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  • Kent - Building on promotion

    After 10 years in Division 2, Kent find themselves in Division 1 once again. The aim for 2019 will be avoiding relegation, and trying to build on recent success in the limited overs formats. With our overseas players already sorted we thought it would be useful to shore up the spin department. We managed to sign Ireland international off-spinning all-rounder Andy McBrine, and also signed 17 year old batsman Larry Glenn - one for the future.

    Here's how the squad looks:

    Batsmen:
    Bell-Drummond
    Blake
    Crawley
    Dickson
    Kuhn
    Renshaw (main overseas)
    Glenn

    Keepers:
    Billings
    Cox
    Robinson
    Rouse

    All-Rounders:
    Denly
    Nabi (overseas T20 only)
    Mulder (reserver overseas)
    Stevens
    Stewart
    McBrine

    Bowlers:
    Claydon
    Haggett
    Klaassen
    Milne (overseas T20 only)
    Milnes
    Podmore
    Qayyum
    Riley
    Thomas
    Viljoen (T20 only)

    Billings and Denly have IPL contracts so they will miss the first part of the season.

  • #2
    Our first match was a home tie vs Loughborough Uni. With Denly & Billings away, selecting the batting line-up was fairly straightforward. Perhaps ominously, our assistant didn't recommend McBrine for the starting XI, but we're going to try him out as the sole spinner, at least until Denly returns. It was difficult choosing the seamers, but we ultimately agreed with our assistant in choosing Stevens, Podmore, Milnes & Stewart. Thomas & Klaassen the two who can be considered unlucky to miss out, but they will get a good chance with the seconds. Here's how the teams line up:

    Kent
    Crawley, Dickson, Renshaw, Kuhn (c), Bell-Drummond, Robinson, McBrine, Stevens, Stewart, Podmore, Milnes

    Weather forecast was good for the 3 days. We won the toss and chose to bat, hoping to put on a big score.

    Our first innings was completely dominated by Matt Renshaw. After a solid opening partnership between Crawley & Dickson, Renshaw came in at 55-1. He put on a masterclass; bringing up his century off 152 balls, giving away zero chances along the way. We ended Day 1 304-4 with Renshaw 152* and youngster Robinson closing in on a maiden 50. Robinson fell 40 minutes into Day 2 for a well made 65 (114), and Renshaw fell soon after for an excellent 178 (306), just 6 runs short of his previous best. McBrine, Stevens, Stewart all put on handy runs and we eventually declared an hour before tea on Day 2 at 479-8.

    Podmore and Stevens bowled a dangerous opening spell leaving Loughborough 53-3 at tea. Podmore took his personal tally to 3 after tea, with Stewart and Milnes also picking up wickets in their first spells. We gave McBrine a chance towards the end of the day and he too picked up a wicket, meaning all five bowlers had something to show in the wicket column. Milnes wrapped up the tail leaving Loughborough 121 all out with still 30 minutes of Day 2 remaining. We decided to enforce the follow up.

    Podmore once again struck early, meaning Loughborough ended Day 2 on 15-1, still trailing by 336 runs. After another wicket for Podmore, Loughborough finally put up a bit of resistance for their 3rd wicket with Eades and Calderwood putting up 63 before Milnes struck. Calderwood played well whilst others fell around him, he eventually got trapped LBW by Stewart for 85. Nobody else really put up resistance and Loughborough were all out before tea for 198, Stewart the pick of the bowlers.


    Kent - 479-8d (Renshaw 179, Robinson 65, Crawley 52, McBrine 52*; Calderwood 4-148
    Loughborough - 121 (Milnes 4-23, Podmore 3-49)
    Loughborough - 198 (Calderwood 85; Stewart 4-44, Podmore 3-43)

    Kent win by an innings and 153 runs
    MOTM - Matt Renshaw
    Last edited by jazzyfizzle0; 06-15-2019, 11:50 PM.

    Comment


    • #3
      Tough challenge!

      McBrine is always good for a few wickets. Solid rather than spectacular.

      Comment


      • #4
        Edited my previous post, gone with slightly more readable formatting.

        Originally posted by GrahamB View Post
        Tough challenge!

        McBrine is always good for a few wickets. Solid rather than spectacular.
        Couldn't have started much better, with an unbeaten 50, and 3 wickets in the match! Will hopefully hold the fort until Denly returns

        Comment


        • #5
          Now this is one I'll definitely be following.
          First year in ages I haven't started off with a Kent save. Looking forward to seeing how you get on, not getting skittled for 59 would be an improvement at the moment

          Originally posted by GrahamB View Post
          Tough challenge!
          Haha. No need for that

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by DaveRobbo View Post
            Now this is one I'll definitely be following.
            First year in ages I haven't started off with a Kent save. Looking forward to seeing how you get on, not getting skittled for 59 would be an improvement at the moment



            Haha. No need for that
            Your playing us tomorrow Dave, so you will probably skittle us out for 59 the way we are playing
            Proudly supporting Nottingham Forest and Nottinghamshire CCC.

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by MarksNotts View Post

              Your playing us tomorrow Dave, so you will probably skittle us out for 59 the way we are playing
              Yeah, it's a big one and wouldn't be surprised if it's over in 2 days again! Our top order are walking wickets currently.
              That said, this week is the annual fixture at Tunbridge Wells which has to have a better track than the minefield Canterbury seems to be at the minute. They've ruined the square with the "ground development".

              Comment


              • #8
                Our first match of CC season is a tough away trip to Somerset. We avoid the temptation to go with two spinners, so we are unchanged:

                Kent
                Crawley, Dickson, Renshaw, Kuhn (c), Bell-Drummond, Robinson, McBrine, Stevens, Stewart, Podmore, Milnes

                The weather forecast is sunny throughout. We won the toss and chose to bat

                Crawley fell early for 5, before Somerset brought on their spinners as early as the 15th over. The pitch wasn't offering much and we went into lunch on 97-1; Renshaw & Dickson both on 40*. The scoring slowed down in the second session, until Overton had Renshaw (58) and Dickson (57) out in the same over to leave us 135-3. We were in danger of collapsing when Bell-Drummond fell for 4, but Kuhn and Robinson counter attacked nicely to bring up a 100 partnership, with both bringing up personal 50's. Robinson fell for 50 leaving us 254-5. Kent have one of the stronger tails in the country so now was a good opportunity to see what the tail-end could do. Hildreth (?!) took wickets in consecutive balls to get rid of McBrine (14) & Stevens (0), but Stewart showed his natural aggression and hung around for a while with Kuhn, until the latter eventually fell for a well made 90 (152) shortly into Day 2. Stewart continued to play his shots before falling for 43 (46). Podmore and Milnes put on a great 41 for the last wicket before we were eventually all out for 399, Podmore left stranded on 44* (40). Overton took the last wicket to give him a 5 wicket haul.

                The pitch was already showing uneven bounce so went into the Somerset innings confident that we had put a good total on the board. We couldn't have asked for a better start with Podmore getting Banton for a golden. However, Ali and Abell dug in, and our seamers bowled tight lines with Somerset going under 2 per over, until we gave McBrine the ball in the 36th over. It was great decision as he got Ali LBW with just his 4th delivery. Stevens got Abell shortly after tea but Hildreth counter attacked as Somerset closed Day 2 175-3. The new ball became available early into Day 3 and it gave us the impetus with Podmore getting Rouse for 21 and Stevens got Hildreth for 97 the following over. Stewart and Milnes combined nicely to take the final 5 wickets. Somerset were 306 all out. Our bowlers once again all had something to show in the wickets column.

                The game was nicely poised going into our 2nd innings shortly before lunch on day 3. Scoring was tough going on a wearing pitch, and in overcast conditions, but we ended Day 3 164-3, mainly thanks to a fantastic 100* from Zak Crawley. The lead sat at 256 so we'll look to make some quick runs the next morning with the view of a declaration. Crawley fell 3rd ball of the day and we were perhaps too aggressive in our approach, eventually falling all out for 242; a lead of 335, with 38 minutes before lunch. Leach picked up 6 wickets on a turning wicket, with Bess also collecting two. Perhaps we made a mistake only playing 1 spinner?

                The pitch now has uneven bounce and is turning, leaving us with a chance at victory. Podmore struck in his second over, getting Azhar Ali for 1, then again in his next over getting Banton for 7, leaving Somerset 11-2, and still 2 sessions remaining in Day 4. The fantastic Podmore got Hildreth shortly after lunch, but unfortunately for us Abell & Rouse dug in, the pair's ultra defensive approach paying off as they managed to make it to tea just 3 down. We picked up 3 wickets after tea but Somerset managed to see out the day and reached close at 131-6.

                Kent - 399 (Kuhn 90, Renshaw 58, Dickson 57, Robinson 50; Overton 5-42, Bess 3-147
                Somerset - 306 (Hildreth 97; Stewart 3-59)
                Kent - 242 (Crawley 100, Bell-Drummond 55; Leach 6-93
                Somerset - 131-6 (Podmore 3-45)

                Match Drawn
                Points: Kent 12, Somerset 10
                MOTM - James Hildreth

                Comment


                • #9
                  Nice match report.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Our next match is away to Warwickshire. We are once again unchanged after a couple of strong performances.

                    Kent
                    Crawley, Dickson, Renshaw, Kuhn (c), Bell-Drummond, Robinson, McBrine, Stevens, Stewart, Podmore, Milnes

                    The forecast doesn't look too good, with Day 4 looking like a washout, as well as a lot of Day 1, therefore we decide to bowl first. Toss uncontested

                    We started well with Podmore trapping Sibley for 1. However, we completely failed to make the most of conditions as Rhodes and Pollock put on a devastating partnership of 188, finally broken by the part time medium pace of Bell Drummond. Pollock went on to make 144 (194), although he can consider himself fortunate, as we missed the bat countless times, and dropped him in the slips. We did manage to take 5 wickets after tea to leave Warwickshire 283-7 at close, but we can't help feel it was an opportunity missed in favourable bowling conditions. 20 overs had been lost in the day due to rain. We wrapped up the tail in the morning as Warwickshire finished 330 all out; Podmore continuing his knack of picking up wickets.

                    The forecast for the rest of Day 2 was reasonably good. With the win now looking unlikely (due to Day 4 forecast), the aim was to pick up as many batting points as possible. Things unfortunately didn't go to plan when we quickly found ourselves 24-3, with the Warks seamers finding something in a pitch that looked reasonably good on the surface. Wickets continued to tumble, and we finished a pathetic 137 all out; our no.9 Grant Stewart the top scorer with 40. Norwell was the pick of the Warks seamers with 5 wickets. We were 44 runs short of avoiding the follow on, which Warwickshire enforced.

                    After slumping further to 15-2 in the 2nd innings, we finally had our first 50 partnership of the match between Dickson and Kuhn, with the latter bringing up his 50 in 60 balls, before falling in the next over. We closed Day 2 at 98-3, still trailing by 95 runs and needing a miracle. Wickets continued to tumble in the morning. Dickson also made 50 then was out straight away which is frustrating. Most batsmen made starts but weren't able to really dig in. A calamity run out of McBrine certainly didn't help the cause. We were 215-7 at lunch leading by 22. Stewart batted aggressively like usual and raced to 42 off 26 before falling to a thin edge behind. We eventually fell to 267 all out. If only we could have batted 1 hour longer then we may have had a big enough lead to take it into Day 4 which looks like a washout, but alas the lead was only 74 with still 50 minutes before tea.

                    Warwickshire showed us how to bat on this surface, chasing the total down comfortably.

                    Warwickshire - 330 (Pollock 144, Rhodes 80; Stevens 3-82, Podmore 3-85)
                    Kent - 137 (Norwell 5-28)
                    Kent - 267 (Dickson 53, Kuhn 52; Miles 3-106)
                    Warwickshire - 77-1

                    Warwickshire win by 9 wickets
                    Points: Warks 22, Kent 3
                    MOTM - Ed Pollock


                    A frustrating performance after so much promise shown against Somerset. We now move onto the 50 over competition.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Our first match was a repeat of last year's final vs Hampshire. Blake in for Dickson was an easy decision but we were unsure of our best bowling combination. Klaassen came in to replace Stevens, but there should be plenty of opportunity for the reserves.

                      Kent
                      Crawley, Bell-Drummond, Renshaw, Kuhn (c), Robinson, Blake, McBrine, Stewart, Podmore, Milnes, Klaassen

                      We had prepared a seamers wicket, and conditions were overcast. We won the toss and decided to bowl first

                      After Stewart got the early wicket of Vince, Hampshire ticked along nicely in the powerplay reaching 54-1. However, some really tight bowling by Milnes and Klaassen, conceding just 11 runs from the next 35 balls was rewarded when Klaassen got Roussouw LBW for a sluggish 17. Markram and Northeast then put on a 100 partnership in just 13 overs before McBrine trapped him LBW. At 180-3 after 30 overs Hampshire looked on for a massive total, before we brought things back brilliantly. 'Golden Arm' Bell Drummond picked up the big wickets of Alsop and centurion Markram (118). Klaassen was excellent throughout, his figures reading 1-36 off his 10. McBrine bowled a fantastic 2nd spell going for just 15 in his final 4 overs (including a maiden in the 40th over). Milnes came back at the death and picked up the wickets of the dangerous Taylor and Dawson. Stewart came back towards the end, picking up two cheap wickets, before Milnes wrapped the innings up. Hampshire were all out for 285 in 48.3 overs. A great effort by the bowlers when 350+ looked on at one stage. Podmore's bowling was the only downside for us; going wicketless for 55 in his 7 overs.

                      It was still cloudy, and a very slow outfield meant it certainly wasn't going to be an easy chase. Unfortunately it proved that way. Unsure how to approach the chase we slipped to 49-3 in the 13th over, before a quick-fire 81 partnership between Kuhn and Robinson started to swing the match in our favour. After 3 quiet overs, Kuhn came out of his crease and got stumped off the bowling of Crane. Robinson then fell 2 balls later to leave us in the mire at 131-5. There was no resistance from the tail and we crumbled to 164 all out in 35 overs. Chris Wood the pick of the bowlers with 3-33 from 8

                      Hampshire - 285 all out - 48.3 overs (Markram 118; Stewart 3-47, Milnes 3-60)
                      Kent - 164 all out - 35 overs (Kuhn 51; Wood 3-33)

                      Hampshire win by 121 runs
                      Points: Hampshire 2, Kent 0
                      MOTM - Aiden Markram
                      Last edited by jazzyfizzle0; 06-20-2019, 12:33 AM.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Enjoying this so far, great match reports.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Great format you have going here. Your team has started to come together as well.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Our next match was another trip to Taunton. We drop Podmore for Stevens after he had a poor last outing, and with the pitch expected to take spin right from the start we decide to go with 2 spinners and bring in Qayyum. Stewart the unlucky seamer to miss out.

                            Kent
                            Crawley, Bell-Drummond, Renshaw, Kuhn (c), Robinson, Blake, McBrine, Stevens, Klaassen, Milnes, Qayyum

                            We lost the toss and got put into bat. We would have batted anyway with the pitch expected to deteriorate further as the match progresses.

                            Crawley and Bell-Drummond got us off to a solid start before both fell in consecutive overs to make the score 57-2 in the 12th. The Somerset spin twins were causing havoc and we collapsed further to 87-4, before an attacking partnership between Robinson and Blake recovered our position slightly, before Blake fell leaving the score at 133-5. Wickets tumbled but young Robinson was playing particularly well, and he brought up his 50 off 54 balls, before falling soon after (50 and out seems to be a common theme this season). We had crumbled to 180 all out. The batting is becoming slightly worrying but we have to recognise these conditions definitely weren't the easiest. It was overcast throughout and on a tricky pitch, so there was assistance for both the quicker bowlers and the spinners. Leach and Overton both picked up 3 wickets for Somerset, but all their bowlers contributed.

                            Typically, the weather improved over the interval, but that didn't stop us getting an early wicket, with Milnes bowling Davies for a duck in the 2nd over. An 81 run 2nd wicket partnership put Somerset in cruise control and they eventually chased the target down in the 44th over with 5 wickets to spare. Our weak spin department came back to bite us here with our spinners pretty ineffective, taking just the one wicket between them. It was our seamers creating all the chances, with Fred Klaassen particularly impressive once again with figures of 10-2-27-2; he's conceded just 63 runs from his 20 overs this competition so far.

                            Kent - 180 all out - 41.3 overs (Robinson 56; Overton 3-30, Leach 3-33)
                            Somerset - 182-5 - 43.2 overs (Abell 65)

                            Somerset win by 5 wickets
                            Points: Somerset 2, Kent 0
                            MOTM - Tom Abell


                            A disappointing start but we have played 2 of the stronger sides so far. Hopefully we can turn things around vs Sussex in the next one.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              We now have a home tie vs Sussex. Bell-Drummond picked up an injury and is out for 4 days, so Dickson replaces him at the top of the order. We also bring Stewart back in for Qayyum.

                              Kent
                              Crawley, Dickson, Renshaw, Kuhn (c), Robinson, Blake, McBrine, Stevens, Stewart, Klaassen, Milnes

                              We lost the toss and got asked to bowl.

                              Sussex got off to a decent start before Milnes had Finch out with his 2nd ball; caught in the slips. In the next over, and after a decent opening spell, Stewart had Sussex's other opener Van Zyl out, also caught in the slips. Sussex were 58-2 from 10. The impressive Klaassen was dreadfully unlucky in his first 6 overs, with the ball beating the bat numerous times, before seeing a dropped catch go against him. Meanwhile Milnes had picked up 2 further wickets, and Stevens got one in his 2nd spell. The game was poised at 166-5 (31). Sussex started to take the game away from us before McBrine struck twice in his last over, including the scalp of the impressive Evans for 93. Stewart picked up the final 2 wickets in the 49th over to wrap things up. Sussex finished on a competitive 268. Milnes and Stewart had 3 wickets each to their name.

                              After struggling with the bat so far this season we were far from confident chasing this total. We got off to a great start though, before Sussex's spinners came on a tightened things up and were rewarded with the wicket of Crawley for 45. Renshaw joined Dickson (37*) at 87-1 from 19. Dickson - only playing due to DBD's injury - brought up a great 50 from 58 balls. However, from 151-1 we unbelievably almost managed to blow it. Dickson falling for 89 was the catalyst for us losing 6 wickets for 70 runs to leave us reeling at 229-7, still needing 40 from 7 overs. But young Ollie Robinson really stepped up taking the game by the scruff of the neck, hitting an unbeaten 46 off 37 balls, featuring 5 sixes. After Sussex's Robinson only conceded 2 off the penultimate over we needed 14 to win from the final, and our Robinson kept his nerve to hit two sixes and take us home with 2 balls to spare.

                              Sussex - 268 - 48 overs (Evans 93; Stewart 3-49, Milnes 3-52)
                              Kent - 270-7 - 49.4 overs (Dickson 85, Renshaw 68, Robinson 46*; Hamza 3-54)

                              Kent win by 3 wickets
                              Points: Kent 2, Sussex 0
                              MOTM - Sean Dickson


                              We get our first win, with a trip to Gloucestershire up next.

                              Comment

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