Glass Half Full

Hampshire 400-9 declared
v Yorkshire 97-4 declared
Hampshire 0-0 forfeit
Yorkshire 305-5

Yorkshire win by 5 wickets

Thursday 17 September 2015

LV County Championship Division 1
at Southampton

Twitter @ball_sup

The glass half empty part of me thinks Hampshire might have got that wrong. The trade off was the 2 batting & 5 draw points "there for the taking" versus the 16 gambling for the win. I assume the negotiations went fairly smoothly. "Galey, we're 300 & bits ahead, good forecast, 96 overs, tell the out of form Lees, Lyth & Ballance to get their pads on. Unless you want to Pfaff around with the Slide Rule".

Gale is a team man. He hasn't got it in him. But, I'd have been thinking. "They'll go cheaply as per, then out from the dressing rooms a hero will arise". And lo. 125 off 225. Very ably assisted by Leaning (76 off 182). But, no red ink there. Neither of them could just get it over the line.

They were just comfortably ahead to avoid any panic near the end. James Vince knows his business. Maybe he's just factored in the Somerset/Sussex situation & felt they had to push for 16 points. And it looked different when YCCC were 37-3.

Speaking of glass half empty, here's the Beer Report. There is an Atrium Bar behind the Pavilion. Essentially a public bar. On the morning of Day 4, they had Ringwood Best Bitter & Boon Doggle on. Just off that, more in the Pavilion itself, is what I'll call the Members Bar. Not far off being one and the same. Just a bit of rope & a security guy checking passes. And there is a separate bar frontage in the Members. On the morning of Day 4 that also had Ringwood Best Bitter on. And Marston's Pedigree.

Lips were licked. Taste buds were tickled. Hare down at Lunch. Disaster. TinPot. All the Ringwood off in both bars. Only a long queue for the Pedigree remains. But, after that complete collapse, the middle order put a recovery together. By just before Tea, Ringwood Best was back on in the Members. So, I had that at 3.8%.

And, later I toasted Gale's negotiation skills in The Glass Works (Wetherspoons in Islington) on a pint of International Brewers Showcase. By Honza Kocka from Pivovar Kocovnik in Czech Republic. Black Knight on cask at 5%.

A good day.

207/422