A Competitive Nature

I have written ferociously at my dislike of competiveness in this blog a fair bit. Ever since I was about 13, I've played a lot of sport simply for the sake of enjoyment. I learnt very quickly that winning isn't everything. However, I have a small gut feeling that this may be about to change..

This weekend, after some hurried shift changing, I was available to play in 2 out of 2 matches, and with no risk of the horrible weather we've been having recently making a re-appearance, I was very much looking forward to it. After the fiasco of Friday night, I was awake at midday for the long journey down to Dunstable for this strangely arranged friendly against some mystery select XI. Upon roughly reaching our destination, we found out that there were 2 cricket clubs next to each other. 1 of them looked like Lords, and the other looked like a farm where a dog had relieved itself. Naturally, we presumed we were playing on the latter. However, there was already a match going on...

It turns out, after a few phone calls, that we were playing at the better of the 2 grounds. Albeit not on the main pitch, but the reserve pitch was still as good as any pitch I have played on this season. When we walked the major miles to this pitch, (it felt like it), we were greeted by a team who had about 4 youngsters, and a few geriatrics. The rumours that we were playing a rather good team seemed wrong..

Thankfully, we batted first and, without going into too much detail, Andy Collins' hit his 2nd ton, I hit 80 and Sofee nearly caught me up with a quickfire 43. To be honest, I can't really boast about what is my 3rd highest score. The bowling was pretty poor, and except for 1 legspinner, who was bought on too late, they had nothing that could get me out. Not that I didn't give them the chance. They may have dropped around 5 catches off my bat, and when I was finally run out for a snail-paced 80, I was sort of relieved for the rest. We ended up with 284, and bowled them out pretty quickly, before driving home completely blinded by the setting Summer sun.

No competitiveness was needed yesterday. It was a friendly, the opposition would of been better if they were a bunch of pandas, and we didn't really need to win, although it was technically impossible not to.

Today was a bit different. Back to the humdrum of the Beds and County league, and with a very, very competitive captain, it's very hard to not feel like you should be thinking of winning all the time. I do usually try and relax the atmosphere by cracking a couple of jokes from the slip cordon and creating a few laughs, but today, after a very disappointing innings where I played on to my own stumps, I was keeping. We had made 197, and they were looking rather comfortable on 100-2. By this stage, I was angry. The field settings were all wrong, people kept dropping the simplest of catches and no one looked as if they could be bothered. It really, really annoyed me for some reason, and although I tried to not let it show, I would of been majorly pissed off if we didn't win. Luckily, we did, as the rest of their order collapsed in quick succession. But that stage of about 10 or 15 overs, where catches were being dropped and bowlers were bowling rubbish, was probably the most competitive and... flustered, I've ever been on a sports field. Especially in what is considered the "Gentleman's Game".

It wouldn't be a bad thing to become more competitive. To be honest, I would like to be a little bit more competitive, without taking it too far. It would certainly be good for next year, but I never have been. Even after today, my attitude of competitiveness has gone from 'Idiotic' to 'Bearable'. I can now see why people are competitive. I think I can now appreciate competitiveness. Because spending the whole day in the Sun, when you've personally played crap, and losing? What a waste of a day.

Seeing as I swapped shifts so I can play like a retarded salmon this afternoon, I now have to work tonight which will undoubtedly be very long. I'm already yawning, and in 9 hours time, when I can walk out the door and go to sleep, I will be as happy a Mitten as I have this last 6 weeks or so.