GCF World Test Season 10 - RP/Rosters/Scores

by **Ko-oren** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 3:12 am

Liventia series ends 1-1, inconsistency is a problem now

As expected, the Liventians made some changes to their XI, after their second collapse in three seasons. Injuries give them some excuse, but even with eight players they ought to last more than 25 overs and score more than 80 runs. Although I had thought Liventia would change some players around in the order and swap some out, captain Kerr went much, much further than that. He resigned as captain mid-series, and now Edwards will bear the heavy burden of captaining a squad that always carries very high expectations. Kerr's first task will be survive the series with Finch and Millbank still out - and that means that Liventia are down to one opener. All the full-time bowlers are still unchanged, but Kennedy (bowling all-rounder) is now in over MacMaster (also a bowling all-rounder). There are a lot of changes to the first six on the list, however. And we can only say that Edwards has done a fine job in his first match as a captain.

GCF Test no. 662
Match Report: Liventia in Ko-oren
Liventia bat first
Ko-oren 266 (46.0 overs), 255 (59.4 overs)
Liventia 549/4d (186.5 overs),
Liventia win by an innings and 28 runs
Series drawn 1-1

You read that right. The series ends with two wins by an innings, one for each team. This makes it harder to name a clear moral winner in this series, but winning by an innings and 149 is better than an innings an 28, so as a completely unbiased Ko-orenite reporter, I think Ko-oren comes out slightly better. Liventia opened again and, like in the first match, they had an excellent first innings. Just in this case, that first innings was about 2,5 times as long. Ko-oren had no bad first innings score-wise, but going for just 46 overs is a bit short - and by far not enough to prevent a follow-on. Edwards now had a fun decision to make - would his bowlers still be fresh enough after 46 overs, or is there enough time to bat and still get the Ko-orenites out a second time? By this point, only two days and two sessions had passed, but Edwards still decided to enforce the follow-on. It turned out to be a great decision, the Green and Blue had no answer again, and ended up on nearly 60 overs (an improvement) and 255 runs (a decline). The series ends 1-1, which is easily a result any Ko-orenite would have been happy with before the start of the two matches. Liventia remain the best Test side in the Multiverse, Ko-oren climbs up to 5th.

In a windy Royal Oval, under a threatening deck of clouds, Finney and Hennessey opened for the visitors. Given the weather, the old adage says that swing is a good option, so Courtenay and Marsden took care of the first dozen or so overs. With the swing and the bounce of a new ball, as well as the unfamiliar pitch, the situation proved too much for Hennessey - opening might not be his thing. He tried to deflect an innocent looking ball from Marsden, but it did have some curve on it and struck him on the pads somewhere around off stump. Marsden was so sure of his case that the decision went upstairs, and our captain was proven right when the call came back: OUT. Finney had a much better session, now partnering with new captain Edwards. Finney picked his battles, had some frustrating overs of blocking 5 balls and seeing the sixth one barely making it to the infield. The few times he swung, he was lethal and hit gaps between fielders on multiple occassions. Meanwhile, the sky opened up and Raycraft and Chesterman were also included in the proceedings. Edwards, more focused on his partner's play than his own, lost his wicket on the first over he faced a spin bowler. Bérenger came on and he wouldn't leave for a while. Finney slashed the ball up and somewhere towards cover, an easy catch for Darknoll even if he had to run for it. Bérenger and Kerr were now on, putting together a partnership of 100, 110, 120... but Bérenger got greedy - on 157, so it wasn't like he didn't already have a massive innings. As the day rolled on, the all-rounders were involved in bowling - and Darknoll had a few slow overs where he couldn't apply spin, then hit one perfectly and got a millimetre of leg stump. Bérenger moved over to the middle of the wicket, preparing to hit this one over the rope, and he had no chance of hitting this one. Kerr and Reynolds then had a spell that couldn't be broken by Ko-orenite bowling. Day two ended and Liventia would still be batting at the start of day three.

The day started with the duo continuing where they left off the day before, but before long, the grey clouds stopped being just a threat and actually started interfering with the match. It started with a drizzle, the covers came on. The rain spell lasted for just 12 minutes, but in this time the drizzle turned to a downpour and then stopped as suddenly as it began. The pitch was safe, but the outfield now had some very different qualities and Edwards decided this was as good a time as any to declare the innings. Kerr had a small objection as he wanted to reach the 150, but the captain's word was final and it was an interesting discussion between the ex-captain and the new one. Things never got heated, the two talked it out and that was that.

Liventia First Innings

Name         R    Out

MA Finney    85   b Courtenay c Darknoll
DA Hennessey 7    lbw Marsden
DHJ Edwards  23   b Chesterman st Wheelwright
PJA Bérenger 157  b Darknoll
OH Kerr      139* not out
E Reynolds   117* not out
MQ Sarrin    did not bat
JFM Kennedy  did not bat
JPK Adams    did not bat
SV Finney    did not bat
RPT De Cerci did not bat

Still sitting on cloud nine from the first match, the Green and Blue hoped to match Liventia's score, and to do so quickly. Stevenson and Twaddle once again led the order after the rain cleared up, Adams and Finney alternated overs early on. The batsmen had no trouble starting up. They took risk whenever they thought the ball wasn't going to hit the stumps, either letting it pass by (even when it was too close for comfort and the ball barely missed the stumps) or placing it right in the gaps in the infield. Marsden told them to rear up the scoring, and they did. All through the innings, the Ko-orenites were helped by some wildly inaccurate bowling, with plenty of wides and no-balls. Baldry is inconsistent as is, and here he displayed that again: the first match he scored 156, today he managed three. That was the first omen that things were going to be bad. Willis, Darknoll and yMharwn (and especially the latter) salvaged things, and if the tail at least managed their normal batting averages, things would be fine. Then, Wheelwright, Courtenay, Marsden, Raycraft and Chesterman collapsed for a total of 18 (and 10 extras). And it wasn't pretty. At least they spread out the wickets, and they never gave up two wickets in the same over. They did make the Liventian bowlers fight for it, but even then. Wheelwright swung, clean bowl by Finney. Courtenay tried to block and got spun by De Cerci. Marsden took his time, lasted 23 balls but Kennedy took off-stump off him. Chesterman at least added some runs before it was Raycraft's turn at bat again and he was easily dismissed for a duck.

Ko-oren First Innings

Name          R   Out

E Stevenson   54  b Adams c Reynolds
R Twaddle     43  b Finney c Bérenger
M Baldry      3   b Finney c Kerr
P Willis      38  b De Cerci c Sarrin
Th Darknoll   26  b Adams c Sarrin
S yMharwn     50  lbw Kennedy
G Wheelwright 4   b Finney
N Courtenay   0   b De Cerci
H Marsden     5   b Kennedy
A Raycraft    0   b Kerr
S Chesterman  9*  not out

The second innings was worse run-wise, but better over-wise. Still, Ko-oren was all out, twice, in one day and a session. It was a completely different Ko-oren team on the pitch, though. Stevenson and Twaddle went out on attempted sixes, caught in the only place where Liventia stationed an outfielder. Hennessey on the first occasion, Bérenger on the second. The batsmen had their first innings and thought they could repeat it, forgetting that the Liventians now had a file on them. After that, Baldry had another opposite innings to his previous one, going for 94 runs. He started a small tradition of going out without getting barely anything on the ball: top edge to the wicketkeeper. Willis and Darknoll didn't help us getting back in the match. Willis misjudged a yorker on his first ball, Darknoll lasted a little longer but was struck on the plant leg a full 15 cm away from where he put his bat. yMharwn and Wheelwright had a decent outing together, but also fell to Sarrin's ruthless gloves.

Some rain delays later, the innings picked up with just the bowlers left to defend our honour. Courtenay had no business lifting the ball - he tried to avoid the wet and slow outfield - and it was an easy catch for Finney (the opener). Marsden and Raycraft looked like setting up a tail order stand, adding about 40 runs, so they succeeded in that. It was far too little, far too late, and they couldn't force Liventia back on the field for their second innings at all. Swing got the better of Marsden, while Raycraft stayed on to pair up with Chesterman for all of about 3 minutes. Adams was on a roll and got his 5-for.

Ko-oren Second Innings

Name          R   Out

E Stevenson   9   b De Cerci c Hennessey
R Twaddle     18  b Finney c Bérenger
M Baldry      94  b Kennedy c Sarrin
P Willis      0   lbw Adams
Th Darknoll   15  lbw Finney
S yMharwn     23  b Adams c Sarrin
G Wheelwright 28  b Adams st Sarrin
N Courtenay   0   b Adams c MA Finney
H Marsden     17  lbw Adams
A Raycraft    20* not out
S Chesterman  0   lbw De Cerci

That's it from the Liventia series! Ko-oren will be back shortly, visiting Teusland on a 3-match series. Marsden has some work to do in limiting the inconsistency. Either someone matches their average and then some, or they disappear for nearly nothing. How good the first match was, how bad the second was. Bowlers can't take wickets and rely on suppressing runs and frustrating batsmen - how long can that work for? A great win over the Multiverse's best team was a great start, but the second match takes nearly all the good things from that first match away. What team will we see in Teusland?

by **The Plough Islands** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 6:33 am

on the 24th January 2019, the Plough Islands Gazette wrote:
FLYING FOXES WRAP UP INNINGS WIN
by Denis Wormwood, Sporting Correspondent, in Highrock

After three innings compressed into two days of cricket spread by mist, fog, and darkness across four afternoons, the Plough Islands were finally able to bring their at times surreal second Test against Teusland to a close this afternoon at the Highrock Athletic Club. After a sluggish Foxes team had been well beaten by the bright-eyed tourists at December Park, Kevin Laing's team had arrived at Highrock determined to give a better account of themselves, and were able to make the unpredictable conditions work in their favour, with local debutant batsman Alec Fedorov setting the benchmark with a patient 73 in the islands' innings on a pitch that was probably a little underprepared at best for Test cricket.
Needing to score 225 to make the Foxes bat again, and with most expectations having been long since rendered pointless by the events of the last few days, Marc Breuer and Konrad von Sauerland came out swinging; with the pitch making shot selection a matter of luck as much as skill, the Edelweiss openers looked to score opportunistically, and Breuer gave the small band of Teuslanders loyally assembled on the hillsides something to cheer early on with successive fours worked away from Colin McCarthy into the deep. However, the tide soon turned; von Sauerland flicked McCarthy for three out towards the Celestial Ocean boundary, and attempted to repeat the trick only for the ball to dip, clip the lower edge of his bat, and into a reflexive forward dive from Ilya Lebed to dismiss the captain for 10, and though Breuer continued to chip away with new partner August Tausche, the Highrock track began to break apart as it dried and Tausche's dismissal - for 19, to a near-perfect ripper bowled by Sarah Ashe - precipitated a barely believable collapse, both statistically and mentally.
Killian Wimmer, the next man in, scored just one run before lofting a short ball from McCarthy that he should have left into the arms of Fedorov; Simon Riedl - who, with the ball, had been Teusland's shining light in both Tests - recorded a pair, the second duck coming as the first did from a Naomi Salisbury delivery that cut across his leg stump; Breuer failed to judge one of Shauna Weaver's occasional leg breaks correctly and was out lbw; Noel Koller, Martin Kaplan, and the dangerous Elias Lehner fell in the same over, in what would have been a Sarah Ashe hat trick had the New Hibernian not served up four wides in between a laser guided lbw for Kaplan and a perfectly sprung trap with Lebed for Lehner. A gritty rearguard from Linus Schell failed to stop the decline, but lunch did; by this time, though, Teusland were 74 for 8, Laing was warmly cuddling and congratulating any Plough Islander in range regardless of whether they were fielding or spectating, coach Lourens Hendricks' smile could be seen from Avalon, and the Highrock Sports Club was thick with anticipation as thousands of Plough Islanders sensed something very special was happening.
When Salisbury struck again to remove Xaver Schwarz nine balls into the afternoon session, Teusland's last man Ben Trenker walked out like an ancien régime noble en route to the guillotine, but the veteran bowler proved surprisingly resilient; showing an understanding of the blocking game that some of his teammates had lacked, Trenker withstood a barrage of quick, flighty deliveries from Salisbury and upheld his team's dignity, forcing Laing to rotate his bowlers to try and finish the game. Ultimately, it was the captain himself delivering the final blow; stopping an attempted Trenker pull with his foot, Laing 's throw was direct and true and caught Trenker short of the crease, running him out for 5 and ending the Teusland innings for just ninety runs. Emotions spilled over the Highrock boundary and out into the endless ocean, as the Foxes finished a complete turnaround from the first Test in Sutton and secured a crushing win by an innings and 134 runs.
The Edelweiss had been here before; their first innings, after winning a potentially Phyrric victory in the toss after play at Highrock was delayed for an hour to allow mist to clear, had started and ended in similar fashion. Even on the first morning, the pitch was a world away from the relatively flat, prepared surface of December Park, and though Breuer - from the not dissimilar to Highrock port town of Sankt Kuningunde - adapted quickly to the conditions, his captain and opening partner did not, and lasted just three minutes before being forced back to the pavilion for a duck by an excellent length from McCarthy. Tausche, also from Teusland's maritimes, was able to get off the mark at least, and for a brief period the pair had looked like they might dig in against the pace of McCarthy and Andrew Baxter, but a mistimed cut off McCarthy flew straight to Laing, and with the captain switching out Baxter's brute force for Ashe's guile, the innings became a procession of Teuslander batsmen coming out, being faced with deeply unpredictable bowling, and walking back to the pavilion before they could work out what was happening.
Breuer ended up carrying his bat, and was the only player who remotely seemed able to cope; like Weaver in Sutton, he was able to salvage something from the performance, a battling half-century that benefited from the profligacy of Baxter in particular, but the rest of the innings sleepwalked into disaster; Ashe (3-18) and Salisbury (3-23) tore through the middle order as the condensation on the pitch evaporated, with Matthew Davy's leg breaks accounting for Schell (7) and Lehner, who was the only other Teuslander in double figures - edging a googly to Lebed for an unlucky 13. By the time lunch was taken, Breuer had ended up outscoring the rest of his team by eight, the first innings of the match was over for just 103 runs, and the Foxes and their fans and comrades could scarcely believe their good fortune.
If Teusland had struggled with the varying conditions, it might have been some small comfort to von Sauerland's team that the Foxes initially did not have it all their own way either. Though Graeme Holt and Matthew Davy started the innings brightly, Holt was the latest victim of the pitch on 11 when he lost his footing after a cancelled single and was left well short of his ground, the stocky Redcliff batsman cursing the New Dalmatian conditions. Weaver soon followed, the December Park centurion failing to dig out a Schwarz yorker and leaving without scoring, and after Riedl had captain Laing trapped in front for 19 with the last ball of the day, only Davy (25) and Audrey Leggett (on 22 not out) had made it beyond the teenage scores.
Laing's dismissal brought in Fedorov, making his debut on his home ground, and the tall left-hander set his stall out early on; he got off the mark with his second ball, a Riedl ripper reflected behind the wicket for two, but that pair of runs waited another four overs before being joined by any more as Fedorov assumed his standard upright, blocking stance. In that time, Leggett - apparently determined that, with the ball moving around too much for her defence, total committed offence was the best strategy - racked up six boundaries, driving and pulling Riedl and Lehner for two runs short of a half century before gloving a high ball from the latter straight through to Kaplan. This left the all-Soviet duo of Fedorov and Lebed, and the Foxes' wicketkeeper settled in almost immediately, giving his island comrade encouragement and the basis of what proved to be a match winning partnership as they, first slowly and then intensely, dispatched the Edelweiss to the four winds.
By the time the fading light brought day two to a close, the Plough Islands sat on 185 for 5, and Fedorov and Lebed consolidated in the morning after the fog had cleared; in the familiar, yet still moist conditions, Lebed played with practiced fluency and reached 67 when he was finally caught out by a Riedl ball that went straight on and between his pads. Fedorov, however, marched onwards - his strike rate very slowly creeping up - accompanied first by Ashe, who was unlucky to be caught on the boundary by Trenker off her first big shot of the day for 15, and then by another New Dalmatian in McCarthy, who navigated the conditions well after lunch as the pitch changed and seemed able to think ahead of von Sauerland's field placements as he raced towards his own half century. Fedorov was already there, and then some, and appeared to have finally grown into the game until a hesitant flick at Trenker found Tausche at third man.
His 73, however, had put the Foxes firmly in control of the Test, and though the returning Riedl - who was beginning to reap the benefits of three days playing and bowling spin on the increasingly pitted surface - made short work of Baxter, a rare single from Salisbury at #11 brought up the 333, prompting hopping and cheers from the Highrock spectators (and a very audible "What is it for a triple Nelson?" from Leggett on the balcony). Riedl (who was ultimately good value for his 4-68) ensured a few minutes later the score would increase no further, leaving McCarthy stranded on 59, but the dark and fog drawing in prevented any further play until this morning, forcing Teusland to wait for their challenge.
Despite the magnitude of the victory, the mood among the players was almost one of relief as much as it was of celebration; Ashe told this author that "we were worried after Sutton, but to have tried as hard here and have it come together has been hugely vindicating. It felt nice to contribute to so many wickets, too...", and Laing - after being prised away from the celebrations - was optimistic; "hopefully we can take this as a starting point for Elejamie and whatever may come beyond, we were brilliant as a team and everyone gave their best - especially Alec, he brought exactly what we needed...". Hendricks echoed the praise of Fedorov, describing him as "the anchor we needed at that point in the innings [...] Ja, no, we were relying on the New Dalmatian boys' knowledge of their home conditions a lot, they gave us all our runs, we should have familiarised ourselves with the pitch more, the fielding could have been...ag, no, who am I kidding, we might still have issues but our people were great in the stands, we won by an innings, and I'm so happy it physically hurts...".
Teusland now return home to host their first series as an Associate Member against our old friends Ko-oren, and - despite the events of today - the Teus Kricket-Verband can rightly be proud of earning that status; many in the islands had expected them to prove too good again, and the way in which their players and supporters have conducted themselves has won many friends in the Plough Islander cricketing community and the Global Cricket Federation ranks. Laing was complimentary of his opposing number's team; "Konrad was very good to us and a lovely man, he and his team will achieve great success in the future and they thoroughly deserve it. If you can get them on a pitch where their fast bowlers can benefit they will be completely unstoppable, I am fairly certain of that". And so, as the mist swallowed up the Highrock Athletic Club once more, there were good feelings to be had all around - and a quiet determination in the hearts of the Plough Islanders that, after what could be seen as a false start in Sutton, the Foxes were back and the rest of the world was on notice.

by **Sajnur** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 6:53 am

Sajnur Swept Away In Second Test; Busoga Islands Win Series 2-0

The second Test at the Dukuma Oval was won convincingly by the Busoga Islands, defeating Sajnur by 219 runs. The Sajnuran batting order was fragile throughout the match, the Busogan bowlers having a field day in friendly conditions. Sadly for Sajnur, the Busogan batsmen were more resilient, with the new ball pair of Liam Saovin and Nikolas Burovin ineffective against the Busogan openers who had no trouble seeing them off. This match proved, for the most part, to be little different from the first match in Kabaka.

The Sajnuran bowling attack was mostly able to restrict the Busogans to a moderate run rate, unlike in the first Test when the Busoga Islands scored at nearly four runs per over. The Sajnuran pace attack improved significantly, with even Burovin's four an over bowling representing an improvement from the nearly five runs an over he conceded last time. However, he and Saovin were again unable to truly penetrate the Busogan batsmen, taking just a wicket a piece in each innings, and success with pace again being represented by Alan Tijer, who took match figures of 4-102. The bulk of the responsibility for ending the Busogan's first innings, however, ended up falling on the shoulders of Toljo Jorse, who took an astounding 5-37. Who said off spinners couldn't take wickets? She did have admirable support in the name of Karim Haton, who both conceded less than two runs per over in the first innings. Even Tomas Piqa took a wicket, and another one in the second innings too, showing the pitch's friendly nature to the spinners, and beating the captain's contribution with the bat. The second innings was a bit more succesful for pace, with Tijer taking three wickets, and Jorse and Haton taking two each. However, Busoga were still able to score 336, leaving Sajnur with an unfeasible chase of 404 to win the match.

Sajnur's batting was even more disappointing than in Kabaka, and with Gabby Fiume unable to stick around in the first innings, Sajnur were quickly reduced to 91/6. The fact that they made it to 208 was thanks to Alan Tijer's extravagant unbeaten knock of 68 off just 49 balls. Presumably fed up with the poor performance of Sajnur's specialist bats, bar Fiume, he went on to hit nine boundaries, including four sixes, to the great excitement of the crowd. One of those sixes was hit outside the stadium, going more than 120m. Saovin also joined in the fun with a run-a-ball 21, including two sixes and a four, and even Haton hit a six of his own. Sadly, even with Tijer's heroics with the bat, they still ended their first innings with a 67 run deficit. The second innings, however was de ja vu for Fiume as she watched her teammates fall at the other end, even matching her score of 105* in the first innings of the last match, and with Tijer failing to reprise his first innings heroics, the Busogans removing him for a duck, Sajnur fell for a poor 184, capping off a disappointing series for the team.

Sajnur's first series of Test cricket has proved to be a sobering reminder that Sajnur still has a long way to go before they become truly successful on the international stage, but it has also shown that Sajnur's first class system has produced true talent that is capable of dealing with the rigours of international cricket. Gabby Fiume has proven to be a stellar cricketer, and has been recognised as the Player of the Series for her two unbeaten centuries and 295 runs, although such honour is only a consolation for the two defeats. Toljo Jorse and Karim Haton have proven to be an effective spin pairing, taking 19 wickets between over the series, and the young spinners should prove to be menaces to opposing batting orders in Tests to come. Jorse has also proven to be capable with the bat, scoring 153 runs at 51 with a steely unbeaten 63 worthy of particular praise. Tomas Piqa has managed to show some potential, the young captain managing to score a 50 when many of his older teammates couldn't. Although we're only two Tests in to Sajnur's Tests history, Alan Tijer has shown with his blistering pace that he will likely be Sajnur's best fast bowler for some years to come, and Liam Saovin has shown the consisency required to be successful at a high level, even if he yet hasn't reaped the rewards of his work. Sajnur may need work to solidify their batting, but the foundation of a good Test team is there, and it is waiting to be built upon.

GCF Test no. 665
Match Report: Sajnur in The Busoga Islands
The Busoga Islands bat first
The Busoga Islands 275 (108.4 overs), 336 (107.1 overs)
Sajnur 208 (48.0 overs), 184 (56.3 overs)
Sajnur lose by 219 runs

Busoga Islands 1st Innings
Name     Overs  M  Runs Wickets Econ.
Saovin   20.0   6  52   1       2.60
Burovin  15.0   0  57   1       3.80
Tijer    15.4   0  41   1       2.62
Jorse    20.0   9  37   5       1.85
Haton    25.0  12  46   1       1.84
Jansa     8.0   0  30   0       3.75
Piqa      5.0   1   9   1       1.80

1b, 2lb

Sajnur 1st Innings
Name          Runs  Balls 4's 6's  SR

Fiume         30    51   4   0   58.82
Sjoring        6    12   0   0   50.00
Zulje          9    13   1   0   69.23
Piqa*          0     5   0   0    0.00
Surju†        41    69   5   0   59.42
Jansa          0     3   0   0    0.00
Jorse         27    40   2   0   67.50
Tijer         68*   49   5   4  144.68
Saovin        21    21   1   2  100.00
Haton         13    17   1   1   76.47
Burovin        6    10   1   0   60.00

Extras     2b, 0lb, 2wd, 0nb

Busoga Islands 2nd Innings
Name     Overs  M  Runs Wickets Econ.
Saovin   20.0   6  63   1       3.10
Burovin  12.0   0  54   1       4.50
Tijer    18.0   0  61   3       3.39
Jorse    23.0   8  48   2       2.09
Haton    25.0   8  58   2       2.32
Jansa     5.0   0  20   0       4.00
Piqa      5.1   0  21   1       4.26

5b, 6lb

Sajnur 2nd Innings
Name         Runs  Balls 4's 6's  SR

Fiume        105*  186  18   0   56.45
Sjoring        0     2   0   0    0.00
Zulje         28    49   2   0   57.14
Piqa*          8    16   0   0   50.00
Surju†         7    19   0   0   36.84
Jansa          1     4   0   0   25.00
Jorse         26    35   3   0   74.29
Tijer          0     4   0   0    0.00
Saovin         1     8   0   0    0.00
Haton          5    13   1   0   76.47
Burovin        0     3   1   0   60.00

Extras     1b, 2lb, 0wd, 0nb

by **Sajnur** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 7:51 am

Sajnur Cricket Association Announces Second Tour

Sajnur has accepted an offer from another newcomer to the Test Cricket scene to tour their country. The nation of Pratapgadh will host the Sajnurans for a three Test series on Matchdays 3-5 of the World Test Season. While Sajnur found little success in the Busoga Islands, there is hope that a first Test victory will happen in Pratapgadh.

"The results of our team in the Busoga Islands were disheartening, but the experience gained there is invaluable, and we hope to use that experience in Pratapgadh to achieve success," said SCA Chairman Aron Kalio.

Sajnur has also been announced as the newest Associate Test team, along with the Teusland team, bringing with it opportunities for more Test cricket over the coming seasons.

The starting XI for the first Test at Chittorgarh Cricket Stadium is as follows:

Gabby Fiume (Batsman)
Harry Kotte (Batsman)
Darjo Zulje (Batsman)
Tomas Piqa (c) (Batsman, right arm leg spin)
Kaori Jansa (All-rounder, left arm medium fast)
Kinje Surju (wk)
Toljo Jorse (All-rounder, right arm off spin)
Alan Tijer (Right arm fast)
Liam Saovin (Right arm fast medium)
Karim Haton (Left arm orthodox)
Stefan Lulle (Right arm leg spin)

by **Pratapgadh** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 10:29 am

Pratapgadh Cricket Roster

The Pratapgadh Cricket Fedration (PCF) announces team for GCF season 10. 11 players will be playing their first international test match against Sanjur on Matchday 3, 4 and 5.

Staff
Head Coach: Tarun Kanvinde
Batting Coach: Ajeet Kolhe
Bowling Coach: Balaram Acharya
Fielding Coach: Nikhil Patkar
Fitness Coach: Anish Lahoti

(c) = Captain
(w) = Wicket Keeper

Batting Info
Number Name Batting Style Age Matches Runs Scored HS Avg 50/100
#19 Sanjay Gadia(c) Left-handed 27 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#45 Rajendra Rathore(w) Right-handed 22 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#20 Bipin Parte Right-handed 28 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#67 Juman Mulani Right-handed 31 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#89 Farhang Gondalwala Left-handed 23 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#43 Sadha Ghalo Left-handed 26 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#15 Yashwant Lurka Right-handed 19 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#86 Pradip Khatmode Left-handed 29 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#31 Abdaal Rahman Right-handed 22 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#23 Kartik Kakadia Right-handed 24 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0
#74 Javed Kazmi Right-handed 26 0 0*(0) 0 0 0/0

Bowling Info
#Num Name Style Age Matches Runs Wickets Maidens Avg Best 5Wickets
#23 Kartik Kakadia Right-arm Pace 24 0 0 0 0 0/0 0/0 0
#31 Abdaal Rahman Right-arm Pace 22 0 0 0 0 0/0 0/0 0
#86 Pradip Khatmode Left-arm Spin 29 0 0 0 0 0/0 0/0 0
#19 Sanjay Gadia Left-arm Medium Pace 27 0 0 0 0 0/0 0/0 0
#43 Sadha Ghalo Left-arm Medium Pace 26 0 0 0 0 0/0 0/0 0

by **Pratapgadh** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 10:29 am

Pratapgadh to play test debut against Sanjur

Our newly formed test cricket squad will play its debut match against Sanjur on Matchday 3, 4 and 5. The team is highly excited to go on an international stage.

The captain of Pratapgadh, Sanjay Gadia, said to us, "I am looking forward to the test series here in Pratapgadh. Not sure if we can win this series, but I am sure that my team will give them a tough competition." He added "I believe our batting is very strong and we can definitely give them a tough score to chase. Our bowling is good but we can probably add more bowlers on our squad. We got great bowlers and they are very economical, so we can give the opposition a hard time to chase our score."

We later talked to the best batsman in Pratapgadh, as most people claim here in Pratapgadh. We asked him "How did you find passion in the game of cricket?", he replied "I was probably about 11 years or 12 years old when I first started playing cricket. I was going through a sports phase during that time, and I wanted to try cricket. After 2 matches, I started to love the game, especially batting. I used to bring my father every day to the nearby nets and he bowled me 10 overs every day, it was great fun. I continued playing cricket by joining the Chittorgarh team. Today I got an opportunity to play for the national test team, and very grateful for it." We asked him about the upcoming test series against Sanjur, he said "Well, our team is excited to play against another nation and we are ready to play anytime anywhere. I believe we do have a chance to win this series, our fielding and should be at a high standard while playing against Sanjur and keep the number of extras low. If we do that perfectly, then we can win."

The first test match will be played at the Chittorgarh Cricket Ground (CCG), the second test will be played at Jaisalmer Cricket Stadium (JCS), and third test will be played at Suryapur Cricket Ground (SCG). Best of luck to our national test cricket team.

by **Elejamie** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 11:04 am

Elejamian national cricket team
Selección de críquet de Elejamia
Elejam cerikit tim

Cricket is a fairly new sport to Elejamie, with the first match on Elejamian soil being played in 1960. However, it wasn't until 1967 that a national side was formed and 1974 when the first domestic match was played; a limited-overs game between Aventry and Surter held at the recently-built Aventry Cricket Ground, with Aventry winning by seven wickets. In 1987, a small limited-overs (50 overs per side, to be exact) cricket tournament - the Cross-Tractal Cup - was played, with Wyken winning all of their group games against East Reise, Nuevo Paraíso and Mittedorf before beating Aventry in the semi-final and Autumnia in the final (Autumnia would later go on to win the 1989 edition). Three more editions were played before the tournament was cancelled in 1991 for unknown reasons, with West Reise (who had won the trophy in 1988 and 1990) being allowed to keep it. The tournament was still a success however and, in 2005, a Twenty20 cricket league - the Elejamie Cricket League (or ECL for short) - began. Elejamie also famously won the 9th World T20 in Damakuni and finished third in Group 2 in the second round of the 11th World T20.

Test cricket, on the other hand, hasn't reached the same amount of popularity that limited overs has reached. In fact, that first game on Elejamian soil - held at the 35,000-capacity Davenport Baseball Ground, which was eventually demolished in 1987- saw a packed crowd on the opening day but attendance dwindled as the match went on and, by the fifth day, there were 2,500 people left watching. And, despite being formed in 1967, the national team had only played a handful of test cricket matches (the first of which was in 1974 and the most recent being in July last year when they lost their third test to Ethane by an innings and 43 runs). However, despite being a mostly Twenty20 nation (and, indeed, the entire 15-man team is made up of Twenty20 players - all of whom compete in the ECL - who had received extensive training to be test-worthy), Cricket Elejamie are hoping that the Greenblacks will have what it takes to pull off an upset in their three-game test series against Ethane.

No.	Name			Tract	Hand
1	Steve Loughlin (vc)	SRTR	Left
2	Dawoud Halabi		WYKN	Right	
3	Robert Hamilton		ESRE	Right
4	Mike Bentley (wk)	BNTT	Left
5	Kelly Entwistle		ATMN	Right
6	Ricardo Montoya		BIST	Left	
7	Salman Halabi		KEDS	Right
8	Danny Slezinger (c)	AVEN	Left
9	Lucas Mahler		MTDF	Left
10	Arían Rodriguez		MDLN	Right
11	Pablo Novak		NUPA	Right

(c) - Captain
(vc) - Vice captain

No.	Name			Tract	Hand	Position
1	Nick Hutcherson		WERS	Left	1-2
2	Dan McCafferty		ESEL	Left	1-4
3	Pael Cetorin		SWNG	Right	5-7
4	Julián Blanco		RCST	Left	8-11

Just in case of substitutions or just in case Lisander wants to swap out one of my starting XI for whatever reason.

by **Darmen** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 11:38 am

Darmen evens series in Scott City
Gardenar takes Man of the Match following 78* and nine total wickets

GCF Test no. 664
Match Report: Apox in Darmen (2 of 3) @ Capital Stadium, Scott City
Darmen bat first
Darmen 452 (136.0 overs), 289/5d (65.5 overs)
Apox 261 (81.4 overs), 349 (65.1 overs)
Apox lost by 131 runs
Apoxian stats may be found here

Darmen 1st Innings
Name                             Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Acker       lbw b Gallegos        47   71   4   1   66.20
Winter*     c Muldoney b Frost   136  212   7   2   64.15
Milligan    b Gallegos            28   48   2   0   58.33
Ready       c Gaaraayi b Kakketa  63  115   3   1   54.78
Odell       b Hamilton-Randall    17   42   1   0   40.48
Armbruster† lbw b Gallegos        15   47   1   0   31.91
McAlister   c Girard† b Gallegos   7   23   0   0   30.43
Gardenar    not out               78  142   5   1   54.93
Rosenfeld   lbw b Frost            3   21   0   0   14.29
Dickenson   c Girard† b Gallegos  23   59   2   0   38.98
Myers       b Gallegos            11   36   1   0   30.56
Extras                            24

Apox 1st Innings
Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
McAlister 19.0  3  52   1       2.74
Rosenfeld 19.0  2  66   1       3.47
Dickenson 18.0  1  57   2       3.17
Gardenar  17.4  3  64   5       3.62
Myers      8.0  2  22   1       2.75

Darmen 2nd Innings
Name                                  Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Acker       c Washington b Arrowsmith  37   59   4   0    62.71
Winter*     lbw b Frost                66  108   5   2    61.11
Milligan    c Zanzala b Gallegos      101  158   6   2    63.92
Ready       not out                    53   40   4   2   132.50
Odell       c Jessop b Kakketa          8   13   1   0    61.54
Armbruster† lbw b Arrowsmith           12   11   2   0   109.09
McAlister   not out                     1    6   0   0    16.67
Extras                                 11
Did not Bat: Gardenar, Rosenfeld, Dickenson, Myers

Apox 2nd Innings
Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
McAlister 16.1  1  79   1       4.89
Rosenfeld 12.0  1  74   2       6.17
Dickenson 14.0  0  79   1       5.64
Gardenar  16.0  2  83   4       5.19
Myers      7.0  0  34   2       4.86

The second test of the Apox in Darmen series got off to a much different start than it had in the first test, as the Darmeni top order was firing on all cylinders. Captain Sigmund Winter scored 136 runs before being caught by Trajan Muldoney, scoring Darmen's first century of the current season. Ellar Ready followed that up with a half century, reaching 63 before being caught by Hamish Gaaraayi. Darmen would slow down following that; Domenic Gardenar saw out the rest of the innings along with the tail order, scoring 78 not out along the way. All in all Darmen ended the first innings with a commanding 452 runs. On the Apoxian side, the lone bright spot of the innings was the six wickets taken by Rachel Gallegos.

Not to be outdone by Gallegos, Gardenar followed in her footsteps, taking five wickets in the innings for 64 runs, as Darmen saw Apox out for 261. The wickets of openers Jeff Zanzala and Gaaraayi fell early, and while the opposition middle order stabilized things for a while, the rest of the side couldn't produce much in the face of Gardenar & Co.'s bowling.

With Darmen leading by 191 runs heading into the second innings, the likelihood of Winter declaring at some point in the innings was high. After Vinnie Acker was caught by Nancy Washington, the partnership of Winter and Milligan set about pushing Darmen's total up to an uneclipsable amount. The Darmeni captain declared just minutes before lunch on the fourth day after Ready reached another half century.

Darmen would close out the innings in relatively quick fashion, taking eight wickets over the remainder of the fourth day, and needing just 2.1 overs on the fifth to finish off the visitors. Gardenar once again put on a brilliant bowling display, taking four wickets, albeit with Darmen eschewing economical bowling to focus on the taking of wickets. Ultimately, Apox fell 131 runs short.

The two teams will now head south to the Brham Municipal Ground to decide the series. Darmen will then travel to Liventia for a four match series and Apox will return home to host Eura.

by **Ethane** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 12:30 pm

Cricket and Elitism: Undoing Decades of Declining Participation.

Cricket has long been one of the most popular sports in Ethane. For hundreds of years, cricket has formed a central part of communities and socialisation within the nation, originally limited to men but over the past hundred years more inclusive in its participation. However, if there is one trend that has been consistent over the past 10-20 years, that is a decline in participation, and a decline in inclusivity of cricketing communities.

Some of this can be explained of course by the increasing individualisation and privatisation of people's lives; there is a general trend within Ethane towards decreasing participation in communal activities and engagement in cexternal communities outside home, work, and school. This is obviously a problem that needs to be tackled within Ethane, but is not what I would argue is the main problem behind declining participation in cricketing communities solely.

The decline has been more prominent than the general trend would suggest. While the number of people participating in general external communal activities (defined as activities bar work and school that are outside the family circle) has decreased by around 30% (average), the decline in cricket participation over the past 20 years has been around 60% - double that of the general trend. This suggests cricket's problems with participation are more deep-rooted than just following the general trend in Ethane, but instead points to other issues within cricket driving this decline.

Therefore, this article will not address how to solve the general decline in participation within external communities, but will instead focus on the problems for cricket in Ethane, and how the governing body of cricket in Ethane can go about solving them.

Cricket is a sport deep-rooted within Ethanian culture, and the nation has a long history of cricket as a form of social connection and entettakeny
Dating back to 72 AD (in records), cricket (although called other names back then) has formed an integral part of communities, with competitions often between local villages and towns a regular thing. Based on this, it would seem like Ethane is a cricketing nation at heart.

But football seems to have taken its place in peoples hearts. It now provides the conversation over the dinner table or at the pub, and now forms the centre of social entertainment for sporting fans, replacing cricket in peoples hearts and minds. This is a change that has happened rather rapidly. Football has always been there, alongside cricket, but has recently taken prominence.

Questions arise over why football seems to have taken over in terms of sports. And there are many factors that could be discussed to influence it, but I believe the prime reason behind the decline in cricket is the elitist nature that has crept into cricketing communities. That's a transition you have not really seen in football.

(Part 1)

by **NS Global Cricket Federation** » Sat Jan 26, 2019 3:33 pm

Matchday 3

GCF Test no. 666
Match Report: Ethane in Eastfield Lodge (3 of 4)
Ethane bat first
Eastfield Lodge 359 (109.2 overs), 109/2 (33.4 overs)
Ethane 339 (158.4 overs), 356 (144.1 overs)
Drawn

GCF Test no. 667
Match Report: Apox in Darmen
Darmen bat first
Darmen 379 (86.5 overs), 9/0 (2.4 overs)
Apox 142 (52.1 overs), 245 (147.2 overs)
Darmen win by 10 wickets
Darmen win series 2-1

GCF Test no. 668
Match Report: Sajnur in Pratapgadh
Pratapgadh bat first
Pratapgadh 234 (66.0 overs), 429 (122.4 overs)
Sajnur 247 (108.2 overs), 304/8 (121.0 overs)
Drawn

Updated Test rankings

Full Members                       Score  Pts/MP   Adjusted
1 Liventia			 FM  122 (4137/34)  110.84
2 Eura				 FM  114 (2408/21)  107.33
3 Ethane			 FM  114 (1489/13)  107.27
4 Eastfield Lodge		 FM  112 (2581/23)  106.11
5 Darmen			 FM  105 (3363/32)  102.55
6 Ko-oren			 FM  104 (2396/23)  102.09
7 Apox				 FM   94 (2892/31)   96.65
8 The Plough Islands		 FM   75 (1350/18)   87.50

Associate Members
1 Elejamie			 AS   83 (417/5)     97.00
2 Teusland                       AS   70 (210/3)     90.00
3 Sajnur                         AS   50 (150/3)     80.00

Affiliate Members
1 The Busoga Islands             AF  150 (450/3)    120.00

Inactive Members
1 Mattijana	              IN/FM  120 (2400/20)  110.00
2 Barunia		      IN/FM  105 (2944/28)  102.57
3 Sargossa		      IN/AS   87 (603/7)     98.00
4 Northwest Kalactin	      IN/AF  104 (728/7)     97.00
5 The Kiaser Colonies	      IN/FM   87 (1400/16)   93.75
6 Lisander		      IN/FM   73 (883/12)    86.79
7 Tobiasia		      IN/FM   67 (1289/19)   83.92
8 Qasden		      IN/AS   55 (165/3)     83.00

Updated League Table

                        Pl  W  L  D  T  Ld  Lv  Pts IW  Avg
1   The Busoga Islands   2  2  0  0  0   2   0   40  0  20.0
2   Ethane               3  2  0  1  0   2   0   45  1  16.0
3   Darmen               3  2  1  0  0   2   0   40  1  14.3
4=  Ko-oren              2  1  1  0  0   1   0   20  1  11.0
4=  Liventia             2  1  1  0  0   1   0   20  1  11.0
4=  The Plough Islands   2  1  1  0  0   1   0   20  1  11.0
7   Teusland             2  1  1  0  0   1   0   20  0  10.0
8   Apox                 3  1  2  0  0   1   0   20  0   6.7
9   Pratapgadh           1  0  0  1  0   0   0    5  0   5.0
10= Eastfield Lodge      3  0  2  1  0   1   0    9  0   3.0
10= Sajnur               3  0  2  1  0   1   0    9  0   3.0

EDIT: Some errors have been fixed, notably the rankings update for Darmen & Apox, originally done using the adjusted ranking, now updated correctly using the rounded raw ranks. Additionally, the 10 wicket win by Darmen was not attributed to them in the IW column in the table, this has now been fixed. Many thanks to Liventia for noticing these errors.

by **The Plough Islands** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 11:05 am

on the 27th January 2019, the Plough Islands Gazette wrote:
PREVIEW: 20-OVER KINGS ELEJAMIE A RELATIVE UNKNOWN IN TEST ARENA
by Ian Goswell, Chief Cricket Correspondent for Plough Radio, in Sutton

Kevin Laing was typically modest about it, but the satisfaction and elation he would have got from the crushing victory in the second Test against Teusland will have had him floating on cloud fourteen. With his team now functioning as they should, they will have refocused and regrouped for their next task of the season, which sees another new team arrive in the Celestial Ocean. Foxes fans will remember Elejamie from our meeting at the World 20-over Championships, which went down to the last over and last wicket of the last innings before Pablo Novak got the last few runs for the Greenblacks in one of many narrow results the Plough Islands experienced in Ko-oren.
There will be many familiar faces on show for Elejamie next week, as their Test team features a lot of overlap from their limited-overs team, reflecting the predominantly short-format background of Elejamian cricket; aside from the sport's main catalyst being the national team's win in the ninth 20-over championship, Cricket Elejamie do not run a domestic multi-day competition, and therefore the entirety of Danny Slezinger's team's first-class experience is six Tests - winning just one, a one-off game in Lisander in 2017. Combined with what could be interpreted as a certain level of organisational apathy from their board - the fact sheets and biographies distributed to ourselves of the press referred to the hosts as both Lisander and Ethane - there is the temptation to see the series as there for the taking.
Laing and Lourens Hendricks have warned against such an attitude, however, and are clearly regarding Elejamie as a serious opponent; extra training camps have been organised in Lainemouth to allow for the team to adjust to any changes in condition after the at times high farce of Highrock. It is unofficially understood that the same XI will be selected for the first Test, with Alec Fedorov having solidly staked his claim to a permanent middle order slot, although there has been some concern about Andrew Baxter; he has taken just two wickets at 71.50 this season, and it is hoped returning to his home ground will give him a boost in confidence - with a plethora of spin options following the welcome transition of Sarah Ashe to five-day cricket, the Sutton-born paceman will have to prove he deserves a place in the team on merit.
The series promises to be exciting, taking in the new facilities at Southport for the first time after Lainemouth, and with more known quantities on the horizon in Apox and Ko-oren will be important for shaping, not just the course of this season, but the progress of the Foxes as a Test cricket team. As always, coverage will be provided by these pages, and by myself and my comrade Andrew on Plough Radio from 8:00am on Monday.

PLOUGH ISLANDS CRICKET ASSOCIATION
XI FOR FIRST TEST AGAINST ELEJAMIE

      PLAYER            BAT   BOW
G     Holt              LHB      
MG    Davy              RHB   RLB
SLC   Weaver            RHB   RLB
KCT   Laing (c)         RHB   RMD
AC    Leggett           RHB   RLB
OD    Fedorov           LHB      
IT    Lebed (w)         LHB      
S     Ashe              RHB   ROB
CG    McCarthy          RHB   RFM
A     Baxter            RHB   RFS
NA    Salisbury         LHB   SLA

LAINEMOUTH ATHLETIC CLUB (PM: -3)

the New Revised Visitor's Guide to the Plough Islands wrote:
PLACES OF INTEREST WITHIN AND WITHOUT: LAINEMOUTH

UNIVERSITY OF THE PLOUGH ISLANDS
Proletarian Drive, Lainemouth, Swift Island

The University of the Plough Islands has its roots in the Carnegie College, opened by notable philanthropist Andrew Carnegie the then-colony in 1910; the Lainemouth-based institution - the site allegedly chosen by Carnegie himself - offered further education courses through correspondence with Britain, and developed both a pastoral approach to teaching and a reputation for leftwing activity in subsequent years. Upon independence, it became the country's national (and only) university, providing an education in the arts, sciences, and Marxist theory to almost a thousand students - still centred on the former Carnegie facilities, with the Edwardian central administration building a city centre landmark in Lainemouth with its Ploughian green granite façade and clock tower.

RIVER LAINE
City of Lainemouth and District of Arcturus, New Dalmatia

First mapped by its namesake - the Tsarist Karelian explorer Johannes Laine - in 1759, what is technically Swift Island's longest river winds for twenty kilometres through the pine forested highlands, before meandering up towards the coast where its bends encompass and define much of the urban planning of the modern city of Lainemouth, with the cricket stadium and a set of 1970s apartments following the curves of its flood defences. Though not conventionally navigable (and there is little reason for anyone to try), its relatively calm waters harbour a small freshwater fish population, and around the hamlet of Troutbeck on its upper courses there are boathouses for rafting and canoeing that have served the recreational needs of generations of factory and farm workers on recreational holidays.

by **Liventia** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 12:56 pm

New era dawns on Liventian cricket as Edwards confirmed as captain for Darmen visit
By Paul Jamieson
Former Liventian Test opener

FOLENISA— Quite the way to stake a claim to be Liventian Test captain.

Called into the job at short notice for the second and deciding Test against Ko-oren, Dave Edwards not only came away with a win and a split series, but an innings triumph.

That big call to enforce the follow-on, having just seen his bowlers tonked around at nearly six runs per over despite taking regular wickets.

Earlier, the big decision to call the batsmen in in the first innings when his predecessor, Ollie Kerr, was just 11 runs shy of 150. There was no room for being sentimental. There was a game to win.

And so, that result has netted Edwards the full-time job. The 27-year-old becomes just the third permanent Liventian Test captain, after Max Finney and Kerr.

The Cricketing Board of Authority have also selected Peter Finch and Mathieu Goudreau as Edwards' deputies. The latter selection has raised eyebrows, not least because Goudreau, whose elder brother Garland was one of Finney's old vice-captains, was involved in a disciplinary incident last season with wicketkeeper Mike Sarrin.

Edwards' first official duty will come at home against Darmen, the reigning world Test champions, who begin a four-match series at the home of the CBA, the Folenisa Cricket Ground.

Like in the decider last time out in Willowbourne, he will have to lead a side without Finch — still out with a dislocated shoulder, although he is expected to be fit for the final two games of the series — and John Millbank, a longer-term injury absentee with ankle ligament damage.

Not ideal against a side that has just thrashed Apox by ten wickets as they seek to top this year's league standings and defend their world title.

Whichever side wins at Folenisa, if one does, will likely hold the series lead until at least the third Test, with the second Test scheduled for the traditional flat deck at the Park Central Oval in Orean.

Maybe Edwards, now that he's in his new role, will speak up against playing games at Park Central until their groundsmen provide a result-friendly wicket.

I'm not holding my breath.

Liventia XI against Darmen, first Test: JCA Quinn, MA Finney, DHJ Edwards (c), PJA Bérenger, OH Kerr, E Reynolds, MQ Sarrin (wk), MEP Goudreau, JPK Adams, SV Finney, BL Kerr

by **Pratapgadh** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 7:32 pm

All Pratapgadh Sports (APS)
Pratapgadh's Test Debut Is A Draw

Our team played fabulously against Sanjur on this first match. Sadly it was a draw, but it's still better than defeat.

Here's what Sanjay Gadia, the captain of Pratapgadh, said about it "I am impressed by my team's effort during the second innings. We weren't expecting a win, but a draw on our first international match is still better than a defeat." He added, "We still have two more games, we will put the same effort and we might win the next two games."

Here's what one of the fans had to say after the match, "Today was a very tense and fun match. I am impressed by our national team, they have done a great job. Hopefully, they will put the same effort for the next two matches."

Head coach, Tarun Kanvinde, said "Really happy with the team's performance, but our first innings were awful. Our batsmen were too aggressive during the start of the innings, they weren't taking enough time to make the runs. Most of our batsmen only made 8 to 20. We will improve on that."

Our team got all out on 234, in just 66 overs. The team started to lose a lot of wickets after Rajendra Rathore and Bipin Parte got out. In our second innings, our team were all out on 429 in 122.4 overs, which is way better.

Best of luck to our national team for the next match

GCF Test no. 668
Match Report: Sajnur in Pratapgadh
Pratapgadh bat first
Pratapgadh 234 (66.0 overs), 429 (122.4 overs)
Sajnur 247 (108.2 overs), 304/8 (121.0 overs)
Drawn

Pratapgadh 1st Innings
Name Runs Balls 4s 6s SR
Rajendra Rathore 51 69 5 0 73.9 b [????]
Bipin Parte 67 78 5 1 85.9 c [????] b [????]
Juman Mulani 10 20 0 0 50.0 b [????]
Farhang Gondalwala 38 27 2 1 140.7 run out [????]
Sanjay Gadia 36 58 1 0 62.1 c [????] b [????]
Sandha Ghalo 14 29 0 0 48.3 b [????]
Yashwant Lurka 8 25 0 0 17.8 c [????] b
Javed Kazmi 3 10 0 0 30 b [????]
Pradip Khatmode 0 3 0 0 0.0 b [????]
Abdaal Rahman 0* 4 0 0 0.0
Kartik Kakadia 4 2 1 0 200.0 c [????] b [????]

Extras: 2wd, 1nb

Sanjur 1st Innings
Name Runs Wickets Maidens Overs Economy SR
Kartik Kakadia 78 5 5 35 2.22 42.0
Abdaal Rahman 70 4 4 34 2.06 51.0
Sanjay Gadia 41 0 2 15 2.73 Infinity
Pradip Khatmode 32 1 1 10.4 3.07 64.0
Sandha Ghalo 24 0 3 14 1.71 Infinity

Extras: 2wd

Pratapgadhi Commentators on Pratapgadh's first innings
Commentator 1: Well, overall, not that happy with Pratapgadh's batting. The batsmen were aggressive from the start. This is test cricket, not T20!
Commentator 2: Yeah, thankfully Sanjur didn't make a big score either. In this second innings, Pratapgadh has to make more than 400 to make it tough for Sanjur. Let's see if Pratapgadh can do that.

Pratapgadh 2nd Innings
Name Runs Balls 4s 6s SR
Rajendra Rathore 103 136 4 2 75.7 run out [????]
Bipin Parte 73 113 5 1 64.6 b [????]
Juman Mulani 46 85 3 0 54.1 c [????] b [????]
Farhang Gondalwala 77 116 7 0 66.4 b [????]
Sanjay Gadia 44 66 4 0 66.7 c [????] b [????]
Sandha Ghalo 23 10 2 2 230.0 run out [????]
Yashwant Lurka 20 50 0 0 40.0 b [????]
Javed Kazmi 15 40 0 0 37.5 b [????]
Pradip Khatmode 15 47 0 0 31.9 c [????] b [????]
Abdaal Rahman 16 48 0 0 33.3 b [????]
Kartik Kakadia 7* 25 1 0 28.0

Sanjur 2nd Innings
Name Runs Wickets Maidens Overs Economy SR
Kartik Kakadia 90 3 7 38 2.37 76.0
Abdaal Rahman 78 4 5 37 2.11 55.5
Sanjay Gadia 68 0 2 21 3.24 Infinity
Pradip Khatmode 62 1 0 10 6.20 60.0
Sadha Ghalo 39 0 4 15 2.60 Infinity

Extras: 3wd

Pratapgadhi Commentators After The Match
Commentator 1: Wow, what a match that was! Sadly no one got this match. Pratapgadh just needed two more wickets during Sanjur's second innings, but there weren't enough overs left for Pratapgadh to all out the Sanjur team.

Commentator 2: I need to say, Pratapgadh really struck back after the horrible first innings. Pratapgadh was all out for 429 and Sanjur lost 8 wickets and scored 304 runs. If Pratapgadh plays like this for the next two matches, they will surely win.

Commentator 3: Best of luck for both teams for the next match at Jaisalmer Cricket Ground. Goodbye and see you again!

by **Darmen** » Sun Jan 27, 2019 9:03 pm

Darmen wins series!
Team confident as they head to Liventia

GCF Test no. 667
Match Report: Apox in Darmen (3 of 3) @ Brham Municipal Ground, Brham
Darmen bat first 
Darmen 379 (86.5 overs), 9/0 (2.4 overs) 
Apox 142 (52.1 overs), follow-on 245 (147.2 overs) 
Darmen win by 10 wickets 
Darmen win series 2-1

Darmen 1st Innings
Name                                        Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Acker       c Washington b Hamilton-Randall  57   98   3   0    58.16
Winter*     lbw b Frost                      68  123   4   0    55.28
Milligan    c Girard† b Gallegos            112  159   7   1    70.44
Ready       b Hamilton-Randall               23   45   2   0    51.11
Odell       b Hamilton-Randall                0    1   0   0     0.00
Armbruster† c Gallegos b Frost               39   53   3   0    73.58
McAlister   c Jessop b Kakketa                9    7   0   1   128.57
Gardenar    lbw b Hamilton-Randall           42   25   3   1   168.00
Rosenfeld   c & b Arrowsmith                  8    4   2   0   200.00
Dickenson   lbw b Hamilton-Randall            4    2   1   0   200.00
Myers       not out                           7    4   1   0   175.00
Extras                                       10

Apox 1st Innings
Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
McAlister 11.0  1  39   1       3.55
Rosenfeld 13.0  3  27   4       2.08
Dickenson 12.0  1  30   2       2.50
Gardenar   8.0  0  25   1       3.13
Myers      8.1  1  21   1       2.57
*1 run-out (Winter)

Apox 2nd Innings
Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
McAlister 43.0  5  63   5       1.47
Rosenfeld 37.0  4  54   2       1.46
Dickenson 38.2  4  59   1       1.54
Gardenar  15.0  2  38   1       2.53
Myers     14.0  3  31   1       2.21

Darmen 2nd Innings
Name            Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Acker   not out 3    10    0   0    30.00
Winter* not out 6     6    1   0   100.00
Extras          0
Did Not Bat: Milligan, Ready, Odell, Armbruster†, McAlister, Gardenar, Rosenfeld, Dickenson, Myers

Captain Sigmund Winter sent Jo Frost's hopeless delivery skidding along the ground and across the rope as Darmen chased down the nine runs needed for victory with ease. The victory by 10 wickets gives Darmen a bonus point in the World Test League standings, where it currently stands in third place behind debutants the Busoga Islands atop the table and an Ethane side that is dominating its series against Eastfield Lodge.

With the series against Apox concluded in Darmen's favor, the team's attention now turns to its next opponent, Liventia, who despite being behind Darmen in the standings are still the top ranked nation in the multiverse.

Captain Sigmund Winter expressed optimism heading into the series on foreign turf: "As the reigning world champions, facing the top ranked team and probably the most consistent team historically in GCF Test cricket is a fantastic opportunity to see where Darmeni cricket stands. There's no doubt in my mind that the Liventians view us as the underdogs, and that they want to dominate us to, in a way at least, invalidate out championship from last season. We're not going to let that happen."

Winter said the team was riding high on confidence following the Apox series victory, but was also clear that he was going to enforce high standards for the players. One of the players not meeting those standards was Ionathan Odell, who, despite scoring 49 in the first innings of the season, has struggled since then, scoring only 79 runs from five innings for an average of 15.80. Odell will be dropped from the lineup, the 26 year-old Solomon Marlow replacing him. Winter will also be moving Domenic Gardenar up the lineup; he'll now bat sixth instead of eighth.

When asked about the changes, Winter responded, "It's true that we won the series against Apox and did so in fairly convincing fashion. But we can't simply pat ourselves on the backs and expect that result to repeat itself against a strong Liventia side. This team needs to evolve and adapt as necessary. The fifth and sixth positions in the lineup are arguably the most important, and having quality players filling those positions will be important."

Marlow will be making his Test debut, but has been in excellent form domestically, leading the Cosmopolitans in runs scored over the past two First-Class Trophy seasons.

Lineup for Darmen vs. Liventia @ Folenisa Cricket Ground in Folenisa:
V. Acker; S. Winter (c); T. Milligan; E. Ready; S. Marlow; D. Gardenar; A. Armbruster (wk); C. McAlister; K. Rosenfeld; A. Dickenson; D. Myers

Name                M  I  NO Runs Balls 4's 6's SR     Avg.   50's 100's HS
Sigmund Winter      3  6  1  298  487   18  4   61.19  59.60  3    1     136
Theudofrid Milligan 3  5  0  250  376   15  3   66.49  50.00  2    2     112
Ellar Ready         3  5  1  210  298   15  4   70.47  52.50  2    0      63
Domenic Gardenar    3  4  2  189  290   14  3   65.17  94.50  2    0      78*
Vinnie Acker        3  6  1  159  278   11  1   57.19  31.80  1    0      47
Adalfuns Armbruster 3  5  0  116  182   10  0   63.74  23.20  0    0      31
Ionathan Odell      3  5  0   79  134    5  1   58.96  15.80  0    0      49
Alf Dickenson       3  4  1   77  105    8  2   73.33  25.67  0    0      27*
Dorian Myers        3  4  1   38   61    4  0   62.30  12.67  0    0      13
Kieran Rosenfeld    3  4  0   33   57    3  0   57.89   8.25  0    0      14
Corwin McAlister    3  5  1   33   62    1  1   53.23   8.25  0    0      11

Name             Overs  M   Runs Wickets Econ.  Avg.   SR     5wI  10wM Best
Domenic Gardenar  72.4   8  292  12      4.02   24.33  36.33  1    0    5-64
Kieran Rosenfeld 108.0  10  333  12      3.08   27.75  54.00  0    0    4-27
Dorian Myers      56.5   8  173  10      3.04   17.30  34.10  0    0    4-29
Corwin McAlister 120.5  14  316  10      2.62   31.60  72.50  1    0    5-63
Alf Dickenson    109.2   6  309   8      2.83   38.63  82.00  0    0    2-30

by **NS Global Cricket Federation** » Mon Jan 28, 2019 1:05 pm

Matchday 4

GCF Test no. 669
Match Report: Ethane in Eastfield Lodge (4 of 4)
Ethane bat first
Eastfield Lodge 156 (57.5 overs), 216 (68.3 overs)
Ethane 145 (51.5 overs), 232 (64.2 overs)
Eastfield Lodge lose by 5 runs
Ethane win series 3-0 (1 drawn)

GCF Test no. 670
Match Report: Ko-oren in Teusland (1 of 3)
Ko-oren bat first
Teusland 416/5d (150.3 overs), 64/1 (19.3 overs)
Ko-oren 162 (50.2 overs), 317 (109.5 overs)
Teusland win by 9 wickets

GCF Test no. 671
Match Report: Darmen in Liventia (1 of 3)
Liventia bat first
Liventia 323 (82.2 overs), 289 (84.2 overs)
Darmen 241 (55.2 overs), 373/8 (119.3 overs)
Darmen win by 2 wickets

GCF Test no. 672
Match Report: Elejamie in The Plough Islands (1 of 3)
The Plough Islands bat first
The Plough Islands 258 (75.0 overs), 328 (104.4 overs)
Elejamie 471/4d (176.2 overs), 37/0 (14.5 overs)
Drawn

GCF Test no. 673
Match Report: Eura in Apox (1 of 4)
Apox bat first
Apox 515/4d (256.3 overs), 58/2 (14.1 overs)
Eura 336 (132.1 overs),
Drawn

GCF Test no. 674
Match Report: Sajnur in Pratapgadh (2 of 3)
Pratapgadh bat first
Pratapgadh 228 (61.4 overs), 250 (75.3 overs)
Sajnur 218 (86.5 overs), 265/8 (108.3 overs)
Sajnur win by 2 wickets

Updated Test Rankings

Full Members                       Score  Pts/MP   Adjusted
1 Ethane			 FM  124 (2249/18)  112.47
2 Liventia			 FM  122 (4137/34)  110.84
3 Eura				 FM  114 (2408/21)  107.33
4 Darmen			 FM  105 (3375/32)  102.73
5 Eastfield Lodge		 FM  105 (2951/28)  102.70
6 Ko-oren			 FM  104 (2396/23)  102.09
7 Apox				 FM   94 (2888/31)   96.58
8 The Plough Islands		 FM   75 (1350/18)   87.50

Associate Members
1 Elejamie			 AS   83 (417/5)     97.00
2 Teusland                       AS   70 (210/3)     90.00
3 Sajnur                         AS   50 (150/3)     80.00

Affiliate Members
1 The Busoga Islands             AF  150 (450/3)    120.00

Inactive Members
1 Mattijana	              IN/FM  120 (2400/20)  110.00
2 Barunia		      IN/FM  105 (2944/28)  102.57
3 Sargossa		      IN/AS   87 (603/7)     98.00
4 Northwest Kalactin	      IN/AF  104 (728/7)     97.00
5 The Kiaser Colonies	      IN/FM   87 (1400/16)   93.75
6 Lisander		      IN/FM   73 (883/12)    86.79
7 Tobiasia		      IN/FM   67 (1289/19)   83.92
8 Qasden		      IN/AS   55 (165/3)     83.00

Updated League Table

                        Pl  W  L  D  T  Ld  Lv  Pts IW  Avg
1   The Busoga Islands   2  2  0  0  0   2   0   40  0  20.0
2   Ethane               4  3  0  1  0   2   0   61  1  16.3
3   Darmen               4  3  1  0  0   2   0   56  0  15.0
4   Teusland             3  2  1  0  0   2   0   40  0  13.3
5   The Plough Islands   3  1  1  1  0   1   0   25  1   9.3
6=  Liventia             3  1  2  0  0   2   0   24  1   9.0
6=  Elejamie             1  0  0  1  0   1   0    9  0   9.0
8   Ko-oren              3  1  2  0  0   1   0   20  1   7.7
9   Apox                 4  1  2  1  0   1   0   29  0   7.3
10  Sajnur               4  1  2  1  0   1   0   25  0   6.3
11  Eura                 1  0  0  1  0   0   0    5  0   5.0
12  Pratapgadh           2  0  1  1  0   1   0    9  0   4.5
13  Eastfield Lodge      4  0  3  1  0   2   0   13  0   3.3

by **Sajnur** » Tue Jan 29, 2019 2:56 am

Stalemate at Chittorgarh for Sajnur Test Team

(Delayed Report)

The first Test at Chittorgarh Cricket Ground between Sajnur and Pratapgadh has ended in a draw. The Pratapgadh top order was aggressive from the first ball, and the Sajnur fast bowlers were punished throughout, while the Sajnur batsmen were far more defensive, eventually holding out for a draw with just two wickets to spare.

Rajendra Rathore and Bipin Parte scored at a fast rate of knots, and made big opening partnerships in both innings, with Rathore making a century in the second innings. Farhang Gondalwala was also a capable batsman with a 77 in the second innings, although he went for pace over longevity in the first with his quickfire 38, and Sanjay Gadia chipped in with important runs as well. Sajnur's spinners, particularly Toljo Jorse, dealt with the home team's lower order with ease in the first innings, but their tail showed resilience in bringing Pratapgdadh to 429 in the second.

Liam Saovin and Alan Tijer had a poor time in foreign conditions, and conceded runs liberally in both innings for little return. Their inability to extract anything from the pitch is something which will have to be rectified if Sajnur is to win the second Test, as Pratapgadh's two quicks provided the bulk of the hosts' wickets. Sajnur's spinners had a better time at Chittorgarh, with Jorse destroying Pratapgadh's batting lineup in the first innings on her way to 7-33, and 10-89 for the match, and the spinners finding success where the fast bowlers couldn't in the second innings. However, the Pratapgadh lineup was resilient enough to force an unattainable chase of 417 to win for Sajnur, with Sajnur's batsmen forced to go for the draw.

Kartik Kakadia and Abdaal Rahman starved the Sajnuran batting order for runs and were a constant menace, conceding at less than 2.5 runs per over throughout the match and taking 16 of 18 wickets. Their other bowlers were used primarily as support for the frontline pacemen, with Kakadia and Rahman bowling well over half of Pratapgadh's overs, and only spinner Pradip Khatmode taking wickets otherwise, and doing so at more than a run a ball in the second innings.

Sajnur's top order was far more resilient than it was during the tour of the Busoga Islands, with Gabby Fiume and Tomas Piqa scoring fifties in both innings, and debutant Harry Kotte scoring 50 in the second innings, meaning no bailout by Jorse or Tijer was required. Kaori Jansa also finally came good with the bat, proving instrumental in Sajnur holding out for a draw. Beating his contribution with the ball, Jansa and the tail wore down Kakadia and Rahman, who in the end may have simply been too tired to take the last two wickets.

Overall, this match was a vast improvement over the travails in the Busoga Islands, and victory may prove to be close by.

GCF Test no. 668
Match Report: Sajnur in Pratapgadh
Pratapgadh bat first
Pratapgadh 234 (66.0 overs), 429 (122.4 overs)
Sajnur 247 (108.2 overs), 304/8 (121.0 overs)
Drawn

Pratapgadh 1st Innings
Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
Saovin    10.0  1  44   0       4.40
Tijer     10.0  0  49   0       4.90
Lulle     14.0  0  60   1       4.62
Jorse     16.0  1  33   7       2.06
Haton     16.0  1  48   1       3.00

0b, 0lb

Sajnur 1st Innings
Name          Runs Balls 4's 6's  SR

Fiume          52   172   4   0  30.23
Kotte          30    65   2   0  46.15
Zulje          17    29   1   0  58.62
Piqa*          50   116   4   0  43.10
Surju†         15    40   0   0  37.50
Jansa          21    58   3   0  36.21
Jorse          35*   95   5   0  36.84
Tijer          18    48   2   1  37.50
Saovin          5    17   0   0  29.41
Haton           0     2   0   0   0.00
Lulle           2     8   0   0  25.00

Extras   2 (0b, 0lb, 2wd, 0nb)

Pratapgadh 2nd Innings
Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
Saovin    15.0  3  62   0       4.13
Tijer     17.0  0  59   1       3.47
Lulle     22.0  0  75   1       3.41
Jorse     20.0  1  56   3       2.80
Haton     26.0  1  80   2       3.08
Jansa     10.0  0  47   0       4.70
Piqa      12.4  1  50   1       3.95

0b, 0lb

Sajnur 2nd Innings
Name          Runs Balls 4's 6's  SR

Fiume          64   160  10   0  40.00
Kotte          51    89   4   0  57.30
Zulje          36    62   3   0  58.07
Piqa*          55    96   5   1  57.29
Surju†         18    69   0   0  26.09
Jansa          30*  139   4   0  21.58
Jorse          28    55   3   0  50.91
Tijer          10    20   2   0  50.00
Saovin          7    16   1   0  43.75
Haton           2*   20   0   0  10.00
Lulle           Did not bat

Extras   3 (0b, 0lb, 3wd, 0nb)

by **Sajnur** » Tue Jan 29, 2019 3:00 am

Six Secures Victory for Sajnur!

Sajnur has secured its first ever Test victory, beating Pratapgadh in the second Test at Jaisalmer Cricket Stadium, and has taken a 1-0 lead in the three Test series as a result. Sajnur's bowlers faced little trouble in running through the Pratapgadh batting order in both innings, unlike in the first Test when Pratapgadh scored 429 in the second innings, but Pratapgadh was unable to break through the Sajnuran gates, and thus couldn't defend 261 at the end, Karim Haton bringing up the winning runs with an exquisite six over Kartik Kakadia's head.

Pratapgadh's batting was once again fast out of the gates, with Bipin Parte and Rajendra Rathore once again battling Sajnur's opening pacemen with an aggressive approach. However, once the openers were dealt with the Pratapgadh middle order gave way easily to Sajnur's spinners, and in the second innings they were unable to capitalise on the ten run lead given to them by their bowlers.

Liam Saovin has continued to struggle in conditions which don't suit his style of bowling, seemingly unable to extract seam or swing out of the pitch like he can in Sajnur, and lacking the pace to make up for it. However, he has been an able partner to Alan Tijer, who had a breakthrough match, sorting out the economy issues that plagued him in prior matches and using his pace to trouble Pratapgadh's batsmen. Sajnur's spinners have continued to terrorise their opponents, with Toljo Jorse taking yet another five wicket haul, and Haton and Stefan Lulle taking four wickets each over the course of the match. Lulle's googlies have been a wonderfully deceptive addition to Sajnur's bowling, complementing the doosras of Jorse and Haton in their attacks against opponent batsmen. Indeed, the bowling from the main bowlers got through Pratapgadh's batting fast enough that Kaori Jansa and Tomas Piqa weren't needed to take the load off.

Pratapgadh's bowling was arguably even better in this match than it was in the last match, although the pitch may simply have been harder to bat on. However, the reliance on Kakadia and Abdaal Rahman has continued, and fatigue may have again contributed to Pratapgadh's inability to take 20 wickets, this time resulting in defeat rather than simply a draw. Their effort to somehow salvage a first innings lead out of a score of 228 was admirable, but Sajnur's hardy batting, averaging well under three an over all series, was too strong, and 261 proved an attainable target.

Gabby Fiume has continued to prove her prowess as an opener, and this time she has received the support needed for Sajnur to be succesful. Harry Kotte carried his bat in the first innings, holding up one end while his teammates fell at the other, and scoring 80 off 265 deliveries. He wasn't able to stay the distance in the second innings, but there was no need as his teammates all chipped in. Captain Piqa soaked up deliveries on his way to 40, and Jorse scored a relatively quick 50 while still being on the pitch to see Haton hit the winning six.

Sajnur is now in an excellent position to take its first ever Test series victory, but they still need to be vigilant as Pratapgadh has shown that it has many weapons to take the heat to Sajnur.

GCF Test no. 674
Match Report: Sajnur in Pratapgadh (2 of 3)
Pratapgadh bat first
Pratapgadh 228 (61.4 overs), 250 (75.3 overs)
Sajnur 218 (86.5 overs), 265/8 (108.3 overs)
Sajnur win by 2 wickets

Pratapgadh 1st Innings
Name     Overs  M  Runs Wickets Econ.
Saovin   14.0   1  55   1       3.93
Tijer    12.4   0  39   2       3.08
Jorse    12.0   3  41   2       3.42
Haton    12.0   2  44   3       3.67
Lulle    12.0   2  45   2       3.75

2b, 2lb

Sajnur 1st Innings
Name         Runs Balls 4's 6's  SR

Fiume         32    64   4   0   50.00
Kotte         80*  265   9   3   30.19
Zulje         15    29   1   0   51.72
Piqa*          2     5   0   0   40.00
Surju†         9    25   0   0   36.00
Jansa         20    35   2   0   57.14
Jorse         25    43   4   0   58.14
Tijer         15    40   1   0   37.50
Saovin         0     8   0   0    0.00
Haton          4     8   1   0   50.00
Lulle          0     3   0   0    0.00

Extras     2b, 5lb, 6wd, 3nb

]Pratapgadh 2nd Innings
Name     Overs  M  Runs Wickets Econ.
Saovin   15.0   2  57   1       3.80
Tijer    15.3   5  45   1       2.90
Jorse    18.0   4  47   5       2.61
Haton    13.0   6  46   1       3.54
Lulle    14.0   1  55   2       3.93

0b, 0lb

Sajnur 2nd Innings
Name         Runs Balls 4's 6's  SR

Fiume         68   190  10   0   35.79
Kotte         19    52   1   0   36.54
Zulje          5    15   0   0   33.33
Piqa*         40   116   5   0   34.48
Surju†        26    72   2   0   36.11
Jansa         19    65   0   0   29.23
Jorse         50*   83   8   0   60.24
Tijer         15    20   1   1   75.00
Saovin         5    29   0   0   17.24
Haton          8*   13   0   1   61.54
Lulle          Did not bat

Extras     2b, 1lb, 3wd, 4nb

by **Eura** » Tue Jan 29, 2019 3:18 pm

Provisional Euran Test Squad to for GCF10

Staff

Head Coach: Michael Overdale
Fitness Coach: Callum Oldey
Batting Coach: Graham Keane
Bowling Coach: Daniel Aldair
Fielding Coach: Jeremy Davis

Stadia
Stadium – Location – Club – Capacity – Style Modifier

Brigham Oval – Brigham - Brigham CC - 90,000 - 0 – This huge arena is hallowed ground for Euran cricket and is probably the nation’s most balanced Test pitch. Its gargantuan banks of safe standing terraces split over two tiers are unusual to say the least, but also representative of the huge popularity of cricket in the region and the boisterous fans who turn up. Make no mistake, in terms of noise, this is the most intimidating venue in the country. The pitch is of a good quality and usually slightly green, making it fertile ground for bowlers (especially in overcast conditions) but usually a firm enough batting wicket for good batsmen to score on. Selected for 1st Test v Liventia

Directus County Cricket Ground – Ramsey, Directus – Directus CC – 72,500 - minus 3 - Beware, for spinners lurk at the DCCG. Directus is notorious in Eura and maybe even a bit controversial for its pitch, which almost always forms a hard surface for pace bowling and scoring runs at first before degrading into a cracked minefield on which spin reigns supreme. Touring teams should plan thoroughly for facing the spin bowling of local man Greg Lark. He regularly wins games for his club here and could be a deadly proposition to bat against on a fourth or fifth day pitch. Stadium itself is surprisingly flat for a big ground like Brigham, which partially explains how the middle can end up like a dustbowl in hot weather. Selected for 2nd Test v Liventia

Castle Green – Bastion – Capital CC – 81,235 – plus 3 – The most historic things in Eura usually reside in Bastion’s old centre despite the turmoil they have had to survive in the past. Castle Green is no exception, embedded deep within a megacity that now extends for dozens of miles in every direction. Expansions and renovations in the past have given it a formidable capacity but the stadium is not new or fresh. It has three different unique designs of stand plus a huge pavilion. Castle Green is a firm batting wicket and well maintained but certainly not flat, meaning pace and good batting sides usually duke it out for the spoils. Selected for 3rd Test v Liventia

Steel Field – Holdenberg – Holdenberg CC – 68,450 – plus 4 – Hardy as its massive workforce, the Steel Field pitch lives up to its name as a rock hard track favouring batsman with only aggressive fast bowlers likely to succeed against them. The stadium itself is large with steep sides, but one noticeably smaller quarter of the oval encirclement hosts an older stand and the classic pavilion. Selected for 4th Test v Liventia

The Waterfront Bowl – Falourr – Falourr CC and formerly Docklands CC – 52,000 – minus 5 – The Waterfront is quite unlike other cricket grounds in the east of Eura in that it is not dry and does not experience long periods of little wind and noticeable heat due to its proximity to the Endemian Ocean. When it’s hot in Falourr it is humid, and when it is cold in Falourr it is just wet. A perfect playground for swing bowlers and very difficult to bat on. This ground is the most likely to experience rain delays but also has the most sophisticated systems for dealing with them. It is a thoroughly modern and recently upgraded stadium but also a remarkably beautiful one, similar in design to the Aspel Dellaro football stadium in Sameba which is chiselled into the coastline comfortably above the water level.

Squad
Name - Age - ECC club - Bats - Bowls - Playing style notes

Batsmen

Cameron Lawson - 30 - Harther - Left - Left Arm Med - Suffered a tough baptism of fire during GCF8 and wasn't that much better during GCF9, but now he has more experience Lawson has been trusted to take on the opening spot of Euran cricketing legend Alan Royce, who has finally retired after turning 39. Pretty inconsistent in the past but improving. Will need to demonstrate his ability against pace to remain first choice.

Andrew Elland - 35 - Brigham - Right - Right Arm Off Spin - The flashiest of the top four batsmen who seeks to score quickly and is quite the shot player - Eura's most naturally talented player with the bat. Scored big runs in GCF8 and GCF9. Very able against spin. Less good against real pace and bounce.

Liam Tunbridge (Captain) - 34 - Brigham - Right - Right Arm Med - Similar to Elland but more functional and indisputably the best batsman in the team, with a cooler head and little ego. Most likely of top four to go for big shots and physically imposing.

Ewan Dodd - 27 - Harther - Right - Right Arm Slow - A true attrition batsman. Low scoring rate with a refined defensive technique. Especially useful on slow pitches. Increasingly trusted as part of the generation of the future with Elland, Tunbridge and Leech all close to retirement. He now features as one of the two opening batsmen

Marvin Raleigh - 24 - Harther - Left - Right Arm Slow - Inexperienced but solid middle order batsman who made sparing appearances during GCF9. Now he has been promoted to starting no.5 batsman.

Matt Leech - 37 - Spartans - Right - Right Arm Med - Most aggressive of the upper order batsmen with excellent technique but no longer in the starting XI. Vulnerable to leg spin and spin in general. The most capable bowler of the non-bowling specialists, has taken wickets at Test level. A real fighter who has defied expectations to compete and unsurprisingly the biggest sledger on the team. This will be his last season, if he plays much at all.

Philip Waring - 21 - Capital - Right - Right Arm Slow - A stocky middle order batsmen with quite some talent who may be fielded later in GCF10.

All Rounders and Wicket Keepers

Tom Grant (Vice Captain) - 32 - Holdenberg - Right - Right Arm Fast Med - Bombastic player and a bit of a cult hero in Eura. Has a very good record in Tests and international club cricket despite the circumstances of Euran cricket in the years leading up to GCF8/9. Sometimes careless when batting but a serious threat if allowed to get in, powerful batsman who can score for fun and unsurprisingly is very handy in T20 and ODI formats too. Equally menacing as a bowler due to ability to get swing and seam movement in varied conditions. Will often be the key to unsettling high quality batsmen due to determination and skill.

Shaun Folkstone - 32 - Harther - Right - Right Arm Fast - Eura's best hope when they first got going and perhaps still the star. Started his career purely as a bowler but some spectacular batting performances in Tests transformed him into an all rounder partner for Grant. Has the ability to score big runs as a batsman if Eura need them, thriving when under pressure. His true calling is as a leading bowler despite stats often indicating otherwise. Blistering pace (the only Euran who bowls consistently over 90mph) and his accuracy on line and length make him a difficult prospect to bat against, but on pitches unfavourable to pace bowling he usually has to take on a defensive role.

Tim Carpenter - 33 - Capital - Right - Right Arm Slow - A seasoned wicket keeper who has a strong leadership influence on the team. Definitely the best Eura has had behind the stumps. Very capable as a batsman too though not quite as threatening as his predecessor Jeremy Davis. Likes a good slog if the situation requires it.

Will Mandrake - 23 - Directus - Right - Right Arm Slow - Replacement for Jason Perry at Directus and now for Eura. No experience at international level. Its likely this season is too soon for him to break into the team.

Bowlers

Greg Lark – 35 – Directus – Left – Left Arm Spin – Lark was the anorak’s choice for Eura’s key player until GCF8, where he utterly mauled Liventia in the famous (or infamous if you're from that country) "Euracide" test in Directus. The most intelligent player in the side and the most reliable, and likely to be enemy number one for the home side in Eura's opening series this season. Years of bowling on Eura’s dry eastern and humid south western wickets has made him a deadly opponent even for top level batsmen. Unorthodox for a left arm spinner in that he can spin both to off and leg effectively. Most dangerous on dry pitches against boxed in batsmen looking to score runs. The worst thing you can do against Lark is attack him on the fifth day.

Oscar Greenwood – 28 – Spartans – Right – Right Arm Fast Med – Its been said for a while that Greenwood is the future, and his chance has finally arrived with the demotion of Harrison. Fine seamer who has worked his way into the first team. A decent GCF9 bodes well for him, particularly at home where he can take advantage of the bowling conditions of wetter southern and western wickets.

Rhys Higgins – 25 – Borderlands – Left – Left Arm Fast Med – Great ability but also inexperienced despite being part of the squad during GCF9, this bowler for the small County club of Borderlands has been a real headache at club level on green southwestern pitches, troubling all kinds of batsmen with his controlled demeanour and difficult to read seam bowling. He will now get some opportunities in the coming matches against Apox as Eura switch to a more pace orientated attack.

Andy Harrison – 34 – Capital – Right – Right Arm Fast – The nearest the team has to the perfect ideal of a hard hitting seamer. Pacey and tall, extracts maximum bounce from hard pitches and gets surprisingly good movement off the seam. Like Folkstone he can struggle in unfriendly conditions and leaks more runs than Folkstone or Grant regardless. Intimidating for batsmen who struggle against short balls. At 34 his age has caught up with him which is why he now finds himself out of the starting XI.

Seb Haynes - 23 - Harther - Right Arm Fast - Although nominally a fast bowler the rookie Haynes is less known for his pace and more his deadly swing game, much like Daniel Aldair of times gone by. Barely featured during GCF9.

Layton Webber - 28 - Callodown - Right Arm Off Spin - A surprise replacement for the retiring Nick Fodrell, Webber has a mediocre record at club level and zero international experience. It is a cause of concern for Eura if this is the best spinner they can field when the magician Lark eventually retires.

Usual order of batting and bowling

Batting

1. Cameron Lawson
2. Ewan Dodd
3. Andrew Elland
4. Liam Tunbridge
5. Marvin Raleigh
6. Tom Grant
7. Tim Carpenter (WK)
8. Shaun Folkstone
9. Greg Lark
10. Oscar Greenwood
11. Rhys Higgins

Bowling

1. Shaun Folkstone
2. Oscar Greenwood
3. Tom Grant
4. Rhys Higgins
5. Greg Lark (unless on a spinning pitch, in which case he will come on earlier)
6. Marvin Raleigh (rotational - not a specialist bowler)

Preferences

Most talented batsman among specialist bowlers: Tom Grant
Most talented bowler among specialist batsmen: Marvin Raleigh
Preferred night watchman: Greg Lark
Most likely to hit a big score: Liam Tunbridge if its slow, Tom Grant if its fast
Most likely to take five-for: Shaun Folkstone if it’s a fast bowlers day, Greg Lark if it is the hour of the spinner
Most likely to turn a game all by themselves: Andrew Elland batting, Greg Lark bowling, Tom Grant both
Most consistent batsman: Liam Tunbridge
Most consistent bowler: Shaun Folkstone
Least consistent batsman: Marvin Raleigh
Least consistent bowler: Oscar Greenwood
Best fielder apart from the wicket keeper: Tom Grant

by **The Plough Islands** » Wed Jan 30, 2019 2:37 pm

on the 28th January 2019, the Plough Islands Gazette wrote:
ASHE NO BALL CASTS SHADOW OVER ELEJAMIE DRAW
by Denis Wormwood, Sporting Correspondent, in Lainemouth

After a Test of shifting momentum and some positively Stakhanovite individual performances at the Lainemouth Athletic Club, the Plough Islands were able to bring a positive outcome back from a sleet-shortened final day thanks to a determined third innings by Kevin Laing's team. Regrettably, the match result was not the only thing that dwelled on the Foxes' minds - with off spinner Sarah Ashe having been no-balled and pulled from the Plough Islands bowling lineup at the behest of umpire Pippin Sandstrøm, that decision and its aftermath continued to usurp the proceedings of the game itself in conversation.
Inside the boundary, Laing and Graeme Holt resumed overnight on a stand of 121 that had given the assembled Plough Islanders hope that their comrades might have saved the match; with doubts over whether conditions would allow the full allotted time on day five to be played, their brief was to extend the Foxes' innings as far as it would go. Holt, having sat on 96 overnight, was uncharacteristically cautious, although no less boisterous when he brought up his century with a two off Elejamian captain Danny Slezinger to hearty applause. With Laing's more measured scoring - coming rapidly, but in singles at a time - serving as a foil, Holt was able to hang on for most of the first hour of play, eventually opening his shoulders on 122 at an Arían Rodriguez delivery that dipped and decieved him into chopping the ball onto his own stumps.
The wicket gave Rodriguez and Elejamie a second wind, and thereafter it was an ever uphill struggle for the Foxes as Elejamie's spinners began to make good use of the day five pitch. Of the seven players that came in after Holt, only Audrey Leggett (a run-a-ball 14) and wicketkeeper Ilya Lebed (12) survived into double figures, with Laing often only able to delay and then watch on. In a moment that was as surreal as it was emotional, Ashe came out to bat after Lebed's dismissal and was greeted with a pointed standing ovation by the Lainemouth Athletic Club, and an instant, warm, lingering hug from Laing as she reached the crease; however, the New Hibernian's thoughts were inevitably anywhere but the wicket and she moved too late, too slowly for her first ball and off came the bails. The Foxes captain departed soon after, with a Pablo Novak offcutter threading between his legs and splintering middle stump, but his 88 took the match through to lunch and would prove to be enough to rescue the match situation.
Ultimately, it was the bitter wind from the northeast that saved the Foxes; by the time Slezinger (4-49) had run through the remainder of the Plough Islander tail, with Colin McCarthy the last to fall to some quick fielding by the Greenblacks' captain off his own bowling, they had accumulated 328, for a lead of 115 - an easy total for the Elejamian batsmen to reach from slightly under two sessions, but with the rain forecast being brought forward all the time, a sense of inevitability began to build in Lainemouth. Even with an accelerated turnaround between innings as players from both sides chipped in, statistician Emily Halasz on Plough Radio was estimating that the tourists had an hour and a half at most, and with the temperature dropping rapidly between overs, Steve Loughlin and Nick Hutcherson only faced fourteen in total. Despite the latter scoring opportunistically against Matthew Davy's leg spin, nobody seriously thought the total would be threatened, and when, with Elejamie having scored 37, the first cold stabs of freezing rain were felt on the skin, all present knew they would not be returning to the pitch. Elejamie would have been ruing the loss of what would have been only their second Test victory, but after a game with more turmoil than most, a draw was just what Laing and his team needed.
Even discounting what was to unfold, there was a sense that the Foxes had won at least a moral victory given their first innings performance. After Laing had elected to bat, the scoreboard above the pavilion read 0 for 1 after just four deliveries; Holt misjudging a slightly wider delivery by Novak and losing his bails before he had a chance to warm up. Davy, however, was able to hold firm with new partner Shauna Weaver, and as they began to bed in against the initial Elejamie pace attack, by lunchtime they had engineered a good recovery from that inauspicious start. Weaver in particular had made good use of her feet and scored freely as they shared a century stand and frustrated the Greenblacks' bowlers, with Slezinger being forced to pull Novak and Hamilton from the attack in favour of his spinners, and the pair started the afternoon session initially as they had left off - however, foreshadowing what would follow, the temperature dropped quickly and the Foxes only faced eight overs until after tea, with the pitch having to be covered over as a brief shower descended on the ground, and within ten minutes of play resuming both of them were gone.
Whether it was the change in conditions or a psychological loss of momentum was unclear (Davy would later attribute his demise to moisture on the pitch affecting his stance), but first Davy (59) was caught behind as a Rodriguez ball took the finest of edges, and then Weaver (70) shuffled across to Lucas Mahler and was caught in front. The twin dismissals sapped the home supporters' energy and gave heart to Elejamie, and Laing and Leggett faced some robust and challenging bowling over the next few overs, and though the latter was especially equal to the challenge - hooking part-timer Hutcherson for two successive sixes over third man - they were constantly under pressure, and something had to give. From 125-1, the Plough Islands slumped to 205-7 at the close of play, with Mahler (who ended with 3-37) in particular keeping an accurate line that the hosts constantly failed to master. The next morning brought some respite as Ashe (18 not out) McCarthy (14) were able to keep the Greenblacks at bay and saw out a large part of the morning session, but after Mahler induced a tame edge from McCarthy to Mike Bentley, there was little more that could be done, and the Foxes finished on 258 all out with the tourists in the ascendance.
Elejamie then set out to reply, and it was here that the course of the Test took a right turn. After a reasonably tight opening spell from Baxter, the Foxes brought on Ashe from the pavilion end, only for umpire Sandstrøm to void her first and then her second deliveries before the Apoxian instructed Laing - to visible and audible shock as the realisation rippled around the ground - to remove her from the bowling attack for the rest of the game due to concerns over her delivery, a decision that would spark recriminations far beyond the boundary rope. Forced to improvise, the captain turned first to his own right-arm medium pace, and then to the part-time leg breaks of Weaver and - in a fashion - Leggett, but it was a psychological blow for the Foxes' bowlers, and one that the tourists' openers were able to exploit clinically.
Loughlin and Hutcherson were able to bat and score for the remainder of the second day, and - after a certain amount of emotion had been vented in that evening's debriefings - for most of the morning session on the third day, aided by Hutcherson's strength against the pace of McCarthy and Baxter; the left-hander bringing up both his half-century and well deserved century against short balls from the latter, who cut an increasingly frustrated figure as his efforts went without reward. Loughlin had been on course for his own century, having played fluently and negotiated both pace and spin well, when Laing recalled Naomi Salisbury with the older ball and the left-arm spinner was able to get a ball to turn across the batsman's body and gloves and into the hands of her captain at gully.
Thus ended the Greenblacks' opening partnership - for a total of 192, with Loughlin having contributed 88 - but any hopes the Plough Islands might have had of a breakthrough soon faded, with all-rounder Hamilton quickly settling in and taking up the openers' mantle. It was all the Foxes could do to try and contain Elejamie, with Laing frequently shifting the field around to try and block off avenues of scoring, but wickets continued to be elusive and the tourists piled the runs on; by lunchtime Hutcherson had reached 150, and Hamilton was only stopped short of his own half century after a communications error that saw him, agonisingly, depart for 49. Once more, the next man in - Bentley - was able to settle quickly, despite some desperate short bowling from Baxter, and Elejamie were not only cruising, they had a full head of steam. Hutcherson would go on to score 180 before he was removed; a momentary lapse in concentration enough for Salisbury to remove his leg stump, but Bentley continued to ramp up his scoring to fill the gap, and soon began to close on his own century.
This finally came at the start of the fourth day, with a glanced four from McCarthy, and as soon as the score came up Slezinger felt confident enough to declare; his team had accumulated a total of 471 and a first innings lead of 213, and shattered the Foxes' confidence in the process; even discounting the Ashe affair, it had been a brutal innings and the spectators had grown very quiet. Faced with the task of batting out the best part of two days to save the match, Holt and Davy were able to negotiate the few overs before lunch and the start of the afternoon session without incident, but Slezinger continued to invite the openers to take risks with a series of balls delivered fuller than a length - and he was able to get Davy to bite, the Sutton & Avalon right-hander nicking an attempted pull behind and leaving for 27.
Nevertheless, Elejamie were not finding wickets as easy as they had perhaps been in the first innings, and Holt and Weaver were able to find a rhythm as the innings progressed, predominantly scoring against pace and any wayward balls and starting to anticipate the Elejamian spin attack which had been so potent. Weaver's loss for 41 - the all-rounder falling to a risky third run that she committed to too late - checked the Foxes' progress just before tea, but this brought the wily captain in alongside the experienced guile of Holt, and it took little time for Laing to adopt a similar approach. Together, Holt and Laing were able to see off attacks from all angles, aided by some cautious running and Holt being dropped on 77 by the perhaps not fully concentrating Kelly Entwistle at extra cover, and they saw the hosts through to the close of play for what would prove a match-saving partnership.
Despite the achievement, perhaps understandably the press continued to dwell on the Ashe incident; coach Lourens Hendricks had been honest and raw with the media at the end of the second day, and if his emotions had calmed, his sense of injustice had not; "Ja, no, I'm biased as can be but I can't see it at all, especially given she played every game in Ko-oren and nobody brought it up there. I can't stop myself feeling so many emotions on Sarah's behalf. Obviously I'm a wrist spinner and she's a finger spinner, but I've watched her and coached her for many years and I can't believe her technique is illegal. I'd love to see the umpire's reasoning if we ever get to see it...".
Laing would not comment beyond that he had made sure Ashe was supported by the team - "she knows she is not alone, myself and Audrey have been up there between days playing backgammon" - and preferred to concentrate on the match situation; "Elejamie were hugely effective in their innings, we just could not throw anything at them at the right time and Nick [Hutcherson] and Michael [Bentley] were mercurial for them. We had to use everything we had to get a draw and I am really pleased with Graeme's effort to get us there - he pulled us back from the abyss this morning".
In many ways, the proceedings of today felt more necessary than engaging; there seemed to be a hurry to get the game finished so everybody could return to what has been a very complex and evolving situation. Certainly, it seems unlikely that Ashe will be playing international cricket any time soon - a Global Cricket Federation statement issued at stumps confirming that "...any return to bowling in international matches by the player concerned would be dependent on the outcome of an independent assessment of their delivery and successful completion of any remedial action" - and with Sandstrøm refusing to speak to the press, and Ashe rightly insulated by her team, all there has been to do is speculate. While the efforts of Holt and Laing have arguably, just, won this battle, the war will no doubt smoulder on, and the next Test at Redcliff will be played through a clouded lens for both the Foxes and their supporters.

on the 30th January 2019, the Plough Islands Gazette wrote:
OPINION: HOSTILE RECEPTION TO UMPIRE'S DECISION JUSTIFIED
by Ian Goswell, Chief Cricket Correspondent for Plough Radio, in Lainemouth

It is rare that this has to be stated in white and black, but you do not cheat in cricket.
Especially for the ideals on which our small country was founded and on which it stands with the sport at its heart, so obvious has the principle been that the accusations made by Pippin Sandstrøm have taken several days even to sink in. Of course, there is what others call 'gamesmanship' - using a situation, legally, to your advantage - and the many vagaries of the Laws of the game over the years have introduced gray areas into the sport, but no Plough Islander, you would hope, would ever graduate from our educational system and coaching from their club or school or cricket board with any inclination to cross the red line. The Laws and their interpretations are drilled into this author's head even now from careful study, more than thirty years since he played regularly. And from having known Sarah Ashe for many years, she would not have crossed it voluntarily - she is a National Park ranger, after all, and an administrator of our country's own law.
Therefore, the implication of the no ball decision by Sandstrøm is that she must have been taught an illegal technique - but, yet, she bowled for the complete 20-over tournament in Ko-oren without her ungainly technique being questioned. Her stance on delivery is more forward than is normal for an off spinner, with the requisite awkward-seeming movement of her limbs over each other, but her right arm remains straight as the ball is handed into it and this has never been seen as a breach of the Laws. Her friend and frequent Sutcliffe Shield adversary Shauna Weaver puts it thusly; "Sarah has found every one of my weaknesses over the last few years - I think there is about one innings against the Constabulary over the last seven or eight times since we both came through that my wicket fell to someone other than her. I have been clean bowled, I have been caught in front when I thought I had covered my pads, I have been as perfectly guarded as possible and still she finds a way through - I have hated her ability to do that, but in four years and counting it has looked legal".
It is with reluctance that blame is ascribed to anybody's judgment - Sandstrøm has been a great servant of the game, after all, and even with my foxtailed spectacles on I cannot fault any other of his decisions - but in the absence of malice there is only confusion. The issue has cut right to the heart of the country's thoughts, and I have lost count of the amount of times I have been asked for an opinion and essentially repeated what you can read here - but when Cde James Cloud, the Minister for Culture and Society, is raising the issue in the People's Assembly, there is a feeling that there has to be some grain of truth in what the country is thinking.
And, above all, thoughts have to turn to Ashe, who has been an excellent asset for her comrades and captain and had until this week taken 25 wickets from 12 games in all formats for her country. She has been shielded from the worst of the speculation for the most part, but is said to be overwhelmed by the support she has received from hundreds of letters reflecting the view of a hundred and forty thousand Plough Islanders, and now her future in the game she loves will rest on what will likely be a prolonged and difficult assessment to be undergone at the Metropolitan University Dwile in Apox. She has had her integrity questioned and her teaching critiqued, often by people who have never met her or who were not at the Lainemouth Athletic Club, and she has undergone all this despite believing her technique to be entirely correct.
All that Foxes supporters can do is wait and hope, but the issue will be already settled in the hearts of many, and it will be a profound shock were we to be proven wrong.

PLOUGH ISLANDS CRICKET ASSOCIATION
XI FOR SEC'D TEST AGAINST ELEJAMIE

      PLAYER            BAT   BOW
G     Holt              LHB      
MG    Davy              RHB   RLB
SLC   Weaver            RHB   RLB
KCT   Laing (c)         RHB   RMD
AM    Donovan           RHB      
AC    Leggett           RHB   RLB
OD    Fedorov           LHB      
IT    Lebed (w)         LHB      
CG    McCarthy          RHB   RFM
A     Baxter            RHB   RFS
NA    Salisbury         LHB   SLA

IRONWORKS GROUND (PITCH MOD.: -2)

by **Darmen** » Wed Jan 30, 2019 3:25 pm

Darmen chase down first ever victory in Liventia

GCF Test no. 671
Match Report: Darmen in Liventia (1 of 4) @ Folenisa Cricket Ground, Folenisa
Liventia bat first 
Liventia 323 (82.2 overs), 289 (84.2 overs) 
Darmen 241 (55.2 overs), 373/8 (119.3 overs) 
Darmen win by 2 wickets

Liventia 1st Innings
Name                                 Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Quinn     c Milligan b Rosenfeld     43    62   5   0   69.35
M. Finney lbw b McAlister            29    43   3   1   67.44
Edwards*  c Winter b Myers           67    98   7   1   68.37
Bérenger  c Dickenson b McAlister    11    21   0   0   52.38
O. Kerr   lbw b McAlister             0     2   0   0    0.00
Reynolds  st Armbruster† b Dickenson 87   113   9   2   76.99
Sarrin†   b McAlister                39    60   3   0   65.00
Goudreau  lbw b Rosenfeld            15    25   1   0   60.00
Adams     not out                    13    50   1   0   26.00
S. Finney c Marlow b Gardenar         5    11   0   0   45.45
B. Kerr   lbw b Dickenson             2     9   0   0   22.22
Extras                               12

Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
McAlister 21.0  3  65   4       3.10
Rosenfeld 19.0  1  77   2       4.05
Dickenson 19.0  2  72   2       3.79
Gardenar  12.2  1  58   1       4.70
Myers     11.0  2  51   1       4.64

Darmen 1st Innings
Name                               Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Acker       c O. Kerr b Goudreau   61   76    7   1    80.26
Winter*     c Reynolds b S. Finney 27   36    3   0    75.00
Milligan    lbw b Adams            19   33    2   0    57.58
Ready       lbw b B. Kerr          11   22    1   0    50.00
Marlow      c Adams b S. Finney    46   62    4   1    74.19
Gardenar    c Quinn b Goudreau     21   39    3   0    53.85
Armbruster† lbw b Adams            17   28    2   0    60.71
McAlister   c & b S. Finney         4    3    1   0   133.33
Rosenfeld   not out                18   28    2   0    64.29
Dickenson   c Edwards b B. Kerr     2    3    0   0    66.67
Myers       lbw b M. Finney         1    2    0   0    50.00
Extras                             14

Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
S. Finney 16.0  3  73   3       4.56
Goudreau  12.0  1  48   2       4.00
Adams     11.0  0  64   2       5.82
B. Kerr   12.0  1  41   2       3.42
Reynolds   4.0  1  14   0       3.50
M. Finney  0.2  0   1   1       3.00

Liventia 2nd Innings
Name                                Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Quinn     c & b Rosenfeld           23    49   4   0    46.94
M. Finney c Armbruster† b Dickenson 57    83   6   2    68.67
Edwards*  lbw b Rosenfeld           15    41   1   0    36.59
Bérenger  c Ready b McAlister       61   103   5   2    59.22
O. Kerr   c Acker b Myers           32    58   4   0    55.17
Reynolds  lbw b Dickenson           14    37   1   0    37.84
Sarrin†   c Acker b McAlister       26    61   3   0    42.62
Goudreau  c Myers b Gardenar        10    38   0   0    26.32
Adams     lbw b McAlister            6    13   0   0    46.15
S. Finney c Marlow b Rosenfeld      19    10   3   0   190.00
B. Kerr   not out                    7    13   0   0    53.85
Extras                              19

Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
McAlister 21.0  4  53   3       2.52
Rosenfeld 20.0  2  48   3       2.40
Dickenson 18.0  1  61   2       3.39
Gardenar  13.0  1  70   1       5.38
Myers     12.2  1  57   1       4.62

Darmen 2nd Innings
Name                               Runs Balls 4's 6's SR
Acker       lbw b Adams            42    85   4   0   49.41
Winter*     c Quinn b S. Finney    29    58   3   0   50.00
Milligan    c Bérenger b S. Finney 73   124   7   1   58.87
Ready       c O. Kerr b B. Kerr    26    69   4   0   37.68
Marlow      lbw b S. Finney        45    94   5   0   47.87
Gardenar    not out                84   149   9   1   56.38
Armbruster† c & b S. Finney        39    83   4   0   46.99
McAlister   lbw b Goudreau          3    18   0   0   16.67
Rosenfeld   b O. Kerr               9    30   0   0   30.00
Dickenson   not out                 1     7   0   0   14.29
Extras                             22
Did Not Bat: Myers

Name      Overs M  Runs Wickets Econ.
S. Finney 34.0  5  70   4       2.06
Goudreau  30.0  6  77   1       2.57
Adams     23.3  4  86   1       3.66
B. Kerr   20.0  3  78   1       3.90
Reynolds   7.0  1  36   0       5.14
O. Kerr    3.0  0  17   1       5.67
M. Finney  2.0  1   9   0       4.50

by **Siovanija and Teusland** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 9:37 am

Stelburger Zeitung

Sports

Edelweiss Defeat Ko-oren In Home Debut

It was a historic day at the Imperial Oval in downtown Stelburg, as the Teusland Test cricket team defeated Ko-oren by 9 wickets.

“It’s nice to be home, and obviously the Imperial Oval is a ground full of a lot of history and we’re excited to get underway,” commented the captain Konrad von Sauerland. The Oval is the oldest cricket ground in the country, and is located in parkland that was once part of the Sanssouci Imperial Palace grounds. Now, of course, it is all public land, but the palace can still be seen from the stands. 18,000 Teus were on hand for the first day, a sellout crowd for an event that would surely be historic.

Ko-oren won the toss and the opportunity to bat first, the visitors coming off an interesting series with Liventia where they went 1-1. Teusland as well had a tough series with the Plough Islands before the game, picking up their first international win while also facing a blowout innings defeat in the second leg. Despite the loss, Teusland had still proven themselves enough to earn Associate Member status with the Global Cricket Federation, and the opportunity to schedule a further 5 matches this season. While potential fixtures haven’t been announced yet, it is reported that the Teus Kricket-Verband is actively searching out opponents for possible later-season fixtures. After a short pre-match ceremony celebrating the team’s first home test and the Associate Member status, the action of the first day got underway.

Ko-oren’s early batters earned them a number of runs, but the Teus bowling performance was also excellent. Elias Lehner managed to take down Reginald Twaddle, the batsman having given his side 26 runs before falling. Lehner was excellent throughout the innings, ending up with 3 wickets taken for his side. Ben Trenker was also solid, getting the final out off Soloman Chesterman and also dismissing Patrick Willis earlier in the innings. Overall, it was a very strong performance from the defending side in the first innings. The fielders did their job excellently, and it was Noel Koller making an excellent catch on a hit by Newton Courtenay to slow down a mid-innings recovery from some of the Ko-orenite batsman. When all was said and done before tea on the first day, Ko-oren had managed 162 runs.

It was certainly a score that Teusland could work with in their own first innings. The opening pair of Marc Breuer and Konrad von Sauerland held on for a long time for the Edelweiss, the captain falling only after he’d managed 64 runs. Breuer, now partnered with August Tausche, lasted a little longer, hitting for 72 before being dismissed by the Ko-orenite captain Herschel Marsden. Tausche began his turn cautiously, patiently earning more and more runs. Kilian Wimmer was up with him now, he hit in his innings here as many runs as he’d had in the entire Plough Islands series. He was eventually run out, however, on that total of 51 runs.

Tausche was still hitting now, reaching 85 of his own just after Wimmer was dismissed. Noel Koller was partnering him now, but most eyes at the Imperial Oval were trained on Tausche throughout day 2. Koller was having a strong go of his own, but as Tausche hit 95, there was no question of who the star of the day was going to be. In his next over, Tausche crept closer to the century mark, and on the final ball of the over, hit for 3. That put him at 101, and secured him as the first Teus cricketer to ever hit for a century. The crowd stood and applauded him, and his teammates signalled their appreciation as well.

Tausche was dismissed two overs later on 112, being replaced by Simon Riedl. Riedl came out with no intention of playing patient as day 2 came to an end, and he hit for runs at all positions. The patience was kept by Noel Koller, who had done well to remain in by this point and kept increasing his score with a few smaller hits per over. Riedl, on the other hand, was getting runs quickly, and reached 67 before being caught out by Baldry. At that point, with the Teus sitting on a first-innings total of 416 for 5, Konrad von Sauerland declared the innings closed just before lunch on day 3. The Edelweiss would need time to take all 10 wickets in Ko-oren’s second innings, and von Sauerland’s declaration gave them some time.

Ko-oren thus came out to bat again down 416-162 in runs, needing a massive effort in the second innings to get ahead of the Edelweiss. At first, they seemed to be getting it, with Stevenson hitting for 42, and Patrick Willis managing 61 before his own dismissal. However, it was not to last. Although Ko-oren’s later batters put in a much better display than their first innings performance, it was not enough to give Teusland too much trouble. The real race for the Edelweiss was to secure all 10 outs through the later stages of day 3 and into the early part of day 4. All 10 outs would be needed to make it a win for Teusland, and the bowlers needed to come up big to secure the victory. Gilbert Wheelwright did an excellent job for the visitors at taking things slowly and playing cautiously, and it was eventually his runs that would take Ko-oren over Teusland’s total. However, he eventually fell to a catch from Martin Kaplan. The final out of the innings came from Ben Trenker, whose ball was good enough to dismiss Albin Raycraft on 15 runs.

Teusland came back out on day 4 needing only 64 runs to win the match. It was certainly an achievable target, however, stranger things had happened in sporting history and the Edelweiss would still need to be on their game. Marc Breuer led off and looked as good as he did in the first innings as he and Konrad von Sauerland brought the Edelweiss closer and closer to matching the target. Von Sauerland went down from the bowl of the captain Marsden, and was replaced by August Tausche. Tausche also looked to be picking up from where he’d left off, and when Breuer finished his over with a total of 25 runs, putting the Edelweiss on a total of 63, matching Ko-oren, it was the hero of the test for the Edelweiss to finish it off. He would, of course, on the third ball of the over manage a hit for his 14th of the innings and the Edelweiss’ 64th, giving them the victory.

Teusland managed to take their home debut by 9 wickets over the visiting Ko-oren side, but the work is not yet done, says the captain: “We’re all proud of this one, yeah, but there’s still two more tests in this series and we don’t want to have what happened last time, where we get ahead of ourselves a bit and fall behind the pace.” Von Sauerland added that the team was eager to get back in action and continue their great performance in the first test into the rest of the series.

Test 2 of the series will see the teams face off at the Sankt Kunigunde Oval, operated by the Sankt Kunigunde Cricket Club. The SKO is located facing the seaside, and spectators will have a great view of the Nordmeer. Days in Sankt Kunigunde are often overcast, and during storm season faces heavy rainfall. The forecast is clear for the scheduled dates of the test, however, and the Sankt Kunigunde Cricket Club are looking forward to hosting the teams. It is a ground that slightly favours the bowlers (-1), and local boy Elias Lehner will be hoping to star on his home ground.

We’ll be here to cover all the action as the Teusland vs Ko-oren series continues.

Scorecard

by **Ko-oren** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 12:42 pm

Openers
Stevenson is back for his 13th season as an opening batsman, and makes his obvious return from previous season. His experience only makes him better, and more and more well-adjusted to the slower format. There is a question about how long he is able to keep up his current level of play, and for how long he will play on the national team. For now, however, Ko-oren is set at one of the opening positions. Stevenson batted a solid average of 29.45 for his native Willowbourne last season, one of the better performers on the team at bat there - Willowbourne ended up as the worst batting team in the First Class competition (somehow they did win the List-A comp). Joining him is Reginald Twaddle, another familiar face but 10 years the junior of Stevenson, which means he is here to stay as long as his production keeps up. Twaddle batted an average of 26.06 for West Surbourneshire, the second worst batting team. Both Stevenson and Twaddle have started to get used to being the one batsman that the entire team relies on - not great positions to be in on the FC teams, but not bad experiences to have for the nationals.

Middle-order
There have been rumours about the return of Monroe Baldry - just a little older (33) than opener Stevenson (32), also given his volatile performances in the 9th Test season. One match he kept the team alive with a 75+ runs, not out statline, the next he went out for a duck. Whether Baldry keeps his starting position remains to be seen, as the selectors and the Association tend to favour players with stabler performances. High floor, low ceiling beats out the low floor, high ceiling players. Anyway, Baldry is on the squad on the back of a competition-winning campaign with Greencaster. After him comes Patrick Willis, a new revelation for Eastern Surbourneshire, just 26 years of age. It took him long enough to get settled into the world of professional cricket, he could never make it work in the KT20L (which employs more players than the List-A and FC teams) and as a result it took a while before he was noticed by his local selectors. Within a year, however, he appeared on the radar of the national selectors, and here we are. One small problem with the batting lineup is that all four players so far are right-handed - not a problem, but it will make it easier for opposing bowlers to attack the lineup.

All-rounders
As always, the Green and Blue relies on all-rounders. Normally, two of them are on any starting team and they will be asked to bowl about half of a bowler's share. This time around, they have also been selected for their batting performances. With them, Ko-oren has a diverse bowling lineup as well as a deeper batting lineup compared to last season. First up is Theophilus Darknoll, from Eastern Surbourneshire, a left-handed batsman with unorthodox bowling. Back from last year is Seophyn yMharwn, from Mawryshire, right-handed fast bowler but also a very good batsman.

Wicketkeeper
Ko-oren still has a problem with wicketkeepers: not many come from the local academies, and even fewer stay at the position after making the pros. That said, three are considered the cream of the crop at the domestic level, and only one of them makes the starting XI. The honour, this time around, goes to Gilbert Wheelwright, making his debut as a national teamer. He beats out veteran Theryn yCherwean (from season 9) and Finley Meredith (starter in season 9). All three are right-handers, so not much would have changed there. Wheelwright makes the team after a set of flawless innings with Greencaster. yCherwean is on a gradual decline as his reflexes aren't what they are used to, and Meredith is maybe a better batsman than a wicketkeeper. With all due respect to the players involved, this isn't the best nor the deepest position on the team.

Bowlers
A bit of a dilemma for the bowlers: all big wicket-takers of the domestic season have the same style: right-handed fast bowlers. Ko-oren has a lot of them, which means that inevitably not all will make the team, no matter how much better they are than some of their colleagues. In the end, four bowlers have been selected. First of all is the obvious choice, captain Herschel Marsden is back on the team. He has been in a terrible campaign with Western Surbourneshire (a team with a few stars, and nothing more), but doesn't need to do much to convince the selectors to pick him for another season. Also in: the Leeshire duo of Newton Courtenay (new right-handed fast bowler) and Albin Raycraft (returning, left-handed unorthodox bowler). The fourth starting bowler will be Solomon Chesterman, also back from last season. He was also involved in Greencaster's winning effort, as a right-handed off spinner.

Backup
Not all of these will join the team on every match, obviously, but this is the pool that supplies the substitutions in between matches and series.
- Opener: Nestor Igglesden (28), Greencaster, left-handed
- Batsman: Illres yChaegrheodd (30), Mawryshire, right-handed
- All-rounder: Morris Wilkins (29), Willowbourne, left-handed, unorthodox
- Wicketkeeper: Finley Meredith (26), Willowbourne, right-handed
- Bowler: Lachlan Harvey (29), Eastern Surbourneshire, right-handed fast
- Bowler: Martin Etherington (31), Leeshire, right-handed leg spin

Ko-oren at Teusland - First Test

Scorecard for the first Test

Siovanija and Teusland, or Teusland for cricket purposes, is where we were last season: on the brink of a great debut season. For starters, they beat us in this one with little trouble. Consistency remains a problem for the Ko-orenites, going down for 162 in the first innings. That essentially killed the match then and there, but credit to Teusland for taking that 162 and turning that into a 416-run behemoth first innings for themselves.

A standout performance in the first innings came from Lehner's three wickets, two of which were against the top two scorers on our side, Twaddle and yMharwn. The one redeeming factor for our batting was that no player went out for a duck - every single batsman made the Teuslanders work for it, albeit not very hard. Tausche, then, scored Teusland's first century in a 5-for-416 innings, and we've seen a few of those, especially last season. It's nice to know that as a sort of continuation from last season, we still get those innings where our opponents score over 400 on us and we can't even get past the middle-order. In total, five batsman recorded over 50 runs.

In the second innings, the green and blue had one job: running out the clock, getting a lead, all to waste more time on Day 5, if things got there. Having a 50-over first innings does not help in the time wasting department. Like in the first innings, all 11 put in the work to make this innings a good one. Willis was the best scorer in this innings, at 61, and number 11 Chesterman even had 12. Two ill-advised runs ended the innings for Twaddle and later for yMharwn, which will definitely lead to some stern talking-to by the captain. On the other hand, protecting the wicket was a priority and the players were very well prepared, giving up zero LBWs.

Marsden, the captain himself, took one wicket in Teusland's tiny second innings to avoid a loss by 10 wickets. That's probably the biggest victory of the match in regards to the standings.

After such a balanced couple of batting innings, there probably will not be a change to the order. So far, there haven't been clues towards swapping out bowlers as well, but the second Teusland Test will be a very good mid-season evaluation point.

by **NS Global Cricket Federation** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 2:31 pm

Matchday 5

GCF Test no. 675
Match Report: Ko-oren in Teusland (2 of 3)
Ko-oren bat first
Teusland 414 (112.2 overs), 68/5 (20.5 overs)
Ko-oren 247 (86.5 overs), 231 (81.4 overs)
Teusland win by 5 wickets

GCF Test no. 676
Match Report: Darmen in Liventia (2 of 4)
Darmen bat first
Liventia 229 (90.5 overs), 250 (112.5 overs)
Darmen 343 (108.5 overs), 252 (69.0 overs)
Liventia lose by 116 runs

GCF Test no. 677
Match Report: Elejamie in The Plough Islands (2 of 3)
Elejamie bat first
The Plough Islands 369 (153.2 overs), 119/3 (29.1 overs)
Elejamie 273 (83.4 overs), 210 (65.2 overs)
The Plough Islands win by 7 wickets

GCF Test no. 678
Match Report: Eastfield Lodge in Damukuni (1 of 2)
Damukuni bat first
Damukuni 461 (162.5 overs),
Eastfield Lodge 249 (57.2 overs), 122 (61.1 overs)
Damukuni win by an innings and 90 runs

GCF Test no. 679
Match Report: Eura in Apox (2 of 4)
Eura bat first
Apox 254 (81.1 overs), 233/8 (66.1 overs)
Eura 441 (165.0 overs), 291 (115.0 overs)
Drawn

GCF Test no. 680
Match Report: Sajnur in Pratapgadh (3 of 3)
Pratapgadh bat first
Pratapgadh 207 (55.3 overs), 459 (144.2 overs)
Sajnur 188 (52.4 overs), 312 (90.1 overs)
Sajnur lose by 166 runs
Series drawn 1-1 (1 drawn)

Updated Test rankings

Full Members                       Score  Pts/MP   Adjusted
1 Ethane			 FM  124 (2249/18)  112.47
2 Liventia			 FM  122 (4137/34)  110.84
3 Eura				 FM  114 (2408/21)  107.33
4 Darmen			 FM  105 (3375/32)  102.73
5 Eastfield Lodge		 FM  105 (2951/28)  102.70
6 Ko-oren			 FM  104 (2396/23)  102.09
7 Apox				 FM   94 (2888/31)   96.58
8 The Plough Islands		 FM   75 (1350/18)   87.50

Associate Members
1 Elejamie			 AS   83 (417/5)     97.00
2 Sajnur                         AS   73 (510/7)     91.43
3 Teusland                       AS   70 (210/3)     90.00

Affiliate Members
1 The Busoga Islands             AF  150 (450/3)    120.00
2 Pratapgadh                     AF   60 (240/4)     85.00

Inactive Members
1 Mattijana	              IN/FM  120 (2400/20)  110.00
2 Barunia		      IN/FM  105 (2944/28)  102.57
3 Sargossa		      IN/AS   87 (603/7)     98.00
4 Northwest Kalactin	      IN/AF  104 (728/7)     97.00
5 The Kiaser Colonies	      IN/FM   87 (1400/16)   93.75
6 Lisander		      IN/FM   73 (883/12)    86.79
7 Tobiasia		      IN/FM   67 (1289/19)   83.92
8 Qasden		      IN/AS   55 (165/3)     83.00

Pratapgadh has for the moment been given affiliate member status. However, should they RP again to a decent quality, they will get associate member status.

Updated League Table

                        Pl  W  L  D  T  Ld  Lv  Pts IW  Avg
1   Damukuni             1  1  0  0  0   1   0   20  1  21.0
2   The Busoga Islands   2  2  0  0  0   2   0   40  0  20.0
3   Ethane               4  3  0  1  0   2   0   61  1  16.3
4   Darmen               5  4  1  0  0   3   0   76  0  16.2
5   Teusland             4  3  1  0  0   3   0   60  0  15.0
6   The Plough Islands   4  2  1  1  0   2   0   45  1  12.3
7   Pratapgadh           3  1  1  1  0   2   0   29  0   9.7
8=  Liventia             4  1  3  0  0   2   0   24  1   7.0
8=  Eura                 2  0  0  2  0   0   0    5  0   5.0
10  Apox                 5  1  2  2  0   1   0   34  0   6.8
11  Ko-oren              4  1  3  0  0   1   0   20  1   6.0
12  Sajnur               5  1  3  1  0   1   0   25  0   5.0
13  Elejamie             2  0  1  1  0   1   0    9  0   4.5
14  Eastfield Lodge      5  0  4  1  0   2   0   13  0   2.6

by **Apox** » Fri Feb 01, 2019 8:44 am

GCF Test no. 679
Match Report: Eura in Apox (2 of 4)
Eura bat first
Apox 254 (81.1 overs), 233/8 (66.1 overs)
Eura 441 (165.0 overs), 291 (115.0 overs)
Drawn

Eura 1st Innings
Name                   O   M   R   W  Econ
Roy Hamilton-Randall 30.0  5  71   2  2.37
Rachel Gallegos      22.0  4  60   1  2.73
Keswick Dhawa        34.0  8  63   3  1.85
Jo Frost             38.0  9 110   2  2.89
Organa Arrowsmith    35.0  4 104   1  2.97
Trajan Muldoney       6.0  1  31   1  5.17

Apox 1st Innings
Name                  How Out                 Runs Balls  4/6  SR
Jeff Zanzala          lbw Folkstone             36    73  4/0  49.32                      
Hamish Gaaraayi       c Carpenter b Grant       24    39  3/0  61.54
Trajan Muldoney *     c Dodd b Folkstone        67   151  9/0  44.37
Nancy Washington      c Tunbridge b Higgins     39    54  5/0  72.22
Jak Dickson           c Greenwood b Grant        2     6  0/0  33.33
Organa Arrowsmith     lbw Lark                  20    41  1/0  48.78
Ezra Girard †         c Carpenter b Greenwood   26    56  2/0  46.43
Rachel Gallegos       c Greenwood b Grant        5    12  0/0  41.67
Keswick Dhawa         lbw Folkstone              4     9  0/0  44.44
Jo Frost              c Carpenter b Grant       15    32  1/0  46.88
Roy Hamilton-Randall  NOT OUT                    6    14  0/0  42.86
EXTRAS                4 b, 3 lb, 1 w, 2 nb      10      
TOTAL

FOW
50  for 1 (Gaaraayi)
80  for 2 (Zanzala)
140 for 3 (Washington)
143 for 4 (Dickson)
177 for 5 (Arrowsmith)
214 for 6 (Muldoney)
226 for 7 (Gallegos)
232 for 8 (Dhawa)
236 for 9 (Girard)
254 all out (Frost)

Eura 2nd Innings
Name                   O   M   R   W  Econ
Roy Hamilton-Randall 20.0  6  46   5  2.30
Rachel Gallegos      26.0  2  76   2  2.92
Keswick Dhawa        17.0  2  48   1  2.82
Jo Frost             28.0  4  60   0  2.14
Organa Arrowsmith    24.0  3  61   2  2.54

Apox 2nd Innings
Name                  How Out                 Runs Balls  4/6  SR
Jeff Zanzala          c Grant b Folkstone        5    10  0/0  50.00   
Hamish Gaaraayi       lbw Lark                  57    87  6/1  65.52
Trajan Muldoney *     c Carpenter b Greenwood   12    23  1/0  52.17
Nancy Washington      lbw Folkstone             88   118 10/1  74.58
Jak Dickson           b Folkstone                8    23  0/0  34.78
Organa Arrowsmith     c Raleigh b Folkstone     18    31  2/0  58.06
Ezra Girard †         b Higgins                  7    16  0/0  43.75
Rachel Gallegos       NOT OUT                   16    43  1/0  37.21
Keswick Dhawa         lbw Folkstone              5    26  0/0  19.23
Jo Frost              NOT OUT                    9    20  1/0  45.00
Roy Hamilton-Randall
EXTRAS                3 b, 1 lb, 1 w, 3 nb       8
TOTAL                                          233

FOW
15  for 1 (Zanzala)
45  for 2 (Muldoney)
133 for 3 (Gaaraayi)
151 for 4 (Dickson)
186 for 5 (Arrowsmith)
200 for 6 (Girard)
206 for 7 (Washington)
217 for 8 (Dhawa)

by **The Plough Islands** » Sun Feb 03, 2019 9:06 am

on the 31st January 2019, the Plough Islands Gazette wrote:
ELEJAMIE CHASED DOWN AS FOXES WIN REDCLIFF TEST
by Denis Wormwood, Sporting Correspondent, in Redcliff

Sport often provides a welcome distraction from the "real world" when it becomes too troubling, but it is quite rare that sport provides a distraction from itself. This, however, proved to be the case at the Ironworks Ground today, where after a fraught week dissecting the events of the first Test, Naomi Salisbury's 6-32 in the second Elejamie innings and some excellent batting from Graeme Holt and captain Kevin Laing had set the Plough Islands up with a genuine opportunity to win the second Test and take a lead in the series.
With a slight chill in the breeze but an otherwise gloriously pure day dawning over Redcliff's chimneys and rooftops, and with all ten wickets in hand overnight, the path seemed to be clear for the Foxes to chase down the 104 remaining runs. It became a little rockier, though, as Elejamian paceman Pablo Novak was able to find a good rhythm on the battered pitch and had Matthew Davy (10) pinned in front after twenty minutes had gone, leaving Holt to soldier on with all rounder Shauna Weaver. The pair knuckled down to the task at hand, and - particularly after the latter had got going, hitting Arían Rodriguez for eight off one over to get off the mark - were able to work away at the score, passing the half century mark within the hour.
The Plough Islands were even beginning to relax a little, when Rodriguez struck back; having been fruitless against Weaver, he had more luck with Holt, getting the Redcliff native to lunge at a turning delivery that was miscued far into the air and eventually into Ricardo Montoya's hands in the deep, sending him back on 34. Captain Laing was next out - and, after two overs, was next back, having tried to do much the same thing, but against Novak's pace, and the ball instead nipping under his bat and taking out his middle stump. The Foxes' nerves were jangling just a little, but there were less than twenty runs left to chase, and another local - Redcliff Cricket Board member Arthur Donovan, making his Test debut at home - was relied upon to steer them home, doing so by trading a quick succession of singles with Weaver to set up the total before, with the scores level, launching an explosive six up and over Novak's head. Weaver had 47, Donovan had 15 (off just eight balls), the Plough Islands had won by seven wickets, and - in some small way - the poison and bitterness that had shrouded the last few days among players and fans had been cleared, just a little.
While by the end of the Test, events inside the boundary had begun to displace those outside again, that had not been the case at the start of the match. The Plough Islands Cricket Association had attempted to retain a dignified silence over the treatment of spinner Sarah Ashe, who had been suspended by the Global Cricket Federation pending the outcome of an assessment of her delivery on the recommendation of umpire Pippin Sandstrøm, but the outcry among Foxes fans and among some senior players has been difficult to escape; the issue has even been raised for discussion in the People's Assembly. Both protagonists were absent, and Donovan - who had starred in the islands' 20-over campaign in Ko-oren - was called up due to his familiarity with the ground, but among supporters and even in the body language of the Foxes' players, Ashe still loomed large in her absence.
On the pitch, though, Laing took the decision to ask his opposite number Danny Slezinger to bat, and Andrew Baxter - who had not taken a wicket in five innings and had probably been spared from being dropped by the aforementioned events - was able to find some of his old form back almost immediately. Within twenty minutes, both of the Greenblacks' openers were gone; first Nick Hutcherson (2) edged behind to Ilya Lebed, and then the Swift quick had Steve Loughlin (5) trapped plumb in front to give what would turn out to be an important psychological edge to the Foxes, even as it left Robert Hamilton and wicketkeeper Mike Bentley to try and rebuild. This they did with some difficulty, but after weathering an initial storm of pace from Colin McCarthy and a fired-up Baxter, the runs began to flow, and Elejamie were poised to go into lunch looking strong when Bentley was pinned back by Salisbury on 24, leaving them on a slightly less comfortable looking 89 for 3.
This set the pattern for the rest of the innings; while Elejamie were rarely truly struggling, they had no partnerships that lasted for much longer than a half-century, and the Foxes took wickets on a regular enough basis to keep just a little bit of pressure on even as the runs kept coming. Some were able to resist the pressure longer than others - Hamilton hung around for a fluent 67 and scored particularly well off Baxter, who began to slip into some of his earlier frustration, while right-hander Salman Halabi fended off spin and pace alike and was the last man out, for 69, to part-time leg-spinner Weaver. However, for all their efforts there were far more false starts and aborted innings; no other Elejamian was able to make more than 40, and Salisbury (2-33) and Davy (2-40) excelled at pinning back the middle and lower order; there was even a wicket for Laing, the captain's time-marking medium pace gaining an unexpected victim in Kelly Entwistle who froze up against an attempted yorker and was clean bowled for 24.
Elejamie's 273 was perhaps a small way short of average on a well prepared Redcliff surface, something that Holt and Davy proved when they came out for the Foxes' reply; instinctively working off each other's strengths and needing little prompting in the manner of the best opening partnerships, they batted out the entire morning session on day two and forced Slezinger into trying almost every combination of bowling and field placement he could think of to stem the scoring. Holt was able to reach his half century with ease and some inspired shot selection, and Davy nearly managed the same, but what would have been the drive down the ground to bring the milestone up instead lodged in Hamilton's elbow crook and went down as the end of the partnership, and Davy's innings on 48. As she has often been, Weaver then came and played the role of new partner well, helping the Foxes beyond 100 with some fluid strokes and looking promising until she nicked a short ball to Bentley and departed on 21, leaving Holt to rebuild again.
Out came Laing, joining the two most experienced players on the team, and together they began to dismantle the Elejamian bowling - the afternoon of the second day being something to be endured for the Greenblacks and their fans. Holt was playing without pressure or fear, and opening his shoulders up against some increasingly ragged bowling; towards the end of the afternoon he was scoring freely along with Laing, and Elejamie were in some trouble. He had the opportunity to make a fantastic century but it was not to be; having been dropped by Bentley on 55 and 78, he had made 93 when Hutcherson finally got the better of his defences and got enough contact to remove one bail from the wicket. Donovan - who, allegedly, had received his cap with the words "just go out and see what happens, no need to worry too much" - made a brief cameo, hitting a four and two twos before mistiming a pull and finding Slezinger in the gully, before further runs were accumulated by Leggett (who continued in Donovan's vein before straying too far forward on 24 and being stumped off Lucas Mahler) and then, patiently, by Alec Fedorov, who would go on to anchor the remainder of the innings.
Laing finally departed the next morning for 76, after a slightly contentious lbw decision that none of the team were too fond of arguing with - recalling the Ashe incident - but by now, with the Foxes having just about passed Elejamie's total, it was a case of how much of a lead they would be able to post. Fedorov continued to accumulate patiently, with support from Lebed (11) and McCarthy (15), but would ultimately be the last of the Foxes left standing as Slezinger (3-45) and Novak (3-92) began to assert themselves in the game, and eventually he would be left on a lonely 56 as the Plough Islands posted 369, their highest total of the season so far.
Elejamie's second innings started in far better fashion than their first; Loughlin and Hutcherson were able to settle quickly and put on a quick fifty - primarily from the hapless Baxter, who was starting to leak runs again - and it took an excellent googly bowled by McCarthy to unseat Loughlin, the opener skying the attempted dig out and watching it drop into Davy's hands. However, Mike Hamilton was once again prepared for the pace bowling the Foxes were serving up on the increasingly dry Redcliff surface, and he added a quick 31, with Hutcherson in support all the while, before being run out after cancelling a run too late and leaving himself no time to get back. Bentley then joined Hutcherson and the pair continued to gain confidence, at which point Laing introduced Salisbury into the attack. It is an exaggeration, but a forgivable one, to say that by the time an hour had passed the Test was effectively decided as a contest.
What exactly fuelled the left-arm spinner is hard to determine, but she began by pegging back Bentley's off stump as the wicketkeeper let his guard down; Entwistle came out, and was immediately dismissed in almost the exact same manner, offering up a defence only for the ball to twist by it. Montoya faced the hat-trick ball, and the feat was accomplished in a slightly comical way; the left-hander tried to adjust his position as he picked up the ball following the same trajectory as the other two, only to lose his balance and fall into his stumps while trying desperately to avoid falling into his stumps. The Redcliff crowd were on their feet for what seemed like ages in celebration, but Salisbury was not done yet; she got down from Leggett's shoulders to finish out the over before striking again, this time removing the dangerous Hutcherson for 75 as he gloved a straight arm ball to Lebed, and then responded to Slezinger hoisting one of her deliveries for a six over midwicket by sending down a ball that skimmed the ground and pinned the Elejamie captain in front on the tongue of his boot.
With the tourists having lost five wickets for 36 runs, the excitement in the home crowd was electric, and though the sun was beginning to dip in the iron sky, the Foxes were determined to finish the game off. The biggest obstacle proved to be Halabi, who had stayed firmly rooted since negotiating the delivery after Salisbury's hat trick ball, and had since thrown away all semblance of caution and scored three fours and a six while keeping his feet firmly behind the crease. He was beginning to run out of partners, though; Baxter had served up an excellent length that Mahler could only flick at on its way to Lebed for four, and Salisbury, apparently not satisfied with merely a five-for, returned for another spell after a short break and uprooted Rodriguez' off stump before the leg-spinner knew what was happening.
Halabi persevered, though, and last man Novak was able to snatch singles tactically often enough to begin to frustrate Laing; however, it was eventually one of these that undid the partnership, when Novak overlooked Weaver running in from square leg as he took a chance and the resulting direct hit - after a little confusion - was judged to have run out Halabi. He finished on 29, and had again gone a long way to making the total more respectable; 210 left the Foxes with a target of 116 to win the Test, and there was just enough light remaining in the day for Holt and Davy to come out and make a start. Though they were able to score ten in four overs before stumps, it was more an exercise in assessing the pitch conditions in preparation for today, and set the scene for what would prove an exciting final session of the match.
Laing allowed that he was "...happy I can be talking about the cricket, rather than things happening outside it" in the post-match interviews, but visibly cut a relieved and elated figure; "We had to come out and do something here, and that we've done - Naomi was absolutely brilliant in their second innings, she really made the win possible and she bowled as well as anyone active across the multiverse at the moment, I would go so far as saying. But everybody played their part and I hope we can take this energy to Southport". The matchwinner herself was modest about her achievement - "It was hardly a spinning pitch, all I did was put three balls in more or less the same place and got three different results!" - but was praised by coach Lourens Hendricks; "She won us the game, she's went out there and dismantled Elejamie and got 'em good. I'm so proud of her - at a time when we needed accurate finger spinners the most...".
As Hendricks' last remark showed, there is still a great degree of raw feeling over the Ashe situation, but there is still cricket to be played, and Laing's side have shown that when that is their primary concern they can still keep their heads down and get on with the task at hand. While the final Test of the series at Southport will doubtless not be as easy as this one, all the Foxes can do from here is draw the series, and with the new, world class facilities at the Southport Athletic Club to draw on and a full well of local support, there is reason to believe they can do even better. It is this optimism that the Plough Islands will have to carry with them going forward, and leave the present in the past.

PLOUGH ISLANDS CRICKET ASSOCIATION
XI FOR SEC'D TEST AGAINST ELEJAMIE

      PLAYER            BAT   BOW
G     Holt              LHB      
MG    Davy              RHB   RLB
SLC   Weaver            RHB   RLB
KCT   Laing (c)         RHB   RMD
AM    Donovan           RHB      
AC    Leggett           RHB   RLB
OD    Fedorov           LHB      
IT    Lebed (w)         LHB      
CG    McCarthy          RHB   RFM
A     Baxter            RHB   RFS
NA    Salisbury         LHB   SLA

SOUTHPORT ATHLETIC CLUB (P.M: -3)

the New Revised Visitor's Guide to the Plough Islands wrote:
PLACES OF INTEREST WITHIN AND WITHOUT: SOUTHPORT & NEW HIBERNIA

SOUTHPORT FISH MARKET
Marx Road, Southport, New Hibernia

One of the few contexts in which "market" is not a dirty word on the islands is in their many fishing towns, where so-called responsible capital generation takes place every week as legions of small Plough Islander fishing boats return with their catch. As they have done for generations - only now, under the watchful eye of the Constabulary to make sure nobody is getting away with too much - they lay their return of predominantly haddock and catfish out for direct sale to the masses, often destined to be fried up and served with thick chips. The Southport market has been running since at least the 1790s, and has been housed since 1865 in an arched, semi-open granite structure whose decorative tower and weathervane form a central element of the local skyline and identity.

CRABBLE II/III NUCLEAR POWER COMPLEX
Peaceful Atom Way, Crabble, New Hibernia

The islands' energy demands are relatively small, with the implementation of a 'waste not, want not' mentality from ideological level downwards, and most of them are met by this station; originally built with Soviet support in 1963, the current heavy water reactor was made possible by expertise acquired by the Commonwealth through the Vital Skills Programme in the 1980s, and is housed in a distinctive geodesic "hive" building that dominates the Crabble skyline. The former fishing town has become interlinked with the power plant and its associated residential and welfare facilities, which include one of only two Olympic-size swimming pools in the country and the Crabble Atoms workers' welfare association, most famous for its award winning cricket teams.

Number	Name	Batting Style	Age	Matches	Runs Scored	HS	Avg	50/100
#19	Sanjay Gadia(c)	Left-handed	27	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#45	Rajendra Rathore(w)	Right-handed	22	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#20	Bipin Parte	Right-handed	28	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#67	Juman Mulani	Right-handed	31	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#89	Farhang Gondalwala	Left-handed	23	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#43	Sadha Ghalo	Left-handed	26	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#15	Yashwant Lurka	Right-handed	19	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#86	Pradip Khatmode	Left-handed	29	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#31	Abdaal Rahman	Right-handed	22	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#23	Kartik Kakadia	Right-handed	24	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0
#74	Javed Kazmi	Right-handed	26	0	0*(0)	0	0	0/0

#Num	Name	Style	Age	Matches	Runs	Wickets	Maidens	Avg	Best	5Wickets
#23	Kartik Kakadia	Right-arm Pace	24	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0
#31	Abdaal Rahman	Right-arm Pace	22	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0
#86	Pradip Khatmode	Left-arm Spin	29	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0
#19	Sanjay Gadia	Left-arm Medium Pace	27	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0
#43	Sadha Ghalo	Left-arm Medium Pace	26	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0

Name	Runs	Balls	4s	6s	SR
Rajendra Rathore	51	69	5	0	73.9	b [????]
Bipin Parte	67	78	5	1	85.9	c [????] b [????]
Juman Mulani	10	20	0	0	50.0	b [????]
Farhang Gondalwala	38	27	2	1	140.7	run out [????]
Sanjay Gadia	36	58	1	0	62.1	c [????] b [????]
Sandha Ghalo	14	29	0	0	48.3	b [????]
Yashwant Lurka	8	25	0	0	17.8	c [????] b
Javed Kazmi	3	10	0	0	30	b [????]
Pradip Khatmode	0	3	0	0	0.0	b [????]
Abdaal Rahman	0*	4	0	0	0.0
Kartik Kakadia	4	2	1	0	200.0	c [????] b [????]

GCF World Test Season 10 - RP/Rosters/Scores

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