Cricket?

Cricket. A sport I have heard about, but never actually seen.  This past Thursday we went to my first ever Cricket Match. I couldn't tell you a lot about the actual game, but as I learned the rules I gradually started to enjoy the match more. If you can see from the pictures, the stadium holds thousands, however I think our group of 40 represented almost a tenth of all spectators that day. 

The match runs very slow. Between bowls (or pitches in America's case) players stand next to each other and talk, some wearing sun hats, casually engaging in the match. Compared to American sport, even baseball, the concentration appears to be much less here. In addition to the play being slow, we were attending a match that was day 1 of 4. That's right, four days for one game. Now, because of today's culture, many Cricket games are shifting towards the new 3 hour match, however matches like the one I attended still exist...and are attended on a thursday afternoon by retired old folks, and a sports management class. Most of our students proclaimed that they would never attend another match, but I would accept the invitation. This is because the match we went to, not only was it slow, but no one was there. I think Cricket would be much more interesting with a huge crowd, which the England National Team receives, and a shorter match.

Another small note, because the match is 4 days long, you are allowed to bring in your own food and drinks. So, during our attendance of the match, we left the stadium, went and got fish and chips, and came back to our seats. There weren't even any concession stands open in the stadium... Quite the contrast to our monopoly on fans for food in American sport. 

Anyway, enjoy the pics as we leave for Ireland the next day!

The entrance to the Cricket Stadium
The England National Team plays here