CD and Albion

The game went well, and I think I allowed it to go on, yet was able to take control when there were no-balls and wides. So I was pleased. OPne batsman complained that I had missed a fine inside edge, and I ought to pay attention to that. I thought soon after that the ball was going down leg but narrowly missing, but perhaps that late turn was the bat touching the ball and so guiding it down leg. So a mistake.

I umpired while W McS bowled, and I gave him a warning for one bouncer, but it was not quite high enough, and so he told me that it should not be a warning unless it was above the shoulder. It is not the best look to be corrected by a player, but then again he does play for the Volts and so knows his stuff.

Next weekend I am umpiring with JH. As one team is the one I umpired badly last weekend, I hope to have a good performance.

Still, another game completed.

Albion & CD

Another game tomorrow, and it should be an easier one than last week. I should also check in my mind that I am ready for no-balls, for wides, leg-byes and so on.

So hoping for a good day. And the prediction is for sun...

Everyone has a bad day

We had a pretty good meeting in which we discussed various things. Once again, one who should not speak, spoke often and pointlessly. I spoke for the first time since joining, and it was to raise the point that the earlier Otago Cricket tell us of a game the better. I think people listened to my brief suggestion because I have spoken uselessly and at length.
At the end of the meeting I saw my evaluations by captains and they were ok. I told the president that I had a shocking game on Saturday and I made various mistakes. He was very understanding, which is good, and said that everyone has had a bad day and the good thing was being aware of the mistakes. I guess he takes the atttitude that being aware of mistakes helps to ensure they won't happen again. At the same sort of time, the overly chatty one was gabbling about the way he is always right despite their complaints. I can see issues with man-management.

At least I realised I had a bad day and so talked to the captain of one side. Oh well, Saturday is another game.

Lousy game

Aargh well, it had to happen. I had a pretty bad game on Saturday. I can't make too many excuses except to say that I got flustered, I felt under pressure, I did not take the right decisions quickly enough and made a couple of bad decisions.

I just have to grit my teeth and concentrate. Watch the small decisions, such as the byes, wides and leg-byes. Then think long and hard about the major ones, such as the LBWs and catches behind the wicket.

Unfortunately this means I will get a deserved stinker of an evaluation. perhaps I am not up to level four this year, but then if I get a job in the location where I went to an interview it won't really matter, as I will not do very much umpiring.

This evening we have a meeting, and I think I will mention to JH that I had a bad day, and so prepare him for the poor evaluation.

Games so far

I think it is six games for Dunedin CA, one game for my son's school, and the two games in Oamaru.

My objectives were 24...

Saturday 30 Oct

My mind has been on several things in the last week; firstly learning that our child will be a son, and secondly that I have a job interview in a small town at the north of the south island. A big move and a big change.

Still, a game to umpire at the second grade level between University Grange and Otago Boys' High School. The latter won, mostly because UG batted badly, seizing almost every opportunity to get out by slashing wildly at balls. One interesting aspect of the game was that there was a female player, and she was very good; a little slow at bowling, but had the wicket-keeper held on to a catch the OBHS score would have been a lot lower, and when batting she set an example, by being careful yet attacking at loose balls. I didn't think she was good enough for the senior level because her bowling was not quite sharp enough, and her batting needed strength, but I can see why the University 2nd XI is happy to have her!

Early on I missed a leg-bye, but otherwise I think the game went well and I was pleased. Another Dunedin game.

Oamaru

THe first day at Oamaru was good and the second better, so all in all it was a pleasing tournament to be involved in. I umpired North Otago on both days, so kind of got to see them too much, but I also umpired Southland and Otago Country. Southland, on the first day, had a great fast bowler and he had North Otago hopping around the crease. Southland put up a pretty good score in merely 37 overs, hitting quite hard and perhaps batting recklessly, and then North Otago tried to last out but didn't. I had a fairly easy game with no particular problems though I had to keep thinking of the intervals, as the game was time rather than overs, which is what we play all the time in Dunedin.

At the end of the day I went to the motel with my fellow umpire from Dunedin and we checked into our rooms, which were pretty nice. Then we went out for a pizza in town, and had a beer each.
I slept pretty well but woke up early and read. I was umpring with D.W., who is one of NZ's best umpires on the top panel and so it was a bit scary that I would have to umpire with him, but it worked out well. In about the 4th or 5th over a ball went down the leg side, the batsman touched it, and it was caught by the wicket-keeper. I gave it out on appeal and DW said "good work, he did touch that". So I relaxed, knowing that my first major decision was correct and approved.

The rest of the day was fine, though I forgot about the tea interval and did not call it on time. Still a satisfactory end to three days of cricket umpiring.

Another goal completed; umpiring outside Dunedin.