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Three games into the 2025-26 season under new head coach Thomas Frank, Tottenham must have believed they were onto a sure-fire winner. They showed tremendous promise in their eventual UEFA Super Cup defeat to Paris Saint-Germain on penalties, destroyed Burnley in their Premier League opener, and then tore apart Pep Guardiola's Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

Fast-forward three months, though, and you'd be hard pressed to find a Spurs fan who didn't have major reservations over Frank, let alone a growing contingent of people wanting him sacked. Tottenham were incredibly lucky to lose only 1-0 to Chelsea at the start of November, while they could have few complaints over Sunday's 4-1 hammering at the hands of north London rivals Arsenal.

Across those two matches against their most bitter of foes, Frank's side registered only six shots and a combined expected goals tally of 0.17. Their only goal came courtesy of Richarlison, who lobbed David Raya from just inside Arsenal's half during the second of those two defeats.

Frank was hired to bring organisation and a calmer head to a young team that had been burnt too much by their own adventure under Ange Postecoglou. However, by completely throwing that identity in reverse, Frank has made Spurs one of the most boring teams in the Premier League without a requisite number of points to make this at least palatable. Even his Brentford teams of far lesser quality never resorted to the lows we've seen of Tottenham over the last few weeks.

CEO Vinai Venkatesham declared upon Frank's hiring that he scored highest on a 10-point checklist of 30 managerial candidates. The club's belief in such a system will be put to the test over the winter unless the Dane gets his house in order again.

There isn't a simple fix to Spurs' issues, not least because they severely lack the star power of a Harry Kane or a Son Heung-min to get them out of a hole these days, but there are definitely solutions within Frank's reach to curb this unrest. GOAL runs through eight ideas to get Tottenham firing again:

Getty Images SportDestroy the 'Bentinha' midfield

Jamie Carragher broke down the number one problem with Spurs' build-up play prior to the November international break, which is that Frank has put far too much trust in two destroyers to anchor his midfield, particularly loan signing Joao Palhinha.

"Palhinha hasn't got the quality," he began, commentating over a clip from their loss to Chelsea. "For me, for a player playing in central midfield for Tottenham, that is a pass you have to be able to make. He can't make it, so… he goes back. Listen to the boos. The only reason he does a clever turn on the ball is because of the boos. Otherwise, he’d have gone back to the goalkeeper. Palhinha gets back on the ball and he takes five touches because he hasn't got the confidence or the ability.

"You might look at that result and think there's not a lot wrong, but when you watch the game at the weekend, that was like watching a League Two team against a Premier League team in the FA Cup. When you look at the stats, there was a huge contrast with the ball, and that is the biggest challenge for any coach making that jump from one of the teams in the bottom half of the Premier League to one of the big boys."

Pairing Portugal international Palhinha with Rodrigo Bentancur hasn't helped matters. In isolation, they're OK footballers who can break up play, but together they present huge challenges for Spurs both in and out of possession. They don't show for the ball, they don't want to progress the ball centrally, and they're not clean when they do get on the ball. The derby defeats showed their positions are effectively redundant too, seeing as Spurs gave away so many shots on the edge of the own box in the area the duo ought to be occupying.

Pape Matar Sarr, with his lung-busting energy and determination to actually get into the game, has inexplicably had his minutes cut following a fine start to the season. It probably isn't a coincidence he played out of his skin against PSG and Man City before results and performances took a tumble when he was removed from the XI. Meanwhile, Lucas Bergvall – the only player in the squad that resembles a deep-lying playmaker – and Archie Gray haven't featured enough considering those ahead of them have been churning out mediocre performances bi-weekly. Frank has to turn to fresh blood in midfield.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportKeep the ball on the floor

Spurs' inability to progress play in central areas has made them even more predictable than they were under Postecoglou. Guglielmo Vicario passes to Micky van de Ven, Van de Ven passes it back, Vicario passes it back again, Van de Ven doesn't have any other option but to smash it into the channel, where nobody is willing to challenge for it and they turn the ball over. Rinse and repeat every time you get a goal-kick.

Frank has tried to simplify Tottenham's game too much. It's overkill. As Gary Neville pointed out on commentary during the Arsenal loss, there's a difference between playing direct and playing long without any plan whatsoever.

Part of Spurs' current predicament is the only in-possession principles they appear to be abiding by are from set pieces. The Dane could perhaps take some tips from one of his predecessors, Mauricio Pochettino, in this sense.

Before Tottenham scored their second goal in what was an eventual 3-2 loss at Liverpool in 2015 during his first season, Pochettino was seen shouting one particular instruction towards defender Eric Dier. "Eric! To feet! No long balls!" he yelped from the sidelines. Now, this version of Spurs would go on to become a team who could cut teams open with ranging passes, but the point is that Pochettino wanted his troops to learn a rudimentary way of his final philosophy first. To boot, this came after the Argentine had made sweeping squad changes to overthrow the old guard and build around a younger core. This wouldn't be unprecedented territory for Frank to head into as a Tottenham head coach.

Getty Images SportLean on natural full-backs

This is a minor point in the grand scheme of this rebuild given there are only three full-backs in the Tottenham squad and Destiny Udogie has been injured for part of the season, but it's a structural issue all the same.

Pedro Porro, one of the Premier League's best attacking full-backs, hasn't hit top form yet this season. He's getting into promising positions, though has been let down by some poor deliveries and his team-mates not exactly knowing where to stand and which runs to make. Playing a back five at Arsenal would have made far more sense if Spain's first-choice right-back was starting instead of the defence-first option of Djed Spence.

Speaking of the England star, Spence's inclination to tuck infield when deployed on the left has also contributed to an overload of nothingness in the middle of the park. In the absence of Udogie, it would be worth giving Van de Ven some more opportunities at full-back, where he has been playing for the Netherlands national team.

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Getty Images SportTrust in Simons

Back in August, Tottenham nearly wrapped up a deal to sign Eberechi Eze. At the eleventh hour, Arsenal swooped in and brought him back to his boyhood club instead. The silver lining for Spurs was this led to a deal for Xavi Simons, who was only lower down their list of targets because it seemed for all the world he would be heading to Chelsea instead.

It would have hurt the Lilywhites immeasurably that Simons was dropped for the derby while Eze dropped a hat-trick on them. The point made by fans on social media post-match was there's an irony that Eze probably wouldn't have even been selected for this encounter had he joined Tottenham, such has been the extent of Frank's pragmatism to this point.

Simons, much like Liverpool's Florian Wirtz, is still adapting to the Premier League following a successful stint in the Bundesliga. If Spurs fans want any consolation over what happened at the Emirates Stadium, the Dutchman is five years Eze's junior and clearly has the potential to become a leading attacking midfielder, though his development is only being stifled by Frank and his deep-lying midfielders refusing to get him into games more.

This Tottenham team have created very little over the course of the season irrespective of whether Simons has been playing, though arguably one of their more potent spells came when they were trailing at Brighton in October, and the introduction of the No.10 in his natural position helped Spurs come from two goals down to earn a well-deserved 2-2 draw. Simons may as well be given more of a licence to roam and feel his way into games if Frank's men are putting up such measly xG totals anyway.

The New York Mets beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-3, in 10 innings on Monday night despite the best efforts of Shohei Ohtani. The Mets scored a run in the fifth inning when Brandon Nimmo hit a ground-rule double that scored Jeff McNeil.

McNeil had almost gotten doubled off second when Michael Conforto made a tough catch at the wall on a long fly ball from Francisco LIndor. Conforto quickly threw the ball back in an attempt to get McNeil at second, but second baseman Tommy Edman couldn't make the catch and it bounced away.

The ball then hit umpire Jansen Visconti in the head and ricocheted straight up into the air and miraculously landed back in Edman's glove. You couldn't recreate this bounce in a lifetime.

Luckily, Visconti was alright. In fact, he was so alright that he and Edman shared a laugh and then the cameras caught him pointing back out to the outfield with a big smile on his face to let Conforto know that he was alright. And in the process, he looked like the coolest umpire in baseball.

Richarlison took his tally for the season to seven goals in all competitions, per Sofascore, as Tottenham Hotspur beat Brentford 2-0 in the Premier League on Saturday.

The Brazil international converted from close range after Xavi Simons, who scored the second goal in the match, put it on a plate for the striker with a ball across the box.

Despite a return of six goals and two assists in nine starts in the Premier League for Richarlison, though, the Lilywhites are reportedly looking to add a new striker to their squad in the January transfer window.

Spurs have been linked with an interest in former Brentford striker Ivan Toney, who worked with Thomas Frank at the Gtech, but he is not the only attacker on their radar.

Spurs have strong interest in Spanish striker

The Europa League champions are also looking at a possible move for a number nine who could arrive in North London as the manager’s next version of Toney.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

According to TEAMtalk, Tottenham Hotspur have a strong interest in signing Porto centre-forward Samu Aghehowa to bolster their options at the top end of the pitch.

The report claims that the Spain international has a release clause in the region of £70m – a fee that would eclipse Spurs’ club-record fee – and that has attracted interest from Tottenham, Aston Villa, and Newcastle United.

Tottenham are said to have done a lot of background work on the striker, whom they hugely admire, and they would like to snap him up to lead their line.

However, the outlet adds that Porto are set to block a January move for Samu, who is not pushing to leave, which could mean that the Lilywhites have to wait until the summer to do a deal.

Why Spurs should wait to sign Samu Aghehowa

Instead of panicking and signing an alternative centre-forward option in the January transfer window, Spurs should wait until the summer to pursue a deal for the Spanish attacker, because he could be a brilliant addition to the squad as Frank’s new Toney.

The England international, per Transfermarkt, scored 72 goals in 141 matches for Brentford in all competitions for the Danish head coach, whilst acting as the focal point for the team with his physical presence.

Toney won 3.2 or more aerial duels per game, per Sofascore, across all three of his seasons in the Premier League with the Bees, never winning lower than 46% of his aerial contests.

Samu, 6 foot 4, has won 59% of his aerial duels in Liga Portugal and 56% of them in the Europa League this season, after winning 51% in the Portuguese top-flight last term, per Sofascore, which shows that he can offer a similar focal point to Toney in the number nine role.

Appearances

30

11

xG

14.07

5.63

Goals

19

6

Minutes per goal

119

117

Assists

3

1

Aerial duel success rate

51%

59%

As you can see in the table above, though, the Spanish number nine is a terrific goalscorer to go along with his physical attributes, having scored 25 league goals since the start of last season.

Talent scout Jacek Kulig hailed him as a “clinical” player during the 2024/25 campaign, and that still rings true with his return of six goals from 5.63 xG in the league this term.

Samu, who was described as a “freak of nature” by one analyst on X, has the physical and technical attributes to be Frank’s new Toney, as they are both prolific strikers who can also duel with opposition defenders and provide a focal point for their side.

On top of his similarities to Toney and his impressive record for Porto, the Spain international is also 21 and has plenty of time left ahead of him to develop and improve further, which means that he would be a signing to make an immediate impact, but with scope for it to be a long-term move as well.

Fewer touches than Vicario & 88% duels lost: Spurs flop must now be dropped

One Tottenham Hotspur player may need to be dropped despite yesterday’s win over Brentford.

ByEthan Lamb Dec 7, 2025

Therefore, Samu is a player who is worth waiting for. That is why Spurs should stick with Richarlison, who has a decent goal return this season, until next summer before making a move for the Porto marksman, unless a January deal does become viable in the next seven weeks or so.

De Zorzi has also been ruled out of the upcoming five-match T20I series against India, as is Maphaka

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Dec-2025Nandre Burger and Tony de Zorzi have been ruled out of the series-deciding third ODI against India due to injury.Left-arm seamer Burger suffered a hamstring injury that curtailed his participation in the second ODI in Raipur, while de Zorzi experienced a right hamstring strain towards the end of South Africa’s chase and retired hurt on 17 after the 45th over.The CSA said that both players underwent scans on Friday, which confirmed the extent of their respective injuries. “De Zorzi has also been ruled out of the upcoming five-match T20I series against India, which gets underway on Tuesday, and will return home,” the release said. “No replacement has been named.”Related

Conrad hopes SA's young batters learn from Kohli, Rohit and 'grow from there'

Nandre Burger and de Zorzi pick up injuries during Raipur ODI

Fast bowler Kwena Maphaka has been withdrawn from the T20I squad as well, as he did not “progress as expected during the final phase of his rehabilitation” from a left hamstring injury. Fast bowler Lutho Sipamla has been added to the side.South Africa’s T20I squadAiden Markram (capt), Ottneil Baartman, Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Quinton de Kock (wk), Donovan Ferreira, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, George Linde, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Lutho Sipamla, and Tristan Stubbs

Landon Donovan took issue with Australia manager Tony Popovic’s reaction to the 2026 World Cup draw, calling the confidence he projected “unusual.” The USMNT legend said Popovic’s response suggested Australia view Group D as winnable, with the Americans joined by Paraguay and a UEFA playoff winner. Donovan added that Popovic’s comments made him wish he could return to face the Socceroos.

'It was really interesting'

Donovan found the Australian coach’s response to the group draw particularly striking. 

“I watched the Aussie coach’s interview after the draw, and it was really interesting,” Donovan said on the State of the Union podcast. ‘It was unique because most coaches say all the same stuff you're expecting, like, "Oh, it's difficult draws." "It's gonna be so hard," and his first comment was, "We're satisfied." And I was like"Really?" (laughs) "Are you? So, and he just had this smugness about him, and I'm like, "All right, I can't wait. I wish I was on the field." I'm like, "I wanna play these guys"

AdvertisementGetty ImagesRespect for Australia’s competitiveness

While Donovan expressed confidence that the USMNT should beat Australia, he also acknowledged the team’s solidity and the challenges they present on the field. He emphasized that Australia is a tough opponent and not a team to be underestimated, indicating that matches in the group will be competitive and hard-fought rather than one-sided affairs.

“They're a solid team,” Donovan said. “They're not hard to play against. This is not going to be some blowout whatever, but it's a team I think we should beat.”

Confidence in USMNT’s ability

Donovan’s remarks reflect a broader optimism about the USMNT’s prospects in the group. That is especially the case after the draw was announced and the fact that the USMNT have already beaten Australia and Paraguay in friendlies in 2025.

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Getty Images SportWorld Cup prep ramps up

The U.S. have announced its upcoming friendlies for 2026, with their first match coming against Belgium on March 28. 

The Chicago Cubs are tied atop the NL Central with the Milwaukee Brewers, with both teams tied for the best record in Major League Baseball. In such a tight a race, every out becomes a little more important. With that, players want to make sure they make every routine play they can in the field.

Well, that's not what Cubs right fielder Seiya Suzuki did in the first inning of Wednesday afternoon's tilt against the Royals at Wrigley Field. Instead, he looked like a Little Leaguer while dropping what should have been an easy first out of the inning.

What made this mistake even better was that a hot mic caught a fan in the crowd gleefully yelling, "Seiaya all you, baby! Yup, can of corn!" as the ball sailed toward Suzuki. A can of corn, of course means that it's an easy catch to make and one that should be handled as such by a professional baseball player.

Narrator: It wasn't a can of corn.

Not great!

Making things worse for Suzuki was that the Royals scored two runs after that to take an early lead right of the gate. They are currently up 2–1 in what looks like a beautiful day for baseball in Chicago.

The Atlanta Braves will play host to MLB's All-Star weekend in 2025, with Truist Park set to serve as the site for both the All-Star Game and the Home Run Derby.

Among the participants in this year's Derby include the Braves' own Ronald Acuña Jr., who is making his third appearance in the event.

spoke to Acuña ahead of the derby as part of his new collaboration with Call of Duty Mobile, which introduced Acuña's "La Bestia" baseball bat that was added to the game as an in-game cosmetic. Acuña said he plays Call of Duty Mobile regularly, and even more so while going through his recovery and rehabilitation from the ACL injury that ended his 2024 season early and delayed the start of his '25 campaign.

Now gearing up for the derby, the 27-year-old discussed why the event being at home at Truist Park makes the occasion even more special.

"It means a lot to me. Being in the Home Run Derby in my home stadium in Atlanta and in front of the home crowd is an absolute dream come true, and I can only hope to win," Acuña said, speaking via translator.

No player in Braves franchise history has ever won the Home Run Derby, so Acuña has the chance to become the very first. To do so at his home stadium with the fans backing him would make that accomplishment even more special.

If Acuña were able to achieve the feat, he'd join a select group of players in the event's history to win it at home, including Chicago Cubs legend Ryne Sandberg, who won at Wrigley Field in 1990, Todd Frazier of the Cincinnati Reds, who won in 2015 at the Great American Ball Park, ex-Washington Nationals star Bryce Harper who took home the trophy in '18 at Nationals Park and Adolis Garcia, who won in 2024 at Globe Life Field in front of the Texas Rangers faithful.

Like many other baseball fans and players, Acuña also grew up watching the Home Run Derby. When asked about his favorite Derby growing up, he said it was 2011 when New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano won it all while his father Jose was pitching to him.

Acuña spoke highly of his competitors, referring to all of them as "incredible players," but he will be hoping the support from the home crowd in Atlanta can help propel him to victory over the rest of the pack.

Mookie Betts has been in one of the worst slumps of his MLB career as of late, going 0-for-22, that was until Tuesday night when the Dodgers star hit a leadoff double in the third inning against the Cardinals.

The Dodger crowd has remained on Betts's side throughout his slump, but Dodger Stadium erupted in cheers on Tuesday night as Betts ran to second base. The stadium was extremely loud, and Betts fed off the fans' energy by doing a little celebration dance when he stood on second base. The Dodgers' bullpen and dugout both cheered for their teammate. Phew, that slump is officially over.

Through three at-bats on Tuesday, Betts already logged two hits and brought one run home. That's more like the Betts MLB fans know and love.

Dodgers fans truly love Betts, even when he is struggling. On Monday night, the fans prepared a sweet gesture for the eight-time All-Star by giving him a standing ovation when he came to the plate. He unfortunately went 0-for-4 on Monday night despite the strong encouragement from the fanbase.

Heading into Tuesday, Betts posted a career-low .657 OPS through 103 games. He has never finished a season with an OPS lower than .800. His current batting average (.231), on-base percentage (.302) and slugging percentage (.355) are all career-low numbers, too. Those averages will all go up slightly after Tuesday's outing.

Clayton Kershaw will officially make his final MLB regular season start on Sunday when the Dodgers face the Mariners to close out the 2025 season. The three-time Cy Young award winner will retire after this season, but his retirement is delayed as the Dodgers clinched a playoff spot.

Los Angeles begins the wild-card series on Tuesday, Sept. 30 against either the Reds or the Mets, depending on who clinches that postseason spot on Sunday. But, will Kershaw compete for the Dodgers in this series?

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters on Sunday that Kershaw will not be on the wild-card roster for Los Angeles, via ' Jack Harris. However, there is still a chance the veteran pitcher will return to the roster if the Dodgers reach the NLDS.

This decision makes sense since Kershaw is starting on Sunday. He will rest this upcoming week during the wild card. But, will Sunday's start be the final appearance of Kershaw's MLB career? It all depends how the Dodgers do in the postseason.

New competition appealed to Ted Dexter, whose raffish unorthodoxy reflected the atmosphere in Brighton on a lively Saturday evening

Paul Edwards11-Jun-2020OId Trafford, May 1-2, 1963
ScorecardHove, June 12, 1963
ScorecardLord’s, September 7, 1963
ScorecardSexual intercourse did not begin in 1963, as Philip Larkin well knew. That was partly his point in the poem “Annus Mirabilis.” However, a “new Knock-Out competition”, as Wisden primly described it, did get under way that summer and it pounded to a sweaty climax on the first Saturday in September, when Sussex beat Worcestershire by 14 runs at Lord’s. The final ended in twilight and there was heavy drizzle falling when Bob Carter was run out for 2 with only ten balls left in the match. Carter’s team had needed just 169 in 65 overs but Tony Buss’s 3 for 39 in his 15-over allotment had removed both openers and shown how testing batting would continue to be on the damp pitch. Then the three late wickets taken by the callow 21-year-old fast bowler John Snow had appeared decisive before Roy Booth’s hitting forced Ted Dexter, the Sussex captain, to put all his men on the boundary. As revolutions go, it might not seem much to write home about, but that is often the way of it in England. We don’t storm Bastilles; we start a new cricket competition with odd rules and celebrate with a cup of Earl Grey.Some readers might query how far-reaching the changes were. What was this malarkey about 65 overs, all the men on the boundary and a 15-over allotment? And surely not even Psalm 55’s raging wind and tempest could prevent a side overhauling 168 at only 2.6 runs an over. The answer, of course, is that you had to watch cricket nearly 60 years ago to see how difficult it was for players who had only known three-day championship cricket to adapt to the new competition. One or two counties barely tried; they thought the thing beneath their professional dignity.Sussex succeeded and won their first ever trophy because the whole affair appealed to Dexter, whose raffish unorthodoxy rather reflected the atmosphere in Brighton on a lively Saturday evening. The Sussex skipper thought about the tactics that might be required in a match where 170 for 9 would always beat 165 for 3 and instructed his attack accordingly, although even those directives sound quaint today: “As for the bowlers I asked nothing more of them than to bowl every ball to hit the stumps. Wide on the off side was a no-no. Short of a length with the ball going over the top was a no-no. Up and straight allowed me to set fielders according to the strengths and weaknesses of all the different batsmen.”Snow, who was playing his first limited-overs match, followed those instructions fairly precisely, castling both Doug Slade and Norman Gifford as the evening faded into murk. But the vital wicket of Tom Graveney had been taken much earlier when Ron Headley had been tied down by Alan Oakman’s off-spin and a frustrated Graveney had holed out to Dexter at long-on off Oakman, who finished the match with figures of 1 for 17 from 13 overs. Yes, it was a foreign country.Yet if much of this looks very strange and staid when viewed from our momentary modernity, one-day, knock-out cricket was plainly an appealing novelty to many of the game’s supporters in 1963. A brief glance at the structure of the previous season suggests why this was so. In 1962 Yorkshire won the County Championship and were one of eight counties to play 32 three-day matches; the other nine played 28 and the title was decided on average points per game. There were no other competitions of any note at all in the English summer, nor had there ever been. However, Yorkshire also played first-class matches against MCC (twice), the ancient universities and the Pakistan tourists, whose own 35-match programme had begun at Arundel on April 28 and ended in Sunderland on September 10, three weeks after the end of the final Test at The Oval.ALSO READ: Surridge’s Surrey claim the hat-trick during dominant 1950sNow much of this cricket was of very high quality and many games were well-attended, but they did not pay the bills. Since this was England a series of committees had been set up over the previous decade to investigate the situation and by the early 1960s it was discovered that the counties’ expenditure was exceeding normal cricket income by an average of £120,000 a year. The new competition was, in part, an attempt to deal with this shortfall by staging games that could be finished in a day and in which the number of runs scored was the sole determinant of victory. What was more, the competition was to be sponsored by Gillette, whose name the 1964 Wisden could not steel itself to print. The shaving company underwrote the competition with £6,500, with £50 (about £900 now) going to the man of the match in each game and £1889 (£33,500) to the winners. But even in the year following the abolition of the distinction between amateurs and professionals, much of the old authority remained. Earlier in the week of the final the Sussex players had been told by the Club secretary, Lt. Col. George Grimston, that he would be trousering the prize money as the county needed the cash. In fairness, it probably did. Dexter’s men received a bonus in their salary instead.The revolution appeared a relatively modest affair. The Gillette Cup would comprise only 16 matches, with a preliminary game reducing the 17 first-class counties by one and a straight knockout format being followed thereafter. Peter Marner became the competition’s first centurion and followed his 121 against Leicestershire with 3 for 49 to win the man-of-the-match award and a gold medal, which was presented to him by Frank Woolley on the Old Trafford outfield. Marner may have appreciated the fifty quid even more; this was still an era in which some professional cricketers travelled to their work by public transport.Most of those 16 matches in 1963 resulted in relatively comfortable victories. Eleven were won by the side batting first and only three of those by a margin of fewer than 20 runs. It was hardly surprising that teams had yet to master the intricacies of an over-limit run-chase. On the other hand, setting a target was proved tricky as well. The biggest total chased down was the 159 Yorkshire overhauled in 55 overs to beat Nottinghamshire in the first round at Acklam Park, Middlesbrough. Fred Trueman made 21 batting at No. 4 in that game but Brian Close forsook such off-the-wall antics when he took his side to Hove for the quarter-final, a game which encapsulated all that was vibrant and successful about the new format.

“While talking to the Lancashire players earlier in the season about how they would approach the game, they said that first of all they would go to Raymond’s Revue Bar in Soho”Alan Oakman

There were 15,000 people crammed into the County Ground when Close chose to field first, his decision perhaps influenced by the sea-mists which drifted in throughout the day. Jim Parks, though, saw matters with perfect clarity and made 90 in his side’s 292 all out in 64 overs. Trueman finished with none for 40 from 14 and Tony Nicholson, one of the most highly regarded seamers on the circuit, went for 84 runs in 15 overs, in one of which Parks twice smacked him over the covers for six. The new format was proving a midwife to innovation.But Yorkshire were not out of it. Struggling at one stage on 100 for 5, they were rescued by Geoff Boycott, who batted superbly for 71 before being run out when trying to keep the strike. Some might think both the innings and its ending in Boycott’s first List A game offered a pithy portent of his whole career but Ian Thomson’s hard, flat throw from third man was a tiny sign of the improvement in fielding that one-day cricket would bring. Sussex got home by 22 runs and there is a photograph of Parks being presented with his medal by Alec Bedser. Another wave of mist is covering the ground.So to Lord’s and the first of the September occasions that were to become a poignant highlight of every summer. For those watching on television, the Gillette Final always marked the end of summer’s lease. In later years some teams would prepare for such occasions by getting an early night but such strictures were not in place in 1963.”While talking to the Lancashire players earlier in the season about how they would approach the game, they said that first of all they would go to Raymond’s Revue Bar in Soho,” recalled Oakman. “Don Bates, Ken Suttle and I agreed…and we were watching the show when a half-naked dancer walked up the aisle with a large snake hanging round her neck. She stopped by Don Bates and asked if he would like to stroke it. He nearly passed out.”Next morning there were 25,000 spectators in Lord’s, one of them the nine-year-old future Sussex captain, Johnny Barclay. The banners and favours appalled some MCC members but when the Daily Mirror’s chief sports writer, Peter Wilson reported on the match he marvelled that “Lord’s, the temple of tradition” could have become “a reasonable replica of Wembley…a sell-out with rosettes, singing, cheers, jeers and counter-cheers. This triumphant sporting experiment… may not have been cricket to the purists but by golly it was just the stuff the doctor ordered.”Whatever some thought, there was no going back. Perhaps the patient became a trifle addicted to their medicine but by 1972 there was another one-day competition, the Benson and Hedges Cup, and the 40-over John Player Sunday League. Captains learned the value of spinners, fielding regulations prevented blanket defence of boundaries, the revolution gathered pace. And it may be that the wheel is still in spin but those who seek to saturate cricket with such matches might remember Dexter’s observation in 2013 that Sussex’s Gillette Cup victories in 1963 and 1964 “were as nothing compared to the three Championship wins in five years”. Perhaps Ted was being a shade hard on himself but it’s important to note the trophies the players prize most highly. “Sweet moderation / Heart of this nation” observes Billy Bragg in one of his finest songs. Damn right. Match from the Day