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Post by hhsussex on Aug 5, 2015 19:20:54 GMT
Or as the club website puts it, without a trace of irony or any comment about the absurdity of the programme "The next assignment for Sussex is in the LV=County Championship .."
But first the injury news, from Adrian Harms:
Mark Robinson said Chris Jordan has had an injection for a stiff back
Robinson and Hobden slight doubts for Lords with hamstring and ankle niggles hopefully OK
So that's the seam bowling gone and we know we haven't got any spinners. How on earth can this happen? It just isn't good enough to say that we have had really bad luck: obviously we have, but something must be wrong with the medical and coaching process that so many players have been undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, bowled when they shouldn't have been, overtrained when they should have been resting.
What about the batsmen? Wright, Brown, Machan, Nash and Wells plus whom? Joyce will limp on till the end of the season, Cachopa is still searching for the form that left him as soon as he came back from New Zealand this spring. Maybe Finch, why not Salt? Why not H-P, whose batting looked to have some style and confidence on his single appearance, against Hampshire, even if his captain clearly didn't trust his bowling?
With so many must-win games lost already, and so few points gained it becomes harder to visualise how the turnaround is going to happen. Middlesex have been blessed with a strong and healthy seam attack this year - but not collectively better than Jordan, Magoffin, Shahzad and a supporting Hobden - and their usual iffy batting lineup, notably stronger since they decided to "rest" Morgan. At the start of the season a double against them would have been a reasonable bet, certainly a win at Hove and a batting draw at Lord's after a fairly dry summer. Now it just looks like yet another defeat, with further appalling effects on the morale of those players fit enough to stand and take it.
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Post by flashblade on Aug 5, 2015 19:44:07 GMT
Or as the club website puts it, without a trace of irony or any comment about the absurdity of the programme " The next assignment for Sussex is in the LV=County Championship .." But first the injury news, from Adrian Harms:
Mark Robinson said Chris Jordan has had an injection for a stiff back
Robinson and Hobden slight doubts for Lords with hamstring and ankle niggles hopefully OKSo that's the seam bowling gone and we know we haven't got any spinners. How on earth can this happen? It just isn't good enough to say that we have had really bad luck: obviously we have, but something must be wrong with the medical and coaching process that so many players have been undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, bowled when they shouldn't have been, overtrained when they should have been resting. What about the batsmen? Wright, Brown, Machan, Nash and Wells plus whom? Joyce will limp on till the end of the season, Cachopa is still searching for the form that left him as soon as he came back from New Zealand this spring. Maybe Finch, why not Salt? Why not H-P, whose batting looked to have some style and confidence on his single appearance, against Hampshire, even if his captain clearly didn't trust his bowling? With so many must-win games lost already, and so few points gained it becomes harder to visualise how the turnaround is going to happen. Middlesex have been blessed with a strong and healthy seam attack this year - but not collectively better than Jordan, Magoffin, Shahzad and a supporting Hobden - and their usual iffy batting lineup, notably stronger since they decided to "rest" Morgan. At the start of the season a double against them would have been a reasonable bet, certainly a win at Hove and a batting draw at Lord's after a fairly dry summer. Now it just looks like yet another defeat, with further appalling effects on the morale of those players fit enough to stand and take it. Hmm - looks as if the remaining wheel is about to detach itself. It's got to the point where the injury situation can't just be attributed to bad luck, surely? Something at the club is so very wrong, and morale must be pretty low. I'm convinced that the Board is on the case, but that it's all very confidential at this stage. |
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Post by jonboy on Aug 5, 2015 19:48:28 GMT
Can we put out any sort of meaningful attack, that would give us a chance, however slim, to actually be able to win a game?
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Post by fraudster on Aug 5, 2015 20:12:22 GMT
Does an injection for a stiff back mean you can play or you can't?
If fit this attack will give us the best chance of winning the game. We have to move away from this three bowlers and an impotent all-rounder strategy if we want to win any of our remaining games and stay up. We've been guilty of packing the batting and neglecting the bowling for too long, which is why we're where we are now.
Wells
Joyce
Machan
Nash
Wright
Brown
Jordan
Beer
Robinson
Magoffin
Hobden
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Post by Deleted on Aug 6, 2015 7:27:43 GMT
Trouble is, even when the side's packed with batting, we don't score any runs.
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Post by timbo1988 on Aug 6, 2015 7:35:20 GMT
Does an injection for a stiff back mean you can play or you can't? If fit this attack will give us the best chance of winning the game. We have to move away from this three bowlers and an impotent all-rounder strategy if we want to win any of our remaining games and stay up. We've been guilty of packing the batting and neglecting the bowling for too long, which is why we're where we are now. Wells Joyce Machan Nash Wright Brown Jordan Beer Robinson Magoffin Hobden Beer won't be considered as Robinson in his interview after yesterday's match said he was classed in the same category as Mills as the only 2 players who can think ahead to the T20 quarter final! This is a clear indication he hasn't even be considered a four day bowler by Robinson all year! liddle even got a mention as an option for the four day team but not beer! |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 6, 2015 7:43:09 GMT
Yes, there is no way Beer will be allowed anywhere near the four day side; they'd bring Jon Lewis out of retirement, I think, before letting Will play a CC game. I'd pick Zaidi for Lord's.
And the other trouble with fraudster's XI - which looks good on paper - is that three of his four seamers have fitness issues : Jordan (back/side), Robinson (hamstring) and Hobden (ankle). If Sussex go into the game at Lords with all three, you can almost guarantee that at least one of them will suffer a recurrence of the injury and won't make it through to the second innings (assuming Middx need a second dig, of course)...
My guess is that as Jordan is on the England payroll rather than the county payroll, Strauss will instruct Sussex that with the ODI series coming up it's too risky to play him in a four day game with injections. Hopefully he will be fit for the T20 q/f next Wednesday.
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Post by jonboy on Aug 6, 2015 8:02:43 GMT
From the interview, it sounded as if Zaidi will play, although he himself is carrying an injury Such is the paucity of our resources, that we are overjoyed that Robinson may pick Zaidi. To be fair, he's done what's been asked of him this season, bowled economically, and scored runs He was then left out for two triallists, and went back to the seconds, where he scored runs aplenty and bowled economically, so he deserves his chance. Also from the interview, it sounded as if there was no chance Jordan would be allowed to play. I suspected this is what might happen, and to entrust all our hopes of avoiding the drop on the ECB playing ball, and the home office doing their job, was madness. So basically, Magoffin is fit, all the others aren't. Great, then I expect it will be more of the same against Middlesex then
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Post by coverpoint on Aug 6, 2015 11:45:27 GMT
Joyce (c)
Wells
Machan
Nash
Yardy
Wright
Brown (+)
Zaidi
Robinson
Magoffin
Hobden
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Post by hhsussex on Aug 6, 2015 19:11:56 GMT
The squad announced by Sussex: www.sussexcricket.co.uk/news-1/preview-sussex-head-to-lords-for-middlesex-clashBC Brown (wkt) EC Joyce (c) ME Hobden CJ Liddle MW Machan SJ Magoffin CD Nash OE Robinson LWP Wells LJ Wright MH Yardy SAA Zaidi and the desperate attempt to create an appearance of business as usual - " Jimmy Anyon, Chris Jordan, Lewis Hatchett, Tymal Mills and Ajmal Shahzad remain unavailable through injury, so Chris Liddle boosts the seam bowling options."
So none of the younger players are considered worth looking at, even in desperate circumstances, and the lack of mention of Cachopa's name suggests that he won't be coming back next year. Zaidi will surely play ahead of Yardy, so the attack will be Magoffin, Robinson, Hobden, Liddle, Zaidi/Wells. |
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Post by fraudster on Aug 6, 2015 20:11:12 GMT
Joyce (c) Wells Machan Nash Cachopa Wright Brown (+) Zaidi Robinson Magoffin Hobden (Sakande if Hobden not fit) Won't win nothing with three bowlers and a Zaidi - hello div 2. I honestly thought it was only Robbo and Joyce who thought that was a sensible way forward. As for my "good looking" side, thanks, you're right BM. But as to you're concern, at least two of the bowlers still have doubts over their fitness whoever you play, it seems. Granted, two is better than three in this instance. Least Beer's fit. If I didn't already know it I'd be astonished by the Robbo/Beer thing. Despite doing well in one-day cricket and considerably better than any other spinner tried in the 4 day stuff, the lad seems to have gone backwards in the coach's eyes. It's clearly personal. If I were him I'd either leave or wait to see if Robbo does what many of us are now hoping he will - leave or get sacked. |
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Post by hhsussex on Aug 7, 2015 7:47:41 GMT
A rather stronger Middlesex squad:
James Franklin (c), Andy Balbirnie, Nick Compton, Nick Gubbins, James Harris, Dawid Malan, Tim Murtagh, Ravi Patel, Ollie Rayner, Sam Robson, Toby Roland-Jones, Gurjit Sandhu, John Simpson
Sandhu isn't much of a replacement for Finn, but Harris, Roland-Jones and Murtagh should be a strong enough pace attack. It would be surprising if Patel played as well as Rayner - probably only if the wicket looks like spinning from the start. The batting ought to be vulnerable, and a year ago Sussex would have found the weak points and driven through.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 7, 2015 8:27:36 GMT
With team morale and supporters' expectations at an all-time low, can anyone lift the gloom, like a permanent sea fret surrounding Sussex cricket?
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Post by flashblade on Aug 7, 2015 8:49:21 GMT
With team morale and supporters' expectations at an all-time low, can anyone lift the gloom, like a permanent sea fret surrounding Sussex cricket? I'm confident that the club is already taking steps to ensure a gloom lift. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 7, 2015 9:00:41 GMT
How low do we go before the dead cat bounce?
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