Match report day 1 Yorkshire v Derbyshire in Championship 2004 by John Ward

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Scorecard:

Yorkshire v Derbyshire

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Toss: Yorkshire, to bat
Lunch: No play
Tea: Yorkshire 114/1 off 36 overs (Wood 54*, McGrath 25*)
Close: Yorkshire 225/1 off 60 overs (Wood 100*, McGrath 89*)

 

Yorkshire enjoyed a good, if curtailed, first day of their match against Derbyshire at Headingley, and in view of the weather conditions perhaps got more play than might have been expected. Matthew Wood and Anthony McGrath were the dominating figures of the day, sharing a big unbroken century partnership, and Wood reached his century just before the close.

 

Much rain overnight and early morning delayed the start of the match until after lunch. The heavy clouds lifted somewhat and there were even a few gleams of sunlight by that time.

 

Yorkshire won the toss and decided to bat. They left out Michael Lumb, having a rather disgruntled season, from the team, while Derbyshire gave a championship debut to off-spinner Chris Paget, aged 16 years and 283 days, and still with two years at Repton College. He was Derbyshire’s youngest championship player, with only Fred Swarbrook, who played a university match, younger.

 

Matthew Wood soon had Yorkshire under way as he guided the second ball of the match, from Paul Havill, between slip and gully to the boundary. Wood continued to play fluently and scored all of the first 19 runs on the board. Andrew Gale, who saw little of the bowling for 20 minutes, finally got under way by driving Graeme Welch to the extra-cover boundary.

 

Most of the early runs were conceded by Havill, who quickly gave way to Mo Sheikh, and the two of them put a brake on the scoring. Welch was particularly miserly, conceding barely a run an over until in his seventh over Gale drove him handsomely for his second boundary and then pulled him through midwicket for another four. He had almost caught up with Wood when, with 29 to his credit, he was adjudged lbw to Jonathan Moss, and Yorkshire were 64 for one.

 

Wood now began to open up again, pulling Moss for six, but slowed down through the forties, before he finally turned Welch to long leg for four to reach his fifty off 97 balls, just after Anthony McGrath had brought up the hundred with one wicket down.

 

At this point, seam gave way to the off-spin of the debutant Paget. He began with a maiden over, although conceding a bye down the leg side. He pushed his first few deliveries through fairly briskly, but quickly gained the confidence to use more flight. He continued to be very economical, getting away with the odd full toss but continuing to pitch the ball well up, and not until the end of his fifth over had he conceded more runs than he had bowled overs, as McGrath decided it was time to put him in his place.

 

McGrath reached his fifty in similar fashion to Wood, flicking Sheikh to long leg for four, and the landmark came off only 66 balls. Then a handsome straight drive for four brought up the century partnership. Paget, whose control was impressive throughout, finished his first spell with the figures of 12-3-35-0.

 

The light was now becoming poor, while Derbyshire reverted to their quickest bowlers, suggesting they might like an adjournment to regather their forces as the total passed 200 for only one wicket. But the batsmen had no problem with bowling of any pace as they headed towards their centuries, with McGrath steadily gaining on Wood.

 

A stolen single took Wood to his century first, off 184 balls, his 15th in first-class cricket. At the end of that over from Welch, though, the batsmen accepted an offer to depart the field in what was now genuinely poor light, although they had shown no difficulty in batting in it. Perhaps they bore in mind the proverb, “He who fights and runs away . . .”

 

(Article: Copyright © 2004 John Ward)