Big Show No Show

Birmingham Bears 145 all out (18.4 overs)
Lost to Yorkshire Vikings 148-2 (19.3 overs) by 8 wickets

At Headingley

Friday 24 July 2015

Twitter @ball_sup

That is a superb pub. I've been meaning to get there for a while. East Of Arcadia, 607 Meanwood Road. Large modern, all windows, single room affair. Eight on cask & 4 craft keg. Bar people very friendly & helpful. A bit far from the ground. You have to make a special effort. But, well worth it. Superb.

I went; Ridgeside Brewery Stonegate, (Single Hop Saaz Pale Ale) on cask at 4.4%.

And, Bad Co/Tap East, India Brown Ale on cask at a whopping 7.4%.

I watch a lot of live sport. I'm a cricket fan. I'm a Yorkshire fan. I love 5 Day Test Match & 4 Day First Class cricket. I don't drive. Getting back to Sheffield after a night time T20 at Headingley by public transport is a ball ache. If anything, the floodlights have made it worse (later finish, fewer trains). T20 cricket is not my first choice. But, that doesn't mean I don't like it. It's still a bat and a ball. You still need skills. It has its own pace & rhythm.

I've been to T20 Finals Day (Cardiff). I've been to an ICC World T20 Final. And seen England win the Women's T20 World Cup. I'm a Member at Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League. I am not a T20 nay sayer. But, it's Home Truth Time. Get ready. In the ECB T20 Blast. It doesn't matter if you win or lose. Of course, it's professional & competitive sport. You want your team to win. You'd prefer your team to win.

But, it is really a Cash Cow. Put game after game on. Week in, week out (invitation to view model). Day in, day out (dedicated window model). Hype it. War this. Battle that. Oh, and there is Lager. Turnstile clicks. Kerching. And that money is not lost. It stays in the game. It funds cricket academies. It funds player development. It funds the First Class game I love.

It's not a perfect business model. Indeed, it's a mad business model. But it's what we've got. And, that bottom line is not particularly impacted by on field success. Sure, you'll make more Bunce if you get to Finals Day. Sure, you'll impress the Bank Manager if you have the Game 15 Quarter Final. Sure, your crowds will drop off if you can't buy a win & are rooted long & early to the bottom reaches of the table (Yorkshire style). But, in the grand scheme of things, those losses are just a little bit here & there in the pile it high shop.

And, while we're on Home Truths. You can spend money on efficient & proven, but anonymous, journeymen players. Building a team capable of winning the thing. Or, you can lavish it on the big names. Averages. Strike Rates. Not interested. How much did he fetch in the IPL Auction? It's self-fulfilling. Mumbai pay US 1 Million for a geezer. Then, it's come & see the Million Dollar Cricketer at Headingley. Did Yorkshire win? No, but Maxwell biffed it. I'm not singling him out. He's just an easy target in my argument.

And, the twist is, he's left out of this game for disciplinary reasons. Target hit.

McCullum is a stupendous player. So, of course there is enjoyment in seeing Matthew Fisher clean bowl him for 6. The Fish even went on at the end & nabbed the stump. Salute.

All done & dusted now for Yorkshire. Until next year.....

172/367