Mark Gray

@slimmatt1 @rosatalksball Whilst I accept what you are saying £38 obviously is a barrier for some people for Blast cricket. Is it better to let’s say 3/4 fill Lords at £25 a head of have it 1/4 full at £38.

@rosatalksball 38 pound for 3,5 hours of sport/entertainment in the middle of London is pretty good value though. There’s a reason we’re seeing clubs struggling with finances, because people want to see the best cricket but don’t seem to want to pay for it

I'm sorry, general admission for the Middlesex game yesterday was £38 for Adults??? THIRTY EIGHT POUNDS?

@MatthewWielicki 1922 or whenever it was (seem similar posts suggesting it was 82 years ago) was an anomaly. Today it’s a trend, that’s the difference.

The UK just “smashed” its May temperature record… but here’s the part the Met Office conveniently leaves out: The PREVIOUS record was set in 1922. That’s 104 years ago. Long before SUVs, private jets, or modern CO₂ emissions. Heathrow Airport didn’t even exist yet. The area was literally farmland and small villages. So if a 1922 heatwave could produce nearly identical temperatures in a world with ~130 ppm less CO₂, maybe, just maybe, natural variability plays a much bigger role than the panic merchants admit.

@AlredThe It’s not the doing of the fans though, and what Southampton fans are doing is giving back to ‘Boro fans who have been crowing about Saints punishment

Sick of seeing Southampton fans ripping into Boro like they are the bad guys in all of this, Your club is in the gutter, of your own doing. The least you can do as fans is show some humility to the clubs you cheated against (probably all). #SaintsFC #Boro #SWFC #Football #EFL

@matthewdmarsden That’s not quite the point really. 82 years ago it was an anomaly. Now it’s a trend.

So if it was this hot 82 years ago, and this is the first time it has been matched, global warming isn’t a thing.

@emmjcass25 @ArchRose90 @liam345 Culcheth is very very close to the Makerfield constituency.

@ArchRose90 @liam345 Liebour they just never know when to stop

Andy Burnham presents himself as a guy who had it tough growing up. However, some locals in Makerfield aren’t buying it. 'I might have been born in a council house but I'm not stupid,' says Enid. 'He is obviously not from round here.' The house he grew up in is now worth £1.3m.

@ArchRose90 I mean he is from very close to Makerfield. He might not be your classic idea of a working class man, but if he were you’d slate him in many of the same ways you slate Angela Rayner. No need to be a d*ck about things. Just admit you don’t support his policies.

@PictureSporting I’m not saying Lords would have been packed out on a Friday night, but maybe not playing the game at midday on a Sunday, with at least 3 London premier league grounds playing host to matters of some consequence also plays into this.

Middlesex v Surrey, T20, June 23rd 2005 ... 27,000 inside Lord's on a warm weekday evening. The same fixture yesterday on a glorious Sunday attracted around 7,000. So much for the ECB caring a jot about county cricket with marginalisation of teams and schedules

@GHWTowler Are you suggesting teachers ought not to vote their own conscience?

Imagine a profession so important, yet so completely out of touch with the population they serve.

@tobyasky Interesting that the 17th and 18th clubs in the Premier League year were both big London clubs who’d won in Europe recently then sacked their managers.

Over 2 years ago, West Ham fans protested for David Moyes to be sacked. Every game, they had “Moyes out”. In life, always watch what you wish for. Moyes was using a bang average team to win Conference League for them, as well as doing pretty well in the league, I mean he finished top half of the table with West Ham in this season, but they were complaining. They never knew he was pulling some crazy magic to keep them competitive. This is the same thing Everton fans are doing. Everyone battled relegation with Dyche and Lampard. Moyes was 4 points short of European spot this season, but I remember arguing with an Everton fan here on X, and he was part of the people who want Moyes out. Dewsbury-Hall was on MNF few weeks ago to say a bit about how Moyes gets results even the team does not look like it. I mean, they signed a striker who couldn’t even score in 17 games or more. At some point, he was playing Barry this week, Beto the next, because none were reliable. West Ham sacked Moyes. After that, they’ve had 3 managers. Lopetegui, Potter, and Nuno. They’re back to championship after 14 years. Again, be mindful of what you wish for.

@TFHBs Not even a half volley

Not a volley

@StickToCricket If I had to pick 5 players who’ve not played test cricket to keep an eye on, aside from those in the test squad, I’d go Vaughan, T Rew, Tribe, Mayes and Seb Morgan. Not quite what Gough was picking but more interesting to me!! 😆😆

Darren Gough players to watch this season. 🏏 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Who would be on your list? 👀

1 London club qualified for Europe next season.

@stokeowl @WG_RumblePants Give the gloves to Rew have Smith bat at 3 would be my choice. Worth a look at that formation. Think Smith would appreciate not having to keep for a game as well.

@WG_RumblePants I agree. I think Stokes should bat 7 (Smith 6). But, if Bethell's injured, I'd have him at 3. Nobody is likely to make runs there, but it might focus him and if he can average 30-35 this series, that's probably as good as anyone else. No. 3 could well ruin Smith or Rew atm.

@icelandcricket My shout for over rated captain, if not worst captain, would be Mike Gatting. Only won tests in one series as captain, only 3 county championships with one of the best county elevens on paper.

But what about who is the worst cricket captain ever?

@darren58786546 @icelandcricket Getting to a World Cup semi final, winning 2 Ashes series makes you a bad captain? 🤯

@icelandcricket Ouch that’s a harsh shout but harry brook comes to mind , Alistair cook

@City_Chief @MicahRichards ‘Our club ambassador couldn’t get the day off’ you mean.

BREAKING: Our Club Ambassador, @MicahRichards, is at the Arsenal game not Pep’s final game. What a disgrace.

@FergusCraig And I can see the game on the NowTV app.

@FergusCraig Why is this a thing to do with Keir Starmer?

If I've understood it correctly, I can't watch the Newcastle game on Sky plus because I don't have a smart tv. Only pay about £100 a month. Livid. Thanks Keir Starmer.

@chrisfeg @JacobWSmith10 @ConceptArsenal The Blast is fairly well promoted. Watch not much YouTube of the right type and you’ll see a Blast promo. It’s easy to bash the Hundred, but not all the issues with cricket are down to it. Sorry.

@saintlymark @JacobWSmith10 @ConceptArsenal But they don’t. That is abundantly clear. Instead of going to the t20 in May or June, they choose to go to the 100 in July or August. It’s cheaper and then is heavily promoted.

Commentators blaming everything other than the real reason for the poor crowd at Lords. The hundred is the Manchester supergiants mascot in the room.

@chrisfeg @JacobWSmith10 @ConceptArsenal They can do both. They do do both. To blame the Hundred for poor attendance in the Blast in May is totally bonkers and ignores the fact that Premier League football clubs sell out 19+ home fixtures in stadia generally bigger than Lords.

@saintlymark @JacobWSmith10 @ConceptArsenal The issue is that 20,000 people who did not support either Middlesex or Surrey would go for a night out. Now they choose to go to watch the 100.