What a test match!

What a test match!  England were out early on day two but Ali managed to make his fifty and England reached 389.  How would NZ bat?  The answer was very well!  Both openers passed fifty but both were out with the score on 148.  England’s bowlers didn’t get it right after that.  Two new batsmen at the crease gave England hope but Taylor and Williamson batted to the close then started up again in the morning.  Williamson got to a hundred early on day three then Taylor got to fifty but England bowled well thereafter and slowed the scoring down and wickets began to fall.  Ali got a couple and Wood looked good on debut.  McCullum came and went in the blink of an eye and racked up 40+ while he was there.  Watling hit 50+ but the rest didn’t contribute much but NZ finished on 523, a lead of 134 and control of the game.  England’s reply began in familiar style with the early wickets of Lyth and Ballance but Cook and Bell saw England through to the close.  England had lost two wickets and were still over 60 runs in arears

So far three days of top class, entertaining test cricket but day four was even better.  Southee got Bell on the third ball of the morning and I was thinking ‘oh no, here we go…’.  There was no need to worry, Cook and Root batted through difficult conditions through the morning but the partnership flourished thereafter.  Root looked certain to get a century but hooked straight down a fielders throat on 84.  With the score on 232 the game was still in the balance.  Great test cricket!

The next couple of hours got even better, Cook got a well deserved century but was very much a junior partner to Ben Stokes who was just brilliant.  Stokes simply put bat to ball and whacked it all over and out of Lords hitting 15 fours and 3 sixes on his way to the fastest test hundred at Lords.  He was out soon after, the partnership with Cook put on 132, Stokes scored 101 of them!!  Buttler came and went quickly but Ali stayed with his captain till the close with the score at 429-6, England have a lead of 295.  Twenty four hours ago we were wondering if we could avoid defeat, now we think we can win!

Day one at Lords 21/05/15

What a cracking first day!  New Zealand won the toss and stuck England in and after an hour it looked a good decision as the score was 30-4.  A couple of good balls and a couple of poor shots, seeing an England innings in tatters has become too familiar.

Root and Stokes counter attacked and began scoring freely, the two put on a partnership of 161 but both got out in the nineties.  Buttler (who I rate) and Ali (who I don’t) then put another century stand together but Joss was out on the last ball of the day for 67.  Ali finished unbeaten on 49 and the score stood at 354-7.

England will probably sleep better tonight.  McCullum will not have wanted to see 350+ after inserting England and at 30-4 we should never have got there.  The scorecard shows our middle order batted very well but Boult and Southee can bowl better than they did today.  Did we seize the game or did NZ let us take it?

Joe Root is looking a class act, our best batsman by a mile at the moment.  Ben Stokes done well but we need more consistency from him.  England will hope to reach 400 and if Ali is awake in the morning we can get it but NZ can make it tough.  Sometime tomorrow England will bowl and this will put day one into context.

Some books

I like detective books and Mark Billingham is an author in this genre that I hadn’t encountered before.  “The Bones beneath” features DI Tom Thorne who is ‘baby sitting’ an imprisoned serial killer as he leads the police to a body he buried many years before.  The story is set on a small rocky island off the Welsh coast and the author is able to build the sense of isolation as well as the tension.  In Stuart Nicklin he is trying to create a ‘Hannibal Lecter’ type character but he falls well short.  I enjoyed this book right up to the end which I found unsatisfactory because I like things tied up neat and tidy.  Would I read another Mark Billingham book?  Yes I probably would but there are many other writers in this genre that I’d choose to read first.

I’ve read several books by Ian McEwan and he really is a brilliant writer.  “Saturday” is a day in the life of wealthy Neurosurgeon Henry Perowne who lives a privileged lifestyle with a beautiful family.  The book is set in 2003, after the terrorist attacks which changed the world forever and before the war in Iraq.  Indeed the day in question is when two million people march in London to protest against the Iraq war.  Perowne’s Saturday starts when he wakes early and through his window watches a plane aflame on its descent to Heathrow, his whole routine is then thrown off kilter.  What should be a routine day becomes anything but.

Throughout Perwone’s day the reader is given an insight into his musings and we learn his life history and those of his extended family, there is also an unexpected encounter with a character hitherto unknown.  All these elements come together in the evening with a family reunion that goes wildly off plan.  There is danger here and as a reader I cared about the characters that were literally on a knife edge.

Ian McEwan at his best finds the extraordinary in everyday characters and in “Saturday” he’s at his very best. 

Irvine Welsh is probably my favourite writer and I’ve read everything he’s ever published.  I didn’t particularly like “Bedroom secrets of the Master Chefs” and “Filth” was a bit too dark for me but I’ve loved pretty much everything else; “Trainspotting” and “Porno” are two of my all time favourite books. 

“Sex lives of Siamese twins” is the latest in paperback and is one of his best.  Set in Miami it features Lena and Lucy as the two main characters who are not actually conjoined twins but more alike than they realise.  Familiar themes from Irvine Welsh; Obsession, addiction, dark humour & darker places, the best and worst of human nature, weird sex, bad language and filthy minds, all are present in abundance.  With this story you don’t know where Welsh is going to take you and there are shocks right up to the end.  Welsh’s stories often have an uplifting conclusion, sometimes euphoric, “Sex lives…” didn’t quite take me all the way but it came damn close.

The mad world of English cricket.

14/05/15

In the weird and wonderful world of English cricket the madness continues.  First Andrew Strauss is appointed as… whatever his job title is?  We love Straussy and hope things go well for him.  Then before you can draw breath poor old Peter Moores is sacked to be replaced for the short term by Mr Farbrace, (I’ve been drinking some red stuff with ‘beaujolais’ on the bottle and it’s quite nice but I can’t remember his name and can’t be arsed to google).  Is Moores the wrong man?  Or, has he been the right man at the wrong time?  We will never know.  My problem with Moores’ two terms in charge is I don’t think the right teams have been put on the pitch.  Is this down to Moores or is this the responsibility of the selectors? 

Next the KPego saga rolled on, he makes a career best 355* for Surrey then is told he won’t feature in England’s plans this summer.  From what I’ve read the there’s nothing that says the door is locked and bolted for KPego and if England have a bad summer he may yet come back.  On the one hand KPego is a selfish twat and shouldn’t be anywhere near the England team.  On the other, based on talent and recent form he should be picked.  I don’t like the bloke but I do enjoy watching him bat.

Now up to date and the squad for the first test against New Zealand has been announced and I’m disappointed to see its virtually the same as the last one.  Adam Lyth will make his debut as Cook’s opening partner, fine.  I’d like to see Alex Hales given a go but maybe his time will come.  The rest of the batsmen look fine too but Bell has been inconsistent of late.  Buttler behind the stumps, no problem there either.  The trouble for me is with the bowlers/All rounders.  Neither Stokes nor Jordan look like they could bowl a team out so we only have room for one of them.  Hopefully Wood will make his debut.  If we’re going to pick an all rounder then we should ditch Ali and play a proper spinner, surely he’s not our best option?  Give Rashid a chance!  Where’s Monty?

I’ve said it before New Zealand are capable of beating England, this will be a serious test series and even if we win, will we be any closer to knowing what our best team is?

Been busy lately....

06/05/15

“I also expect England to win, no matter which XI they put on the field.”

Words come back to haunt me…  England won the toss and batted making 257 built around a long overdue century from Cook.  Ali was the only other batsman to pass 50 and most observers thought this total was way short of par but the pitch was taking spin.  In reply Blackwood top scored with 88, Jimmy took six wickets and WI were all out for 189.  England’s spinners were poor and again many people thought England could have done better.

England’s second innings was a cock up, all out for 123 but a lead of 191 might be enough?  Bravo scored 82 and Blackwood was unbeaten on 47 to lead West Indies to a five wicket win.  Once again England’s spinners were ineffective.

So the series ended all square which may have flattered WI but the scorebook doesn’t lie.  Like many people I have a great affection for the West Indies teams of days gone by and I would like to see them back competing at the top in test cricket.  This side looks like it has plenty of talented young players but I’ve thought this many times over the last twenty years!

As for England well Trotty has retired saying he no longer feels he is playing at a high enough level for international cricket.  Trott has been a big part of one of England’s greatest sides and a decent man on and off the field.  He has bowed out at the right time and leaves the international arena with honour and integrity intact.  Adam Lyth looks next in line to get a go as Cook’s opening partner.

England struggled to bowl WI in this series and only Anderson looked anywhere near best.  We played three all rounders, none of whom really looked capable of bowling out international teams.  Stokes, Jordan and Woakes (when fit) are all too similar and only one of the three should play at any time.  Ali simply isn’t good enough with bat or ball and has to make way.  England need to select a bowler who can bowl consistently fast and threatening, who?  That’s anyone’s guess right now.  England also need a world class spinner, anyone seen Monty lately?  Maybe this defeat is just the wake up call England’s selectors need?

Last weekend saw the richest boxing match in history.  I’ve not seen enough of either Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather to judge but most of the public wanted Manny to win by knockout while most seasoned observers picked Floyd to win on points, which he duly did.  By all accounts the hype far outweighed the action.  Mayweather is an unlikeable woman beating thug who has proclaimed himself the world’s best ever.  He is technically a great boxer but he does not compare to the subject of a book I read recently.

Muhammad Ali – A portrait in words in pictures by Wilfred Sheed

Before I start I have to confess that I love Ali.  As far as I’m concerned he is the greatest heavyweight boxer that will ever draw breath and I admire him enormously as a human being.  I was a kid in the seventies, what would you expect?

This is an old book in good condition that I added to my Ali collection recently.  It was produced in 1975 shortly after Muhammad had defeated George Foreman to regain the title.  It concentrates on Ali at the peak of his fame, Ali the ‘Black Muslim’, Ali the poet and comedian, Ali the media darling and Ali the great boxer.  It tries to analyse the ‘greatest’ and explain the man behind the myth.

This book was written before the damaging fight with Joe Frazier in Manilla, before the career stretched on way too long and long before the onset of Parkinson’s syndrome.  This book was written without any clue as to how Ali would become in his later years, (arguably greater for his afflictions?)  It predicts a bright future for Muhammad after his boxing career come to a close.  It makes sad reading in this context.

The author Wilfred Sheed attempts to analyse the various facets of Ali’s life and character; how has his early life and family shaped him?  Is his religion genuine?  Is he an intelligent man or an idiot faking it?  Once again the forty years that have passed since this book was published have answered all those questions.  In this context the author himself comes across as an egomaniac.  At times this book is easy to read and I skipped through the pages quickly but at others it’s a bit dull.  There are loads of great photographs throughout and it is a welcome addition to my collection of ‘Ali books’ which now numbers ten at last count.

A couple of weeks ago I took Isaac to see “Avengers – Age of Ultron” at the cinema.  Isaac loves this kind of superhero action movie, I can take them or leave them but he’s dragged me along to see lots of them.  This one is all action from beginning to end, always plenty going on and Scarlet Johansson for eye candy.  Samuel L. Jackson is the coolest man in Hollywood and he pops up in the nick of time too.  Isaac loved it and I thought it was pretty good too.

I’m happy to say Maddie has shunned the boy-band nonsense enjoyed by most of her peers and is a lover of Punk rock.  This is something the two of us have in common and nowadays we are often trading CD’s.  One of our favourite bands is Nirvana, led by the late great Kurt Cobain.  Anyone who was around in the early nineties and enjoys real music must be aware of Nirvana. Some may have been put off by the volume and attitude, if so I urge you to look beyond this and embrace it for your own sake.  Kurt’s music is timeless and it works at full volume or turned down a little.  This shared love of music gave me an excuse to take my daughter to the cinema.

“Montage of Heck” is a documentary of Kurt’s life made from private family footage filmed on ‘super 8’ as well as clips of tour diaries and over unseen footage from the Cobain estate.  His parents, family, girlfriends and band mates contribute too.  There are animated sequences filling in some of the gaps from early in his life.  There are bizarre, disturbing animations made from Kurt’s own sketchbooks which are disturbing at times, maybe reflecting the demons in his head.  

The film is everything you would expect; dark & disturbing, beautiful and moving, shocking and unpredictable.  Kurt’s addiction is not glossed over and it certainly isn’t glamorised.  The concert footage makes the hair stand up on your neck.  The film finishes a few weeks before “the end” but we know what happened, at the time it felt inevitable and there is no need to replay it.  Maybe we are a bit nearer to understanding why.  If you love Kurt, go see the film.  If you don’t go see it anyway.

2nd Test, Grenada

England won the toss and asked West Indies to bat in overcast conditions.  With a century from Samuels WI made 299 but most observers thought England could have done better and the score was about 60 runs more than they should have scored.  Broad took four good wickets and the rest were shared.  In reply England had a solid start with Cook and Trott both passing 50.  Ballance also made a half century but the stand out batsman was Joe Root with an unbeaten 182 leading England to 464.  Anderson struck early but West Indies battled hard with Brathwaite making a ton and by the end of day four the score was 202-2 and another draw looked certain.  There were grumblings about the lifeless pitch and no one expected anything other than a dull fifth day and a match that went nowhere.

Enter Jimmy Anderson with the new bowl and an inspired spell sparked a collapse from West Indies.  Jimmy also held two catches and ran out Holder with a direct hit, (England fielding was superb throughout).  Moeen took 3 wickets and WI were all out for 307 and the match was there for the taking.  Trotty was out for a three ball duck then Cook and Balance both scored their second fifties of the match and England had won by nine wickets. 

This was a really good performance from England who worked hard in tough conditions to record a really good win.  Despite this I really think England need to make a few changes.  As much as I like Trott I think Adam Lyth deserves a chance to show what he can do opening the innings.  Also our attack looks too similar.  Jordan and Stokes both offer pretty much the same thing and England don’t need both in the same side.  I’d leave out Stokes and give either Plunkett or Wood a chance.  The England management like Moeen Ali but Root can give us a bit of off spin so why not give Adil Rashid a chance?

West Indies always look like they are on the verge of being competitive, when they play England at least and they do have some promising players.  All of them lack consistency and as a batting line up are prone to collapse which has been their downfall again and again in recent times.

The pitch in Barbados is likely to be the most sporting we’ve seen in this series but I still expect it to favour the batsmen.  I also expect England to win, no matter which XI they put on the field.

A cynics guide to the General Election.

The Conservatives are led by the Eton educated twat David Cameron.  He is more interested in feathering the nests of his cronies in big business than looking after the normal British people.  Traditionally the party favoured by the well to do with their “I’m all right Jack” attitudes.  Think Thatcher, nothing more needs to be said.  Their record over the last four years (some sources say it is actually worse than the witch’s when it comes to an assault on the welfare state), should ensure they don’t get re-elected but sadly they probably will, due to the lack of any real alternative.

Labour was once the party of the working man but sold out to big business under the war mongering liar Tony Blair.  Nowadays led by Ed Milliband who is an unelectable moron and like the rest of the party seems to have an identity crisis.  I am a labour supporter by nature but haven’t allowed myself to vote for them since Blair said “Yes George, anything you say” and took us to war in Iraq.  Like many I hoped things really would get better when “New Labour” was elected in 1997.  Like many I felt betrayed within a few short years.  If only John Smith had lived, the best PM we never had?

The Liberal party (or whatever they are known as nowadays) haven’t had a chance of real power in my lifetime and have even less this time around thanks to their leader Nick Clegg selling out (like the gutless shit he is) after the last election.  I should identify with the libs but all I see nowadays is a bunch of limp wristed sell-outs hanging onto coattails in a desperate attempt to gain some kind of ‘power’.

All of these three so called main parties are basically the same thing only discernible by the different colour ties they wear.  90% of these parties MP’s are hypocritical liars with no principles and are mostly interested in furthering their own selfish interests.  They really don’t deserve our votes. ‘MP’ looks good on a CV when you want to move onto the board of a multinational after a career in politics.  It shows the candidate has experience in arse licking, lying and shafting the ‘consumer’.

UKIP are the new kids on the block (no relation to the terrible 90’s boy band), led by fag smoking, beer swilling Nigel Farage (which apparently doesn’t rhyme with garage).  This lot are playing to the racist fears of the ignorant but will tell us they aren’t really bigots.  One good thing about UKIP is they appeal to the kind of moron who might once have voted BNP and have been the final nail in the coffin of that vile bunch.  I expect them to do pretty well in this election but have no chance of gaining power and wouldn’t know what to do if they did.

As an aside, over the years I have worked with people of all nationalities; Australians, Antiguans, Bajans, Croatians, Greeks, Jamaicans, Americans, Trinidadians, Indians, Bangladeshis, Pakistanis, Serbs, Poles, Lithuanians, Estonians, Italians, Chileans, Nigerians, South Africans, Dutch, Germans, Iranians, Spaniards, and Turks to name those I can remember off the top of my head.  In my opinion the most miserable, laziest people of all have been we Brits with our “world owes me something” attitude.  While UKIP and others bang on about immigration, asylum seekers, benefit cheats etc. they deflect attention from the real issues like bankers ripping us off and getting away with it!!!

The SNP will be popular north of the border and good luck to them.  I kind of like having the Scots as our naughty neighbours and I hope they remain part of the UK because I think we will be stronger together.  In fact I’d say we should go the other way, drop our silly borders and all of us identify ourselves as British.  Oh yeah, Happy St. George’s day.  (That was irony if you didn’t recognise it).

Finally the Green party deserve a mention.  They have no chance of getting anywhere near power but I actually believe they are genuine in their beliefs.  They are led by a nice lady called Caroline Lucas and suffer from the ridicule of a media that sucks up to the traditional parties.

Now here’s the problem.  It doesn’t matter who we vote for because it won’t change a damn thing.  Whichever party gets in it will be the same people in charge, different sides of the same coin.  You see, I don’t actually believe in democracy.  No that doesn’t mean I’m a communist, (although that is a pretty good idea gone bad, just like our own political system).  Democracy is a very noble idea in principle but in reality it doesn’t actually work!  Not on a large scale like government, nor on a small scale like some of the fishing clubs I’ve been a member of over the years.  As for the USA, “land of the free” banging on about democracy; Don’t make me laugh!!  Theirs is worse than ours!!  In both cases democracy is a myth and the media, controlled by the likes of Rupert Murdoch, is used to brain wash the masses! 

For the last few elections I have gone to the polling station but after looking at the choices available have concluded that none of the candidates deserve my vote.  I have cast my ballot with the words “None of the above” written on it.  Some people say this is a wasted vote, I argue it is an expression of protest.  This year I may do the same or I may actually vote.  If I do then my X will be put alongside the Green party’s candidate.  It may be a protest vote or it may be because I believe the people are genuine and I can’t say that about any of the others.

Here is a picture of our latest lodger.  Traditionally it’s a sign of peace, the “Dove from above” has built its nest on the satellite dish Murdoch flogged us.  I like the thought of it crapping all over it and it hasn’t prevented me watching the cricket for a second.