It is Monday August 19th 2013 and I am slow getting going after another memorable cricket travel to the midlands at Derby and Birmingham to watch another successive disastrous Durham County Cricket club performance, this time in the 40 40 competition followed by an excellent day, despite the rain at the 20 20 Final’s day before another getting lost in a city, this time fortunately I was in my car.
Although I was away only for three nights there is that feeling of being away a long time, in part because over this and next month I am in fact away from the house for more time than I at home.
I set off on Thursday morning early having packed well the day before but failed to get a haircut. There was an amusing moment of a kind on the Wednesday when I went to the Morrison’s garage at Seaburn and put in £32 pounds plus of petrol then could not to find my credit cards but fortunately I had just the right amount of cash to hand. It was on returning home that I realised that I did have the cards with me, in the pocket of my shirt! I went out immediately to Morrison’s for two small salami sausages, some milk and more soft liquorice at £1a packet, some tomatoes and a small pack of raspberries. I resisted the sprats and will continue to do so unless I am prepared to eat without the bead crumbs and batter and grill or bake rather than swamp in oil.
I went to Lidl’s for some breakfast cereal and for a haircut but the barber was closed - Wednesday afternoonitis. I could not resist purchasing two bars of nougat having also purchased a pack of salted peanuts at Morrisons. I had half the peanuts and one of the nougat during the evening and the rest when I returned Sunday, Both indulgences require punishment. I stopped at Seaburn on the way home yesterday afternoon for more petrol but found I had left the points credit receipt at home so will top up on my way Scarborough in ten or so days time, I bought milk and tomatoes again and some grapes, two packs for £3, and resisted the sprats and peanuts. I am yet to weigh myself but will do before lunching. I did find one barber’s open but there appeared to be half a dozen customers waiting as I drove past and on.
I decided to stop for a coffee after I set off at the McDonalds just before reach the Boro overpass and then continued until making a short stop to advise of my lunch companions for the expected time fo arrival. I was early and had to wait half an hour enjoying a lemonade which I topped up when the party arrived, and read some Montalbano while waiting. I enjoyed a chicken and bacon salad for my meal. I then made my way to Derby and a travel lodge located at Chaddesden. The residential village is to be found just before the city centre off the A52 which is known to everyone locally and further affield as the Brian Clough Way joining the Cities of Derby and Nottingham when here and a brilliant career with Derby County and Notts Forest.
Without Sat Navigation and relying on brief notes and a sense of direction I took the wrong turn at a roundabout and ended up back on the A 52 into city. This was a master stroke because as the road ended at a major roundabout I spotted the sign to Chaddesden and moreover the entrance to Derbyshire Cricket ground just along this road- truly amazing, with the Travel Lodge next to a Toby Inn along the road about a mile further,
The following morning I commenced to write having just eaten a ginormous consolation breakfast comprising two heaped plates with a total of four sausages, six pieces of bacon, three fried eggs, some scrambled eggs and slices of season tomatoes plus a refreshing large glass of delicious orange fruit juice with a little ice at the Toby Carvery all you can eat breakfast for £3.99 plus the cost of the fruit juice. All that salty bacon was to create a great thirst which led to a an enjoyable break at Sutton Coldfield in the day. More on this in the second piece.
The Chaddesden Travel Lodge is among the best I have stayed with a comfortable room fitting into my needs including four large pillows, usually three thinner ones, good power points and a large flat screen TV which I can connect my lap top if needed plus the full range of digital and radio TV channels. Unfortunately with only a one night stay I was unable to take full advantage of the quite residential location and a small shopping community which includes two mini supermarkets and a local Tesco’s. I am staying at the Day’s Inn just by the ground when I visit again in September otherwise I would have returned to Chaddesden.
Overnight I reflected night on the number and range of Travel Lodges I have stayed at commencing with the Greater London area, Croydon Central (1) a dozen time or more, (2) South Croydon(when another chain controlled but staying and this September) and (3) Caterham-Whyteleaf plus (4) Maldon Surrey with (5) Kings Cross in central for general visits to the capital and cricket at Surrey C C and Middx County Cricket and Lords On other visits primarily to watch Cricket, stays have been at Brighton sea front (6) Brighton and Worthing for Sussex CC (7) and where I will be going back to both in September. I think it was at Eastleigh (8) I stayed for the 20 20 Finals Day at Hampshire CC and I stayed at Leeds Bradford Airport (9) for Yorkshire CC.I am staying at Scarborough for another Yorks game (10) having gone to the ground earlier this year a one day game by coach and back in a day. I booked but did not stay at Trafford Park and Manchester Sports City for a game at Old Trafford cricket Ground Lancashire, although I have visited the ground before staying at the M62 Birch Services site (11), as I have for visits to both Manchester United and Manchester City Football. I did stay Liverpool Aigburth (12) to watch Lancs CC at the ground across the road and had booked to stay at Warrington Lymm, but decided to comeback straight home. Only earlier this week I made my first visit to Northampton central for Durham V Northamptonshire CC (13) and yesterday to Derby Chaddesden (14) for Derbyshire CC V Durham. I think it was the Birmingham Bromsgrove (15) to watch Worcestershire V Durham and I am now back in Birmingham North Perry Barr (16 )because of ease of parking and cost for the 20 20 Finals day tomorrow although the ground is situated in the southern half of the city. I have stayed at least twice at Nottingham Riverside (17) for Nottingham CC v Durham but also stayed at Nottingham Donnington Park (18), Nottingham Trowell (19) and Mansfield (20) for games of cricket.
I cannot remember the location of all the Travel Lodge sites where I have stayed in transit and nto as the main place of stay for a particular visit and this includes Scotch Corner (21), A1/M62 Pontefract(22), A1 Blyth (23), A1 Newark North Musk ham (24), Retford Markham Moor (25), Grantham Noteworthy (26) and Grantham South Witham (28). There are also two others, one on the a road between the A1 and M1 29 and the other to the East of the A1l (30) and then at the end of the AI and the M25(31) although this and that at the first service area from London on the M1 (32) are no longer shown. On the M1 I have stayed at Teddington (33) and I think at Watford gap (34) for Silverstone. There is also Bedford Marston Moretaine (35) and at Wakefield (36).Other transit stays remembered included Portsmouth (37) for the Island of Wight and Littlehampton (38) and Burford Oxfordshire to collect my car broken down when going to 20 20 Finals Day at The Rosebowl Hants.
I now come to Travel Lodges not already mentioned for visits places other than for cricket and which includes Hull, South Cave (39) and Hull central (40) Wirral Eastham (41) for Chester and Bromborough, Chippenham both sides of M4 for visits to Calne( 42 and 43) and also for a football visit to Cardiff. Keighley (44) for Bronte Country, Newport (45 for Isle of Wight). Bicester Cherwell valley for Oxford (46) and Penrith M6 for Northern Lakes (47) just remembered another Transit stay on M 23 Gatwick Airport for Gibraltar (48). The list does not included Premier Lodges at Croydon(Waddon) Hull Bridge or Innkeeper Inns Hull Willerby or what used to be South Croydon now taken over by Travel Lodge. Sometime I must do I piece on all the lodges encoding the photos when I remember to take them.
It is 11.30 and time to do the washing up, finish unpacking, enjoying a glass of lemonade, weigh myself after toileting before returning to the disaster of the Durham CC visit to Derby for the chance of reaching the 40 40 semi finals in early September and where I have already booked my place for finals day. I am writing again while enjoying the lemonade and with a hang over but from the travels rather than any alcohol. I have completed the washing up and sorted out clothing for washing or ironing and enjoyed the lemonade. I have eight main course meals in addition to the chop for today and the next effort to establish my programme until the to Scarborough.
I have today and tomorrow to complete writing up the trip and then on Wednesday watch the Oval test before going to Durham Riverside on Thursday for the vital Championship game against Surrey, the first of four days followed by he no longer of interest 40 40 game with then 26 preparation day for the next cricket travel eights days so I will defrost and fill the freezer also on that day, I have two quiches one for today, at least two portions of prawn salad and will use one to two tins of salmon with sardines, beans and spaghetti, cheese toastie options for the second meal. I wrote this before remembering that out to the cricket for potentially four days, even five I use the baguettes and may need some fillings although with cheese and prawns I could make do.
There will be no cheese omelettes, bangers and mash or all day breakfasts but instead the nutty oats which I resupplied on the visit to Lidl’s, plus which I will mix with the fruit fibre I purchased at Deddesden together with porridge oats as back up plus packet soups so that apart from more salad and some fruit I will limit supermarket visits until preparing for Scarborough and Brighton which follows closely on.
That’s now sorted in my mind. The opportunity is taken to prepare a display book for the next trip with the tickets and accommodation bookings made. That’s now sorted. And lunch preparations but first the weigh in back home and three pounds over, only should have been worse having consumed the greater part of the salami, the paté, with rolls and baguettes and that breakfast. Enjoyed lunch of a pork chop with lots of vegetables cooked from frozen and liquorice afters finishing off the substantially opened packets with watching Dick Powell for the umpteenth time as Philip Marlow in the Big Sleep and the latter part of Flog it, no it was not the other show at lunch time Bargain Hunt. I feel tired but will press on, where was I. At Derby Chaddesden after checking in and sorting the clothing, the sleep Apnoea machine and my food for the evening, a baguette with paté and olives I made my way to the roundabout and then took the wrong turning going down a road parallel to that I wanted and having a great ring around the roses to get back to the roundabout and this time talking the right turning and getting into the right lane for the ground with the other for the Virgin leisure centre and with the large Days in further back, I think I must have gone past the entrance when I took the wrong road. I was shepherded round to where stewards were taking cash or checking parking tickets £4 and placed me on the from row of the over flow with not a clear indication of how I was to get out later. I and already purchased by entrance ticket at £12
Derby, like Northants, is not a well appointed ground, functional one can say at best although with many good features such as a huge stand overlooking the wicket. To the left was a large strange building which has two functions. On the first and second levels there is hospitality and banqueting facilities. There is an indoor sports hall at ground or was it basement level with a martial arts programme underway. There were good toilets and a club shop. There appears to be a separate entrance from housing and a car park. Further around to one side and overlooking the wicket is the Members pavilion, functional, two storeys with a lounge offering what appears a good choice of main dishes, cheaper than Durham but with space less than half that of Durham and small veranda proving space for a single row of movable seating. There was room for the committee at the far end and the players pavilion next to this. There was another eatery providing sausages beans, eggs chips sandwiches and drinks all day at reasonable prices and a separate tea room. The selling of beer did not appear to be regarded as a major activity. The other side of the sight screen there was a fair size marquee pavilion providing some reward scheme, could be volunteers related to the club or community volunteering in general.
There was the hint of rain, and some rain throughout he evening although the match was able to progress its disastrous way from the Durham viewpoint. Durham won the toss and asked Derby to bat and at first things went well with Derby losing wickets at 17, 35 and 36 but then a stand between Madsen 72 and Hughes 73 sealed Durham’s fate although things were made worse by an over from Rushworth towards the end which yielded 20 runs giving him 1 for 39, Breeze 0 for 32 from his 5 was expensive leaving Collingwood who impressed with 2 for 25 from his eight the best of the bowlers and followed by Pringle 1 for 12 from 5 with Wood 2 for 32, Borthwick 0 for 18 and Smith 2.19. The total of 217 for 8 from the 40 appeared to give Durham a steady and gettable target.
However losing their first wicket at 4 with Mustard and then Borthwick at 14 shook Durham and they never recovered, with only Collinwood appearing to get a start until he gave a soft catch when 25 and you felt it was all over. Durham then collapse all out at 110 with the last wicket going in the same over at the 9th as I was making my way back to the car. Another car was leaving so waited to see which way it went and it headed along a grass and earth track along the fence which proved a nightmare full of deep rut it did my suspension no good at all even tough I went as slowly as possible. I went back to the comfort of my room, the four pillows and flat screen TV and the huge consolation breakfast in the morning.
In the first group of the competition the battle for leader is between Notts 16 points who missed out on 20 20 finals day and Northants 15 with game to play while in the third group the battle is between Somerset who also missed out and Gloucestershire, another club I must visit one year at Bristol both with 15 and one to play and Glamorgan with 13 but two to play.
In Durham’s group Hampshire, surprise surprise 16 points and two to play look certain to take the semi final spot but with Lancs 13 and two to play looking for the 4th spot. My estimate is that only Hants will go through from this group so again the semi finals and finals could again be dominated by Southern clubs.
Lancs could do themselves a favour by beating Hants on Tuesday evening on Sky and Derby could create a surprise if they beat Hants bank holiday Monday with Lancs to beat Essex at Old Trafford to complete the unexpected and get there 17 points to 16. Durham had they won and win against the Surrey in their remaining match would have come second with 16.75 points, the fined 2.25 points behind Lancs who impressed me with their two wins over Durham. Notts and Northants are both away for their last games. Gloucestershire play Somerset in their final game which makes it the tie of the final day. Glamorgan are at home on Sunday and then away to Yorkshire the following will find that game difficult. I am watching Worcestershire at Edgbaston and Moeen Ali has scored 114 in their penultimate 40 40 game but with 300 a good possibility for their innings they are collapsing to 255 for 5 at present but still creating a target Warwickshire are unlikely to beat,
I will keep an eye on this game as I turn channels to watch Newcastle play their first game of the new season at Manchester City and their new manager. Yesterday on returning home I watched Chelsea with their homecoming manager beat Hull while Spurs appeared to have more of a challenge away at the Palace back in the big time with Ian Holloway. Sunderland lost by 1.0 at home to Fulham.
This afternoon I watched the highlights of the last day of the Sonheim Cup, the golf competition for ladies between the USA and Europe, played in alternative years to the Ryder Cup and where Europe who hold the cup then won on USA soil for the first time and featuring the youngest ever European player, Captain’s pick Charley Hull who won her singles on the last day as well as one of the two foursomes in which she played, Europe won the match by 18 points to 10 and could be said to have given the USA a trouncing.
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