No 22, July 21 - The Grumbler's County Cricket Newsletter

Royal London Cup previews | Clarke and Groenewald to retire | Stephenson gets Essex job | RIP Woodcock and Wynne-Thomas | Harry Duke | I try not to talk about the tournament-that-shall-not-be-named

Jul 21, 2021

It’s time to move forward. And, by that, I mean forward to the Royal London Cup because the first stages of the Championship and Blast concluded last week. I do feel the 50-over format could soon be in danger of failing to deliver on either end of the cricketing spectrum. It is far too long for fans of the crash, bang, wallop game but not nuanced enough for Test match aficionados. However this year’s one-day competition maybe invigorated by the amount of young players involved. An unintended consequence of the tournament-that-shall-not-be-named. Here’s my final piece on the birth of that particular competition. It will be (almost) my last word on it for some time. Apart from pushing this newsletter, I am going to take a break from cricket social media. The saga of this long-feared launch has got me down. I am concerned it is indicative of a wider malaise in UK sport and will bring out of the worst in us all. I need to create a little distance.

That said, I sincerely hope all the cricket newbies thoroughly enjoy their first experience of the game… and then come back to savour this historic and wonderfully nuanced sport in its true environment.

The Royal London Cup

All you need to know about the 2021 Royal London Cup (ECB)

Here's all the fixtures (Wikipedia)

The Royal London Cup: A shot at silverware, hard luck tales and the challenge of taming a complex mindset (The Cricketer)

Royal London One-Day Cup is at risk of being swallowed up by The Hundred (inews)

Moves and changes

Tim Groenewald: Kent's ex-Warwickshire, Derbyshire & Somerset all-rounder retires (BBC)

Rikki Clarke to retire at the end of the season (Surrey CCC)

These two all-rounders have been great county servants. Clarke is a true nemesis of mine. He plays for Surrey, supports Spurs and frequently damages my team with bat and ball.

Josh Poysden: Yorkshire and former Warwickshire spinner retires at the age of 29 (BBC Sport)

Warwickshire snap up Alex Davies after shock Lancashire exit (Lancashire Telegraph)

Stephenson leaving MCC role to become Essex chief executive (Evening Echo)

This appointment was well-received by Essex fans and ‘Stanley’ is certainly steeped in the club, plus his credentials as a cricket administrator are excellent. However, with significant financial challenges coming in the next five years, he will need business acumen too.

Dearly departed…

John Woodcock, legendary former Times cricket correspondent, dies aged 94 (Cricinfo)

Tributes paid to 'much loved' librarian and historian known as Mr Trent Bridge (Nottingham Post)

A couple of fond farewells this week to much-loved county figures we may never see the like of again.

Stories and Features…

Murder, diplomacy and stardom: What happened to Worcestershire's forgotten County cricketers (Worcester News)

Scott Boswell, 20 years on: A life rebuilt from the ruin of the yips (Cricketer)

Credit to Scott Boswell for continuing to front up and revisit his most embarrassing moment. But he deserves even greater credit for finding his place in cricket once more. I’d imagine it would have been easier to walk away.

Harry Duke backed to realise opening potential as Yorkshire Vikings warm-up for Royal London Cup in style (Yorkshire Post)

This 19-year-old wicketkeeper snatched the gloves at Headingley in dramatic style earlier this season and he is excelling for a team with real title aspirations.

And, oh blimey, I wanted to avoid going down this rabbit hole again. But this is really the key piece of the week…

With friends like these? A Hundred reasons why the ECB has failed the game (Cricinfo)

This is a savage takedown from George Dobell, a strong critic of the tournament-that-shall-not-be-named. Given the amount of spin around the event (see Tweet of the Week below) it has always been difficult to know whose views to trust. I count out players and the ECB, as they have the most to gain. The BBC is backing its baby to the hilt like it always does. Ditto Sky. And if I was a freelance broadcaster then I would be keeping my powder dry. If this tournament takes off then all the jobs will be there. The ECB forced the counties to sign non-disclosure agreements so they suddenly went quiet. Who does that leave? Really it is only fans and those journalists whose livelihoods are not dependent on the largesse of the governing body. Everyone else has been silenced or has significant skin in the game. We are all bored of the debate now and, as I wrote in the introduction, it is bringing out the worst in us. But it is telling that Dobell is hugely critical, along with these high-profile (and entirely independent) cricket journalists - Paul Newman | Huw Turbervill | Ali Martin | Chris Stocks

Let’s interrupt this newsletter for a game of county cricket…

Back to 1996 when Lancashire became the first side to retain the Benson & Hedges Cup thanks largely to cult hero Ian Austin. During the celebrations, their fans were singing “Football’s coming home”. Nothing changes, eh?