So now I shall attempt a late recount of the tour.
On our second day in Manchester, England the group played their first game in the UK at Westleigh while a few of us who were rostered off travelled to Bradford to watch Steve Menzies’ Bradford Bulls take on the Castleford Tigers in a UK Super League match at Gratton Stadium. Travelling on the English motorways was a new experience. Despite the speed limit, people tend to fly as if they are on a German autobahn. However Jacko refused to do as the Romans do and we trundled along at on or just below the limit. We took quite a while to find the ground – probably because it is basically in a crater. The stadium was fantastic, a great ground to watch league at and the small crowd of 8000 provided a decent atmosphere. Quite surprising considering this ground held the attendance record for a league match before 2000 with over 100k at the ground. It was an entertaining game with typical super league defence (horrible) and tries were easy to come by for both teams. It was a seesawing game with Castleford edging it in the end 40-38. After we (mainly Jacko) spent most of the game abusing Dean Widders, he ended up making 3 line breaks in the 2nd half including a length of the field try to win the game for Castleford. After the game we met up with and had a chat to Steve Menzies and Chris Nero, whom we got free tickets through.
So when that was over we made our way to Westleigh to join the rest of the group and watch the rest of the game. It was an even contest with Westleigh being too good in the end, chasing down CPCC’s total of 7/214 off 40 in the 36th over with 4 wickets in hand. Not only were we beaten in the cricket but we were also controversially outdone in the boat race after a disappointing performance.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Sorry
Well my plans to blog my tour often were a failure. The packed schedule meant I had hardly any time, and my laptop became the town bycicle. I also lost my internet USB thing.
Anyway the tour has been great, I ended up with 13 wickets and nearly 100 runs. I got my first 4 fa in a long time. I'm writing this from Amsterdam, which I have loved. We leave for Germany tomorrow.
Hopefully I'll have more time to catch up things over the next few days, but don't count on it.
Back in a week and a bit, TC.
Anyway the tour has been great, I ended up with 13 wickets and nearly 100 runs. I got my first 4 fa in a long time. I'm writing this from Amsterdam, which I have loved. We leave for Germany tomorrow.
Hopefully I'll have more time to catch up things over the next few days, but don't count on it.
Back in a week and a bit, TC.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Singapore
I am writing this on the plane to Manchester with about 4 hours left in the flight and after only about a 1 hour sleep.
CPCC have lost the first match of the 09 Tour to the Misfits at the Ceylon Sports Ground, Singapore. It was a high scoring, good game and a great day. The astro pitch looked decent and the outfield was lightning fast. We bowled first, with me opening the bowling with Col, and struggled from the outset. There was not one millimetre of swing, even with the brand new ball, and a dodgy legside wide rule, which eventually faded out during the game, didn’t help me. Their opening batsmen retired at 30 and it was quite a while before Deano took the first wicket on tour. We managed to fight back at bit in the 2nd half of the game with Dean and Dee bowling quite well. I came back on for a second spell despite being hit by a tough dose of one of my typical headaches. Somehow it made me bowl a bit better and I grabbed my first international wicket off a rubbish short ball outside off, which was cut in the air straight to Graeme at cover. I also managed to take a second, another ordinary short ball on off which was pulled high in the air, and thanks to some great field placement from Deano, straight to Minnett. My 2 fa was good enough to land me as equal top wicket taker on tour so far. Deano was very unlucky to only get 1, he had numerous chances go down and was definitely the pick of the bowlers. The Misfits ended up with 202 off their 30 overs, my figures were 2/34 off 6.
In our chase, the boys put in a great effort. I didn’t feature, being put down the order (and thank gosh for that, I was stuffed). Adrian and Camo opened up, both looking good against some quick bowling. Camo fell for 17 and Mugsy went on to retire at 30. From there we had Minnett retire at 30 also and Deano just miss out on getting us home with 27 not out. The Plateau finished with 191 with plenty of wickets in hand. Our batting line-up is looking quite solid.
There were some big hits on the day. One Misfit smoked one all the way out of the ground in straight into the traffic on the main road. Deano hit a six into the club house, scattering everyone and destroying a water bottle. Overall it was a great day, with awesome hospitality at the Ceylon Sports Ground. Singapore was great, although I’m not going to miss the weather, I can’t stand that sort of humidity.
We also had a good night the night before at the Cavern on boat key. I opened up my boat race account with a win.
The plane trip into Singapore was great. Meals were good and I enjoyed the unlimited beverages. The 7 hours went quite quickly. This one has been quite different however. I was already shutting my eyes on the bus to the airport and feeling pretty rubbish after my day in the heat. It is nearly impossible for me to sleep here on the plane. Then I got a bit sick but it’s all good now.
Quote of the tour so far was made by Brendo on the flight into Singapore. There was some guy sitting down who had covered himself completely in his blanket. I pointed him out to the others and Brendo pulls out “He’s dead!”, “He’s been there for two years... I mean what are you going to do?”. Was a classic. As I finish this up, we are currently flying over Russia.
CPCC have lost the first match of the 09 Tour to the Misfits at the Ceylon Sports Ground, Singapore. It was a high scoring, good game and a great day. The astro pitch looked decent and the outfield was lightning fast. We bowled first, with me opening the bowling with Col, and struggled from the outset. There was not one millimetre of swing, even with the brand new ball, and a dodgy legside wide rule, which eventually faded out during the game, didn’t help me. Their opening batsmen retired at 30 and it was quite a while before Deano took the first wicket on tour. We managed to fight back at bit in the 2nd half of the game with Dean and Dee bowling quite well. I came back on for a second spell despite being hit by a tough dose of one of my typical headaches. Somehow it made me bowl a bit better and I grabbed my first international wicket off a rubbish short ball outside off, which was cut in the air straight to Graeme at cover. I also managed to take a second, another ordinary short ball on off which was pulled high in the air, and thanks to some great field placement from Deano, straight to Minnett. My 2 fa was good enough to land me as equal top wicket taker on tour so far. Deano was very unlucky to only get 1, he had numerous chances go down and was definitely the pick of the bowlers. The Misfits ended up with 202 off their 30 overs, my figures were 2/34 off 6.
In our chase, the boys put in a great effort. I didn’t feature, being put down the order (and thank gosh for that, I was stuffed). Adrian and Camo opened up, both looking good against some quick bowling. Camo fell for 17 and Mugsy went on to retire at 30. From there we had Minnett retire at 30 also and Deano just miss out on getting us home with 27 not out. The Plateau finished with 191 with plenty of wickets in hand. Our batting line-up is looking quite solid.
There were some big hits on the day. One Misfit smoked one all the way out of the ground in straight into the traffic on the main road. Deano hit a six into the club house, scattering everyone and destroying a water bottle. Overall it was a great day, with awesome hospitality at the Ceylon Sports Ground. Singapore was great, although I’m not going to miss the weather, I can’t stand that sort of humidity.
We also had a good night the night before at the Cavern on boat key. I opened up my boat race account with a win.
The plane trip into Singapore was great. Meals were good and I enjoyed the unlimited beverages. The 7 hours went quite quickly. This one has been quite different however. I was already shutting my eyes on the bus to the airport and feeling pretty rubbish after my day in the heat. It is nearly impossible for me to sleep here on the plane. Then I got a bit sick but it’s all good now.
Quote of the tour so far was made by Brendo on the flight into Singapore. There was some guy sitting down who had covered himself completely in his blanket. I pointed him out to the others and Brendo pulls out “He’s dead!”, “He’s been there for two years... I mean what are you going to do?”. Was a classic. As I finish this up, we are currently flying over Russia.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Final Pre-Tour Post
It has been over a month since my last post, so I thought it would be nice to confirm that I am actually still updating this.
Firstly a form report. I was quite happy with my final net, consistently pitching the ball up and swinging it miles, seems I've come good at the right time. I am sure that over the tour I will continue to improve and hopefully the wickets will come.
Batting has been pretty normal, not much to report. I should get some decent runs if I get the opportunity.
Drinking form is yet to be properly trialled, I am hoping to make a boat race appearance at some point!
So everything is set for the Singapore match in 3 days time.
The first challenge on tour will be waking up at about 4:15 A.M. on Thursday to be on the bus at 4:45 which will get us to the airport at 6 for a 8 o'clock flight.
You may not hear from me while I'm in Singapore, unless I come across a WiFi area. I should have the net up and running when we arrive in Manchester.
Roll on the '09 Tour!
Firstly a form report. I was quite happy with my final net, consistently pitching the ball up and swinging it miles, seems I've come good at the right time. I am sure that over the tour I will continue to improve and hopefully the wickets will come.
Batting has been pretty normal, not much to report. I should get some decent runs if I get the opportunity.
Drinking form is yet to be properly trialled, I am hoping to make a boat race appearance at some point!
So everything is set for the Singapore match in 3 days time.
The first challenge on tour will be waking up at about 4:15 A.M. on Thursday to be on the bus at 4:45 which will get us to the airport at 6 for a 8 o'clock flight.
You may not hear from me while I'm in Singapore, unless I come across a WiFi area. I should have the net up and running when we arrive in Manchester.
Roll on the '09 Tour!
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
May 26th Report
Wow, just over a month away from the tour. Getting very close.
Had quite a good training session last night at the SCG nets. Batting was a little off from previous weeks (still decent though) but I had some vision problems so I was quite happy with my hit. I'm really cracking some good drives/cover drives at the moment and me leg side play is improving well.
Some more good news, my bowling felt much better. Slowed my approach right down and bowled some good length outswingers, actually causing some trouble to the batsman for once. Just got to eliminate the couple of long hops I let creep in, and I have something very good to build on in the final 5 weeks of preparation. And mind you, I'm still bowling with an old ball.
Got lots of tour shirts this week. Playing shirts, polo, Twenty20 shirt and alternate training shirt. TC is #14 for the tour. The Plateau has it all.
Had quite a good training session last night at the SCG nets. Batting was a little off from previous weeks (still decent though) but I had some vision problems so I was quite happy with my hit. I'm really cracking some good drives/cover drives at the moment and me leg side play is improving well.
Some more good news, my bowling felt much better. Slowed my approach right down and bowled some good length outswingers, actually causing some trouble to the batsman for once. Just got to eliminate the couple of long hops I let creep in, and I have something very good to build on in the final 5 weeks of preparation. And mind you, I'm still bowling with an old ball.
Got lots of tour shirts this week. Playing shirts, polo, Twenty20 shirt and alternate training shirt. TC is #14 for the tour. The Plateau has it all.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Training Report 13th of May
I have completed a lot of training over the past couple of days. Yesterday was the weekly tour group session at the SCG and then today I went up to the Plateau nets for another bowl.
I will again speak about my bowling first. Things just aren't happening, although I bowled better last night I still don't feel good about it. I'm not threatening, I don't look like taking wickets. Maybe bowling with a 100 over or more old ball has something to do with, I might try and get a new/newer ball for next time. But still, there's no use doing that if I can't get it in the right areas.
Then today I felt a bit stiff and tired, but managed to work myself into a half decent rhythm and bowled OK against an empty net.
My Batting is going pretty well at the moment. With the faster bowlers and the ball coming onto the bat I feel fantastic, especially my drives. I still have work to do with slower bowling, I tend to be getting ready and playing too early, which happens when I'm in a hard hitting mood. I just have to wait for it a bit more instead of getting myself in a big tangle.
No net at the SCG next week, but I will probably have a bowl up the Plateau again at some point, got to try and get my bowling going.
Cheers.
I will again speak about my bowling first. Things just aren't happening, although I bowled better last night I still don't feel good about it. I'm not threatening, I don't look like taking wickets. Maybe bowling with a 100 over or more old ball has something to do with, I might try and get a new/newer ball for next time. But still, there's no use doing that if I can't get it in the right areas.
Then today I felt a bit stiff and tired, but managed to work myself into a half decent rhythm and bowled OK against an empty net.
My Batting is going pretty well at the moment. With the faster bowlers and the ball coming onto the bat I feel fantastic, especially my drives. I still have work to do with slower bowling, I tend to be getting ready and playing too early, which happens when I'm in a hard hitting mood. I just have to wait for it a bit more instead of getting myself in a big tangle.
No net at the SCG next week, but I will probably have a bowl up the Plateau again at some point, got to try and get my bowling going.
Cheers.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
SCG Training 5th May
Yesterday we had our first net session at the SCG indoor nets. The nets tend to be quite fast and bouncy, add dodgy lighting to this and it makes for a pretty difficult environment to bat in.
I'll get this out of the way - my bowling feels rubbish at the moment. I just can not put everything together. I bowled maybe 2 or 3 balls I was happy with. Maybe I'm trying to "fix" too many things in my action. Perhaps if I just forget it all and bowl I'll be able to return to some old form. Theres so many things I've been thinking about, staying tall in my action, getting good air off my jump, holding the ball at the end of my fingers and even my pet hate creeps in, 'get your front arm up'. So thats it I think, I'll just start from scratch. I know I don't need to be too fast or hit the pitch hard, I've just got to pitch the ball in a good position with it swinging away time and time again like I used to.
Anyway with that bowling rant out of the way, my batting was a mixed bag. I played some decent shots but also a few terrible ones. I got a bit frustrated when I edged a couple of balls which I played defensive shots to and thought I had under control. But I suppose thats the nature of those nets.
Summing up, I've got quite a bit of work to do, but plenty of time to do it in. Just hope I can get my bowling sorted out.
Cheers
I'll get this out of the way - my bowling feels rubbish at the moment. I just can not put everything together. I bowled maybe 2 or 3 balls I was happy with. Maybe I'm trying to "fix" too many things in my action. Perhaps if I just forget it all and bowl I'll be able to return to some old form. Theres so many things I've been thinking about, staying tall in my action, getting good air off my jump, holding the ball at the end of my fingers and even my pet hate creeps in, 'get your front arm up'. So thats it I think, I'll just start from scratch. I know I don't need to be too fast or hit the pitch hard, I've just got to pitch the ball in a good position with it swinging away time and time again like I used to.
Anyway with that bowling rant out of the way, my batting was a mixed bag. I played some decent shots but also a few terrible ones. I got a bit frustrated when I edged a couple of balls which I played defensive shots to and thought I had under control. But I suppose thats the nature of those nets.
Summing up, I've got quite a bit of work to do, but plenty of time to do it in. Just hope I can get my bowling sorted out.
Cheers
Monday, May 4, 2009
Mandalong Match
Yesterday nearly everyone on the tour trekked it an hour and a half up the coast to the suburb of Mandalong where we completed a successful match on turf, officially the clubs annual "Presidents XI" vs "Captains XI".
The pitch was spongy due to overnight rain and the outfield was quite long and was obviously going to be very slow. It was a fairly easy decision for the president at the toss to bowl first, that being my team.
Early the bounce in the pitch was very inconsistent and even dangerous with the odd length ball shooting up sharply out of nowhere. This wasn't to relevant to my bowling as I tend not to hit the pitch that hard. But anyway, opening the bowling I struggled big time, I couldn't put together what I had worked on in the nets, everything felt wrong and I rarely bowled a ball I was happy with in my first spell of 4 overs.
Something I was very happy with was my fielding. I took two fairly easy catches comfortably and made no mistakes in the outfield, even my throwing was good which is unusual for me. Whatever I did, it got me ready for my final two overs. They were an unbelievable improvement on my opening spell, I was able to get nearly every ball where I wanted it, my run up and action felt 100% better and was probably unlucky not to take a wicket. I ended up with 0/20 off 6, and on that outfield that's pretty poor.
Batting was the highlight of the day for me, I was very happy with my innings. Even though the sun had been drying out the pitch all morning there was still a few gremlins. But anyway I got my innings underway was a push towards mid wicket, a shot that is definitely not a strength of mine so that was an immediate positive. Then I had to face some quality spin from Deano which I thought would spell an early end for me, considering my weakness against spin especially early in my innings. His first ball spun and mile past my bat but amazingly that was all the trouble he gave me. I played some nice shot over mid wicket which I had myself confused about, no idea why I played it but I allowed perfectly for the spin and it came off beautifully. It was all going along nicely until the pitch decided to throw me a few dooseys. Toby (pace) bowled 3 balls that really destroyed me. The first one stayed relatively low and swung in. The second one bounced in nearly the same spot and shot up and smacked me in the helmet. The third on again bounced in a similar spot but decided to stay even lower than the first ball, it rapped me on the pads and I was out LBW. I ended up with a solid 11, worth nearly double on a better outfield and was unlucky in the way I got out so was very, very happy with my innings.
Everyone put in a good performance. Dad managed to get through a game despite his continuing back problems which is a good sign. We were playing a weird form of average cricket where you had to win both on average and on total score, every batsman had to bat for at least 2 overs. Anyway the Presidents XI had the average pretty much sealed for the whole game, but just couldn't beat the Captains XI score of 141 pulling up one run short which made for a really exciting finish. So the game was a draw.
More cricket tomorrow, with training at the SCG nets.
The pitch was spongy due to overnight rain and the outfield was quite long and was obviously going to be very slow. It was a fairly easy decision for the president at the toss to bowl first, that being my team.
Early the bounce in the pitch was very inconsistent and even dangerous with the odd length ball shooting up sharply out of nowhere. This wasn't to relevant to my bowling as I tend not to hit the pitch that hard. But anyway, opening the bowling I struggled big time, I couldn't put together what I had worked on in the nets, everything felt wrong and I rarely bowled a ball I was happy with in my first spell of 4 overs.
Something I was very happy with was my fielding. I took two fairly easy catches comfortably and made no mistakes in the outfield, even my throwing was good which is unusual for me. Whatever I did, it got me ready for my final two overs. They were an unbelievable improvement on my opening spell, I was able to get nearly every ball where I wanted it, my run up and action felt 100% better and was probably unlucky not to take a wicket. I ended up with 0/20 off 6, and on that outfield that's pretty poor.
Batting was the highlight of the day for me, I was very happy with my innings. Even though the sun had been drying out the pitch all morning there was still a few gremlins. But anyway I got my innings underway was a push towards mid wicket, a shot that is definitely not a strength of mine so that was an immediate positive. Then I had to face some quality spin from Deano which I thought would spell an early end for me, considering my weakness against spin especially early in my innings. His first ball spun and mile past my bat but amazingly that was all the trouble he gave me. I played some nice shot over mid wicket which I had myself confused about, no idea why I played it but I allowed perfectly for the spin and it came off beautifully. It was all going along nicely until the pitch decided to throw me a few dooseys. Toby (pace) bowled 3 balls that really destroyed me. The first one stayed relatively low and swung in. The second one bounced in nearly the same spot and shot up and smacked me in the helmet. The third on again bounced in a similar spot but decided to stay even lower than the first ball, it rapped me on the pads and I was out LBW. I ended up with a solid 11, worth nearly double on a better outfield and was unlucky in the way I got out so was very, very happy with my innings.
Everyone put in a good performance. Dad managed to get through a game despite his continuing back problems which is a good sign. We were playing a weird form of average cricket where you had to win both on average and on total score, every batsman had to bat for at least 2 overs. Anyway the Presidents XI had the average pretty much sealed for the whole game, but just couldn't beat the Captains XI score of 141 pulling up one run short which made for a really exciting finish. So the game was a draw.
More cricket tomorrow, with training at the SCG nets.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Training Begins
Today I hit the nets on my own to get back into the swing of bowling in preparation for Sunday's game.
Over the course of an hour I bowled about 7 overs and afterwards felt happy with the session, taking a number of positives from it.
An immediate good sign was that I didn't appear to be rusty. My run up and action felt decent from the word go and the ball was coming out pretty well. For my first couple of stints I bowled a good line but was just struggling to keep a consistent length, with a couple of short but mainly full balls rearing their ugly head. However, my natural outswing looked OK with the old balls I was using, moving a little in the air and then the occasional one would straighten and zip off the seam. For my third stint I really knuckled down and focused on length and got it pretty much sorted out. By the end I was bowling pretty consistently on a good line and length, and often getting decent purchase out of what is a relatively dead pitch, using an old ball. I had one more stint to round out the session and I focused on bowling an over of good deliveries. I managed 6/8 which wasn't too bad.
The thing I'm probably most happy about, is that there weren't any REALLY wayward deliveries.
Couple of points that I took note of:
- Started to fall down in action. Staying tall while running in aided in staying tall in my action as well.
- Probably need to settle my run up down more, there is no need to charge into the crease and I know as a fact that I bowl a lot better with a steady run up.
So overall, happy with the session and I'm sure after Sunday I'll be glad that I made the effort. Body has pulled up OK as well. Not bad for my first bowl in a month.
Team training at the SCG nets begins next Tuesday, really looking forward to that.
I'll be back on Sunday to report on the game.
Over the course of an hour I bowled about 7 overs and afterwards felt happy with the session, taking a number of positives from it.
An immediate good sign was that I didn't appear to be rusty. My run up and action felt decent from the word go and the ball was coming out pretty well. For my first couple of stints I bowled a good line but was just struggling to keep a consistent length, with a couple of short but mainly full balls rearing their ugly head. However, my natural outswing looked OK with the old balls I was using, moving a little in the air and then the occasional one would straighten and zip off the seam. For my third stint I really knuckled down and focused on length and got it pretty much sorted out. By the end I was bowling pretty consistently on a good line and length, and often getting decent purchase out of what is a relatively dead pitch, using an old ball. I had one more stint to round out the session and I focused on bowling an over of good deliveries. I managed 6/8 which wasn't too bad.
The thing I'm probably most happy about, is that there weren't any REALLY wayward deliveries.
Couple of points that I took note of:
- Started to fall down in action. Staying tall while running in aided in staying tall in my action as well.
- Probably need to settle my run up down more, there is no need to charge into the crease and I know as a fact that I bowl a lot better with a steady run up.
So overall, happy with the session and I'm sure after Sunday I'll be glad that I made the effort. Body has pulled up OK as well. Not bad for my first bowl in a month.
Team training at the SCG nets begins next Tuesday, really looking forward to that.
I'll be back on Sunday to report on the game.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Playing Schedule
Here is the list of games that Collaroy Plateau Cricket Club will be playing on the tour. The games highlighted in blue are the ones that I am currently going to play in, however injuries and incidents pending I could end up in more or less. As you can see its a packed schedule, lots of cricket to be played with ample opportunities.
This list is subject to change.
3rd of July - Singapore
5th of July - Westleigh
6th of July - Earby
7th of July - Marple
8th of July - Roe Green
9th of July - Bradfield
10th of July - Osset
12th of July - Ingelby
13th of July - Yorkshire
14th of July - Edwinstowe
15th of July - Duffield
16th of July - Sandiacre (Follow On XI)
17th of July - Clay Cross
19th of July - Stony Stratford
21st of July - Knebworth Park
22nd of July - Buckhurst Hill
23rd of July - Amsterdam
This list is subject to change.
3rd of July - Singapore
5th of July - Westleigh
6th of July - Earby
7th of July - Marple
8th of July - Roe Green
9th of July - Bradfield
10th of July - Osset
12th of July - Ingelby
13th of July - Yorkshire
14th of July - Edwinstowe
15th of July - Duffield
16th of July - Sandiacre (Follow On XI)
17th of July - Clay Cross
19th of July - Stony Stratford
21st of July - Knebworth Park
22nd of July - Buckhurst Hill
23rd of July - Amsterdam
Monday, April 27, 2009
Welcome/Introduction
On the 2nd of July 2009, I leave Australia with 22 Collaroy Plateau Cricket Club associates, including my Mum, Dad, brother, sister and Grandfather on route to England where I will experience the most exciting cricketing and travelling adventure of my life. At least 11 games of cricket are scheduled for me to take part in, including one in Singapore and one in Amsterdam, and I am hoping to advance the quality of my performances from this tour.
I am writing this blog so I can track my preparation, the build up to the tour and then record the happenings on the tour itself. It will focus mainly on the cricket and my own experiences. I don't care if anyone reads this or not, it is here as a personal record. But if anyone does decide to follow my progression through this exciting period of my life, then I hope you enjoy your reading and I will strive to make it as interesting as possible!
For those who don't know me, let me start by saying I am by no means a high level cricketer. I am 18 years of age and last season played B2 grade (the 5th lowest division of park cricket in my area, the highest being A1s) and struggled to play to the standard that I expected of myself. I class myself as a right handed bowling all rounder. I bowl medium fast outswingers and have opened the bowling for my team for years now but feel that since I injured my lower back 3 years ago, my bowling has never reached the potential that it showed before then. On the batting side of things, I was all over the place last season. I am at my best opening the batting, but gave that up a while ago in order to concentrate on my bowling - it was just too much to open both. Nowadays I am almost regretting that decision, because I have been shafted all over the place in the batting order where instability and uncertainty is something that I don't like and believe hampers my performance. Amongst all this I managed at least three significant innings, so I am not too disappointed with my batting currently.
Ok, so that covers the introduction side of things. My preference for next season here in Australia would be to try for grade cricket. I know that I will have to improve to be successful there and therefore am placing a great importance on this tour of England.
This coming week I plan to begin my physical preparation. I have a lot of time on my hands as I am enjoying a gap year after finishing school last year. I plan to have a bowling session at the nets on either Wednesday or Thursday to warm up for a tour practice game which I will play on Sunday (on turf), although the weather report says possible showers: hopefully they stay away.
Over the next few days I will post our playing schedule and also list the people I am touring with (nicknames or first names will be used throughout this blog). A report on my midweek training will also be posted.
That's all from me now. Cheers.
TC
I am writing this blog so I can track my preparation, the build up to the tour and then record the happenings on the tour itself. It will focus mainly on the cricket and my own experiences. I don't care if anyone reads this or not, it is here as a personal record. But if anyone does decide to follow my progression through this exciting period of my life, then I hope you enjoy your reading and I will strive to make it as interesting as possible!
For those who don't know me, let me start by saying I am by no means a high level cricketer. I am 18 years of age and last season played B2 grade (the 5th lowest division of park cricket in my area, the highest being A1s) and struggled to play to the standard that I expected of myself. I class myself as a right handed bowling all rounder. I bowl medium fast outswingers and have opened the bowling for my team for years now but feel that since I injured my lower back 3 years ago, my bowling has never reached the potential that it showed before then. On the batting side of things, I was all over the place last season. I am at my best opening the batting, but gave that up a while ago in order to concentrate on my bowling - it was just too much to open both. Nowadays I am almost regretting that decision, because I have been shafted all over the place in the batting order where instability and uncertainty is something that I don't like and believe hampers my performance. Amongst all this I managed at least three significant innings, so I am not too disappointed with my batting currently.
Ok, so that covers the introduction side of things. My preference for next season here in Australia would be to try for grade cricket. I know that I will have to improve to be successful there and therefore am placing a great importance on this tour of England.
This coming week I plan to begin my physical preparation. I have a lot of time on my hands as I am enjoying a gap year after finishing school last year. I plan to have a bowling session at the nets on either Wednesday or Thursday to warm up for a tour practice game which I will play on Sunday (on turf), although the weather report says possible showers: hopefully they stay away.
Over the next few days I will post our playing schedule and also list the people I am touring with (nicknames or first names will be used throughout this blog). A report on my midweek training will also be posted.
That's all from me now. Cheers.
TC
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