[themaclad]

No play today

---

I've not read what he's supposed to have said, but who hasn't done something they later regretted?

It's just typical edgy teenager stuff, and about two-thirds of it is clearly banter and private jokes with mates, which makes Nasser Hussein's reaction ("I hope this will make kids think twice about participating in online abuse") all the more bizarre, because Robinson clearly never abused anyone.  To be honest, you can tell how sheepish and embarrassed some of the pundits are, having to be all po-faced about this when they know full well that everyone says and does d!ckhead stuff when they're that age.  Luckily, most of us didn't have Twitter setting our entire adolescence down in stone.  The lesson, sadly, is "don't touch socia media with a barge pole, because some w@nker will always come along at the first sniff of fame and mine everything you've ever said to find something that'll wreck you."

And most of them seemed to have been posted when he was tired and emotional

[themaclad]

New Zealand 378 (Conway 200, Robinson 4-75) & 62-2 (Robinson 2-8)
England 275 (Burns 132, Southee 6-43)
New Zealand lead by 165 runs
England face the prospect of batting to save the first Test against New Zealand despite Rory Burns' determined 132 on day four at Lord's.

Burns dragged England to 275 after they found themselves 140-6 when three wickets fell for no runs.

The left-hander should have been stumped on 77 and was dropped on 88, but kept England afloat by adding 63 with debutant Ollie Robinson, who made 42, and 52 with last man James Anderson.

New Zealand were still able to secure a first-innings advantage of 103, pace bowler Tim Southee superb in taking 6-43.

In the face of some threatening England bowling, the tourists reached 62-2 by the close - both wickets fell to Robinson - to extend their lead to 165.

With Friday lost to rain, a draw is the most likely result, but New Zealand could declare on Sunday and leave England about two sessions to survive on a pitch that is becoming increasingly uneven.

Although Burns' effort was admirable and England's pace bowlers were impressive in a hot evening session, the hosts are behind in this game because of an awful batting showing in the first hour of the day.

Resuming on 111-2 with the contest delicately poised, England's loss of captain Joe Root to the very first ball of the morning seemed like a huge blow, a suspicion confirmed when Southee got to work on the middle order.



Without Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler, England's batting is inexperienced, but that is hardly an excuse for the loose shots and flimsy defence that brought about the downfalls of Ollie Pope, Dan Lawrence and James Bracey.

Amid the carnage, Burns was almost at a standstill, only opening his shoulders when joined by Anderson to first reach his century, then chip away at New Zealand's lead.

Still, even with the entertainment of the 10th-wicket partnership, England were left with a sizable deficit, upon which New Zealand slowly built.

England are not completely out of this Test, but it would take something remarkable for them to win it.

Defeat will only come via a collapse on the final day, although recent history tells us that is far from impossible.

Burns battles to make his point
Burns endured a difficult tour of India earlier this year. Not only was he dropped after two Tests, but was also "reminded of his responsibilities" after a Twitter exchange with England women's spinner Alex Hartley.

The opener had made only 78 runs in his previous five matches, but has been in fine form for Surrey this season and extended that to make his third Test century, and first since November 2019.



Resuming on 59, he was required to show guts, patience and bravery. Wickets fell around him, he was twice hit on the helmet and runs were scarce - he added only 13 in the morning session.

When he was joined by Anderson, Burns was on 91, having scored 32 runs from 128 balls faced on Saturday. Immediately finding a sense of urgency, he took nine from the next five and celebrated in the direction of his wife Victoria and daughter Cora, who was born in January.

Emboldened, Burns unfurled some glorious strokes through the off side and even got down on one knee to sweep pace bowler Neil Wagner for six over mid-wicket.

Like fellow opener Devon Conway, who made 200 in New Zealand's first innings, Burns was last man out, edging behind to give Southee his sixth wicket.

Leading the New Zealand attack in the absence of the rested Trent Boult, Southee was magnificent, swinging the ball away from the right-handers and occasionally nipping it back up the slope.

After Kyle Jamieson had Root taken at first slip, Pope played some breezy shots, only to fall leg before to one that jagged in.

Lawrence played an awful drive at his second ball to be caught at third slip, while debutant Bracey was bowled between bat and pad.

Southee, however, was culpable in dropping Burns at second slip off Wagner. By that point, wicketkeeper BJ Watling had missed a straightforward stumping off Mitchell Santner.


'There's the wicket New Zealand wanted' - Robinson caught by Jamieson
Southee was recalled to break the partnerships between Burns and Robinson, then Burns and Anderson, after which New Zealand openers Conway and Tom Latham absorbed some fine England new-ball bowling.

Robinson's Test debut will be remembered for the revelation of historical racist and sexist tweets, but his fine on-field performance continued when he bowled Conway and had captain Kane Williamson lbw on review.

'My daughter might be a good omen' - reaction
England batsman Rory Burns on BBC Test Match Special: "My wife and daughter were here on Thursday and today. The daughter might be a good omen.

"Being left out of the last couple (of Tests) in India is not a nice thing. To come back and at the next opportunity to take that is really pleasing. I am really satisfied with the hundred.

"We bowled really well tonight and could have had a couple more wickets as well. The third innings is difficult to pace. It is on them to make the move. They are just edging it at the minute."

Former England captain Michael Vaughan: "I have loved today. It has had pretty much everything.

"We have seen outstanding batting from Rory Burns. We have seen outstanding bowling - Southee was high class - and we have seen some rubbish as well. You can always rely on England. They very rarely give you boring days.

"Robinson looks high class. It is early and he has had a tough week. As a bowling all-rounder, I would put that right up there with as good a debut I have seen.

"He outskilled Jimmy Anderson in that spell this evening. It take some doing, which tells you that England have found a bowler."

[themaclad]

Robinson now suspended

[themaclad]

First LV= Insurance Test, Lord's (day five of five)
New Zealand 378 (Conway 200) & 169-6 dec (Robinson 3-26)
England 275 (Burns 132, Southee 6-43) & 170-3 (Sibley 60*, Root 40)
Match drawn; two-Test series level at 0-0
England resisted the temptation of a final-day chase against New Zealand, doggedly batting through to secure a draw in the first Test at Lord's.

New Zealand's lunchtime declaration on 169-6 left the tantalising prospect of England chasing 273 in 75 overs.

However, the target was never seriously pursued, with England instead opting for a safety-first approach led by Dom Sibley's vigilant unbeaten 60 from 207 balls.

England had reached 170-3 when a draw was agreed with five overs remaining.

The second and final Test of the series at Edgbaston begins on Thursday.


New Zealand captain Kane Williamson's declaration at the end of a morning when his side bumped along at five runs an over was designed to entice England into a chase that could bring about their downfall.

Perhaps a carefree attempt at a remarkable win would have been a fitting conclusion to England's first home Test in front of spectators since 2019 on a sun-drenched afternoon at Lord's.

However, it is understandable that England opted for caution given the inexperience of their team, the absence of Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler, the quality of the opposition and the deterioration of the pitch.

This has been a Test where New Zealand have held the upper hand, with their chance of winning severely hampered by the loss of the third day to rain.

Some will argue that England should have made a better fist of the chase, but they instead chose to be on level terms going into the series decider.
.

Historical tweets of a racist and sexist nature from debutant Ollie Robinson were a direct contradiction to a message of anti-discrimination the home side displayed on the first morning.

On the field, Robinson was impressive in taking seven wickets and scoring 42 runs, but his actions in 2012 and 2013 leave his immediate international future in doubt.


Wagner caught behind as Robinson claims another wicket
Plenty of young batsmen will go to Edgbaston in need of a score. Zak Crawley followed his two in the first innings with the same in the second, again aiming a loose drive at Tim Southee.

Dan Lawrence and debutant James Bracey failed to score in their only innings, while Ollie Pope's cameos are hardly enough to guarantee a long-term place.

At least Sibley ended his run of six successive single-figure scores in Tests, albeit in turgid fashion.

England also have to decide if they want to field a specialist spinner at Edgbaston after the selection of a four-man pace attack and the omission of Jack Leach at Lord's.


Rain brought an early lunch and with it the surprise declaration, but there was never an indication England would take the bait.

After his first-innings century, left-hander Rory Burns was troubled by uneven bounce outside his off stump and edged Neil Wagner to second slip. When Crawley fell, New Zealand had an opportunity with almost 43 overs remaining.

By this point, Sibley was digging in. He prodded and poked, only playing at the ball when absolutely necessary.

Root was marginally more enterprising, yet there arrived a point when the crowd erupted into ironic cheers when either man showed signs of aggression.

Wagner trapping Root for 40 lbw encouraged New Zealand to press on, leaving Pope to accompany Sibley in the gathering gloom.

Were England right to turn down chase?
England captain Joe Root told BBC Sport: "On another surface it would have been a very juicy target. The carrot was dangled.

"But the way the wicket was behaving, especially against the new ball, was difficult. It would have been nice to see after the 20-over mark if we could have a sniff at it, but unfortunately that wasn't to be."

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson on BBC Test Match Special: "We were also looking forward to a lively afternoon.

"We thought there'd be a few more inconsistencies out of the surface. We saw glimpses but didn't see it regularly enough, and it just sort of fizzled out a bit.

"No doubt the England camp would have wanted to get a really strong base to have a crack at that. it's always a fine balance on the last day."


Root 'didn't trust his batters' - Vaughan on why England opted against chase
Former England captain Michael Vaughan: "It's an opportunity missed - a decent crowd, no Test match Championship points up for grabs.

"Williamson wanted to have a go for it. England have just not shown that intent. Why don't we have a bit of a go and if we lose three or four wickets, then we'll shut up shop. But to not to have got to that stage...

"It's disappointing for many fans in the ground."

Former England spinner Vic Marks: "England are meant to be an improving, up-and-coming team. There was so much to gain, for a young team, to explore what might be possible. All they've managed to improve is their ability to grind out a draw."

[Lord Snooty]

So the question has to be, how long have the authorities known about these tweets?
Things like this don't just "come to light".
Yorkshire must've known about them when he was sacked.

Yorkshire coach Jason Gillespie said of the situation that "When a player consistently displays behaviour that isn’t professional, there has to be a point in time when you say 'look, this isn’t really working, you’re obviously not that bothered about playing for the club'. That point came, and it was tough" and that "He’s got to learn about his game and about being a professional sportsman. I think there will be a future for him in the professional game, but I think he needs to learn a lot, and I think he can do it."

That was 2014, a couple of years after these tweets. The ECB must have known.
So has he been on one of those awareness courses?
How can it have come to this situation just as he's making his test debut? A debut that looked likely would've led to much more.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Things like this don't just "come to light".

They do, though. Twitter is full of "offence archaeologists" who'll dig up dodgy old tweets at the push of a button. All you have to do is use the search function, type the person's username along with whatever word you want to find ("Muslim", "retard", "Asian", "girl" etc) and it'll give you every tweet that person has sent containing the word. Pick out the offensive ones, retweet them, watch them go viral a full decade after they were posted. While some of it is done by self-proclaimed activists, I suspect a fair few tabloid hacks are in on it too; it allows them to be pious and earn a payday whilst engaging in the same old "build 'em up, knock 'em down" behaviour that the red-tops have always thrived on.

The Culture Secretary has at least voiced what most of us were thinking.

[Lord Snooty]

I stand corrected.

---

I don't think the ECB have gone over the top. This wasn't that long ago like when some of us were 18. I was 18 in 1978. If I'd said or  written something like his tweets, nobody would've known.
He is a young man of the modern Internet savvy age. He would've known exactly what the consequences of his actions would be.
And Paul Farbrace is his step dad, so he has grown up in the international cricketing environment.
I'm not buying the too young to know better rhetoric.

[themaclad]

Apparently someone else has been a naughty boy

[themaclad]

Dom Bess deletes Twitter account

[Lord Snooty]

Dom Bess deletes Twitter account

How very wise.