Kent away Canterbury

Latest forecast is a couple of showers this morning around 11am, tomorrow cloudy, rest showers around. Cold. Try to enjoy if you're going.

If anything Pope needs to play. He is well out of nick. You don't get fit sitting in the dressing room as Boycott once said. I don't understand this "rest" nonsense particularly when you've done nothing for months. When I was long distance swimming the last thing you do is put your feet up for a month. It's about pacing yourself properly. Indeed even now I swim three times a week, if I leave it for two weeks, it's harder getting back in to it, particularly as you get older and apart from a 2 mile charity swim in August, I'm just doing it for fitness. England's band of "expert"  coaches don't have a clue in my view. It could of course be more sinister: let's deny Surrey their best players?

Jackers wrote:

Wokoval wrote:The ECB and the FA ( Football Association) represent everything that is wrong in this country. No consideration for the paying public.

The ECB are worse. At least the FA don't tell professional clubs that they can't pick who they want outside of the agreed international windows.

No, the FA just tell clubs of a new rule to a competition that their clubs play in but those clubs werent consulted about

Worrall in the Match day squad but no Pope or Atkinson

Surrey ( XI v Somerset)
Rory Burns(c)
Dom Sibley
Ollie Pope
Dan Lawrence
Jamie Smith
Ben Foakes(wk)
Cameron Steel
Jordan Clark
Jamie Overton
Gus Atkinson
Kemar Roach

Josh Blake
Matt Dunn
Ben Geddes
Tom Lawes
Ryan Patel
Dan Worrall

Patel for Pope, Lawes for Overton and Worrall for Atkinson - team picks itself

https://www.kiaoval.com/kent-vs-surrey-full-preview-2/

Is Key the former Kent batsman ( sorry batter) the person making these decisions like Pope not being allowed to play against er…..Kent?. The FA scrapping replays without consulting EFL and National League clubs is similar to the ECB not consulting the counties on the Hundred. As for the paying public we have no say whatever it seems. I’m quite a placid person but this makes me very angry.

Are we back to the Dukes Ball?

Here's my preview of the County Championship clash between @KentCricket and @surreycricket which starts today at Canterbury http://www.ovalworld-online.com/prevkensurcc2024.htm

First-class stats sheet for @surreycricket vs @KentCricket http://www.ovalworld-online.com/fc_stats_surrey_kent.pdf

For Surrey's fixtures and scorecards go to: http://www.ovalworld-online.com/cards.htm

Wokoval wrote:Is Key the former Kent batsman ( sorry batter) the person making these decisions like Pope not being allowed to play against er…..Kent?. The FA scrapping replays without consulting EFL and National League clubs is  similar to the ECB not consulting the counties on the Hundred. As for the paying public we have no say whatever it seems. I’m quite a placid person but this makes me very angry.

No Pope or Atkinson but Crawley is allowed to play. Strange that!!!!!

Match delayed - Teams will be announced at the toss

Raining - forecast rain all the way through to 4/5pm

You can watch them putting the covers back on here -

There is a reason why until 20 years ago no cricket was played until late April. The MCC v Champions match at Lord's would probably have been about now, along with some games between the counties and major universites at "The Parks" or "Fenners". In a week's time they would have been starting either the championship or the B and H/Royal London Cup 55-50 over group games.

For example
https://www.cricketarchive.com/Surrey/Seasons/1986_f.html

Note, our first game of that season (starting on 26 April) was at Worcester. I wonder if Sylvester Clarke was splashing in from the Diglis Road end?

People saying we should be grateful for any crumbs from the table are playing into the hands of those trying to marginalise the integrity of the game we love. We have to challenge at every turn the ECB's salami tactics erosion of county cricket. There is nothing remotely enjoyable or rewarding about these three weeks for either spectators or, I imagine, players. I wouldn't dream of booking an away trip in April, that's for sure.

Jhe10077 wrote:Are we back to the Dukes Ball?

Yes we are thank goodness. The other useless thing is going to be used again I believe later in the season.

Wokoval wrote:Is Key the former Kent batsman ( sorry batter) the person making these decisions like Pope not being allowed to play against er…..Kent?. The FA scrapping replays without consulting EFL and National League clubs is  similar to the ECB not consulting the counties on the Hundred. As for the paying public we have no say whatever it seems. I’m quite a placid person but this makes me very angry.

Rob "Kookabura" Key - Sky Podcast - he was at the Oval (Saturday?), saying that it was compelling watching Craig Overton bowling bouncers one end, and Bashir holding up the other conceeding less than 2 an over. seems totally blinkered that the Kookabura ball is fantastic and this trial was massively successfull, you wonder how much Baz McCallum has been in his ear asking for it.
When asked if there was a way for players like Burns and Sibley to break into the current England set-up he basically said no. Scoring runs is all the current England management care about from their batsman, not building an innings and grinding out a score. He doesn't want players who block for 50 balls not playing any strokes.

If you've ever had a Dukes Special County and a Kookaburra Turf in your hands, you'll know the Dukes looks and feels infinitely superior.

It's probably about money. Like everything else.

Chinaman wrote:Latest forecast is a couple of showers this morning around 11am, tomorrow cloudy, rest showers around. Cold. Try to enjoy if you're going.

All the other Div One matches have started now:

Essex v Lancs
Hants v Warwicks
Somerset v Notts
Worcs v Durham

BBC website: Umpires give green light for play at Canterbury

Better news from Canterbury where the umpires have taken a look and decided that play can begin at 13:25.

---

Surrey won toss and elected to field first

RJ Burns*
DP Sibley
DW Lawrence
JL Smith
BT Foakes†
RS Patel
CT Steel
J Clark
TE Lawes
KAJ Roach
DJ Worrall

3 Changes from Somerset XI: Overton "rested" for Lawes and Patel and Worrall come in for the unavailable Pope and Atkinson

Struggling to see what Patel has done to deserve playing over Geddes

We're fielding. A good toss to win, given the conditions and a Duke's ball. We need to get among them quickly, as Bollocky Bill has already got some wickets at Chelmsford.

We need to bowl them out twice to win this game, and we know any total upto to 501 on this ground is gettable in 4th Innings.

I think Sibley and Burns will want to prove a point to Mr Key and put in a performance, hopefully throughout the majority of tomorrows play.

Commentary started on the Youtube channel

Possible 76 Overs play today - weather permitting

"skys darkening" ominous commentary

and play suspended after 11 balls - Kent 2/0 1.5 Overs

So why does Crawley play, a man in form, and Pope doesn't, a man out of form? Interesting that Crawley plays for Kent, well Mr Key?
Looks like Canterbury only have stump cameras. Their off, bad light. Good games ruined by idiotic scheduling. Really you might as well write off at least the first 3 games.

Chinaman wrote:So why does Crawley play, a man in form, and Pope doesn't, a man out of form? Interesting that Crawley plays for Kent, well Mr Key?
Looks like Canterbury only have stump cameras. Their off, bad light. Good games ruined by idiotic scheduling. Really you might as well write off at least the first 3 games.

the simple answer to the Crawley/Pope debate is that Crawley hasnt played yet this ummer, probably 'rested' so that he can play against us, whereas Pope has played twice, albeit hardly batted

Coatesy wrote:

Chinaman wrote:So why does Crawley play, a man in form, and Pope doesn't, a man out of form? Interesting that Crawley plays for Kent, well Mr Key?
Looks like Canterbury only have stump cameras. Their off, bad light. Good games ruined by idiotic scheduling. Really you might as well write off at least the first 3 games.

the simple answer to the Crawley/Pope debate is that Crawley hasnt played yet this ummer, probably 'rested' so that he can play against us, whereas Pope has played twice, albeit hardly batted

Yes but Crawley scored runs all through the Test series in India and Pope didn't. I don't mind Crawley playing but I don't trust Key and his cronies one little bit who are pretty well anti Surrey. To be honest I hope it rains for the next 3 days (sorry if you've gone or are planning to). The forecast for next weekend for the Oval is also, at present, pretty bad.
Debate: April matches are a waste of time, if you can't change the schedule it's barely worth playing them. Mmmm....just the excuse the ECB needs to reduce down to 12 or even 10 rounds.

Franky!

I'm watching the live stream...no Church. Any sign of him on the BBC?

They just mentioned on the commentary that the ECB are allowing all central contracted players to be available for 5 of the first 7 county matches. Seems strange we couldn't have made atleast 1 of those games Gus Atkinson is unavailable when Sean Abbott is available. Does mean Foakes misses 2 of next 4.

It makes sense to play Foakes in five consecutive matches, then bring Blake into the team to allow Jamie Smith to concentrate on making big runs in Pope's absence.

Jackers wrote:

adelaide wrote:

Jackers wrote:

Wokoval wrote:The ECB and the FA ( Football Association) represent everything that is wrong in this country. No consideration for the paying public.

The ECB are worse. At least the FA don't tell professional clubs that they can't pick who they want outside of the agreed international windows.

That might be because footballers are not on central contracts. Which in turn is because the clubs generate their own income, rather than relying on income from the FA. It really is a case of who pays the piper.

I would wager Surrey could match whatever the ECB pay this particular piper if they did not impose a salary cap to prevent us from so doing. Why does this hypocritical governing body not impose a salary cap on its own central contracts? They seem to be free to award as much as they wish to as many as they wish.

Seriously? Other counties, possibly excluding Lancashire, could not get close to matching what the ECB pay. Without a salary cap there would be little competition and surely nobody wants that? I know Surrey has to look after its own interests first but those interests surely include having strong cpmpetitors.