20 blast this season there are no games on Mondays and as far as I can see just 2 games on a Tuesday and 2 on a Wednesday throughout the entire competition. Perhaps the clubs could be given extra TV money for playing on less popular nights to compensate for smaller crowds.
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Post by davemorton on May 7, 2024 20:21:34 GMT
Looking at the 50 over itinerary, the Yorkshire one is fine. Down to The Oval, back up the M1 to Nottingham. Then 4 home matches, 2 each in York and Scarborough. Finally a road trip west, to play Warwickshire (at Rugby) and Glamorgan.
That looks ideal. I checked Sussex's fixtures, and their itinerary is a long way from ideal.
Up to Nottingham, down to Hove, up to York. Then a long trip west to play Glamorgan at Neath, before returning to Hove. Then it's out west again to Gloucestershire, before the last two at Hove.
Try to do better, ECB.
Fixtures are always a problem, especially for outliers like Kent / Sussex, Durham and Glamorgan. In my opinion, you sort these first, to minimise their travel. Then you do the best for the rest. Having more flexible dates would help, instead of this mania for playing all fixtures at the same time.
I am sure it could be done, if there was a will. Which there isn't.
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Post by donnylad on May 8, 2024 19:19:40 GMT
You would have thought so DM .. I was fixture secretary for our club for about 10 years .. well it felt like 10 years. If the excuses, stories, claims to play at different times and on different dates, begging phone calls, threats(!) I received are reflected in any way by the counties then the ECB Fix Sec or equivalent has a job and a half ... and that lot of drivel was only from OUR club's players.
We tried to hold a single meeting to sort out all the league fixtures on year - 20+ Fix Secs in a small hall, all trying to get the most favourable fixture pattern for their club. You will have seen those pictures of jobbers in the American Stock Exchange pushing, shoving and waving pieces of paper ..... they would not have stood a chance.
In the end the League Management Committee just took over the job and did reasonably well. They didn't have us playing league matches in April and the league finished on the first weekend in September ... Simples!
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Post by newby on May 8, 2024 20:42:33 GMT
Sussex seems to be the extreme example of bad planning for this years Metro Bank Cup competition, and of course that's the one the PCA are using to illustrate their point re the travel.
I know there are some pluses in an open draw for the group stages of this competition, but surely they are over ridden by the need to cut down travel for both players and travelling spectators and a regional split would be far more sensible.
As always in cricket people have their deeply held views and will call upon any evidence, no matter how flimsy, to back up their argument, while ignoring any inconvenient facts that may not.
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Post by slowleftarmer on May 9, 2024 7:27:37 GMT
its odd how we see complaints about travel in England but the counties are spread far and wide from the South Coast to Durham and our transport system is little better than it was in the 60s and 70s. Plus of course there is now pressure to reduce carbon footprints and not travel by plane and then players need to be at the venue 4 hours before start of play to do all the warm up drills and have an extended net that can sometimes last longer than an innings of the game.
Meanwhile in India, Australia, South Africa and the West Indies, travel is even greater but then the number of teams are usually much lower (perhaps not in India but certainly in the others) so the number of games are fewer.
But players have the luxury now of coach travel and not risking life and limb as DB Close's co-pilot as he drove through the night with a copy of the Racing Post in one hand and a cigarette in the other. They have decent hotels to stay in rather than the same B&B they have used for 10 years and they are surrounded by a support team of physios, bag carriers and administrators to sort out bookings etc for them.
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Post by newby on May 11, 2024 9:31:27 GMT
It seems to be emerging that time has finally been called on Jimmy Anderson's England career. All good things come to an end of course and I do think it's time.
I'm a bit conflicted on whether he should be given a farewell game at the Old Trafford Test match against Sri Lanka in August. It might help shift a few seats if it's hung out there as a possibility. Interesting to see if he turns out for Lancashire at all.
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Post by slowleftarmer on May 13, 2024 7:21:35 GMT
well at the moment the Lankys could do with a bowler of his quality in their side....
I am fortunate to be at Lords for his final test on the first day so hoping to be able to give him a well deserved send off
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Post by davemorton on May 13, 2024 11:22:26 GMT
Old photo of Jimmy, bowling in Mumbai, 2006. England won. Is that MS Dhoni? Hoggard in the same match (with Dravid?), and an England supporter's banner. Everything is brilliant in Nidderdale.
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Post by karma on May 18, 2024 8:37:01 GMT
Just taken bus ride into Leeds with Mrs karma, through Headingley and on to the LGI. Was surprised to see what I thought was a vagrant get on and move down to near where we were sitting. No it wasn't a vagrant , it was much worse than that. It was Alex Sobell , local MP and member of the Sports etc Parliamentary Committee and critic of YCCC and Colin Graves in particular. Carpetbagger
He got off to join the 9:30 Park run in Headingley. Scruffy unshavenven, hair not combed, old rag bag of clothing. That's enough about me though.
He really was scruffy, Mrs. karma couldn't believe it, maybe he was trying to hide his identity. I was going to challenge him but common sense and, for once, good manners stopped me. Thought, no, wait for the election. I suppose he has a private life though in my opinion MP's seek publicity, especially in election year and especially Sobell 🗳.
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Post by byased on May 19, 2024 9:58:21 GMT
Nice story. You should have challenged him, and exposed his identity. These opportunities only happen occasionally.
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