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Graham

Lol! Had the pleasure of playing at Moylena today so no tea duty for me. But brought my bananas.

Ivan
'Hideous post?'

Unlike many posts on this forum I haven't slagged off an official, criticised an umpire, lambasted another club or poured scorn on the rule book.
Just a simple observation and some personal opinion about teas to generate some debate.

Hideous?
I'll tell you what's hideous....

Unfortunately cregagh 3 cancelled at 1030am this morning after confirming at 11am yesterday that they were good to play on Sunday. Like Cregagh 3 Instonians 6 is also a lads and dad's team. This was the 3rd request for a postponement from a team due to no team to play us. The other requests to rearrange were made mid week before the match not on Saturday morning 24 hours after confirming the game was on. Unfortunately we were not able to rearrange any of the other three rearranged matches for tomorrow given the notice. Fixtures now piling up and the request to have points and to try to rearrange a friendly later in the season was agreed and acknowledged by Cregagh has reasonable under the circumstances. It's unfortunate this back story was not made public to balance the post on this subject. My understanding is that fathers day is known at least year in advance so if it was a problem an early in the week call to rearrange would have been the decent thing to do and time therefore could have been directed for our kids to get an alternative game on the best cricket weather weekend of the season to date. Instead no-one now has a game. I hope this information puts the previous post in perspective.

Ulster Bank Schools Cup Final
Friday 16th June

Wallace HS 43 (23 overs, J Hunter 20, D Robinson 4-9, M Fleetham 2-17, B McNamarra 1-9, C Robinson 3-4)

RBAI 45-1 (8.2 overs, J Waite 22, B Rose 19no, S Cardosi 1-5)

RBAI beat Wallace HS by 9 wickets

Junior 8
This posting is in a personal capacity and not on behalf of my club Cregagh CC.
Tomorrow our 3rds were due to play Instonians 6ths in J8. With Fathers Day almost all of our young players were not available. Not a surprise. In addition there are GCSE commitments too. We asked for a postponement and gave an undertaking to play the game midweek. The request was refused and we are advised that the points are going to be claimed by Instonians. To say that I am dismayed by this attitude is an understatement. I thought J8 was to facilitate player participation not claim walkovers and deprive young guys of time on the pitch. I would ask the senior officers of Instonians to reconsider this decision in the interests of cricket and the NCU.

Cricket in a degree of flux, teams not fulfilling fixtures, playing standards continuing downwards, Cricket Ireland becoming increasingly detached from the club game, etc., etc., and what gets most response? The cost of two or three loaves of sandwiches and the time to drink a cuppa in the middle of what can be a 11 hour day! Says it all. By the way, I have always held that the Lisburn teas are best and, as Mrs. Slocombe said 'I am unanimous in that'!

Question about why we have teas?

Very simple for me - Carrickfergus CC provide the best teas ever in the ncu and no matter what level you're playing - 1s.2s, 3s or 4s they always seem to provide teas.

Credit where it's due - simply the best and will never be beaten

Mr Editor
Is that a recent post by Neil Fullerton or was it posted on 1st April and lost in your spam ?
It's without doubt the most hideous post I have read on any cricket forum.
It has to be a wind up.

Cricket teas can be very important indeed, just ask any cigarette smoker.
We (us Taverners) only play 20 over cricket so we usually just have some tea and coffee, biscuits and drinks on hand throughout the match (for our guests, don't forget you are a host). The bar and bistro are open from Thursday to Sunday if anyone wants to indulge themselves, it's a fantastic spot.
If we are having a 'cricket tea', it's usually after the game and having the finest curry chef in the country in our club we always have a tasty time.
For snr league 50 overs matches people sponsor match balls, why not ask for tea sponsors? Supermarkets throw food away everyday!!

I can't bat , can't bowl and can't really field , if you scrap having tea , what am I meant to be good at ?

I know it's an old chestnut, but does recruiting from outside your own district and further afield, really improve standards at club level?

Take England's recent fortunes at international level for example!

The county championship consists of a rich and diverse blend of cosmopolitan players from all over, and in my opinion, probably as high a standard of first class cricket as you would find anywhere the world over.
Yet, despite being mooted as pre-tournament favourites and with home advantage, the England first eleven were knocked out in the semis by a very average Pakistan side at the current ICC trophy?

Secondly, they tell me the soccer premiership in England is the greatest league in the world, whom am I to argue? That being the case, why during a recent international match are England easily beaten by a ten man France side? The irony ( and perhaps a clue) is that quite a few of the French galacticos just happen to be club teammates of the opposition on the night in question?

Indeed, dare we equate the very same analogy to the current demise of the Ireland side and their recent poor form and losses to teams they used to 'eat for breakfast?'

Time to wake up and smell the coffee me thinks?

Hold on a minute.. need to reel my first catch of the day in...

OK..

Ronnie - The age of socialising during/after cricket games has passed by. Maybe you didn't notice.
When I started playing senior cricket in 1984 I had to wait in the corner as a 16-year-old and sit over a coke for a couple of hours while my driver and his pals sank three or four pints.
Sadly those days are gone (Although not the drink driving part - thankfully).

And.. you completely miss my point.
I'm not talking about socialising and interaction. If players want to do that they can still do so after the game
I'm talking about teas and the provision of teas.
It's my personal view that they aren't needed and it's one less thing that a home club needs to worry about on match day
Simple.

Now, give me a minute while I hook on some more bait..............and now I wait...!

By chance, are you on tea duty at the weekend Neil?

I don't post too often on here, but Neil's post about the tea interval is an interesting one. Overall, I think cricket would be the worse for not having a tea break, but having said that, Neil’s points are most certainly worth considering. Cricket and the tea interval have always, it seems to me, been inextricably linked. That particular interval is part of the game's rich tradition and, although teams seem to me to stay a bit apart most of the time at tea, it does provide an opportunity to mingle, to talk, to renew or strike up friendships and even, on the odd occasion, to argue —but it brings people together and that has to be good. It is, quite simply, part of cricket and, dare I say it, anyone who goes to a cricket match solely for the cricket does not really understand the game. Equally, there are practical issues. After three-plus hours in the field, it is sensible to take some form of sustenance, whether provided by oneself or the home club, but if one provides it for oneself, then teams will end up eating/drinking in their dressing rooms, and I don’t think that’s healthy or in the spirit of cricket. Equally, the fielding side need to pad up, the pitch may need remarked/rolled/tended to, the scores checked and, if it applies, DLS has to be run etc. The umpires also need some consideration, as Neil rightly mentioned. Now, I know that the cost element is important and I know that encouraging more people to play is vital. However, I reckon that a lot of the costs come out of player’s pockets and would not necessarily be redirected to elsewhere in the club. Equally, and assuming some sort of break is needed if only to carry out the practicalities, I’m not convinced that saving what would probably be no more than 20 minutes is going to make the difference between people playing or not. All that said, it seems to me that there is nothing other than custom and practice that prevents what Neil is suggesting from happening. The NCU bye laws are clear that the tea interval should not exceed 30 minutes, so there is nothing there that says it has to be 30 minutes or prevent a shorter interval from being taken. Equally, the Laws of the game, see Law 15 (10), state: “At any time during the match, the captains may agree to forgo the tea interval or any of the drinks intervals.” So, the option to shorten or even forgo the tea interval already exists. Nonetheless, I think Neil has raised an interesting point that will, I imagine, engender some discussion, even if I wouldn’t be keen on it myself.

Good man Neil, why not go even further have separate entrance and exits for each team and ban them from having any social interaction in the bar even after the game. great call

Why do we have teas in NCU cricket?
Why is the home team under an obligation to provide food and tea for the opposition?
Why do we take up to 30 minutes between innings by taking tea?
Why do clubs waste time, effort and money providing teas?

The London Times last week had a page packed full with letters from the secretaries of local cricket clubs in England complaining about the rising costs and the increased pressure on man-power to provide teas. Some clubs said they were losing between £2,000 and £3,000 per year.

Now we are not in that league as most NCU clubs seem to rely on the goodwill and effort of female members, players' wives and girlfriends and, in some instances, committee men to do the needful but it does raise the question.. why bother?

In fact some clubs spend money every week using outside caterers to bring food in. Madness! Surely this money can be put to better use.

Why would players - some of whom are playing at a reasonably high level - want to fill their stomachs with sandwiches, pastries, chocolate biscuits and sausage rolls halfway through a physical, competitive game of sport.

In this age of the 'professional game' and the proper preparation and sensible rehydration of the body it just doesn't make sense.

Why can't players bring their own? Players know what they prefer/need to eat and drink so they can prepare those on the morning of a match. When their team is batting they have plenty of time to eat.

Now I know many 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc, groups of players are going to be shouting - what about us? But my argument doesn't change.... Have a good hearty, healthy breakfast and if you need a snack between then and your return home, bring it with you.
Remember your match is likely to be only 25-40 overs per side. No more than five hours of action.
Most normal people go five-six hours between meals every day of the week.

We are losing players from the sport because of the length of time the game takes so why not turn straight around between innings and cut out the unnecessary gap.

If there are umpires present - I realise it's a long stand for them - a cup of tea and a snack can be provided for them in their changing area. Simple.

Less hassle for everyone. Less gaps in play. More opportunity for everyone to watch and enjoy the game we love.