While walking round the Somerset County cricket shop yesterday afternoon buying myself some shiny new boots and pads (i resisted the urge to buy a new bat, I can't believe how fucking expesnive they are -£150-300!) there was a small group who I'm fairly sure were dutch and german browsing and seeming very keen.

Nothing wrong at all wtih that, but it did strike me as probably being quite unusual.

I then forgot to buy bat tape, which I've been meaning to buy for the last 2 months! Twat.


Meanwhile, my average this season is 15, which whilst not really very impressive is about 14 more than I feared I'd get after the first game I played.

I'm loving playing and if I wasn't the father of a 17 month old and working shifts I'd want to try and find myself a saturday or sunday team as well.

They were almost certainly 'Dutch Lions' Barndoorio.

The KNCB has an annual school in that area (Taunton, I think) and young cloggies play in a couple of tournaments in Somerset every summer.

That would make sense then, they were in some sort of kit and the county ground is in Taunton (Glorious Taunton to give it's full name).

and just to tie things up neatly, Zander de Bruyn is currently on 75 not out at Taunton against Kent.

Didn't he play in the last series against England (batted at six, fifth seamer IIRC)?

Yes indeed he did.

Here he is being thoroughly unimpressive:
http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/countycricket2008/engine/match/64116.html

Btw, he's out for 81 following my mention of him, Somerset 314/5 with 4 of those 5 wickets getting 50 or more but less than 100...

Anyone else going to Edinli this weekend?

TPC, any chance of 20/20 making an impact in the Netherlands?

McKenzie is probably out for the second test. He'd be replaced by JP Duminy, whom I like, but who'll be out for 4 if SA bat first.

Reports from the SA camp suggest that the track for the test is very slow, no bounce. Are the groundmen going for a 0-0 drawn series?

"TPC, any chance of 20/20 making an impact in the Netherlands?"

Well it hasn't yet.

Studio Sport pay a staggering €5000 per year for the rights to show Dutch cricket on TV, but rarely take up that right.

Flintoff in for Collingwood at 7, so Ambrose at 6 (loooooong tail), and darren Pattison (who the fuck is he?) in for injured Sidebottom.

Bit of a slap in the face for England's established and hopeful fast bowlers if a man apparently working as a roof tiler in Australia two years ago is preferred to them. Still, good luck to him, at least he's not Harmison.

He's played 11 first class matches. In his life

FFS

Strange decision. Why isn't Hoggy back given that

a) it's in Leeds

b) Yorkshire have no away fixture?

Vaughan: "I don't know much about him [Pattison]".

I know I shouldn't really pass judgment on someone I haven't seen play, but ??????????

The following snippets are from the Guardian website:-

Steve Harmison 286 overs - 37 wickets @ 22.54.
Pattinson 197 overs - 29 wickets @ 20.86.
Simon Jones 116 overs - 29 wickets @ 13.27.
Matthew Hoggard 198 overs - 25 wickets @ 23.76.

Pattinson packs an intimidating first class batting average of 6.61. With a top score of 33.

Pattinson has just revealed that he's only ever bowled in Headingley in a Twenty20 game, and that until yesterday afternoon he was planning to take his family to Alton Towers today.

His family?

<checks>

He's twenty-fucking-nine. I assumed he must be a teenager or something. What's the point in that?

Cook out to another shocking decision

He should be doing his day job trying to find Oxford a decent right winger and a spare striker.