Johm Helm column: Respect? Manchester United and Chelsea just don’t get it!

May 13 2009 by Peter Barrow, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

HAVE you noticed some of the huge scores being posted around the cricket circuit ?

Record stands seem to be the norm right now, even in league cricket, and numbers 8 and 9 are expected to come up with at least half-centuries.

Nine, ten, jack used to be rabbits, eager only to get back out to ply their regular trades as bowlers, but not any more as Warwickshire debutant Jeetan Patel showed in compiling 120 against Yorkshire at Edgbaston.

The New Zealander became the first Warwickshire No 10 ever to hit a century, and his effort also followed personal bests in the match from Anthony McGrath and Joe Sayers.

It’s good to see Sayers, in particular, back in the runs after a tortuous last summer.

It was a shame, however, that Tim Bresnan got little opportunity to shine in the Lords test, through no fault of his own.

Not as much a shame as that for people who had bought tickets for Saturday and Sunday.

Perhaps a three day result was a little unpredictable, but by starting the game a day earlier than the traditional Thursday the ECB left themselves open to ridicule within a totally blank weekend.

Yet another example of cricket shooting itself in the foot.