It’s a challenging time... there’s lots of work to do, admits Croft as Glam collect wooden spoon
GLAMORGAN coach Robert Croft admitted the county has a lot of work to do after yet another chastening Championship defeat, this time against Kent, confirmed their status as Division Two whipping boys.
The ‘Hop County’ sealed a return to the top tier of the Specsavers County Championship with a 172-run win over Glamorgan, with five sessions to spare in Canterbury.
It was Kent’s 10th win of the season; in stark contrast, this was a tenth defeat for Glamorgan who have won only once this Championship season and have accrued the pitiful total of 69 points from 13 fixtures to date.
Glamorgan lost their last six wickets inside 75 minutes yesterday as Darren Stevens, so often their nemesis, took five for 24 to secure the 21st five-wicket return of his career.
It was all a very familiar capitulation and one which coach Croft knows is simply not acceptable in the longer term.
“It was a disappointing performance all-round,” said Croft.
To leak four an over with the ball on that wicket wasn’t up to scratch and we were found wanting with the bat.
“It’s not about morale for me, I’m looking at how people are performing.
“I thought Jack Murphy was our stand-out player in this match and played brilliantly.
“He’s got a real solid technique, has a good tempo with the way he plays and showed a lot of application and concentration.
“He played the ball respectfully. “It’s a challenging time for everybody
at Glamorgan cricket and there’s a lot of work still to do. There are young players here we are giving opportunities to and they’re fully aware they’ve got to meet us half way by giving us performances. ”
Matt Henry, the undoubted signing of the season in Division Two, chipped in with another four and eight in the match as Kent banked 24 points to Glamorgan’s three.
Glamorgan suffered their first loss to the ninth ball of the morning and the third of the day from Kent’s ageless all-rounder Stevens.
A good length away-swinger that cut away further off the pitch, drew Jeremy Lawlor into an injudicious defensive push outside off stump that the right-hander feathered through to keeper Sam Billings.
Ten balls and six runs later, Chris Cooke departed in near
identical fashion by meddling with a Stevens leg-cutter that brushed the outside edge to give Billings another catch.
Henry then added to his tally as the championship’s leading wicket-taker with a full-length leg cutter that squared up the righthander is defence to pluck out his off stump and make it 45 for seven.
Still within the opening hour, Ruaidhri Smith nudged outside off to be superbly caught by Billings, diving low to his right in front of first slip off Henry, who then took his 74th victim of a prolific summer by ripping out Timm van der Gugten’s off pole.
It was left to Stevens to polish the job off by 11.45am when last man Michael Hogan, the Glamorgan captain, sliced an attempted cover drive to be athletically caught at extra cover by Joe Denly, leaving the tenacious Jack Murphy unbeaten on 22.