"More waffle and drivel."
Reader Nick Dearden.
It's always lovely to get a positive review in and while I'm sure Mr Dearden missed last week's column, which I was unable to write due to illness, perhaps he picked up last Friday's Observer to enjoy the much-delayed print version of the particular article which moved him to comment.
It never does to get ahead of yourself. Just a couple of weeks ago I was quietly congratulating myself on going a few years without any sickness or time off, not even a sniff of flu for a couple of winters.
Inevitable then that I'd finally have to miss a few cricket games through a completely unexpected bout of, of all things Covid
The morning of Accrington's home game against Enfield I came down with a bout of the shivers and had to cry off and while I turned up for the new school term's first two days of lollipop duty by the first Tuesday afternoon I'd had had to go off for the rest of the week.
I had a more scary brush with Covid in 2020 when I fell into a diabetic coma for a few days and nearly died (I haven't touched alcohol since so it did me some good and has saved me a few bob) so I wasn't taking any chances this time even if it meant missing a trip to Rawtenstall, one of my favourite away grounds.
Happily there's been a bit of cricket on telly to watch, even a confusing mixture you might say.
Hundred, Blast, ODI's and even, this week, a late burst of County Championship action. I'd even managed a first visit of the season to Old Trafford a few days before falling ill to watch a very young Lancs side play Middlesex in the Metro Bank one day trophy,.
Happily, I'll be back this weekend to see out Accrington's season with the home game against Great Harwood. Cherry Tree have two Saturdays remaining so my season at least extends into late September. I hate missing games and cricket weekends especially when we are getting to the tail end and eight gloomy cricketless months approach.
Those of you who, like me, follow Blackburn Rovers, probably appreciate more than most what long winters they seem at present.
Before falling ill the last game, or rather half a game, I did was Cherry Tree's NWCL Division two match at home to Earby. The home side made 176 for 6 in 39 overs before rains came, largely due to a superb half century from former Oswaldtwistle Immanuel captain Kurt Smithson who had been threatening a fifty for some weeks.
He and young Harvey O'Toole doubled the score from 88 for six but there was little prospect of any resumption thereafter although captains, umpires and scorers spent an inordinate amount of time over discussions as to whether you could go back on after the minimum game-constituting 20-over cut off time if one or both captains thought pursuing a result possible.
It really does need clarifying. I had no idea and neither did Earby's very young scorer or for that matter their captain, her dad. Understandably he had no wish to chase the 177 in considerably less than 20 overs and quite what the home captain thought he could achieve in the 13 or 14 possible was unspecified.
Mercifully any talk of resuming was abandoned eventually. No wonder you get poorly hanging about in scoreboxes for rainy hours on end.
A What's App Scorers group for one league I work in constantly bemoans that certain teams don't send scorers to Second XI or sometimes First XI fixtures. While it would be great if everyone did, umpires and captains expecting Year 9 and 10 GCSE students to help adjudicate such weather-affected calculations isn't going to encourage them.
Senior scorers need to remember that we were young once and youngsters are to be encouraged and helped, not rebuked or spoken to like naughty third-formers if they or their team turn up without a book.
We should remember to speak to young kids as if they were our own, not dismiss them out of hand because they only know how to score on phone or iPad. Staging a book keeping course in Farnworth or Ashley Bridge isn't much help to a teenager in Barnoldswick or Padiham.
Anyhow, Cherry Tree followed that unsatisfactory draw up with a win in their (for now) final meeting with Whalley.
Mark Hadfield with 55 and pro Min Bhada with six wickets starred in that farewell. Whalley, with a fair ex-Church/Accrington contingent among their current line-up move to the Northern League/Place Shield set-up next season, a switch which could eventually see them travelling to places afar like Carlisle, Barrow-in-Furness and Penrith to play cricket depending on future promotions and relegations.
I don't think that will be the last move of a team from one league to another. I have a gut feeling in particular the NWCL alliance between former Ribblesdale League and Bolton based teams isn't a match made in heaven for permanence. Who knows?
In the Lancashire League things seem reasonably settled for now although the balance of the Second Division where Accrington now stand third bottom will shift slightly next season when promoted neighbours Enfield and champions Greenmount (only ever a couple of miles out of the traditional Lancs League area) are replaced by relegated pair Rochdale and Middleton.
As I mentioned I missed the Enfield match at the iMEP, a convincing victory for the Dill Hall Laners, and the win at Rawtenstall, a rain-affected 20 overs perm side affair with Duckworth Lewis, which takes no account of bad light, giving Accrington 136 to chase in gathering gloom.
Mark Taylor, scoring for us and Rawtenstall fan Chis Egan whose son Tom took a spectacular boundary catch to end Jurie Snyman’s innings and cast the result into doubt, kept me updated. Chris tells me his photos do scant justice to how dark it actually was when Emile Haratbar and Nathaniel Young finally got us over the line.
Jurie, sub-pro' ing had smashed a ton to win Little Lever a game against our friends from Read the day before - his final tally for the season will make for some impressive reading.
I hope he has a last hurrah in him before going home for the winter after Sunday.
And fear not, Mr Dearden, whatever happens over the next two weekends I'll be banging on about it at length. You'll miss my waffle and drivel on the dark December days and godforsaken November nights.
Quiz Time,
Last week’s answer - Neil Holmes
This week - When Great Harwood played their first Lancashire League game in 2017 a former Accrington player opened the batting for them and a current Accrington player also lined up for them - along with the son of a 70s Accrington legend. Can you name all three?
