A Bigger Challenge: Derbyshire County Cricket Club

[MateGaming]

13th July 2021: Lancashire vs Derbyshire
Lancashire elected to bowl.

We are unchanged in what will be our final Championship fixture before the t20s begin. Surprisingly, Lancashire elected to bowl first, despite the pitch being very flat and conditions only slightly bowler-friendly.

XI: Luis Reece, Billy Godleman, Luke Wells, Wayne Madsen*, Cameron Delport, Ed Pollock, Steven Davies+, Logan van Beek, Chris Bannister, Hamidullah Qadri, Pat Brown

Derbyshire 1st: 380 (130.5 overs - Madsen 139, Wells 105; Coad 4-82, Bailey 4-88)
Lancashire 1st: 351 (92.3 overs - Schultz 134, Vilas 73; Brown 5-93)
Derbyshire 2nd: 172 (72.5 overs - Pollock 42; Bailey 6-34, Coad 3-45)
Lancashire 2nd: 202-2 (42.4 overs - Vilas 82*, Schultz 66*)

Lancashire won by 8 wickets
Points: Lancashire 22, Derbyshire 6
MOTM: Hadrien Schultz

A poor performance in the second half of this match. After Madsen and Wells put on a mammoth partnership, we looked set for a massive score, but we lost 5 wickets for 24 runs, slipping from 279-2 to 380 all out. From that point onwards, momentum was with Lancashire, and a stunning hundred from their overseas, Schultz, saw them challenge our total. The utter inconsistency of our middle order means that our top order must fire, and, despite being relatively well-placed at 81-2, we collapsed once again and Lancashire chased the score down with ease on a still-flat pitch. We begin the Blast placed in fifth in the Championship, needing an impeccable run of form after the t20s if we are to be promoted this year.

[MateGaming]

18th August 2021: Derbyshire vs Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire elected to bat.

After a series of pathetic and spineless Vitality Blast performances, we return to action in the Championship with a home fixture against bottom-placed Gloucestershire. Gregory makes his first Championship appearance since late May.

XI: Luis Reece, Billy Godleman, Luke Wells, Wayne Madsen, Cameron Delport, Ed Pollock, Steven Davies+, Lewis Gregory, Logan van Beek, Hamidullah Qadri, Pat Brown

Gloucestershire 1st: 304 (74.5 overs - Dent 63, J Taylor 62; Brown 4-79, Gregory 3-59)
Derbyshire 1st: 480 (165.1 overs - Madsen 121, Wells 85, Reece 64, Pollock 60; Walter 6-112)
Gloucestershire 2nd: 313 (81 overs - Dent 73, Hammond 68, Higgins 55; van Beek 5-73)
Derbyshire 2nd: 138-5 (50.5 overs - Wells 47)

Derbyshire won by 5 wickets
Points: Derbyshire 21, Gloucestershire 4
MOTM: Logan van Beek

Back to winning ways with the return of the Championship. This remains, by far, our strongest format, and currently is our only hope of success. I didn't feel like we bowled particularly well all game, but our batting was excellent in the first innings - with multiple contributors - and it turned out to be enough to get us the victory. LvB took his ninth five-wicket haul of the season, and his twenty-fourth in total for Derbyshire. Despite his increasing age, it will be incredibly difficult to deny him another season here next year.

[MateGaming]

Vitality Blast Review

Form: LLLLLLLWLWLWWL
Points: 8 / 28
Position: 9 / 9

Top Perfomers (Batting):
Ed Pollock: 14 innings, 427 runs @ 42.7, HS 70*, 3x50, SR 125.2
Cameron Delport: 13 innings, 266 runs @ 33.25, HS 50, 1x50, SR 116.1

Top Performers (Bowling):
Adam Milne: 14 matches, 19 wickets @ 22.26, BB 4-29, economy 8.24, SR 16.2
Pat Brown: 11 matches, 18 wickets @ 18.44, BB 4-15, economy 8.30, SR 13.3
Logan van Beek: 13 matches, 17 wickets @ 23.23, BB 4-26, economy 8.75, SR 15.9

Records Broken:
Highest Total: 180 vs Yorkshire, Leeds (career record)
Lowest Total: 59 vs Lancashire, Derby (all-time record)
Best Bowling: Pat Brown, 4-15 vs Leicestershire, Derby (career record)
Most Runs: Ed Pollock, 427 (career record)

2nd wicket: 87, Wayne Madsen & Steven Davies (career record)
5th wicket: 104, Cameron Delport & Ed Pollock (all-time record)
6th wicket: 76, Ed Pollock & Lewis Gregory (career record)
9th wicket: 20, Adam Milne & Alex Hughes (career record)

Summary:
In conclusion, this was another embarrassing performance in a limited overs competition. We weren't helped by an England callup for Brown, but no other bowler passed six wickets throughout. The batting was extremely poor, with only Pollock and Delport coming out of the competition with respectable statistics. We need one last push for promotion, and we will focus heavily on the Championship next year, completely disregarding this competition if needs be.

[DaveRobbo]

LvB is an animal!
It looks like you're suffering a similar issue to me with the inconsistency. Every win always seems to be followed by a shocker or a whole host of bad luck. Still an outside chance of promotion though, hope you get there

[MateGaming]

10th September 2021: Essex vs Derbyshire
Essex elected to bat.

Hughes replaces the injured Reece, whilst Bannister comes in for Qadri on a pitch that is not expected to turn - in fact, it is an absolute road, as per usual.

XI: Luke Wells, Billy Godleman, Alex Hughes, Wayne Madsen*, Cameron Delport, Ed Pollock, Steven Davies+, Lewis Gregory, Logan van Beek, Chris Bannister, Pat Brown

Essex 1st: 236 (64.4 overs - Lawrence 57, Wheater 50; van Beek 4-59, Bannister 3-63)
Derbyshire 1st: 241 (90.1 overs - Godleman 53; Callaghan 5-100, Porter 4-88)
Essex 2nd: 286-5d (74.4 overs - Browne 101, Bopara 53, Patel 47*)
Derbyshire 2nd: 68-0 (39 overs - Wells 43*)

Match drawn
Points: Essex 9, Derbyshire 9
MOTM: Nick Browne

The game was not as high-scoring as I had expected, likely due to the overcast weather experienced throughout the final three days. However, it didn't stop LvB from adding another five wickets to his season tally, as well as an apparent return to form for Godleman. Despite a poor second-innings bowling performance, we were never in any trouble in batting for the draw amidst multiple rain delays. The result leaves us in fifth, fifteen points away from promotion with two games left: Glamorgan and leaders Lancashire.

[MateGaming]

LvB is an animal!
It looks like you're suffering a similar issue to me with the inconsistency. Every win always seems to be followed by a shocker or a whole host of bad luck. Still an outside chance of promotion though, hope you get there

He's been incredible! Has just turned 31, but with a ridiculous 241 FC wickets (325 total) in just under three seasons, as well as being a very handy contributor with the bat, surely we can't say no to him staying a fourth season?!

After the Essex game, promotion will be a tall order, but hopefully with the right recruitment and proper focus on the Championship next year, we can finally break through to Division One.

[bryce87]

He's been incredible! Has just turned 31, but with a ridiculous 241 FC wickets (325 total) in just under three seasons, as well as being a very handy contributor with the bat, surely we can't say no to him staying a fourth season?!

After the Essex game, promotion will be a tall order, but hopefully with the right recruitment and proper focus on the Championship next year, we can finally break through to Division One.

I went through your CC games and calculated that he picks up MOM in about 25% of the CC games he plays in!

Could you post his overall stats for Derbyshire?

[GrahamB]

Tough luck in the OD games.

Looking forward to the final FC game and then the contracts!

[MateGaming]

I went through your CC games and calculated that he picks up MOM in about 25% of the CC games he plays in!

Could you post his overall stats for Derbyshire?

Brilliant work - what a stat!

Derbyshire stats over all three seasons attached:

[MateGaming]

Tough luck in the OD games.

Looking forward to the final FC game and then the contracts!

For now, I certainly think it will benefit us to write them off and push even harder for promotion next year.
It's still a possibility this year, but we'll be relying heavily on other results.

[MateGaming]

16th September 2021: Glamorgan vs Derbyshire
Glamorgan elected to bowl.

With Reece still injured, Derbyshire are unchanged in a vital fixture against third-placed Glamorgan, who have ex-Derbyshire batsman Brodrick in their XI.

XI: Luke Wells, Billy Godleman, Alex Hughes, Wayne Madsen*, Cameron Delport, Ed Pollock, Steven Davies+, Lewis Gregory, Logan van Beek, Chris Bannister, Pat Brown

Derbyshire 1st: 286 (102.4 overs - Madsen 62, Hughes 55, Godleman 49, Bannister 48*; Williams 5-82)
Glamorgan 1st: 281 (68.5 overs - Brodrick 89, Cooke 56; Brown 4-73, van Beek 4-95)
Derbyshire 2nd: 231 (70.1 overs - Madsen 79; Williams 3-62, vd Gugten 3-76)
Glamorgan 2nd: 237-5 (55.3 overs - Cooke 54*, Ingram 54; Brown 3-99)

Glamorgan won by 5 wickets
Points: Glamorgan 21, Derbyshire 5
MOTM: Wayne Madsen

A result which eliminates any possibility of promotion this year. We wanted to bat first anyway, but failed to really exert much pressure with a large first innings total (our middle order collapsed heavily with batsmen 6-9 scoring just one run each); however, we bowled well and entered our second innings with a very slender lead. With the bat, we were poor, with only Madsen passing 30. Frustratingly, Glamorgan were able to chase it down at a rapid rate, something that, if I had tried to do, we would have been bowled out long before reaching the total.

[MateGaming]

23rd September 2021: Derbyshire vs Lancashire
Derbyshire elected to bat.

With promotion out of the question, Derbyshire give opportunities to some younger players: Copperfield and Agnew both come in, whilst there is a debut for 20-year-old wicketkeeper Peter Riddington.

XI: Luke Wells, Billy Godleman, John Copperfield, Wayne Madsen*, Cameron Delport, Ed Pollock, Peter Riddington+, Lewis Gregory, Logan van Beek, Justin Agnew, Pat Brown

Derbyshire 1st: 341 (125.3 overs - Godleman 82, Pollock 68, Copperfield 57, Riddington 52; R Patel 4-62, Bailey 4-87)
Lancashire 1st: 276 (71.2 overs - Buttler 100, Davies 61; Brown 5-92, van Beek 3-90)
Derbyshire 2nd: 231 (89.5 overs - Godleman 61; R Patel 3-46, Coad 3-59, Bailey 3-59)
Lancashire 2nd: 140 (39.3 overs - Davies 37; Gregory 5-37, Agnew 4-40)

Derbyshire won by 156 runs
Points: Derbyshire 22, Lancashire 4
MOTM: Billy Godleman

A nice victory to end the season. We were impressive with the bat, with multiple contributors, including a debut fifty for Riddington, and also good with the ball, earning ourselves a solid lead. Our batting was less impressive second time around, but we got enough to set them a target of almost 300. At 122-2, Lancs were cruising, but, thanks to magnificent spells from both Gregory and Agnew, they lost seven wickets for just 18 runs (Vilas rtd hurt) and were skittled for 140. We finish the season in fifth; despite losing this match, Lancashire still won Division Two comfortably, by twenty points.

[MateGaming]

Specsavers County Championship Review:

Form: LWDDLWWLDLWDLW
Points: 167
Position: 5 / 8 (D2), 15 / 18 (overall)

Middlesex won Division one with 209 points. Yorkshire and Leicestershire were relegated. Lancashire won Division Two with 219 points. Essex were the other promoted team.

Top Performers (Batting):
Wayne Madsen: 25 innings, 1023 runs @ 44.48, HS 139, 5x50, 3x100
Ed Pollock: 23 innings, 920 runs @ 46.00, HS 121, 5x50, 2x100
Luis Reece: 16 innings, 882 runs @ 48.80, HS 138*, 4x50, 4x100
Luke Wells: 26 innings, 880 runs @ 38.26, HS 105, 6x50, 1x100
Billy Godleman: 26 innins, 716 runs @ 28.64, HS 179, 3x50, 1x100

Top Performers (Bowling):
Logan van Beek: 14 matches, 86 wickets @ 23.31, BB 7-49, 9x5i, 2x10m, SR 40.7 (leading wicket-taker in division)
Pat Brown: 14 matches, 67 wickets @ 28.97, BB 5-85, 3x5i, SR 45.8
Lewis Gregory: 9 matches, 29 wickets @ 35.83, BB 5-37, 1x5i, SR 50.0

Career Records:
Highest Total: 491 vs Glamorgan
Lowest Total: 104 vs Warwickshire
Highest Innings: Billy Godleman, 179 vs Worcestershire
Most Runs: Wayne Madsen, 1023

1st wicket: 191, Luis Reece & Billy Godleman vs Worcestershire
2nd wicket: 169, Luke Wells & Luis Reece vs Warwickshire
3rd wicket: 265, Luke Wells & Wayne Madsen vs Lancashire

Summary:
A vast improvement on last season. The batting continues to generally improve, whilst LvB finally found another strike partner with the ball in Brown. We ended up in fifth, though still 33 points from promotion. We need a reliable middle order batsmen along with Pollock, as Delport failed to impress during his first season, and another bowler, potentially a spinner. Currently, it looks likely that LvB will renew; more on contracts to follow...

[MateGaming]

CONTRACTS

IN: Northeast (Hampshire, 2yrs), Abbott (Hampshire, 2yrs), Mullaney (2yrs), Briggs (Sussex, 2yrs)
OUT:
RELEASED: Hughes, Hardwick, Dal, Conners, McKiernan, Taylor, Milne
EXTENSIONS: Godleman (2yrs), Madsen (2yrs), Reece (2yrs), Copperfield (2yrs), Wells (2yrs), Delport (1yr), Davies (1yrs), van Beek (main), Bannister (1yr), Riddington (1yr)

We started with what seemed like a large budget of 500k, but once we'd extended contracts then it seemed like almost nothing.
However, we just about had enough to bring in four very experienced county players:

Sam Northeast signs from Hampshire on a 2 year deal. He scored 886 runs @ 44.30 this year for Hampshire, and, at 31, still has plenty of time here at the club.
Kyle Abbott signs a 2-year Kolpak deal from Hampshire. Having taken 239 wickets over five seasons at the club, he arrives with a massive reputation and will hopefully greatly strengthen our bowling attack.
Steven Mullaney was without a club this season, but with a respectable career record - as well as over 100 wickets in all formats - we took a punt and hope his experience will benefit us over the next two years.
Danny Briggs, another former Hampshire player, signs from Sussex on a 2-year deal. With over 450 career FC wickets, as well as over 200 in t20s, he will be a very reliable spinner for us, hopefully for years to come.

Alex Hughes, Kevin Hardwick, Anuj Dal, Sam Conners, Mattie McKiernan and James Taylor were all released, and are currently without a club.
We took the option to not invest in a t20 overseas this year due to our desire to focus on the Championship.

[MateGaming]

1st April 2022: Oxford MCCU vs Derbyshire
Derbyshire elected to bat.

Our squad looks infinitely stronger this year, as we start this game being forced to leave out some talented players: Godleman, Delport, Briggs and Copperfield are all forced to miss out due to the strength in depth we now appear to have.

XI: Luis Reece, Luke Wells, Wayne Madsen*, Sam Northeast, Steven Mullaney, Ed Pollock, Steven Davies+, Lewis Gregory, Logan van Beek, Kyle Abbott, Pat Brown

Derbyshire 1st: 981-9d (205 overs - Pollock 219, Davies 217, Madsen 205, Gregory 102, Wells 70, Reece 43, Abbott 35*)
Oxford MCCU 1st: 154 (51.1 overs - Gregory 3-27, van Beek 3-53)
Oxford MCCU 2nd: 107-6 (41 overs - Brown 3-8)

Match drawn
MOTM: Ed Pollock

We really weren't bothered about the result here, and we instead batted the entirety of the first two days in an attempt to get our batsmen into the best form possible. It certainly looks like it worked, with double centuries from Pollock, Davies and Madsen, as well as another University match hundred for Gregory, after he repeated the feat last year. Going for a thousand runs was tempting, but we needed to ensure our bowlers had sufficient practice too. They delivered, with every bowler taking at least two wickets in the first innings. We just simply didn't have enough time to take the final four wickets. Nonetheless, a very dominant and encouraging performance ahead of the 2022 Championship season.