[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Three

Morning: No play possible due to rain.

Afternoon: No play possible due to rain.

Evening: With most of the day washed out, the action finally began at 4pm with Worcestershire facing the second new ball, and runs were the order of the day. Jake Libby brought up his 150 immediately, and together with Jack Haynes managed to motor along at above seven an over until the latter was bowled for 31. But Libby had by that point surpassed his career-best score of 184 against Glamorgan in the Covid summer, and the Sussex attack was slowly going to pieces as the Pears punished some very average bowling. Faheem Ashraf in particular had another rough ride, and Henry Crocombe was pulled for two ground-exiting sixes in an over by Brett D'Oliveira; maximum batting points were achieved with fifteen overs to spare, Libby nudged his way to a career-first double century, and sent a short wide ball from Ashraf sailing into the stands over extra cover before he was finally bowled for 214 by James Coles. The declaration came on 438-5, with a first-innings lead of 218, and just when it looked like the Sussex openers might navigate the last ten overs of the day in safety, Joe Leach struck in the penultimate over to beat the defence of Tom Haines and remove the off stump for 13. The final over was entrusted to the returning Josh Tongue, and the young man produced two bouncers of startling pace and ferocity from the Cromwell Road End to shake up Ali Orr and give the opener an uneasy night's sleep, as Sussex closed on 39-1, trailing by 179.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Four

Morning: Resuming on 39-1 on a sunny Thursday morning, Josh Tongue opened the day's action by blasting two stumps clean out of the ground to send nightwatchman Brad Currie packing for 7, and Ben Gibbon kept the ball rolling when he dismissed Ali Orr LBW for 38. But Toms Alsop and Clark saw out the remainder of the session comfortably to take lunch on 152-3, trailing by 66, and Worcestershire were already playing catch-up.

Afternoon: A soft dismissal after the break saw Clark tickle one down the leg-side off Dillon Pennington, a certain four but for the outstretched glove of Gareth Roderick behind the stumps - a man really finding his feet as a Pear in recent weeks - who pouched the ball inches from the ground to dismiss Clark for 36. New man Oli Carter rode his luck, with potential catches not going to hand, but Alsop completed his century with little bother, and tea was taken with the hosts 259-4 and leading by 41.

Evening: Everything hinged on the second new ball, taken early in the evening, and there was a flare of hope when Pennington bowled a perfect line and length to beat Carter's defence and clip the top of off-stump, seeing him off for 55, before Joe Leach nipped one back in to new man Fynn Hudson-Prentice that rapped the front pad and had him leg-before for a duck. But it was a false dawn, as Sussex saw out enough of the remaining overs to ensure a handshake with an hour left.

Match DRAWN

The Verdict: September strikes again. While the placidity of the pitch after the first morning played some part in this stalemate, the weather was again the ultimate culprit in frustrating what would more than likely have been a Worcestershire win without more than a hundred overs lost. A sixteen-point draw is a moral victory in many ways, but the chances of promotion are now slim to none, with wins against Notts and Middlesex required alongside slip-ups from Glamorgan and Derbyshire.

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Leading Run-Scorers

1. Ed Barnard - 857 (65.92)
2. Jack Haynes - 758 (50.53)
3. Jake Libby - 666 (37.00)
4. Ed Pollock - 645 (35.83)
5. Brett D'Oliveira - 639 (58.09)


Leading Wicket-Takers

1. Dillon Pennington - 36 (23.75)
2. Joe Leach - 34 (22.55)
3. Ed Barnard - 26 (42.03)
4. Josh Baker - 23 (44.60)
5. Charlie Morris - 21 (30.57)

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

County Championship, Division Two

vs Nottinghamshire

Day One

Morning: Notts won the toss on a grey September Tuesday and put the Pears in to bat on a green pitch. There were soon casualties to show for it; notwithstanding his recent form, Ed Pollock played Jake Ball onto the stumps for a duck, and some steepling bounce from the same bowler took Azhar Ali by surprise as he edged behind for 6. Positivity was the watchword from the third-wicket partnership, but it proved all too brief as Jake Libby was LBW for 18 to Worcestershire's great bete noire Dane Paterson, before Jack Haynes followed him after a run-a-ball 33, edging Steven Mullaney behind. Incredibly, there was time for things to get worse as Ed Barnard edged Paterson to second slip on the stroke of lunch. 99-5 at the interval, it all felt like the same old story for a Nottinghamshire encounter.

Afternoon: But incredibly, there was some backbone in the middle order. Cliched though it may be, Brett D'Oliveira indisputably played a captain's innings through the afternoon, supported by the increasingly impressive Gareth Roderick. Defending watchfully and putting away the bad balls with some well-timed strokes, Dolly completed a comfortable half century before the interval, capping a wicketless session in which the Pears recovered to 187-5.

Evening: Bringing up his fifty, Roderick happily accelerated to match the pace of Dolly, who was already tucking into some indifferent bowling; each man contributed a six to the innings to go with a series of well-struck boundaries. But the second new ball saw Dolly fall to Mullaney for 85, caught behind on the drive, and new signing Matthew Waite - here on a two-game loan before his three-year full-time stint begins next summer - managed only 5 before perishing LBW to Brett Hutton. Still, the Pears reached stumps on 297-7; no mean feat against the division leaders, who would have expected to bowl Worcestershire out by the day's end after winning the toss and electing to field. With Rodders still at the crease there's a golden opportunity to push the total up well beyond 300 in the morning, but even if Notts wrap things up quickly, Worcs have still got what feels like a decent par score on the board.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Two

Morning: The fifteen-month absence of Josh Tongue was long enough to forget what a proficient tail-end batsman the young man is, but he refreshed our memories on a grey Wednesday morning at New Road with some elegant drives through cover and down the ground, almost stealing the thunder from Gareth Roderick, who completed his second century in as many matches to a rapturous ovation. Sadly, he departed LBW to Brett Hutton for 102, but Tongue took command with the aid of an 18-run cameo from Dillon Pennington, and surpassed his previous first-class best en route to an unbeaten 45, where he was left stranded when Ben Gibbon - having already pulled Hutton for one six - tried to repeat the feat and holed out to end the innings on an imposing 390. Lunch would already have tasted sweet, but it grew sweeter still when Pennington opened the wicket account by removing Ben Slater's middle stump as the Notts opener tried to work the ball on the on-side. 12-1 at the interval, the session firmly belonged to the Pears, but there was no inkling yet of just how enjoyable the day would prove to be...

Afternoon: With the innings still only five overs old, the new ball was swinging round corners, and Ben Gibbon got his reward for bowling a tight line over the wicket when a good-length ball got a thick edge from Matthew Montgomery and finally stuck in the hands of third slip after an impromptu juggling act. Thankfully, there were far safer hands behind the stumps to remove Joe Clarke as the ex-Pear glanced Pennington down the leg-side and Rodders produced a Lev Yashin cat-leap to snaffle the ball one-handed above shoulder height some eight feet from his starting position. Matthew Waite then christened his full-time stint as a Pear by pitching up an inswinger to Lyndon James which the Notts man allowed to clatter his off stump with no shot offered. A brief recovery followed, and there was a small chance that the visitors' middle order might repair the rocky start as Worcestershire had done on day one, but Ed Barnard suddenly went into overdrive at half past two, having Steven Mullaney caught at first slip, bowling Tom Moores for a duck as the keeper tried to leave but inside-edged onto the base of off stump, having the resilient Haseeb Hameed caught behind, then bowling Hutton with the very next ball. That astonishing spell of 4-1 reduced Notts to 96-8, and Liam Patterson-White responded by unleashing some big shots, but Pennington bowled Jake Ball for a duck and finally ended Patterson-White's spree as he holed out to Azhar Ali on the pull. A phenomenal nine-wicket session saw Notts bowled out for 128, the first time all season that they've failed to take a single batting point, and trailing by 262 at tea, the follow-on was enforced.

Evening: The excellent development of Gibbon continued apace as the left-armer nipped one in to bowl Slater through the gate, then removed Montgomery chopping on with an attempted drive. The young man came perilously close to legend status when he had Joe Clarke caught behind for 1, pouched down the leg-side for the second time in less than three hours, and when he was rested from the attack, Waite picked up where he'd left off, seeing Lyndon James off caught behind and then bowling Steven Mullaney. From 66-5, led by the ever-impressive Haseeb Hameed - whose first innings tally carried him past 1000 Championship runs for the season - Notts did stage another minor recovery, but having started the day in such style, it was only fitting that Tongue should end it with equal elan, producing a full, pacey delivery that straightened and took the edge of Hameed, who was duly caught behind. With Notts 129-6 at close of play, still trailing by 133, this was not only the finest day's cricket the Pears have produced all year, but their best against opposition of such strength for four years or more. A first triumph over Nottinghamshire since 2017 is firmly in sight, but having snatched defeat from the jaws of victory twice already in 2022, Worcs would do well to approach tomorrow with the same exemplary effort and application as today, lest Moores and Patterson-White get themselves in and see a glimmer of hope.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Three

Morning: A pale equinoctial sun peered over the cathedral on Thursday morning and was rewarded with the sight of Dillon Pennington taking the shoulder of Tom Moores's bat with the tenth delivery of the day, looping up a running catch for Dolly. Pennington then had Liam Patterson-White leg-before in his very next over - an acronymically-satisfying case of LPW dismissed LBW - and the crowd could be forgiven for thinking it would all be done and dusted in a few minutes. But to their credit, Brett Hutton and Jake Ball stuck at the crease for the next hour, upping their averages and defiantly reducing the deficit to give the huddled spectators that little bit more cricket while the sun (however dimly) shone. Their fun came to an inevitable end just after half-eleven when Josh Tongue dangled the carrot with a full ball outside off that Jake Ball fenced at and edged behind, and Matthew Waite used a similar tactic minutes later to remove new man Dane Paterson and complete an emphatic, staggering victory over the division's stand-out team.

Worcestershire WIN by an innings and seventy-nine runs

The Verdict: In the five years since Worcestershire last beat Nottinghamshire in September 2017, our encounters with the East Midlanders - which have so often been frustrating and futile battles, spiced with the aggrieving presence of the poached Joe Clarke - have gradually gained the flavour of grudge matches, so this victory is without doubt the sweetest of the season. But moreover (and with all due respect to the Middlesex team we bested in July) this was Worcestershire's first win against a side of clear Division One quality since beating Yorkshire in 2018, and on a day when the ECB announced their misbegotten plans for the County Championship - a scheme that threatens to turn the world's oldest and proudest first-class cricket competition into an all-but-closed shop for the major Test-ground counties, while the impoverished and unfashionable languish in lesser conferences - it was also a timely reminder that the Worcestershires of the world have more to offer English cricket than a conveyor belt of young talent to be hoovered up by the big boys.

[themaclad]

Spot on with the last sentence

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Leading Run-Scorers

1. Ed Barnard - 867 (61.92)
2. Jack Haynes - 791 (49.43)
3. Brett D'Oliveira - 724 (60.33)
4. Jake Libby - 684 (36.00)
5. Ed Pollock - 645 (33.94)


Leading Wicket-Takers

1. Dillon Pennington - 42 (22.07)
2. Joe Leach - 34 (22.55)
3. Ed Barnard - 30 (38.40)
4. Josh Baker - 23 (44.60)
5. Charlie Morris - 21 (30.57)

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Worcestershire County Cricket Club

2022 Season Review

A weather-affected final-week draw against Middlesex brought 2022 to a conclusion at New Road; a bittersweet summer that delivered a slight red-ball improvement alongside a severe white-ball decline, and ultimately no promotion despite some strong showings in September. Four wins in the year was our best return since 2017, and it could easily have been six or seven if rain hadn't intervened in several matches where the Pears were on top.

The greatest blow to the county was the midsummer news that Ed Barnard, now entering the prime of his career, was taking the opportunity to defect to Edgbaston. Though his bowling performances arguably suffered in the last couple of seasons, his steady transformation into a batting all-rounder propelled him to the top of the run-scoring stakes for the Pears, and this departure leaves an immense hole in the middle order that won't be easily plugged. But the arrival of Adam Hose in the other direction - an acquisition that had Bears fans spitting fury online - at least offers the prospect of a white-ball revival next summer. And ultimately, with the top-order shored up and some much-needed variation in the attack, it feels like the Pears are only one gun bowler short of a highly competitive Championship side.

Batsmen

Ed Pollock arrived with the promise that he wouldn't rein in his white-ball instincts when replacing Daryl Mitchell, and to his credit, his 645 first-class runs at an average of 32.35 was a perfectly adequate haul for an opener in its own right, and an improvement on Mitch's latter seasons. His season and career best of 113 against Middlesex in July - a match-winning knock that garnered widespread praise - was the pick of his innings at the crease, though his feast-or-famine style delivered plenty of early ducks along the way, each one inviting honks of disapproval on social media. On paper, the "Bazball" addition of Pollock is a gamble that's worked, though it remains to be seen whether the young man can continue to grow his game going forward, as well as recovering his white-ball form.

A quieter year than 2021 for Jake Libby, who nevertheless surpassed his opening partner with 688 runs at 34.40, finishing the season as the county's fourth-best batsman. The slight drop-off in Libby's form after topping 1000 in 2021 is offset by the fact that he's no longer carrying the team on his shoulders, and his late-season burst of good nick indicated that good times may lie around the corner again, especially given that his 332 runs at 66.40 in the One-Day Cup made him the pick of the Worcs batsmen in that competition.

One final appearance in Pear-green for Tom Fell brought 17 runs, before his departure was announced in August. Nothing remains but to thank Tom for his efforts and wish him well in his future endeavours, in the hope he can find a return to form elsewhere.

2022 was the year when Jack Haynes truly made his name, finally bagging a maiden first-class century en route to 811 runs for the summer at 47.70, vastly improving on previous seasons. His reward for this showing - rather concerningly for Worcestershire supporters - was a place at Oval Invincibles for the Hundred, as yet another young Pears player gets a glimpse of how the other half live. As one of the principal jewels in the crown now that Ed Barnard has departed, the county simply has to hold on to Haynes for as long as it can.

Kashif Ali was a promising addition to the batting line-up this summer, making a half-century on debut as his sole Championship appearance yielded 58 runs at an average of 29.00. The One-Day Cup was where Kash really shone, clocking in as the county's fifth-best batsman with his 206 runs coming at 51.50. Hopefully the beginning of a promising career at the highest levels of English cricket.

Taylor Cornall likewise turned a few heads in his first full season at this level; his patient anchoring knock of 31 not out carrying the Pears to victory against Middlesex in July was his best showing in the Championship, where 89 runs at 14.83 was his final haul; however, his eye-catching straight drives lit up the One-Day Cup, in which he was the county's second-best batsman with 280 at 40.00.

Wicketkeepers & All-rounders

More trials for Ben Cox with the bat, as a stop-start season brought him 167 Championship runs at a slightly improved average of 23.85, along with 253 at 84.33 in the One-Day Cup. But his glovework remains second-to-none, and all being well, Coxy will continue to play a vital part at New Road for some time to come.

The final summer at New Road proved somewhat controversial and acrimonious for Moeen Ali. Having been knocked out of the IPL early enough to join up with the team for the beginning of the T20 Blast, Mo nevertheless stuck to the pre-agreed schedule as Worcs ploughed through a disastrous opening week, before assuming the captaincy as the campaign went down in flames, and publicly blaming the efforts of the other players for this catastrophe, seemingly oblivious to his own half-arsed contribution. In the middle of this debacle, he found time to appear on social media grinning in Bears colours as his departure was announced. It's a terrible shame for a man who'd been a much-loved icon and ambassador at Worcestershire in the last decade or so, but he leaves under a cloud as a result.

Forgotten man Gareth Roderick roared right back in 2022, upping last year's haul of 167 runs at 18.55 to a far more impressive 447 at 74.50, the highest average of any Pears batsman this summer, including an unbeaten 172 in September. Roderick's fighting spirit was never in doubt, and his glovework made him a more-than-capable deputy to Ben Cox during the latter's absence.

The best summer in years netted new skipper Brett D'Oliveira 768 runs at 59.07 in the Championship - a vast improvement on recent years - as well as continuing excellence in T20 with 315 runs at 24.23, and 12 wickets at a highly impressive 17.91.

It's farewell to Ed Barnard, who once again surpassed his career-best haul with the bat, topping the run-scoring stakes with 895 Championship runs at 59.66 including three centuries, alongside an improved 31 wickets at 39.83 (though this return remains far short of his pre-pandemic efforts). It can't be overstated how big a gap the young man leaves in this Pears side, and if he should find himself at a loose end in a few years, I'm sure a return to New Road would be welcomed by fans.

Bowlers

Another year on the clock for Joe Leach, and while his 266 Championship runs and 34 wickets were down on last season (albeit at an improved average of 22.55), he remains a lynchpin of the Pears attack with his ability to swing the new ball and take wickets in clutches. In the long term Worcs may need to think about a possible replacement, but there remains life in Big Joe yet.

A welcome return from injury for Josh Tongue, who contributed 5 wickets at 43.20 at the back end of the campaign; important overs under the belt as the young man targets a full-time return to the first team.

Adam Finch remains a bit-part player at Worcs, his 5 wickets in the season coming at 68.60, which shouldn't be judged too harshly in light of the early-summer flat tracks and bad Dukes balls. He also finished second among the One-Day wicket-takers with 8 scalps at 48.25. Nevertheless, there's a growing question mark about Finch's place in the pecking order, with so many names seemingly ahead of his.

Though perhaps not as explosive as Jack Haynes, it was no less important a season for Dillon Pennington, who finished the season as the county's top wicket-taker with 44 scalps at 22.63; a comfortable career-best haul. Now finding a more consistent line and length, his 10 One-Day wickets at 38.20 were also enough to top the wicket-taking charts for the county.

Charlie Morris seemed to drop out of contention somewhat as the summer progressed, but nevertheless improved on his 2021 return with 21 wickets at 30.57, though he played little part in the white-ball side of things.

In his first full season, Josh Baker might be remembered for coming within a few feet of being hit for six sixes in an over by Ben Stokes - an incident which led to some unnecessary Twitter sneering from Kevin Pieterson about the quality of Division Two bowling - but thankfully, there's more to the young man's ability to that. 23 wickets at 44.60 was a decent contribution to the campaign before injury struck, and hopefully there'll be plenty of improvement in future years.

Ben Gibbon didn't always have things go his way during the long flat-track slogs of the early season, but he himself was the first to say that a hard day in the middle wasn't a patch on working as a brickie, and 20 wickets at 35.65 were a deserved reward. Gibbon's stump-to-stump left-arm deliveries offer crucial variation to the Worcs attack, and there's no reason why the young man shouldn't go from strength to strength.

Overseas Players & Loanees

Azhar Ali took some time to settle in, but soon showed his class, stroking his way to 656 runs at 41.00 with a top score of 225; a haul which goes a long way to solving Worcestershire's years-old problem at number three and earned Azhar-bhai a return in 2023.

Matthew Waite was a big hit on his arrival in May, so much so that the move became permanent later in the summer. With 16 wickets at 33.25 and 34 runs at 17.00, Waite is more likely to fill Barnard's shoes with the ball than the bat. However, in the prime years of his career, there's high hopes that Worcs have unearthed another gem amongst the forgotten men of the bigger counties.


Highlights of the year? Some strong early-season showings against Sussex and Leicestershire. A maiden first-class century for Jack Haynes. A Jubilee win against the Bears at New Road in a royal run-fest. A ding-dong low-scoring victory at Merchant Taylors in the oven of a July heatwave. And a thoroughly deserved thumping of Nottinghamshire in the autumn, that gives us a sliver of hope that good times lie round the corner.

And so until 2023, it's a fond farewell to New Road.