Joel Lamy - sporting underachiever: September 2012

A look at how the county season went for each team and how bad my predictions ended up being,,,

Division 1

Durham

Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 1st

CB40 – Semi-finals

T20 – Final}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 6th}

^{CB40 – 5th in Group B}

^{T20 – 3rd in Group C}

^Summary

^{An awful start in the
Championship meant they were faced by relegation, not helped by a series of low
scores (Paul Collingwood had the highest average with 33.19). Five wins from
their last six pushed them well clear of the bottom two and showed why many had
tipped them to win the title at the start of the season. They will start next
season with a 2.5 points deficit in the Championship and 0.25 deductions in the
CB40 and T20 for breaking an ECB spending cap.}

^{Star performer – Graham Onions}

^{The division’s top
wicket-taker with 64 at an average of 15, in one innings against
Nottinghamshire he claimed 9-67 and ruined his chances of all 10 by claiming a
run-out. Played against the West Indies with Broad and Anderson rested and has
been awarded a n incremental England contract for his efforts now that he has
fully recovered from his back problem.}

^Lancashire

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 3rd

CB40 – Group Stage

T20 – Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 8th}

^{CB40 – Semi-final}

^{T20 – 4th in Group}

^Summary

^{A first Championship in 77
years has been followed by relegation. Having upset the odds 12 months ago it
was not expected that they would challenge this time around, but their poor
results this year only highlight just what a brilliant effort it was to win the
title last time. With just six centuries and only Ashwell Prince averaging
above 40, even with the poor weather that is a bad return. A CB40 semi-final
does not even come close to making up for the relegation which means they will
play next season below rivals Yorkshire. The
question will be who will Ajmal Shahzad play for next season?}

^{Star performer – Steven Croft}

^{Two hundreds and an average
of 29 in the Championship and 12 wickets at an average of 24 are an ok return,
but batting averages of 57 in the CB40 with six 50s from 13 innings (and four
not outs) and 62 in the T20 with two 50s is excellent going. Came 9th in the
PCA rankings.}

^Middlesex

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 8th

CB40 – Group Stage

T20 – Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 3rd}

^{CB40 – 2nd in Group A}

^{T20 – 5th in Group B}

^Summary

^{One of the surprises in the
Championship with a third placed finish boosted by the presence of Andrew
Strauss and Steven Finn for a few matches but the former has now retired and
the latter will play less next season having established himself in the England
Test team.}

^{Star performer – Toby Roland-Jones}

^{64 wickets at an average of
under 20 is a fine return from the tall seam bowler who took 31 of those in his
last five matches. He will now firmly be on the England selectors’ radar. 11
wickets at an average of just over 12 in the CB40 is pretty impressive as well.}

^{Nottinghamshire}

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 4th

CB40 – Semi-final

T20 – Semi-final}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 5th}

^{CB40 – 4th in Group B}

^{T20 – Quarter-final}

^Summary

^{Same old story for Notts
who always seem to start the season on fire but tail off towards the end.
Having been battling for the Championship title with Warwickshire they failed
to take their chances in matches and ended up drawing too many times before
finishing fifth. Once again they looked good in the T20 but having got past the
group stage they lost narrowly to eventual champions Hampshire at home.}

^{Star performer – Chris Read}

^{The 54 wickets of Andre
Adams were a big reason why Notts once again started the season well and his
injuries weakened their attack. New signing Lumb impressed batting in the top
three at Trent Bridge where so many have struggled in
the past. He hit three hundreds with his 910 runs coming at an average a touch
below 40 which all things considered is some effort. But he was surpassed by
wicket-keeper Read: averages of 48.75 in the Championship, 59 in the CB40 and
60 in the T20 say it all really.}

^Somerset

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 5th

CB40 – Winners

T20 – Winners}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 2nd}

^{CB40 – 3rd in Group B}

^{T20 – Semi-final}

^Summary

^{The perennial bridesmaids
of county cricket were at it again, although their runners-up place in the
Championship this season was the result of a good end of season and not
indicative of a genuine title challenge. An injury to Marcus Trescothick was a
massive blow and his return could not inspire victory in the T20 where again
they just fell short.}

^{Star performer – Nick Compton}

^{The wettest summer in
living memory was a batsman’s nightmare, but nobody told the Somerset batsman who ended the season with a
Bradman-esque average of 99.25 having narrowly missed out on 1000 runs before
the end of May. An average of 47.4 in the CB40 was not quite as impressive but
still a fine effort and a call-up to the national team is well deserved. An
honourable mention should be given to Abdur Rehman for his end of season cameo,
ending with averages of 14 in the Championship and 8 in the CB40. Peter Trego
was also ranked as the county
MVP for the season.}

^Surrey

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 2nd

CB40 – Final

T20 – Quarter-finals}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 7th}

^{CB40 – 2nd in Group B}

^{T20 – 6th in Group B}

^Summary

^{A traumatic season finally
ended with relegation avoided, but the death of Tom Maynard will continue to haunt
the county. The retirement of Mark Ramprakash and the announcement that Rory
Hamilton-Brown can speak to other
counties means that more upheaval is still in the air.}

^{Star performer – Stuart Meaker}

^{Kevin Pietersen may have
averaged 95 with the bat, hitting two centuries and two half-centuries in his
seven innings, but four matches is not enough to be the side’s star player.
Instead, that award should go to fast-bowler Meaker who took 44 first-class
wickets from his 10 matches at an average of 22.56 to show why he is highly
rated by the England
selectors.}

^Sussex

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 7th

CB40 – Group Stage

T20 – Semi-final}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 4th}

^{CB40 – Semi-final}

^{T20 – Semi-final}

^Summary

^{A consistent season for the
Sharks who challenged in all three competitions without coming close to winning
any of them. They wowed the crowds with their massive hitting during the T20
group stages, often going above 10 an over in their innings. With some good
bowlers and lots of solid batsmen, it won’t take much more for them to win
something next season.}

^{Star performer – Steve Magoffin}

^{Lots of players stood out
for Sussex
with bat and ball. Carlo Nash scored some runs and proved why he is one of
county cricket’s golden arms with 21 first-class wickets at an average of 21.
Luke Wright and Matt Prior both impressed in the limited overs matches and
Monty Panesar took 53 wickets in the Championship at an average of 23 to cement
his place as England’s
second-choice spinner. However, he was narrowly pipped by Aussie pace bowler
Magoffin who took 57 wickets at an average of 20.}

^Warwickshire

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 6th

CB40 – Group Stage

T20 – Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 1st}

^{CB40 – Final}

^{T20 – 4th in Group A}

^Summary

^{They may have missed out on
the CB40 due to losing two more wickets than Hampshire, but what a season for
the Bears. Having come so close last time they made up for that by romping to
the title with a match to spare. With runs all the way from 1-11, all the
bowlers taking wickets and superb fielders throughout, this was as complete a county
team as you could find. Even the blow of missing Chris Woakes at the start of
the season could not stop them from winning the title.}

^{Star performer – Rikki Clarke}

^{One of the forgotten men of
English cricket, all-rounder Clarke had a stunning season. The taker of 29
first-class catches, he impressed in the averages: averages of 44.71 and 27.7
in the Championship as well as 32.14 and 18 in the CB40 means he just nudges
out a number of his team-mates who all had excellent seasons. He still can’t
buy a wicket in T20s though.}

^{Worcestershire}

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{– 9th

CB40 – Group Stage

T20 – Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 9th}

^{CB40 – 7th in Group A}

^{T20 – Quarter-final}

^Summary

^{As was expected this was
another season of struggle for a county who continually try to punch above
their weight. Relegation to Division Two was no surprise with just one recorded
win as the batsmen all struggled and only the wickets of Alan Richardson
provided any comfort. Vikram Solanki is the latest high-profile name to leave
the county as he moves to Surrey. A
quarter-final place in the T20 showed some improvement though.}

^{Star performer – Alan Richardson}

^{Phil Hughes scored
prolifically in the limited overs formats but could not match that in the
four-day matches. Instead, it was veteran seamer Richardson who again came to
the fore, with 57 wickets at an average of under 20.}

^{Division 2}

^Derbyshire

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 6th

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 1st}

^{CB40 – 4th in Group C}

^{T20 – 5th in Group C}

^Summary

^{In the list of teams who
you’d expect to win the Second Division few if any would have put Derbyshire
near the top. But win it they did, helped by runs from their oversees stars
Martin Guptill and Usman Khawaja. Helped by wickets from all of their bowlers
the Midlands club stormed to the top and held on to stay above Yorkshire and win the title.}

^{Star performer – Martin Guptill}

^{He may only have played
eight matches but 594 runs at an average of 49.5 is a fine return. In his three
knocks in the CB40 the New Zealander also hit 217 runs at an average of 72.33.}

^Essex

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 2nd

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Quarter-final}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 5th}

^{CB40 – 5th in Group A}

^{T20 – Quarter-final}

^Summary

^{A disappointing season for
Essex who failed to challenge in their traditional forte of the limited-overs
competitions. Their squad should have been good enough to push for promotion but
without Ravi Bopara for much of the season they missed out despite their
batsmen and bowlers all having decent seasons.}

^{Star performer – David Masters}

^{Last season’s top wicket
taker could only manage 46 this time around, but at an average of 19 that’s a
pretty good effort. Bopara scored runs when he played for his county as did
another England
international in Owais Shah who only played eight first-class matches.}

^Glamorgan

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 7th

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 6th}

^{CB40 – 6th in Group B}

^{T20 – 5th in Group A}

^Summary

^{A generally poor season
with no impression made on any competition for the Welsh county.}

^{Star performer – James Allenby}

^{A solid performer with bat
and ball in all competitions. In the Championship he averaged a shade under 42
with the bat and 25 with the ball whilst his 12 wickets in the CB40 only cost
21.67 runs each,}

^{Gloucestershire}

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 8th

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 9th}

^{CB40 – 3rd in Group A}

^{T20 – Quarter-final}

^Summary

^{Some decent performances in
the CB40 and T20 but woeful in the Championship where they ended up with the
wooden spoon, causing Alex Gidman to resign the captaincy.}

^{Star performer – Will Gidman}

^{Could not match his
exploits of last summer but was still his county’s best performer. He averaged
28 with the bat as his side struggled but it’s with the ball that he shone,
taking 44 wickets at an average of 21.43.}

^Hampshire

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 4th

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Semi-final}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 4th}

^{CB40 – Winners}

^{T20 – Winners}

^Summary

^{They may have missed out on
promotion in the Championship, but it’s been a stunning season for Hampshire
who won two competitions and have now qualified for the Champions League.
Winning the CB40 on the number of wickets lost was a remarkable way to end the
county season.}

^{Star performer – Jimmy Adams}

^{987 runs from 14 matches is
a good return for the top order batsman and he scored some runs in the CB40 as
well.}

^Kent

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 3rd

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 3rd}

^{CB40 – 3rd in Group C}

^{T20 – 4th in Group B}

^Summary

^{Narrowly missed out on
promotion as their defeat on the last day of the season confined them to
another season in the Second Division after Jimmy Adams’ first year in charge.}

^{Star performer – Darren Stevens}

^{Another great season for
the all-rounder as the following bowling averages attest to: 24 in the
Championship, 16.3 in the CB40 and 19.29 in the T20. And with the bat he didn’t
average less than 25 in any format which is also a good achievement. Special
mentions should go out to Mat Coles for his 52 wickets and 371 runs as well as
Sam Northeast who averaged 55 with the bat in the Championship.}

^{Leicestershire}

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 9th

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Quarter-final}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 7th}

^{CB40 – 6th in Group A}

^{T20 – 6th in Group C}

^Summary

^{Began the season with a
batting collapse and things didn’t get any better with few batsmen or bowlers
having good seasons. The loss of talent to Nottinghamshire is being keenly felt
in their poor performances in all competitions.}

^{Star performer – Wayne White}

^{Averages of 29.33 with the
bat and 43 wickets at 29.91 with the ball in the Championship are good figures,
but when nobody else betters that effort you know something has gone wrong.}

^{Northamptonshire}

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 5th

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Quarter-final}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 8th}

^{CB40 – 6th in Group C}

^{T20 – 6th in Group A}

^Summary

^{The same old players but a
different result, with the once formidable batting line-up failing to fire and
the bowling attack looking weak. Shocking performances in all competitions with
pretty much no positives to take.}

^{Star performer – Andrew Hall}

^{The veteran South African
took 34 wickets cheaply and a handful of runs. Nothing special, but then that
sums up Northants’ season.}

^Yorkshire

^Prediction

^County^Championship^{- 1st

CB40 - Group Stage

T20 - Group Stage}

^Result

^County^Championship^{– 2nd}

^{CB40 – 5th in Group C}

^{T20 – Final}

^Summary

^{They may have missed out in
the T20 final but a place in the Champions League and promotion back to
Division One makes it a good season after the shock relegation a year earlier.
Geoffrey Boycott will certainly be happy and there will be no need for the
chief executive slamming his team in public this time.}

^{Star performer – Jonny Bairstow}

^{A tough choice with so many
batsmen scoring runs, but his average of 53.45 and quick strike-rate stand out.
Don’t expect to see him playing too much for his county from now on.}

^{Some of players to watch from before the season started…}

^{5 golden oldies}^{1. Mark Rampakash (42) (Surrey)
– 107 runs for 10 dismissals hastened his retirement after a glorious county
career.

2. Andre Adams (36) (Nottinghamshire) – 54 wickets in an injury-hit season and
given the ‘ball of the season’ award by The Guardian for his dismissal of
Andrew Strauss. Notts fans will be glad he has penned a new deal.

3. Glen Chapple (38) (Lancashire) – Couldn’t replicate the heroics of 12 months
ago but bowling averages of 24.05, 20.4
and 13.11 show he is still a valuable asset for the Red Rose.

4. Robert Croft (41) (Glamorgan) – Capped a great career with a wicket off his
last ball and ending his season with an average of 17.48.

5. Vikram Solanki (36) (Worcestershire) – Will move to Surrey
after preventing his side from avoiding relegation as he averaged a
disappointing 23.6.}^{5 overseas stars}^{1. Chris Gayle (Somerset)
– cancelled his contract

2. Muttiah Muralitharan (Gloucestershire) – took only five wickets but his
economy rate in the T20 was just 5.29.

3. Saeed Ajmal (Worcestershire) – Cancelled his contract

4. Vernon Philander (Somerset) – 23 wickets at
an average of 21.35 to start the season in helpful conditions before joining South Africa
for their tour.

5. Herschelle Gibbs (Durham)
– Nine T20 matches, 277 runs, two 50s, an average of 39.57and a strike-rate of
124.21. Good going from the South African

5 youngsters to watch}^{1. James Taylor (Nottinghamshire) – Given an England call-up but
has not made the tour to India
and averaged just 32 in the Championship.

2. Ben Stokes (Durham)
– Exceeded with the ball but struggled a touch with the bat. Still has a very
bright future.

3. Chris Woakes (Warwickshire) – Missed the start of the season through injury
but came back with a vengeance, averaging 71.83 with the bat and 25.22 with the
ball in the Championship mixed with good performances in the other
competitions.

4. Simon Kerrigan (Lancashire) – Rated highly by the England
management but only averaged 34.82 with the ball and did not take a five-for in
the Championship despite being Lancashire’s
top wicket-taker with 44.

5. Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire) – Hit a brilliant 99 against the West Indies on
his home ground but ended up slightly down
on what he would have expected for his county. Can hopefully make a big
impression in Sri Lanka
for the World T20.}

^Predictions

^{Here’s a
look at how the predictions went this summer between myself, Richard Ayling,
Simon Berry, Frankie Conway, Fraser Kesteven, Luke Robinson and Sam Travell.}

^{Division 1}

^{Top run scorer:}^{JL: James Hildreth

RA: Marcus Trescothick

SB: Marcus Trescothick

FC: Marcus Trescothick

FK: Michael Di Venuto

LR: Marcus Trescothick

ST: Karl Turner}

^{Result:
Nick Compton (1191)

Top wicket taker:}^{JL: Steven Finn

RA: Monty Panesar

SB: Andre Adams

FC: Graham Onions

FK: Steve Harmison

LR: Monty Panesar

ST: Stuart Meaker}

^{Result:
Graham Onions (64)}^{Champions:

JL: Durham

RA: Durham

SB: Somerset

FC: Lancashire

FK: Durham

LR: Durham

ST: Durham}

^{Result:
Warwickshire}^{Relegated teams:

JL: Middlesex, Worcestershire

RA: Middlesex, Worcestershire

SB: Sussex, Worcestershire

FC: Middlesex, Worcestershire

FK: Worcestershire, Sussex

LR: Middlesex, Worcestershire

ST: Lancashire,
Warwickshire}

^{Result:
Worcestershire, Lancashire}

^{Division 2}^{Top run
scorer:}^{JL: Owais Shah

RA: Michael Carberry

SB: Michael Carberry

FC: Michael Carberry

FK: Anthony McGrath

LR: Simon Katich

ST: Phil Jaques

Result: Jimmy Adams (987)}

^{Top wicket taker:

JL: Ryan Sidebottom

RA: Ajmal Shahzad

SB: Ryan Sidebottom

FC: David Masters

FK: Ajmal Shahzad

LR: Charlie Shreck

ST: Tim Bresnan}

^{Result:
David Balcombe (59)}^{Champions:

JL: Yorkshire

RA: Yorkshire

SB: Yorkshire

FC: Hampshire

FK: Hampshire

LR: Yorkshire

ST: Northamptonshire}

^{Result:
Derbyshire}^{Bottom-place team:

JL: Leicestershire

RA: Gloucestershire

SB: Leicestershire

FC: Leicestershire

FK: Gloucestershire

LR: Leicestershire

ST: Leicestershire}

^{Result:
Gloucestershire}^{T20 winners:

JL: Somerset

RA: Somerset

SB: Durham

FC: Somerset

FK: Somerset

LR: Somerset

ST: Nottinghamshire}

^{Result:
Hampshire}^{CB40 winners:

JL: Somerset

RA: Surrey

SB: Nottinghamshire

FC: Somerset

FK: Surrey

LR: Nottinghamshire

ST: Durham}

^{Result:
Hampshire}^{Series results}^{West Indies (Test, ODI, T20):

JL: Win, Win, Lose

RA: Win, Win, Win

SB: Win, Win, Lose

FC: Win, Win, Win

FK: Win, Win, Win

LR: Win, Win, Win

ST: Win, Lose, Win

Result: Win, Win, Win}

^{South Africa (Test, ODI, T20):

JL: Lose, Win, Lose

RA: Win, Lose, Win

SB: Win, Lose, Win

FC: Win, Win, Lose

FK: Draw, Lose, Lose

LR: Win, Lose, Win

ST: Win, Win, Win}

^{Result:
Lose, Draw, Draw}^{Australia (ODI)

JL: Lose

RA: Win

SB: Win

FC: Win

FK: Lose

LR: Lose

ST: Lose}

^{Result: Win}^{First player who didn't tour Sri Lanka to make the Test side
this summer}^{JL: James Taylor

RA: James Taylor

SB: Jonny Bairstow

FC: Chris Tremlett

FK: Joe Root

LR: James Taylor

ST: Luke Robinson}

^{Result:
Jonny Bairstow}

^{Bonus (no points attached) Your one to watch?}^{JL: Chris Gayle

RA: Reece Topley

SB: Alex Hales

FC: Kyle Hogg

FK: Chris Gayle

LR: Herschelle Gibbs

ST: Muttiah Muralitharan}

^{Final
points total (half a point for series result)}

^{JL: 2 1/2}

^{RA: 4}

^{SB: 3 1/2}

^{FC: 4}

^{FK: 3 1/2}

^{LR: 2 1/2}

^{ST: 2}^{Want to remind yourself}^{what Warwickshire coach
Ashley Giles and captain Jim Troughton said before the season began?}

^{http://www.redbrickpaper.co.uk/2012/04/warwickshire-duo-seek-home-comforts-in-pursuit-of-championship-glory/}

For my Twenty20 preview click here http://www.redbrickpaper.co.uk/2012/09/world-twenty20-preview-west-indies-to-claim-surprise-title/

Joel Lamy - sporting underachiever

Friday 21 September 2012

County round-up

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