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Blighted by the weather

I travelled up to London to watch the Test with Dougie Heath only to spend much of the day in the hotel room following sport.

I am not the only Rust staffer to fall foul of Southern Fail. All trains from the station to London were delayed or cancelled because of an earlier trespass incident. What is it about a trespasser that brings the network to a standstill? Presumably he/she was removed so the trains could run again.

On the train was a tissue beggar that a young policewoman tried to arrest on a previous trip I made but did not know what to do as he claimed no knowledge of  English though this time it extended to begging for money.

To get to the few stinking toilets you had to surmount baggage in the gangways so you felt like competing in the The Horse of the Year. I wondered why I left the comfort of my sofa.

The fourth Major is not broadcast on Sky nor free-to-view but by an outfit of whom I  have never heard – Eleven Sports – owned by the ex-owner of  Leeds. When I tried to sign up previously I was informed that there was no coverage in my area but it seemed to work in London so I signed up for the £49 annual early bird package.

This also includes Spanish and Italian league soccer coverage. The PGA coverage consisted mainly of the American feed and they have neither a studio nor credible anchorman. Added to this the picture broke up. I fancied Kyle Stanley at a juicy 80-1 but it was big hitting Gary Woodland who after day one was leading.

Poor old Ivan texted to say that having not seen one ball bowled at Lords he got out his prayer mat for a total washout and ticket  refund and hot-footed it to the Oval for Surrey v Sussex in the T20 blast. Sussex looked nicely set up to win a reduced 15 over game only for the heavens to open once again.

This endorses the Rust view of the Hundred that it is not fit for English weather though ECB supremo Colin Graves seems determined of get it through – even altering the Articles of Association to do so.

They are left in the somewhat farcical position of the MCC as guardians of the cricket’s moral integrity entering their team at Lords. The poorer counties have been bought off.

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About John Pargiter

John Pargiter’s biggest claim to fame is his first-ever work experience job, as ‘legs’ (or runner) for Henry Longhurst. For many years he worked in insurance at Lloyds. After retiring he has returned to his favourite sport of golf and is a keen recreational sailor and grandparent. More Posts