You might have already seen the letter we sent to Waitrose last week. If not, here’s a reminder of what we’re trying to do. Giles Clarke and the ECB don’t give a monkey’s about the English cricketing public. They have no interest in our views, our questions, or the things we’re unhappy about. But they do care about their sponsors. The route to Clarke’s heart is through his wallet. We figured we could get his attention via the soft underbelly of his corporate...
Pick Your England Team for the World Cup
I’m going to be honest here. I have no idea what England’s best ODI team is. Fortunately however (or should that be unfortunately?) I’m not alone. Nobody knows what England’s best XI is. Not even Peter Moores and the selectors. Consequently I think we should give them some ideas. As Moores, Cook, Whitaker, Fraser, Newell and even Downton are all avid readers of TFT – or at least I can’t think of a single reason why they shouldn’t be (wink, wink) – this post will surely lay the foundations for...
Fletcher v Flower, county unrest, and the ‘Asian gap’
Let’s discuss a few of the talking points from the last few days. We might as well start with yesterday’s announcement of the Lions squad to face South Africa ‘A’. As we previewed on Sunday, Jonathan Trott was named in the party. Beyond that, here are your starters for ten. Q. Sam Robson, Alex Lees and Adam Lyth are effectively fighting it out for the privilege of opening the batting alongside our Dear Leader in the test team. Who will prevail? And if the chosen one...
Keeping Up With the Joneses
I am now thirty-eight years old. I’m not ancient by any means, but the aches and pains I suffer after playing cricket are increasing noticeably. When I wake up in the morning after the first game of the season, my back is stiff and my hamstrings feel as tight as tigers. And if I’ve bowled a few overs my right shoulder is traumatised. It’s not fun being the least supple man in the universe. Consequently, when I learned that Geraint Jones, also thirty-eight years old, has signed a contract to...
Selectors Anxious To Get Trott Back in the Fold
First of all, apologies for my absence over the last few days. I found myself trapped in a bizarre world in which frustrated actors walking around in animal costumes are idolised. That’s one way of looking at Eurodisney anyway. On my return yesterday the breaking news in English cricket – a world in which frustrating administrators walk around in suits but are idolised only by themselves – is that good old Jonathan Trott is apparently returning to international cricket with the Lions. This...
The devil is in the detail: part one
Earlier this week you might have seen our open letter to Waitrose. We wrote to Mark Price, their managing director, requesting that as he uses his influence within the ECB, as England team sponsor. We asked him to tell Giles Clarke that England supporters feel betrayed, ignored, and disenfranchised. I heard back from Waitrose this morning, and it was a disappointing response. Their press officer simply said she would pass the letter on to the ECB. She didn’t make it clear whether...
