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County Championship Preview: Somerset v Kent
THE MATCH
Somerset welcome Kent to the Cooper Associates County Ground this week in Division One of the LV= Insurance County Championship.
Day one of this fixture is tomorrow (Tuesday September 19th).
SCHEDULED HOURS OF PLAY:
Morning session: 10:30am to 12:30pm
Afternoon session: 1:10pm to 3:10pm
Evening session: 3:30pm to 5:30pm
Tickets for this match are still available.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Gates will open at 9:30am.
Bag searches will be in operation and spectators are reminded that no glass or sharp implements will be permitted within the Cooper Associates County Ground.
Ticket buyers can print and download their online tickets via their SCCC account.
All ticket or Membership collections will be from the Jack White Gates (St James Street).
The Club Enquiries Desk will be based in the Reception of the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion and not in the Andrew Caddick Pavilion on matchdays.
Due to the busy nature of a matchday, our telephone lines will reopen at 10am on Monday September 25th.
Information on everything that you will need for a matchday at SCCC, including how to redeem your guest passes, how to download your e-tickets and how to use the SCCC Ticket App can all be found in our Visiting Guide.
Scorecards will be available from the SCS Shop and Reception in the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion.
On day three, only Block 5 of the Somerset Stand will be open to the public. The Somerset Stand will be closed on day four.
Due to flooding, the Lord Botham stand will be closed for the duration of this fixture.
CATERING
Matchday food and drink will be available from Stragglers Coffee House (for the duration of the match) plus the Lord Botham Stand and Salt & Malt (days one and two only).
Matchday dining is also available in the County Room. We offer breakfast, a carvery lunch and afternoon tea.
HOW CAN I KEEP UP TO DATE?
Our live stream will once again be available for fans to watch via this website and at our YouTube channel.
You can also keep up to date using our dedicated matchday blog via this website’s Match Centre and on our Twitter feed.
In association with Vertu Motors, Somerset County Cricket Club will be providing radio ear pieces to enable Members and supporters to enjoy our live ball-by-ball match commentary. These will be available to purchase from Reception in the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion at a cost of £12 and these will last all season.
In addition to this, a report on the day’s play along with quotes will be posted on this website.
THE OPPOSITION
KENT
Captain: Sam Billings
Head Coach: Matthew Walker
2022 finish: Fifth (Division One)
2022 highest runscorer: Ben Compton (1,193)
2022 highest wicket taker: Nathan Gilchrist (33)
Key winter moves: Ollie Robinson’s departure to Durham arguably vexed members even more than the decision to release 46-year-old Darren Stevens, but Michael Hogan’s arrival at the relatively callow age of 41 should shore up an attack weakened by the loss of Harry Podmore. Having missed out on Matt Henry, Arshdeep Singh is an intriguing gamble, but he’s only available for five games and the hunt for an overseas bowler continues.
TEAM NEWS
Somerset are still without Jack Leach (back), Sonny Baker (back), Kasey Aldridge (side) and Craig Overton (back). Sean Dickson is unavailable following the birth of his child, but Josh Davey returns to the squad.
The starting XI will be selected from the following squad: Tom Abell, Tom Lammonby, Andy Umeed, Tom Banton, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, James Rew, Lewis Gregory, Lewis Goldsworthy, Ben Green, Josh Davey, Jack Brooks, Neil Wagner and Shoaib Bashir.
VIEW FROM THE DRESSING ROOM
Ahead of the match, Somerset Head Coach, Jason Kerr said: “We’ve got two games left and obviously both of them are incredibly important. It’s important that we finish the season well and hopefully we can put in a really strong performance in our final home game of the season. We need to build on the things that we’ve done well this summer and set a benchmark for how we are going to move forward next summer.
“I’ve spoken to the group about how important it is that we understand our identity and how we want to play cricket, and these two games are an opportunity to continue that.”
CLASSIC MATCH
For our classic match between the two sides we head back to 1956 when Somerset and Kent clashed at the Recreation Ground, Bath.
It was an encounter that Somerset won by nine wickets, and it was a game to remember for Brian Langford.
After winning the toss and electing to bat, Somerset posted a first innings total of 318 all out. Peter Wight top scored with 94 and there were half centuries for Lewis Pickles (59) and Graham Atkinson (65).
It was then Langford’s turn to take centre stage.
The Somerset bowler claimed eight for 23 from 19 overs as Kent were dismissed for just 100.
The follow-on was enforced and Langford claimed another four victims to finish with 12 wickets in the match as the visitors were all out for 227.
Somerset reached their victory target for the loss of just one wicket to secure a resounding victory.
MEMBERSHIP 2024
Membership of Somerset County Cricket Club for the 2024 season will go on sale on tomorrow (Tuesday September 19th!)
Membership will be available to purchase online only from 8:30am.
You will also be able to renew or purchase in person if you are attending our LV= Insurance County Championship match against Kent which begins on the 19th.
Staff from our Commercial Team will be available to answer questions, sell Membership and outline all of the 2024 benefits in the 1875 Club from 10am to 11am and in the Long Room from 11am to 12pm on each day of the Kent fixture. Staff will also be available at Reception of the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion in the St James Street car park throughout the match.
Membership will be available over the phone and in person from reception from Tuesday September 26th.
If you pay by Direct Debit, you don’t need to do anything. Your Membership will automatically renew at the 2024 price. If you pay by Direct Debit and wish to make any alterations to your Membership please email us before 5pm on October 2nd.
MEMBER FOR THE DAY
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a Member of Somerset County Cricket Club?
Well, now you can find out!
On any day of this match you can become a Member for the day!
For just £18 you will receive a special ticket which will provide you with Member benefits for the day.
You will receive:
- Access to our Member Stands and Member Bar
- A 10% discount at SCCC food and drink concessions
- A digital scorecard which will be emailed prior to the day
To experience a matchday as a Somerset County Cricket Club Member, take advantage of this special offer now!
Already a Member? Tell your friends about this offer and they could join you in the Members areas for this fixture.
In addition to this, any adult non-member who signs up to this offer and then goes on to take out full 2024 Membership* will have the £18 discounted from their Membership purchase.
MEMBER Q&A
A Member Q&A will be held in the County Room 20 minutes after the close of play on Day Two (Wednesday September 20th).
The guest speakers for this event will be SCCC Chair, Sir Michael Barber and SCCC CEO, Gordon Hollins.
This event will also be live streamed.
RON’S MARCH FOR PROSTATE CANCER
Ron Headley will be joining us on the opening day of this match.
Having joined Jeff Stelling’s March for Men in 2017 to raise funds for prostate cancer research, a year later Ron was diagnosed with prostate and bone cancer in November 2018. He spread the message that this disease would affect 1 in 8 men and encouraged mento to get checked.
Ron will be joined by several Somerset CCC Senior players and taking part in a charity walk.
Money raised will go to The Bob Willis Fund and support key Prostate Cancer UK Projects.
WPA PREDICTIONS LEAGUE
So, you think you know your cricket do you? Here’s your chance to prove it!
Powered by WPA Health Insurance, the new game allows you to score points on every Somerset matchday.
Collect points throughout the year for correct predictions and make your way up the leaderboard to prove that you are the font of all cricketing knowledge!
The top Scorers for each competition will receive a prize.
Watch. Predict. Win!
NEXT MATCH
Somerset’s next match begins on Tuesday September 26th when we take on Warwickshire at Edgbaston in the LV= Insurance County Championship.
