January 30, 2013 at 5:54 p.m.
Cup Match / St. George’s team review
Cann's unbeaten century helps St. George's defend the Cup
By Friday afternoon they were clinging on to the cup by their fingernails. In a game that ebbed and flowed throughout, all attributes were on display over the course of the two days.
Here James Whittaker take a look at how each one of the holders XI performed.
St. George's honour roll
Batsman Runs
1. Charles Marshall 1,357
2. Wendell Smith 1,143
3. Clay Smith 1,076
4. Lloyd James 988
5. Lionel Cann 900
6. Edward Swainson 829
7. Noel Gibbons 783
8. Rupert Scotland 736
9. Arnold Manders 688
10. Clevie Wade 667
Bowler Wickets
1. Clarence Parfitt 115
2. Alec Steede 100
3. Edward Watson 74
4. Carlton Welch 51
4. Walter Darrell 51
6. Kenny Paul 46
7. Clevie Wade 37
8. Lee Raynor 35
8. Thomas Richardson 35
8. Adrian King 35
Lionel Cann
Batting: 0 and 104*
Led from the front with the definitive captain's innings to save the match for St. George's.
Detractors will say he should have gone for the victory, but a run-a-ball century with his side in desperate straits speaks for itself.
When Charlie Marshall holed out to Dion Stovell on the square leg boundary for a duck, Somerset had one hand on the cup.
But Cann, first by sheer determination and then by sheer class, wrestled it back.
It was his first Cup Match hundred and redemption after being out on 99 last year.
With that knock Cann also edged closer to joining the elite group of players who have passed 1,000 runs in the classic.
He also ends a four year stint as skipper undefeated after one win and three draws.
Stefan Kelly
Bowling: 5 for 62 and 3 for 129
Pace, aggression, fitness, commitment, determination: All those attributes were on display from 20-year-old Kelly, who was given the daunting task of leading St. George's threadbare seam attack.
He bowled with fire on day one to take a well deserve five wicket haul and reduce Somerset to rubble.
He was over used in the second innings - taking one for the team as he bowled unchanged through the morning session, toiling tirelessly in the heat over the two days.
He still ended up with three scalps for an eight-wicket haul. Might have had even more had he enjoyed the luxury of bowling in shorter spells.
Rodney Trott
Bowling: 0 for 5 and 1 for 65
Batting: 23 and 40
Trott may be considered Bermuda's premier spinner when it comes to the national team but at St. George's he still plays second fiddle to Borden.
The talented 21-year-old only got two overs in the first innings and just ten in the second innings.
His figures took a hammering as Jacobi Robinson went on the rampage after lunch on day two as Somerset pushed the pedal to the metal in pursuit of a declaration.
Trott responded well with the bat. His polished 40 helped St. George's out of a difficult situation and was a key factor in saving the game.
He also looked pretty comfortable in the first innings, stroking a fluid 23.
Trott is tidy in defence and puts a high price on his wicket, meaning his game is more suited to the longer format and he could yet emerge as a genuine all-rounder, particuarly in the four-day game.
Charlie Marshall
Batting: 19 and 0
Signed off with a golden duck in his final innings for St. George's.
It wasn't the way he would have wanted to go out, but Marshall has already cemented his status as a Cup Match legend.
He goes out as the Classic's all-time top run scorer and firmly established as a St. George's great. The chorus of 'we love you Charlie' from his teammates said it all about a man who started his career back in 1980 with a century on debut and virtually picked himself for the next three decades.
After the game he joked that he had scored a duck to throw down a challenge to St George's youngsters to prove they could cope without him.
Marshall, who has retired once before, insisted that this time it is really over, saying he believed there was enough young talent to keep the cup in the east for many years to come.
Delyone Borden
Bowling: 2 for 38 and 2 for 74
Batting: 12 and 11*
Extracted a lot of turn from a crumbling pitch, causing all sorts of problems for Somerset's batsmen - particularly in the second innings.
Didn't get as many wickets as he would have liked, considering how dangerously the ball was fizzing and popping about. But the graft and patience of Janeiro Tucker, who ground out an unbeaten hundred in difficult circumstances, was partly to blame for that.
He could, however, have saved himself the grind of bowling at Tucker if he'd held a fairly routine catch. Showed his all-round capabilities by blocking out for a draw at the end of day two, combining with Lionel Cann to frustrate Somerset.
It will be interesting to see if he has been forgiven for his pay dispute with the board when the national team selectors meet to discuss the squad for the Uganda series
Chris Foggo
Batting: 30 and 24
Fielding: 5 catches
A solid, at times spectacular, display behind the stumps from Foggo who made the Safe Hands award his own with a series of stunning catches.
His moment of the match was a superb diving catch to get rid of Deunte Darrell in the second innings. The youngster skied a top-edged hook behind the wicket, leaving Foggo to turn and run, almost to the boundaries edge before diving full length to take the catch.
He looked accomplished with the bat getting a good start in both innnings, but couldn't kick on.
Fiqre Crockwell
Batting: 0 and 31
Didn't have the impact he would have liked at Cup Match a year which has seen him progress in leaps and bounds.
His first innings duck sparked a top order collapse on day one and though he looked comfortable and accomplished during his knock of 31 in the second innings he will be disappointed with the way he got out - comfortably caught by Jordan DeSilva off the bowling of Joshua Gilbert.
Crockwell looks the part at this level, though, and there is little doubt that he will be a big player for St. George's in the future.
Landro Minors
Batting: 13 and 8
The battle before Cup Match for the services of Landro Minors proved to be a mere sub-plot to the main action.
Minors struggled to make an impact with the bat on debut. Perhaps the extra hype of being the man in demand took its tool. Perhaps it was just a bad couple of days at the office.
With Marshall following Clay Smith into retirement he is likely to have a bigger role to play in future years.
Oronde Bascome
Batting: 9 and 11
Bowling: 0 for 3
Another Cup Match to forget for St. George's vice-captain Bascome. He's been highlighted as a future leader of this side with Cann stepping down as skipper, but after three Cup Matches he has yet to make a contribution of note with the bat.
In fairness he wasn't the only one that struggled on a wicket that was, at times, tough for the batsmen.
Justin Pitcher
Bowling: 3 for 16 and 1 for 52
Batting: 51 and DNB
A superb debut, all told, for the young St. David's seamer - particularly in the first innings.
He took three for 16 on day one as Somerset were skittled to 124 and then crashed a debut half century, plundering five sixes to eke out a first innings lead for St. George's.
He played second fiddle to Stefan Kelly in the St George's pace attack and would probably have wanted a couple more scalps in the second innings. But he will be pleased with his performance.
Glenn Blakeney
Batting: 8 and DNB
The sight of Glenn Blakeney hobbling around on the boundaries edge on crutches but padded up and ready to bat said it all about the determination of this St. George's side not to lose.
It was backs to the wall stuff for a while and Blakeney, who suffered a knee injury celebrating a catch in the first innings, was in no shape to come to the wicket.
But he was ready to do it.
After being out for eight in the first innings it was a frustrating Cup Match, overall, for Blakeney, who has had no luck with injuries in the last 12 months.
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