Nothing I hear from administrators and rule-makers, make me feel any better than I did 10 years ago when some numpty at the ECB was saying that only 50+ people watch the CC then said that we shouldn't have CC at weekends because he wanted to see young people playing cricket not watching - So he said that the youngsters were not watching the CC but we should not have it at weekends because they should be playing in cricket clubs, probably the most stupid contradiction I have ever heard in my life. From then on, I lost face in the ECB. All they are interested in is the same old line about money. Money won't buy success in any sport or else Brazil and Argentina would never win 8 world cup in football, between them. The old line about "Investing in grass roots cricket is what we need...", well, you can have as much money as you like but you need youngsters to WANT to play and not playing it in schools is a massive problem so why not employ ex-players to take it into schools with free equipment paid for by all this money that is made from The Hundread that they say is being made. Also, get more of it on TV, one of the things that got me interested was one day switching on the TV and gradually becoming interested in what was in front of me. You cannot get a young person to become interested in something that they cannot see.

When I looked at the Yorkshire line-up I did think it was well short of batting strength and Malan scored so slowly towards the end because of all the wickets falling around him. Our early bowling wasn't good and spinners bowling wides never looks good. They has 87-2 after 10 overs and that's why I thought 190+ looked on but they were to blame for their own downfall.

Well that was better, although because I thought their batting was light on looking at their line-up, I wasn't therefore shocked at the collapse. At one time I thought 190+ but they gifted some wickets. Very pleased that we didn't give catching practice again, the discipline of keeping the ball on the ground early on until you have a good look at the bowling. Very small crowd and I know it wasn't warm but the forecast got it right with no rain but that must be one of the smallest I have seen. Enjoyed the Bears women, Laura Harris is some hitter, no let up from her, she sees it and gives it a good whack with superb timing, just a pity she's not English.

Please tell me that last comment was a joke. Pleeeeaaaase.

*Also why does it say I joined this site in 2021, it was 2010, not long after the CB40 Final.

The thing is with Bethell is that we know he can do the 'Bazball' thing but we really have no idea what he will play like when England might be 6 down and he is batting with numbers 8-11. Has he got the patience to knock the ball around, try and take 70%+ of the strike and try and build a good total for his team. We haven't seen this side of him really and I am not sure how he would play this situation.

I do get rather fed up with us having players missing for Lions games and although Mouse did get another ton, he would be better off in a more intense situation with a bigger crowd playing T20 games. Not sure if Woakes is being wrapped in cotton wool for the India series but it won't hurt him to have a T20 game or 2 as it is only 4 overs of bowling. If Gleeson comes in, I very much hope it in place of Garton.

No one is saying that 1's and 2's will win games but where we appear to fail is in not getting 4's when they will win games, whilst apparently trying to hit 6's on big playing areas. We all know that scoring boundaries are what makes big scores but our batsmen do seem to get caught inside the ropes too early in their innings instead of just being content to 'Have a look' first and knock it around. Latham was a prime example getting caught from the first big shot he made contact with and maybe Moeen and Davis did the same. I would sooner we were 30-1 (6) rather than 50-3 (6) because too many batsmen tries to go big without really having got set. This also appears to be Ed Pollock's downfall on most occasions at Worcester, bring on a spinner and watch him perish again, trying to go big.

If Latham is playing, he is not a sort of 'Let him loose in the Powerplay' sort of player, so he needs to come in later but not sure if Hain is a slow starter either, maybe it looks that way because once he is past 50, he really accelerates but strike rates of 129.5 would only get you to 155 in an innings if everyone batted the same way. We rely on Hain too much and if he fails, who do we have to get us to 180-200. A lot of counties have quick scoring batsmen early on and that is what is needed but too many with low scoring rates means there is more pressure on Hain and Barnard which is unfair. It seems as though when trying to accelerate, our players appear to go big and look for 6's when you can move things along by also keeping it on the ground and running well between the wickets. Like Saturday, the danger of trying to clear the ropes, leaves you giving catching practice when the boundaries are very wide out. We did it in last years quarter final when there was no need.

We had the same problem last season when Benjamin kept being picked and wasn't scoring any runs. Latham doesn't have a good T20 record and is he being picked just because he is our overseas player. He as well as Moeen and Davies got out sloppily playing attacking shots when we had a big ground space to aim for, the boundaries were very wide out near the fences. We are unlikely to see Bethell so we can forget him but a specialist batsmen must be found instead of picking Garton as a batsman when he was originally picked as a bowler who can bat. We have the spinning roles covered but we cannot keep relying on Hain/Barnard to keep digging us out of holes and the runs could be a problem if these 2 get out early.

This was like a replay of last years quarter final, the boundaries spread as far as they can and then our batsmen giving catching practice to leave us 4-3. You wouldn't mind if you were facing demon fast bowlers or mystery spinners but it seems we are just not learning lessons from past mistakes. Someone needs to look at the team on paper and sort out the weak elements and then fill those weak elements with people like Simmons, OHD and people who must have done something at 2nd XI cricket to warrant giving them a go or this competition is gone before it we are halfway through. What a waste of a Saturday, not too bad for me as I am retired now but anyone who spent the whole day there will feel annoyed.

Apart from Lintott, that was awful.

This is garbage although it is the first game but with a big score on the board, it is a worry going forward if we cannot defend 226. Garton lost the plot last season v Worcestershire and someone needs to have a word with him or else he will appear to not know what to do every time he gets hit around.

Bosworth, yes, there was exactly the same forecast from Friday onwards saying 70-80% rain and it never changed at all and the Met Office site does try and keep up to date constantly. The forecast WAS bad enough as I kept looking for it to hopefully change but it didn't. If I was a captain and the forecast kept saying the same thing then I would be inclined to declare and trust it even though we know not all forecasts are 100% correct. A 280 chase would be the highest score of the match and not really likely on a difficult pitch. Sometimes you have to back your team and Davies didn't.

Draw. Mr Davies, take a look at the bigger picture in future. Winning a game requires you to look further ahead than others if you are captain. Make sure you have enough time to win and the bowlers to do it and that requires asking them to bowl when it might not suit them and also having a rough idea about what might come down above your head. You cannot do much about the weather but you can at least be thinking ahead. We will never know what might have happened if we'd thrown the bat yesterday after tea and got them back in to face and extra hours bowling, it might have made today a lot easier but having a side 8 down and then watching the chance to win disappear is really frustrating and annoying.

Lots of people on the live YouTube feed were typing that Rushworth and Woakes needed to get back on before lunch. I can never understand why fielders meander to their positions and you can understand how people who watched cricket just after the 2nd WW get frustrated about the lack of movement in teams who appear to not be bothered about trying to just get a few more overs in. Do teams never have discussions in the changing rooms and say things like, "I know we only need to get a certain number of overs in but why not just move it along quicker so as not to get caught out later in the day". I agree with you LE, a bit more of a positive look ahead to try see that the opposition where never likely to chase more than 270.

Don't agree about the batting on Saturday, it was a bowling day and most attacking shots caused problems and it was the best way to play in the circumstances, go into the 3rd day with 1 wicket down and a 99 lead, attacking could have seen us 4-5 down and a lead of 80.

They're off. We did say last night that we would definitely lose time and if the rain comes we could regret not declaring. Every captain should look at the weather, regardless of if it actually happens 100% like predicted, you still have to keep it in the back of your mind.

Just noticed, 2 ex-Worcestershire players umpiring. Never think that is a good idea, not because I think they would be biased but any slightly 'Iffy' decisions could lead to a bit of unease if it costs one side the game.

7 down but keep the wicket takers on, mustn't let up.

Oh look, 4 down.