Window Cleaner

So "bilan comptable" for the group stage. European teams 10, South American teams 4, traditional football nation from Central America 1, Asia 1...rest just there to make up the numbers and draw sponsorship and TV deals. FIFA needs to go back to the old values. Europe and South America 25 spots, others 7.

Dawson and Topley on form for England Lions with the ball today. Topley 3 for 12 and Dawson 4 for 21. Augers well for the Royal London final on Saturday perhaps.

Honestly, some of Hampshire's batting gives you the jitters.

Academic argument. England's defence probably isn't good enough to beat anyone with a serious striker or two. Doesn't matter which side of the draw we may be on. See a Brazil-Argentina final myself. Group games mean nothing, seen so many good looking sides fall at the first real hurdle and so many shockers in group games progressively raise their level.

Strange games last evening. Spain even looked as if they were trying to avoid topping their group. Probably just an impression though and they were simply having an off day. Still, avoiding the host nation in the knockout stages could be considered wise.

Not a bad day yesterday, watched most of it. Vince out to a really good ball, Rossouw batted well enough. Pity Northeast and Alsop got bogged down by the accurate bowling and occasional movement though. Hants still have it all to do from 302/6 after 96. Might even limit them to 2 bowling points whilst getting 4 batting ourselves. Plus 2 might help in a tight finish to the season.

Great...thanks.

And there you go. Weatherley out for a duck already. Promising one day batsman, don't know if he has what it takes to be a 4 day opener. Vince might as well open, he's usually in within the first 4 or 5 overs anyway.

Seem to remember Lewandowski wearing the armband.

Really ? I've seen blokes play better for The Clump and The Concorde

Innings well resurrected by Adams and Alsop. Hopefully they can push us on towards York's total and get perhaps 4 batting points. With Lancs looking in big trouble we may even get out of the bottom 2.

It will be all over by kick off time anyway. I'd like to have seen Vince's innings today..

Yorkies 2 down and way behind the rate. Just what the Window Cleaner ordered.

So then 348/9 from our 50 overs. Big knock from Vince, lost wickets at the end, obviously hitting out a bit. At least it's a big target for them, nigh on 7 an over. Hopefully we'll put in some tight bowling at the start and they'll get behind the rate.

Think England will do well actually.

Well yes but we've made nearly 50 from less than 5 overs since then..

Dare I say that we're going along nicely today? 173/2 off 29

Met the first of my fiancées on a number 14 bus. I got on at the stop near Beechwood, went to Taunton's, she got on at The Triangle, went to G.G. Didn't have an Umbrella though.

Bloody trumpets are back though. Had to turn the sound off.

FIFA probably need to change the qualifying zones so that you don't have Saudia Arabia and their ilk and not Italy, Cameroon or Chile. Some sort of inter-regional play-offs perhaps.

Could be 5 or 6. Teams like Saudi Arabia, well you have to wonder what they're really doing in the W.C final stages don't you. Must bring in TV money or something I suppose.

Don't understand all this raving over Diop, he is bang average. People used to rave over Mangala and Yanga Mbiwa as well. Toulouse are an awful side and have no really decent players whatsoever. I suppose Diop's football manager stats must be impressive, wrong but no doubt impressive.

Partly. They'd also been dependant on Robben and to some extent Van Persie for years. When their performances fell off or were just not present because of endless injuries, Holland were just lost. Their style of football also became outdated.

48 teams ? Some of the games will be awful, mind you some of them don't look any too bright with the current 32. I mean Panama-Tunisia, that's going to be a real treat right. Midanbury-Clump at BP rec would probably be a better game.

Will Burnley be involved in qualy rounds of the Europa before that ?