Lunesiders are on the up!

Last weekend’s win away at Cuckney was a significant moment for us. It has hopefully proved to ourselves that we can win ugly and in difficult conditions. It will be of vital importance over the coming weeks that we can repeat that feat, as there promises to be a number of challenging situations between now and the end of the season.

It was also great last weekend to see Alex King bowl so well. Alex had a frustrating season with the ball last year, but since the start of the new campaign he has bowled with real zip and is getting the ball to turn and bounce which makes him a difficult man to face. He has really led from the front this year, and we will need him to continue in that vein as we head towards such a huge weekend.

Last weekend I was able to travel up to see my old club Lancaster take on Netherfield in the Northern Premier League T20 competition final. Although the game was eventually washed out half way through, it was so good to see a full house down at Lune Road, and the club looking in such fantastic condition. It has been a difficult few years for Lancaster with challenges on and off the field, but now under the stewardship of Brendan Hetherington off the pitch and Ben Simm on the pitch, the club are starting to look like they are really moving in the right direction, something which gives me great pleasure. I now wish them well in the replay of the final next Sunday, come on the LPN Lunesiders!

Watching the final last week, and seeing all the hard work that went into the inaugural game for our Kimberley Krusaders U19 team who played in the National U19 T20 cup this week, once again demonstrated to me how the Notts Premier League misses a trick when it comes to running a T20 competition.

Iain Burstow strides out in front of a full house at Lune Road for Lancaster in the Northern Premier League T20

I would really like to see club’s play their group games across a series of weeks, in the evenings, home and away and with coloured clothing. These events can add a real zest to the competition, make it something different from a normal league cricket, and help draw in a good audience and thus some revenue.

Twenty20 is clearly the format of the game that strikes a chord with more of the broader public audience, and if you do it well as our U19s showed the other night, you can bring in a big crowd. I would love to see a big crowd down at the 2bm Private Ground on a Friday night, with music blasting, runs being racked up and the beer flowing. For now though, we need to make sure the runs keep flowing this weekend so we can possibly look forward to a National Quarter Final come Monday.