Bucks v Northumberland starts Sunday
A week after England’s terrific win in the World Cup, top quality Minor Counties cricket comes to Chesham this week-end as Bucks take on Northumberland.
The match is 2 innings each & is over 3 days, starting on Sunday 21st July & going into Monday & Tuesday. Play is from 11am to 7pm each day & it’s free to get in. Scorecards, food & drink are available. For a good view bring your own fold-up chair & sit at the top of the bank overlooking the ground.
The nearest pubs for a drink are the Red Lion towards the High St, the beer shop opposite the Red Lion (with tables outside) or the Queens Head in the Old Town which also does very nice Thai bar food.
It should be a good match and the weather forecast is good - in fact turning very hot by Tuesday. Worth a look if you like cricket or Bucks sport in general.
Comments
End of Day 1 Bucks 131-3 in response to Northumberland 232 all out. 5 wickets for High Wycombe’s Jonathan Burden saw Northumberland reduced to 232 despite a spirited last wicket stand of 50.
Bucks lost both openers fairly cheaply but an aggressive 56 by Charlie Macdonnell turned the tide in Bucks favour. A very entertaining day in front of a very good crowd basking in the sunshine. Day 2 commences at 11am on Monday.
In reply to Northumberland’s 232 all out Bucks are 233-8 at lunch on day 2. Very interesting to see lots of first-class county cricket supporters here. As we move into the back-to-back T20 fixtures it proves there’s still a healthy appetite for proper cricket, played in whites with no music between overs.
Maybe a healthy appetite amongst the over 60s. You only have to look at the crowds for the opening games of the Blast to see where the real demand is. Sell-out/record grounds all over the country - Lords, Chelmsford, Old Trafford, Chesterfield, Cheltenham, Ageas Bowl etc.
But not everybody likes the made-for-TV version of the game so this offers a nice alternative. It’s a bit like saying “Why watch League One or League Two football when you can watch sell-out Premier League games”.
At the end of day 2 Bucks hold the advantage over the visitors from Northumberland. The hosts were all out for 282, a lead of 50. In reply, Northumberland have struggled to 151-7. Going into the last day Northumberland lead Bucks by 101 runs with 3 wickets left. A lead of anything over 150 will be useful and could lead to an exciting finish. Play starts on Tuesday (last day) at 11am.
Northumberland 186 all out setting Bucks 137 to win. Match just finished - Bucks 138-4 won by 6 wickets.
Thanks, Andy.
Scorecard here: http://mcca.play-cricket.com/website/results/3887678
A couple of standout performances for Bucks, seamer Jonathan Burden taking 5-52 in the first innings, and Charlie Macdonnell scoring 56 & 49. He played some beautifully timed drives, lovely batsman to watch.
Northumberland's batsmen and bowlers were not quite as good as Bucks', it was a deserved victory, and much needed if Bucks are to finish in the top five and make the cut for the higher division next season.
After today's results, Bucks stand third in the table, 8 points above sixth place: http://mcca.play-cricket.com/website/websites/view_division?id=83003
The next three day game is against Beds at Flitwick, 4-6 August. Next home game is against Cumberland at Tring Park, 1-3 September.
It was a thoroughly enjoyable three days of cricket, sheltering under the many trees at Chesham's picturesque ground. The 'crowd' on Sunday and Monday was over 100, which may not sound much but is above the normal 50 or less. It was interesting to see shirts being worn for county sides, this match attracted many outsiders, because it is easy to get to on the tube, and there was not much other long form cricket on. In fact, a Bucks Committee member went around the ground asking everyone for their postcode, first part of, to find out where everyone had come from. Half were local, a quarter came from the east (London, Essex and Kent) and some came from the south coast and other far fling places. All in search of 'proper' cricket! Apart from me and Andy, there were at least two other WWFC ST holders.
Chesham is a very welcoming club, with a good bar and parking. I am told there are buses every 15 minutes from HW. Next year there will only be two home, three day games, under the new league format. I hope Chesham get one of them, and the Bucks Committee use this newly gathered data to publicise these matches, locally and further afield. There is clearly a wider audience than we thought. Someone who impressed me was the Bucks Secretary, Kevin Beaumont, a very personable chap who actually took the time to walk around the ground and chat to the spectators. Something for the WWFC Secretary to ponder.
I take @Croider's point that these matches are mostly attended by over 60s, there was nobody there watching who you could call young, who apparently only like watching crash, bang, wallop games. That doesn't mean these seniors will gradually die off so that nobody watches them. As you pass from middle to senior age, and have more spare time on your hands, you find things that you have overlooked before, and take them up. Long form cricket being one of them. It's hard enough keeping young players in the game as they go into adulthood. It seems that many young players can no longer, or do not want to, play sport for most of Saturday or Sunday. What else do they do instead? Of course it does not help that football and cricket overlap.
Excuse my ignorance, but why are Bucks playing a home minor county cricket game in Hertfordshire (Tring Park) ?
I have tried to find out how Tring Park came to be a regular Bucks venue, to no avail yet.
I maybe wrong, but didn't Bucks use to play some games at Aston Rowant ?
Which is over the forbidden border in PNL land.
Bucks played Lancs at Aston Rowant in the early 90s. Mike Atherton played for Lancs.
@floyd I have found a Bucks v Lancs match at Wormsley in 2005 (Cheltenham & Glos Trophy), which Athers didn't play in, retired by then.
He did play in the Oxon v Lancs match at Aston Rowant in 1994 (NatWest). Could that be the one?
Trawling through their results, the only venue I can find that Bucks have used outside of the county, apart from Tring Park, is Slough, after it had been moved from Bucks to Berks.
Herts used Tring Park a few times, 1959-63 and then in 1988, before Bucks started using it regularly from 2009. I cannot find evidence that Tring used to be in Bucks, so I will have to search out some old Bucks members who can throw more light on this.
@Steve_Peart Yes, 94 was the one I was thinking about. I was at Wormsley in 2005 as well...hopefully I’ll discover minor counties when I get to that age!
Does anyone remember when Bucks beat Somerset back in the 80s?
Traumatic scenes
I was first to ‘pitch’ that day - don’t think anyone else could quite believe it
Somerset had a half decent side still Vic Marks,Martin Crowe,Neil Mallender and Rees- Mogg lookalikey Dodgy Roebuck opening the batting.
I was there but can't remember the detail, had to find a scorecard to jog the memory. What a tense match.
http://static.espncricinfo.com/db/ARCHIVE/1980S/1987/ENG_LOCAL/NWT/BUCKS_SOMERSET_NWT_24JUN1987.html
Photo showing the temporary stand.
https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/high-wycombe-cricket-ground-during-the-natwest-trophy-1st-round-match-picture-id120205546?s=2048x2048
Stephen Edwards, Man of the Match.
https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/buckinghamshire-all-rounder-stephen-james-edwards-receiving-news-photo/166656086
And another.
https://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/news-photo/the-buckinghamshire-team-celebrate-after-beating-somerset-news-photo/166656111
A good number of Bucks's players play for Tring. That might be a factor...
I passed by for half on hour on all three days and enjoyed the experience. Being a teacher, I coached sides that played against both Jonathan Burden and AJ Woodland, who I thought batted really nicely before lunch on the last day, when they were 11 years old. AJ was an obviously talented firebrand, Johnathan a keen (and very agreeable) but not so clearly gifted player. That both have progressed to this level says much for their commitment.
Bucks have reached the finals day of the Minor Counties 20/20 competition which is to be played at that most delightful of venues, Wormsley, on Sunday 25th August. I gather there is reason to be confident of their prospects - apparently they have some good players available for the short form of the game who, through work commitments, cannot play the three day games.
Tickets for the day are £6.50 for adults and free for those below that age. Available here: https://wormsley.com/events/. I plan to go - Wormsley is a delight and, forgive me @Steve_Peart, I imagine the cricket will be entertaining.
"Below that age", as any fule kno, meaning under 12.
@HCblue, I am thinking of going to the T20 Finals day at Wormsley, which surprises me! Although I have no real taste for this form of cricket, my team have a chance of winning something and Wormsley is a lovely ground.
A correction on my stats for Herts using Tring Park, they actually used it 12 times for championship matches, between 1959 and 1999.
Bucks drew their game against Beds at Flitwick today. Set 380 to win, Bucks batted out safely on a rain affected final day, finishing on 132-0.
Beds 266 all out (89.5) and 272-6 dec(63), Bucks 159 all out (69.2) and 132-0 (63).
http://mcca.play-cricket.com/website/results/3887683
Beds won the toss and batted, were 167-7 but Bucks have a continuing problem in finishing off teams. Bucks first innings batting was below par so they will have been glad to have saved a draw today, but would have been looking forward to a win against a team they beat comfortably last year.
Bucks are now sixth, just one point below the promotion cut-off. Next match is away to Norfolk, second in the table, at Norwich 18-20 August.
Bucks lost by 2 wickets to Norfolk yesterday, who now top the table. Conner Haddow's 5-55 in the second innings was not quite enough to secure victory.
Norfolk 226-9 (90) and 163-8 (58.5)
Bucks 219 all out (81.1) and 169 all out (58.5)
https://mcca.play-cricket.com/website/results/3887690
The batting has rather let Bucks down this season, good batsmen getting in but not going on to a big score. Bucks are now nine points adrift of the cut and have to win their final game at home to Cumberland at Tring Park on 1 September.
As @HCBlue said, Bucks take part in the Minor Counties T20 Finals Day at Wormsley on Sunday. Tickets £6.50 in advance, £10 on the day. https://wormsley.com/events/
In the T20 yesterday, which I didn't attend, Bucks lost their semi-final to Herts.
Herts won the toss and batted, making 180-8. Bucks came close with 168-8, helped by 86 off 48 balls from Saif Zaib, the Northants all rounder.
In the other semi, Dorset 138 all out (19.1), Lincs 127-8. Final, Dorset 104-9, Herts 109-1 (12.5). Congratulations to a talented Herts team, pushed all the way by Bucks.