It's been a while since I posted, and have had quite a few pops over the last four or five weeks.
Matthew Akhtar (1282894)
LH Batsman, LH Spin Bowler, strong batting form, superb bowling form, energetic fitness.
A* destructive player with worthless leadership skills and woeful experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* England**
Age:* 19 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 17,743 (+249) **
Wages:* £5,427 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* *competent** Wicket Keeping:* abysmal**
Batting:* quality* Concentration:* respectable**
Bowling:* worthless* Consistency:* worthless*
Fielding:* abysmal**
(Could Potentially be as good as Greening, though a prolonged spell in fat-camp has arrested his progress a bit. Has gone from a week behind Andy's Burger to more like a month. But still, is due to hit Rem, and on two batting nets, should be knocking on the door of Wond by the end of the season)*
Keith Benamar (1756678)
RH Batsman, RFM Bowler, strong batting form, feeble bowling form, sublime fitness.
A* destructive player with strong leadership skills and worthless experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* England**
Age: 17 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 6,037 (+561) **
Wages:* £1,093 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* feeble* Wicket Keeping:* worthless**
Batting:* abysmal* Concentration:* abysmal**
Bowling:* *proficient* Consistency:* *competent***
Fielding:* woeful
(A star in the making!! On two bowling nets, should hit the first team season after next, as a Qual, and will more than likely head-up my bowling for ten years from his mid-twenties.)
Gene Bewers (326242)
LH Batsman, LM Bowler, mediocre batting form, worthless bowling form, lively fitness.
A* cautious player with strong leadership skills and competent experience.
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* Australia**
Dual Nationality: England**
Age:* 24 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 33,405 (+2120) **
Wages:*
£17,830 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* *competent** Wicket Keeping:* abysmal**
Batting:* feeble* Concentration:* feeble**
Bowling:* Wonderful Consistency:* remarkable**
Fielding:* mediocre
(Has had a spell in fat-camp, and has now returned to one bowling net. Should pop to Exc bowling in the next week or so, at which point his primary training will end - Though he will receive further Stam training as and when nets permit,*and may possibly get a fielding net when he's older and Cons pops are quicker. Despite a season blighted by poor PFL and Wor Bowling Form, he's still the Gurs' spearehead, but long-term will team up with Wilde to give us a miserly B4&5 finish in OD, and will take on the majority of the donkey work in FC)
Steve Cash (62700) shortcut
LH Batsman, LH Spin Bowler, superb batting form, proficient bowling form, invigorated fitness.
A destructive player with feeble leadership skills and competent experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* England**
Age:* 34 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 25,504 (-232) **
Wages:* £3,395 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* mediocre<*competent** Wicket Keeping:* worthless**
Batting:* respectable* Concentration:* superb**
Bowling:* strong* Consistency:* proficient**
Fielding:* competent
(Had a highly foolish dalliance with attempting to play Cher and turn back time. With*Cash's advancing years in mind, I stuck him on 1 Stam to try and combat the aging process. Got him up to Comp, only to fall back to Med a week or so later. Still makes my first XI ATM, but will hopefully flog and replace at the end of the season.) *
Steven Carlton (809049)
LH Batsman, LFM Bowler, superb batting form, superb bowling form, energetic fitness.
A* cautious player with abysmal leadership skills and mediocre experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* England**
Age:* 25 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 14,249 (+61) **
Wages:* £3,356 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* *mediocre** Wicket Keeping:* worthless**
Batting:* abysmal* Concentration:* mediocre**
Bowling:* superb* Consistency:* respectable**
Fielding:* woeful
(A spell in fat camp has at least made Carlton a more saleable prospect now, as I have no interest whatsoever in holding on to him beyond the end of this season. Despite, on paper at least, being my third best bowler, he is consistently the worst performer. I have two young quicks in training, one of whom will take his place next term, and his transfer proceeds will go into the pot for a new all-rounder to replace Cash)**
Doug Greening (334385)
RH Batsman, RF Bowler, mediocre batting form, proficient bowling form, invigorated fitness.
A* steady player with feeble leadership skills and respectable experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality: England**
Age:* 24 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 60,574 (+495) **
Wages:* £36,664 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* respectable* Wicket Keeping:* feeble**
Batting:* sensational* Concentration:* *wonderful***
Bowling:* abysmal* Consistency:* *competent***
Fielding:* *strong**
(Had 1 Bat 1 Field for last season, but has been trimmed back to 1 Bat now. He's due to pop to Exq any time now, and will hopefully go on to reach Mast/Sens, or possibly even Mast/Mast some time towards the end of next season, when I'll call it a day on him. Again has had a season spoilt by crap form, but is still comfortably our best bat, and will be so for quite a while yet!)
Bill Jeffery (329353)
LH Batsman, LH Spin Bowler, strong batting form, proficient bowling form, invigorated fitness.
A* steady player with worthless leadership skills and proficient experience.
table with 2 columns and 7 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* Australia**
Dual Nationality:* England**
Age:* 26 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 33,008 (-692) **
Wages: £6,721 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* *respectable** Wicket Keeping: feeble**
Batting: strong* Concentration:* proficient**
Bowling:* strong* Consistency:* strong**
Fielding:* respectable*****
(Another fat-camp in-mate, who's pop will hopefully go some way to mittigating the PFL-sapping number of overs which he's forced to bowl in FC. Not really good enough in either discipline to cut it for a Div.III team with aspirations of going further, but holds on to his place A, because of lack of funds and more urgent priorities, and B, owing to his freakishly good OD bowling record. He's currently The Gurs' record average-holder on 17-od.)
Dirk Katleho (1578939)
RH Batsman, RF Bowler, superb batting form, superb bowling form, sublime fitness.
A* cautious player with strong leadership skills and abysmal experience.
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* England**
Age:* 18 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 11,836 (+346) **
Wages:* £1,811 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* respectable* Wicket Keeping:* abysmal**
Batting:* woeful* Concentration:* abysmal**
Bowling:* *strong** Consistency: mediocre**
Fielding:* woeful*
(The Natural successor to Carlton, Katleho has sailed past Strong, and will hopefully be half-way up Sup by the end of the season. On course to be Rem by twenty, by which time his secondaries will probably need addressing, so I'll switch him from 2 Bowl to 1 Bowl and 1 Field. Allowing for unforeseen changes in plan, he has the potential to reach Esq by the time I'm done with him.)
Frank Mohammed (1124565)
LH Batsman, LFM Bowler, superb batting form, superb bowling form, energetic fitness.
A* steady player with strong leadership skills and woeful experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* New Zealand**
Age:* 22 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 8,897 (+148) **
Wages:* £1,940 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* *mediocre** Wicket Keeping:* worthless**
Batting:* strong* Concentration:* feeble**
Bowling: woeful* Consistency:* woeful**
Fielding:* mediocre*
(Wouldn't have wasted my time putting him through fat-camp, save for the fact that he actually fits into my plans quite nicely as an FC opener, but Feeb Stam was letting him down a tad. Does a job as No.7 or 8 in OD,, should probably look to replace him in the medium term. Freakishly good fielding record, around No.3 or4 in the all-time list of Gurs' out-field catches.
Joe Noon (444923)
RH Batsman, RM Bowler, superb batting form, superb bowling form, sublime fitness.
A* steady player with respectable leadership skills and competent experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality: England**
Age:* 24 Years Old**
Battrick Rating: *106,992* (+3982) **
Wages: £24,276 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* respectable* Wicket Keeping:* *remarkable***
Batting:* quality* Concentration: *miraculous***
Bowling:* worthless* Consistency:* strong**
Fielding:* worthless*
(Rem WK two or three weeks ago, Rem Bat any week now. Will train both to Wond, which should take me to middle or back end of next season, by which time he'll hopefully be Elite Conc. Still disappoints slightly with the bat in OD, getting starts and ****ing it up, but is a gun in FC, ave 204.6, and WK is immense, 38 CT and 9 ST in 11 OD matches. Also the first Gur to break the 100,000 BTR barrier)
Alton Staveley (374819)
LH Batsman, LM Bowler, superb batting form, superb bowling form, sublime fitness.
A* cautious player with mediocre leadership skills and respectable experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* England**
Age:* 25 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 41,152 (+280) **
Wages:* £14,299 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* *respectable** Wicket Keeping: abysmal**
Batting:* *wonderful* Concentration:* quality**
Bowling:* abysmal* Consistency:* mediocre**
Fielding:* feeble
(A spell in fat-camp, and a final, belated, batting pop concludes Staveley's training. Still cutting the mustard at the moment, but in my dreams he's batting No.5 or 6 by the time my side's complete.)*
Jon Wilde (939069)
RH Batsman, RM Bowler, woeful batting form, superb bowling form, energetic fitness.
A* cautious player with proficient leadership skills and woeful experience.
table with 2 columns and 6 rows
Plays For:* Cymru Gurgitaters**
Nationality:* New Zealand**
Age:* 21 Years Old**
Battrick Rating:* 21,804 (-622) **
Wages:* £9,822 p/w***
table end
table with 4 columns and 4 rows
Stamina:* *competent** Wicket Keeping:* abysmal**
Batting:* feeble* Concentration:* feeble**
Bowling:* remarkable* Consistency:* proficient**
Fielding:* abysmal
(Finally has a workable level of stamina, though will need further attention in the future. Currently without a net while I wait for Bewers' final pop, but after that he'll have another net for a season or so, until something better comes along. Will be Wond by the end of the season, and will go on to Exc, possibly Sens. Taking wickets quite regularly now, but still prohibitively expensive.)*
Current nets: Akhtar Bat X2, Greening Bat X1, Noon Bat X1 + WK X1, Bewers Bowl X1, Benemar Bowl X2, Katleho Bowl X2.
Well aware of the fact that training players into their mid twenties has led to my side starting to fall behind, or at least being caught by other CW sides, and I'm not having it my own way any more in either FC or OD. But figure that it's worth putting up with one or two seasons' hardship, because once the current crop are finished, then there'll be no real gaps in my side, and I can concentrate on sinking most of my nets into growing a freak or two.
Currently 3rd in Div.III OD, needing another two, at worst three wins to be safe, and 4th in Div.IV FC, flurting dangerously with relegation. I can't bring myself to deliberately demote in any competition - But put it this way - I wouldn't cry if I was relegated in FC.
Reckon Sunday's match-up against Dead Badger will be
an intriguing clash. I should still take it, but reckon he'd be worth a sneaky fiver if you were looking for the upset of the round.
Later, Trev
