The Beamer

Pembrokeshire and officials - PIC Pembroke County Cricket Club website There was an air of desperation in Simon Katich’s voice, certainly air of disappointment. The pride was gone, the desire wasn’t there and unlike him, the players weren’t making the most of their abilities. As a summariser, his views were cutting and summed up the series; that they were made after the first day’s play of the first test between Australia and West Indies when the home side had amassed 438/3 were the most disappointing of all. It didn’t bode well for a competitive series and that’s how it proved to be. Only 40,000 turned up for the Boxing Day test at Melbourne, the lowest crowd attendance for that test in years. Only a few weeks earlier, West Indies legend Sir Garfield Sobers had broken down in tears as he addressed a news conference in Sri Lanka bemoaning the lack of pride in West Indies cricket and the way current players chase the dollar and not the dream by plying their trade in globa...

Starting cricket matches earlier could bring a financial boost to your club’s finances, a recent survey has found. According to a national player participation survey, starting, and subsequently finishing earlier has shown that players and supporters spend more in the bar afterwards as they are not in such a rush to go on to other events. The survey also showed that just over 50% of players want to play 45 over games whereas the rest favour 40 overs. With player numbers decreasing in recent years across the UK a national payer participation survey was issued to all affiliated clubs and the results show that most players (wherever they are in the UK) feel pretty much the same about the game. The survey found that: The game can be too long The ideal time to finish a game is around 6.30pm Players are struggling with cricket/other commitment balance Spirit of the game is as high as it’s ever been. Players do not have full confidence in the ability of umpires. ...