Are You Listening Goughie?

Yorkshire 2nd XI 140 for 8

beat Derbyshire 2nd XI 126 for 8

by 14 runs

Second XI T20 - North Group

Tuesday 30 May 2023

Played at Abbeydale Park, Sheffield

Lancashire 2nd XI 128 all out (18.1 overs)

lost to Yorkshire 2nd XI 131 for 4 (13.1 overs)

by 6 wickets

Second XI T20 - North Group

Thursday 25 May 2023

Played at Barnsley Woolley Miners Cricket Club, Shaw Lane

Two Yorkshire games in South fucking Yorkshire. A rare treat. Only 2nd XI, mind.

Two Yorkshire wins. A rare treat. Only 2nd XI, mind.

Yorkshire bought Members a pint of beer at Abbeydale. What's that? No. Of course I didn't go up for one, sunglasses & hat on. And then a second one, sunglasses & hat off. Wiiiiiiiinks.

Yorkshire, in the guise of managing director of cricket, Darren Gough hosted a question and answer session in the bar before the start of play at Abbeydale. Blog readers may know the state of things at Yorkshire. They've won recently. But, previously, a long winless streak. They've got a £20 million money hole. And they have still to be handed down a punishment for the racism charges. It's shit, mate.

So, maybe you'd think I could judge the state of the club by the answers Gough gave. But, really, it's better to judge the state of the club by the nature of the questions asked. Because, well because.

(I'm paraphrasing these questions, and indeed one of my friends asked one of them, but here goes.)

"Darren, what can you say about the current Board's interest in, and input to, on the field cricketing matters?"

"Darren, why don't the first eleven use a Third Man more? Lots of runs are leaked through there."

"Darren, we're in the bar, at a second eleven game, and there are three cask ales on. Yet, at Headingley, for the first eleven, we never ever see cask ales."

Accompanied by lots of shouts of - and they're in pint glasses, not paper cups - my people. South Yorkshire. I'm filling up here. My people.

"Darren, whither Adil Rashid?"

(heavily paraphrased that one)

"Darren, under the assumption I can't mention Azeem Rafiq, will you agree with me that the demise of Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the state we are in now ALL stems from the decision to appoint Geoffrey Boycott as Captain in 1971?"

Belters eh? What a fucking club. Memberships are still available.

In the course of his answers, Gough said;

"I was a skiddy bowler, I used to throw my toys out the pram if I didn't get a Third Man."

"Yorkshire don't pay Adil, we haven't for a long time."

"With the increasing schedule of international and franchise cricket, it is impossible to sign an Overseas Player these days."

My muffled response to that last comment was;

"Well, why have we already signed five this season alone? Fucking five."

Let the record show;

Stancil Brewery, Stainless, Pale Ale on Cask in the bar at Shaw Lane.

Tetley's Bitter on Cask.

Abbeydale Brewery, Daily Bread, Best Bitter on Cask.

Abbeydale Brewery, Moonshine, Pale Ale on Cask at 4.3%. Which is the one I had, courtesy of the Club, in order to dull my senses for the questions ahead.

Four Cask Ales. Across two grounds. In South Yorkshire. Headingley? None. Are you listening Gough?

Lanky Twos lost wickets in clusters and couldn't really put a score on the tins. 85 for 3 at the end of the tenth looked reasonably Red Rosey. But Lavelle went for 40 in Ben Cliff's next over. Jack Shutt got Shetty just three balls later. And a run out at the end of that over made it 97 for 6 off 12. Three wickets in five balls at the end of 15th and beginning of the 16th left Lanky Twos at 118 for 8 and limping.

Ben Cliff with most in the wickets column at 3 for 34 off 3.1. But, Jack Shutt MAGNIFICENT at 2 for 13 off his full four overs.

Two Yorkshire always looked ahead of it. And got in done with ages to spare. Finlay Bean 36 off 21 & Will Luxton 33 off 19 topping the charts.

Although YCCC 2s batted first at Abbeydale, their were some similarities. Jack Shutt, MAGNIFICENT, 4 for TEN off his full four. He snagged two wickets in a three run eighth over. Including a great c and b, seemingly having to run around the Ump & Non Striker to take a low catch. And then, a difficult, high c and b, in his next over. Ben Coad chipped in with a two wicket over of his own. And the Duck Twos couldn't really get anywhere near it.

Duke of H topping with 34 off 23.

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