Thursday, 15th October 2009

Captain's Blog 2009 - Anthony McGrath

Anthony McGrath writes the Captain's Blogs 2009 after the dust has settled on the 2009 summer...

ANTHONY McGRATH'S CAPTAIN'S BLOG - 15th October 2009

My memories of the 2009 season are very mixed – frustrating is probably the best word to describe it. We started really well with our preparation in Abu Dhabi and I really believed that the squad and team we had would be pushing for honours. We showed signs in each competition that we could do that, but ultimately we weren’t able to.

In the one-day competitions we weren’t able to get to the latter stages and in the LV County Championship we were chasing our tails from early on in the season. I think we did tremendously well to stay up in the end and our form at the end of the season was as good as anyones.

Overall though, it’s a mixture of disappointment and frustration.

We showed character towards the end of the summer, but I also think we showed a lot of character throughout the season. We had our disappointing days, but also showed at times that we could really dig in and fight. We probably played our best cricket when we had our backs up against the wall. Halfway through the year most pundits were saying that we’d go down with Worcestershire and the frustrating thing is that we showed we have the ability here, we just weren’t able to back it up throughout the year.

 

The Players of the Year 2009 - "individually a lot of  our players had really good seasons"

Individually a lot of our players had really good seasons. Ajmal had a good season, Andrew Gale did well in all competitions, Joe Sayers came back after two frustrating years and did well opening the batting and his stats were fantastic and David Wainwright continued to impress and it is great to see those four recognised in the Lions squad. Jacques had his best season in terms of run tally so there were a lot of good individual performances there, but that’s another factor which makes it more frustrating – the players are there.

 

In Division One of the Championship you cannot have one or two bad sessions in a match. It showed that with Worcestershire coming up after breezing Division Two in the previous season. If you have one or two bad sessions it can finish you for the rest of the game. The number of times we had two or three really good days and then couldn’t back that up is the key – a lack of consistency. We weren’t getting beaten every week by any means, but to really compete with the likes of Durham you’ve got to be on it every session of every game.

I was really pleased that Simon Guy and Deon Kruis got such a good send-off from the Yorkshire members and supporters at the end of the season because they deserve that.

Simon has been at the Club a number of years and had a few chances in the 1st Team, but is someone I’m really sad to see go. He was a great Club-man, he loved Yorkshire and would do anything for the Club and the players. Unfortunately his time had come to an end. He’s someone that always worked hard, he’s come back from the illness that he had, he possessed a great work ethic and he’s a good guy – I can’t speak highly enough and he is going to be sorely missed around the Club. I’ve heard the interview he did on WRTV where he is 100% positive even though his time at the Club has ended and people like Simon don’t come around very often and they are sometimes the forgotten people. People that don’t cause any trouble, just good Club people who are kind of in the background, but for me they are the real stars. They support the Club in everything they do and Simon will be missed by all the players because of the positive attitude he has got.

Deon’s a great man and it’s amazing how sport creeps up on you because it doesn’t seem two minutes ago since he signed and for him to be leaving now for the last time is sad. Deon has had a great Yorkshire career since he joined us in 2005. He came with quite a lot of pressure on his shoulders with being a Kolpak player, but he’s been fabulous for Yorkshire . He’s had a few injuries, but he’s always been 100% committed, a good guy to have around who has always led by example in terms of how he looked after himself and how he went about preparing for games. He leaves big boots to fill for the younger bowlers and has been a great ambassador for the Club.

Batting with Joe Root against the Essex Eagles during  Yorkshire's final game of the 2009 summer

When one player leaves it gives another player a chance to come in. I know the youngsters like James Lee , Oliver Hannon-Dalby, Steve Patterson and Ben Sanderson have been chomping at the bit to play. They’ll get their chance now to see what it’s all about at 1st Team level. We’ll see if they can take that chance.

Hoggy’s also gone now and he’s been a great servant for Yorkshire and England . I don’t know too much of the ins and outs of what’s happened, but he’s been a Yorkshire lad who whenever he’s played for the Club has given his all. When you give the ball to Matthew he wants to bowl as long as possible. These things happen in sport and everyone has to leave at some time and I wish him all the best and I’m sure he’ll go on and be successful elsewhere.

With 11 of our players on England duty in various shapes and sizes this winter does show that the Club has talent at its disposal. We’ve always had talented youngsters and no more than this year and it is great that this has been recognised. It’s now all about formulating that into a team and getting everyone playing together. With young players you’ve got to be very careful with consistency and how you introduce them into the team. That’s going to be key for next year – how we use the young talent without putting too much pressure on them. Most importantly, it’s about team performances. I’d rather be talking this time next year about how well we’ve done as a team rather than the performances of individuals.

Sreesanth of Warwickshire sees the back of the  Yorkshire captain at Scarborough

On a personal level I struggled with the bat in the second half of the summer. Having started so well in Championship cricket and got my career best score down at Edgbaston I really struggled through the second half of the season. It was very disappointing as I practiced as hard as I could. A player of my experience and position in the team is someone who needs to get runs to help the side so that’s something I’ll have to put right over the winter. 

When you are out of form in the English game the matches come thick and fast and it’s hard to get yourself back on track. Similarly, if you are in from then the matches can’t come quick enough. This season has been the only time in recent years that I’ve had that kind of poor run and it is difficult to get out of it. You can have as many nets or practices as you want but there’s nothing like batting out there in the middle. Sometimes you can try too hard and I think with being captain as well I wanted to set such a good example and lead from the front. Maybe I tried too hard and wanted it too much rather than just going out there to play and be natural. Like I’ve said before I was exceptionally proud to be Yorkshire captain and wanted the role so badly that it had a negative effect on my performance.

With all of the lads preparing to go away with England it looks like I might be a little bit lonely back home this winter! It’s good to have a bit of a break, more mentally than anything, and once we get to Christmas then you get to see the light as soon as the fixtures come out for next season. It will be good to have a bit of time off, catch some other sports and watch Manchester United play a little bit so it should be a bit of a relaxing time over the next month or so.

ANTHONY McGRATH CAPTAIN’S BLOG - 30th July 2009

I'm sorry this blog has been updated as much as I'd have liked. I'm sure you will appreciate that I've ben very busy as captain and all of my efforts have been on the team and trying to kickstart our season.

It’s been very difficult being Yorkshire captain this year when everyone is talking about us not winning for so long. When you set off at the start of the year you don’t want to go on a run like we’ve had. You have to take responsibility and the rough with the smooth when you are captain. It’s been difficult and I fully understand why members and supporters of the Club are not happy – rightly so, the results have been poor for the players we’ve got. All I can assure people is that we are trying to put it right as best we can and as yet we’ve not been able to do that.

We’ve not been like some other teams on the county circuit when we’ve been beaten hand over fist every time we’ve played. We’ve been on top in most games and it’s incredible that we’ve lost or drawn those matches. I’m sick of talking about it now. Sometimes people accept defeats if you’re getting beaten out of site every game and they’d simply say ‘they’re not good enough’. We’ve competed against the best teams and for three days of the four we’ve been on top, but we’ve somehow managed to find every which way to lose or draw. If I knew the answer I can assure you we’d be changing things. We’ve changed the side, re-jigged the bowling attack and done many things, but as yet we haven’t managed to get the right combination. It is driving me crazy.

Most people are very supportive. I’ve read forums, seen people’s letters, met people in restaurants or whatever and you can accept it when people are critical because of the results. The one thing that has been difficult to take has been when people question my passion or desire to do well. That is not the case at all. I was, and am, really proud to take the Yorkshire captaincy and I’ll do whatever it takes within my power to succeed. It is a 24/7 job, in the season I never stop thinking about how we can improve and to be labelled with a lack of passion is so far from the truth it does hurt. Sometimes people look at results and label the team with not trying, but we are giving our utmost to turn this around and everyone here cares passionately.

I think sometimes when we’ve been striving for a win we’ve tried too hard if anything. The number of times we’ve had teams at 100-6 or 7 we've been trying to take wickets to finish them off - pushing too hard rather than doing what we’ve been doing to create the pressure in the first place. The 1st Division is a tough league and teams do bat low down these days. May be sometimes we do strive too hard and there’s also that lack of confidence from not winning games. If you’ve not won a game for a long time you can forget how to win.

Batting good individually but difficult to put it  together as a team

If you go back over the season – in the Friends Provident Trophy we had a great start and somehow managed not to qualify for the Quarter-Finals. In the Twenty20 at the break we needed one win to qualify and didn't do it. I think that’s down to losing the winning mentality.

Until we get that first win in the Championship more and more people are going to be talking about it. The journalists are only doing their jobs and they’re always going to keep mentioning Yorkshire ’s run without a win. It gets difficult to come up with new things to say to them. The top and bottom of it is that we’re not playing well enough over four days. I still believe when we get that first win it will be the catalyst for a successful rest of the season.

As funny as it may seem with all of the negative press surrounding the team we are still only 17 points off the fourth place team Lancashire who we play this week. For a team without a win that’s amazing. Somerset did it a few weeks ago – they hadn’t had a win and then went on a run and catapulted themselves from the bottom to the top. Hampshire were right at the bottom last season and nearly won the Championship. There are seven games left and when we do get a win we can go on a run because we have got the players to do that.

"We should have done better"

If you look through the stats, especially with the batting, individually they are very good, but we’ve found it difficult to put it together as a team and at the end of the day it is the team that wins matches. We’ve got quite a lot of batting points this year and we should have done better. With the bowling we’ve not taken 20 wickets for a long time so there are areas we know we can improve and we are working very hard to do that.

We’re getting in to good positions and not finishing it off. We’ve talked so much as a squad - now is the time for some action. I can assure all of the members and supporters that we are leaving no stone unturned. I know people have different ideas on teams, selections and batting orders – that’s what sport's about and everyone’s entitled to their opinion, but Martyn and myself see players every day and know what kind of form and mental state they are in.

There’s been debate over Jacques Rudolph's position in the order but he has scored more runs as opener at this stage of the season than he did from number 4 last summer at the same stage. Last summer some people were calling for him to open the batting simply because we couldn’t get an opening partnership, whereas this year that’s been one of our strong points. Joe Sayers has come back really well, they're both averaging nearly fifty and their partnership is up there with any in the country. If you take Jacques away from opening who does it? You can get in a position where you are robbing Peter to pay Paul. I don’t think the batting has been our big problem this year.

I’ve seen some people suggest that I open the innings. My best position over the last four or five years has been at 3 so why change that when it has been successful? Joe’s the most natural opener and Jacques does the same job in South Africa and he wanted the role at Yorkshire . Also when you are captaining and you’ve been in the field for a long time it isn’t always great to have to go out and open the innings without a little break. Our current opening partnership has been one of our plus points this season.

"I'm a Yorkshire supporter too"

At the end of the day I’m a Yorkshire supporter too and when we lose I take it very personally because I’m in charge. If people think we finish matches and go home and forget about it, it’s wrong. We’ve been in the dressing room after games for forty-five minutes after some matches because we just can’t believe what we’ve let slip. We want to know why and you have to ask people tough questions. I’ve read somewhere that I don’t look happy and I need to get a smile on my face – if I was going around laughing all the time people would say I’m not taking it seriously. We care very much and when you lose it isn’t an enjoyable time at all and you are constantly thinking what you could have done more. I can assure you that this last three months has been the toughest period of my career and that’s because of the positions we’ve been in that we’ve let slip. I'm also determined to sort the current situation out and move the Club forward.

Looking ahead with a slightly more positive attitude we have a lot of games left and we’ve got to go out and win as many matches as we possibly can. I’m a positive person and I will get the lads as upbeat as possible and our cricket will be as positive as it can be.

Anthony McGrath and Darren Lehmann at Scarborough

A Roses win this week would be fantastic because of the tradition and the history and we’ve still to play them at Headingley Carnegie so to get one over them now would be a major boost. We’ve still got every chance of climbing up the league and we could easily go on a good run in the Pro40 too. There’s a lot to play for and we won’t be sulking about for the rest of the year I can assure you. We’ll be going out to win right up to the last game.

I thoroughly enjoyed my Twenty20 Benefit Match at Scarborough . For Darren Lehmann to come back and for the turnout we got on the day just shows what the Yorkshire public think of cricket. It was a fantastic day and we were lucky with the weather and I thank everyone for their fantastic support.

If a few things go our way I could be sat here next week talking about our first Championship win of the season and that’s the beauty of sport, you never know what’s around the corner and if you keep believing you get paid back. A message to everyone – don’t worry. We’re not too down in the dumps, we are trying hard and I can assure you we will turn it ‘round.

Best wishes and thanks for your support

Anthony

ANTHONY McGRATH CAPTAIN’S BLOG - 16th April 2009

It was to be expected that we started a little slowly in the UAE as we spent a long winter indoors and we were playing outside for the first time against good opposition, counties we are going to be playing through the year, but it was good to see us improve as the tour went on. I thought we had a really good tour. The pleasing thing for me was that everyone had a good hit with the bat or bowl with the ball and we were unscathed in terms of injuries, which is always a bonus – we got a couple of injuries there last year. We utilised the squad, played some good cricket and got runs and wickets and couldn’t have asked for any more really.

Very appealing skipper - Mags finds the Yorkshire   weather a bit cooler than in the UAE

We said last year that there’s no substitute for a pre-season tour where you’re actually playing cricket for a number of reasons. Anyone at the 2-day game at the end of the tour will know it was a proper game not a two day jolly to finish the tour with a bit of a laugh. It was really intense and both teams wanted to win. The game was as good as if we were playing another county. We were batting and bowling against our team-mates and wanted to win for the banter stakes, but people genuinely realise in the squad that there are places up for grabs. Going back a few years you could probably pick your Yorkshire 1st XI two months before the season, whereas now in all four competitions it is very difficult to name your Yorkshire XI. You saw the impact the young lads had last year and there’s always a chance for selection and that’s why we had such a competitive game in Abu Dhabi .

We’ve already spoken – myself, Martyn and the rest of the coaches – and also made it clear to the lads that although there will be a selection process it will come down to me to select the final XI. I would be a fool not to use people like Jacques, Martyn and the other coaches who will see the 2nd XI play, but ultimately we will pick a squad between us and I will have the final say on the XI. Communication and letting the team know exactly who is picking the team and how it works means there’s no grey areas and from my point-of-view if you are taking a team out you always feel better if you’ve made the decision. Martyn and myself worked really well together last year – we’ll throw things around and sometimes he’ll see things from the boundary edge that I don’t pick up on. It’s always good to get people’s opinion but it is right that the captain has the last say.

There is real competition for places this year and it’s a good position to be in. In Abu Dhabi everyone looked in good touch and we’ve come back and there have been some good performances too so there will be some disappointed lads, but what I’ll be stressing is that it’s a long summer where the fixtures are very congested and we’re going to utilise our squad so players will get opportunity. There’s also bound to be injuries so it is down to the lads who are not in the first Championship or FPT sides to make sure there attitude is good and they keep getting runs and wickets in the 2nd Team to force there way back in. Equally in the first team you need to make sure you hang on to that shirt and that’s what I will say to the lads that get in the team – “well done to get this far because it’s been tough but now the pressure’s on to perform” – that’s how it should be at a place like Yorkshire.

We want to be winning trophies and playing well in every competition and you need that big squad and you have to be a certain type of player to play for this club with the expectation of the fans, the media and of ourselves. We set high standards and if you’re not reaching that level there is always someone to come in. I think we’ve got a squad now with the depth where we can bring others in who can do equally as well, if not better. 

Pictured with batting coach on the pre-season Press Day.  Mags and Kevin Sharp, - with whom a lot of that hard  batting work in pre-season has been done over the years

I wrote last time about hitting the ball early in my preparation so I am up and running with the bat right at the start of the summer and I’m please with the work I’ve done and my performances so far. I’ve put some hard work in, struck the ball really well in the UAE and also since I’ve come back so that is really pleasing but the real games start this weekend. I’m confident that the work I’ve put in will bear dividends. 

As I said before the hard work was put in for the benefit season before Christmas and in the early months of this year. There’s not much to be done now – a couple of golf days which have been organised and the next real dinner is in August so it is definitely a time to concentrate of cricket and that’s what I’ve been doing. 

This is where my captaincy really starts after pre-season, pulling everyone together as a team. Now we have the test of when disappointed players are left out and it’s about communicating with them. When the real games get underway that is when my real captaincy begins – leading the team out on to the field. I’m really pleased with how it has gone up to now, but the hard work is certainly in front of me. 

There is a great team spirit amongst the squad and that is another reason why the pre-season tour is vital. For the youngsters who have stepped up from the Academy and Lee Hodgson to come in and work with Michael Vaughan and Matthew Hoggard, to get to know how we work as a squad and to make them feel welcome. Team spirit will be tested now when the teams are announced because 17 or 18 lads could easily play in the 1st XI and we need to ensure the lads who miss out know they are not forgotten and their opportunities will come.

Playing Durham at the start of the season will be a test. They are County Champions and have improved dramatically over the last few years. It will be a seamer friendly wicket up there in early season and if we bowl in the right areas it is difficult to score. I think it is exactly what we need.  We’ve had such a good pre-season. Pundits who have seen us play say we have a chance this year, those that haven’t really seen us say we are too young and inexperienced. Going to Durham twice will be a good yardstick. You’ve got to go there at some point in the season and I think it’s a really good start. I’m really excited about it and we’ll see where we are at. If things don’t go as well as we hope it will make us work harder. If things go well it will give us the confidence to show us we can beat the Champions of last year and FPT Champions the year before and it comes at the perfect time for us.

I’ll write again soon and hope to see you at our matches.

Thanks for your support

Anthony

ANTHONY McGRATH CAPTAIN’S BLOG - 12th March 2009

I’ve started batting since I last wrote and it has gone very well. I’ve probably had more nets against bowling machines at this time of year than I normally do. I normally do quite a lot of tennis ball work during pre-season, but I’ve tried something a bit different this year, concentrating on facing bowlers a bit more and its gone really well. I’m very happy where I am with my game and I think the other lads are the same as well.

I don’t usually like to net too much until we get outside on grass, but I’ve been conscious that I’ve not started too well in the Championship over the last two years and to face bowlers a little bit earlier might give me a head start and allow me to hit the ground running. It’s something I decided to do – Martyn and Kevin trust me with my experience to know the way I want to train and practice, but we did talk about how to get the best start in 4-day cricket. Bearing in mind the extra responsibility I’ve got this year I wanted to try and get more practice in, so we’ve tried it and can then assess where I am before we start the season proper, but it’s gone well and I think we’ll continue in the same vein.

I’m looking forward to the games in Abu Dhabi now. There’s no substitute for playing outside and the tour certainly helped last year and that was reflected in how we started the season. We’re hoping for more of the same. We’ll have Michael Vaughan and Matthew Hoggard with us, the youngsters are a year older and they’ll benefit from working with them on a day-to-day basis.

We’d like to win the Trophy again and set us up to a great start to the season and to do that we’ve got to basically win every game. It’s a tournament that looks like it is going to grow each year, more counties are going out there this time, the two groups are a good thing, but also we are playing teams that we don’t normally play pre-season. We always seem to play Lancashire and Durham, but we’re going to be playing Surrey who are in our Friends Provident group, and Middlesex who we’ve not played much over recent years, so it will be good to have a look at their players. Although it’s a pre-season trip we don’t want to go there to make up the numbers, we want to win and get in good habits ahead of the season. We want to get everyone playing cricket outside – in the middle, in nets and in the 3-day game at the end of the tour – and we want to get into winning habits early as there’s no substitute for confidence and that is about getting runs, wickets and winning matches. I’d prefer the team to come home with momentum and a trophy than have a couple of standout performances and lose every game.

I’m really looking forward to the season now. The big break gives you a chance to recharge your batteries both physically and mentally. The next six or seven months is full on and you need a chance to prepare for that, but everyone’s really looking forward to the season as it seems such a long time since we last played.

As a Manchester United fan I enjoyed watching the Carling Cup Final the other day. The right team won – I’m a little bit biased and we just sneaked it. I can’t see us getting all five - I think something’s going to happen along the way. It would be an incredible achievement if they could achieve the quintuple and I don’t think it would ever be repeated. The treble was special and to win all five would be something else, but I can’t really see it.

My first benefit event at Bradford went really well. As I said in the previous blog, to have it in Bradford was very special as I was born there and there were lots of family and friends present. It was a great start in difficult times for people at the moment and I’m looking forward to being captain and having a good benefit . Having a benefit season is very different to what I thought it would be. One of my first experiences of people having a benefit year was Peter Hartley and then Richard Blakey and you don’t realise the organisation and work that people put in, but it’s also good fun too.

I’ll catch up with you again after we’ve returned from Abu Dhabi.

Anthony 

ANTHONY McGRATH CAPTAIN’S BLOG - 14th January 2009

Happy New Year everyone and welcome to the first of my Captain’s Blogs in 2009. I will try and update this blog as often as possible throughout what is going to be a very busy, but very exciting year ahead.

Firstly, I was delighted to be asked to be Yorkshire captain. It is a massive honour and something I was very proud to accept. It is going to be a very big year for me with my benefit season in 2009 too. The plan all winter has been for me to concentrate on arranging my benefit year between October and December and then concentrate on fitness and cricket from January onwards. That seems to have worked well.

Since the fixtures came out in December my attention has been turning right back to the cricket. That’s when your brain clicks into gear and you start to plan ahead, although we all had to wait a bit longer this time. That delay wasn’t only a problem for making cricket plans, but it also makes it tough to confirm and organise benefit events during the summer months when you don’t know where you are or whether you will be playing.

Although, as captain, I’ve been in regular contact with Martyn Moxon and the other coaches I’d spent three months away from a bat so it was really exciting to get back in at Headingley Carnegie yesterday. It was good to see some of the lads again who are all working hard and looking forward to a really good season.

I had my first hit with Kevin Sharp and have dates in my diary each week until the end of February. When we get into March the training will be full on as we head into the pre-season tour of Abu Dhabi. I think I’ve got ample time, with what I learned over the years, to get the best out of my game. I am conscious that I need to work on my skills and contribute with runs in every competition, especially the Championship as I was a bit disappointed with my 4-day form last summer.

During the off-season I still think about cricket all of the time. I’ve not been in at the Club to practice, but it is strange how random things spark you off as you drive through Leeds and your mind floats back to Hove or Scarborough or springs forward to field placings and bowling changes. Whatever the date or time of day you never cease to be a cricketer!

It’s a great honour to be awarded a benefit by the Club, but not necessarily the best year to have it as everyone is struggling financially. Business are suffering and not spending as much on entertaining clients as they used to. The work we’ve done over recent weeks has gone well however, and my benefit season gets into full swing on Thursday 29th January at Cedar Court, Bradford when I will be reunited with the Dazzler as we kick things off with ‘An Evening with Darren Gough.’ Being from Bradford I always wanted my first event of the year to be in my home town so I can include friends and family. All of my events are within Yorkshire. The Yorkshire captaincy and a hectic schedule means that time is precious – I didn’t want to spend any spare time I get travelling to benefit functions in London or elsewhere.

It was great to see the Yorkshire Academy win the Academy ARCH Trophy in Abu Dhabi. The reports I've had all said that the youngsters attitude and work ethic was fantastic. One of the reasons we are looking to give the young lads their chance at the Club is that when our backs were up against the wall last season it was invariably the youngsters that dug in and got us back on track. To play for The Yorkshire County Cricket Club you have to have fight, a winning attitude and an excellent work ethic and the Academy showed they are on the right path.

Our success in the Pro ARCH Trophy in March last year was very positive. Taking everyone out there, the climate and facilities really helped. When you’ve been practising indoors during the winter you get used to the scenery and it really helps to be in a fresh place. The Abu Dhabi trip really kick started the season and gave us good momentum. The young lads on the tour get to feel a part of the senior setup, we get the chance to talk about things that will come up during the season and it also gives the coaches and captain a chance to see the different characters within the squad. When you get to this level it is not just about skills and talent, but how people cope and react to everything that happens to a professional cricketer. I hope we can do pre-season trips like this each year as what we learn from them is priceless.

I’ll finish this blog by congratulating Adil Rashid on his selection for England’s Caribbean tour. I hope he plays a part and if he is given a chance I’m sure he’ll do well. I’m excited for him, but also a bit cautious. Leg-spin is a difficult art and I don’t think we will see the best of Adil for a few years yet. As a Club I think we have to learn from the Chris Schofield situation when he was picked, hyped up because he had six different variations, but was then cast aside and left to sink. The Club can be very proud of Adil, but we should not be too hard on him if he isn’t successful. He’s young and needs the support of everyone associated with the Club to make him the player he can become.

Keep looking forward to the season – I am – and I’ll update this blog as soon as I can.

Anthony