Gloucestershire's T20 Blast glory goes beyond the game
Uplifting story proves once again that Finals Day has a special place in the calendar
Alan Gardner15-Sep-2024″We’re all with him, with what he’s been going through. Hopefully that can give him a little bit of happiness today, knowing that the club that he has been a part of his whole life has… That was for him as much as it is for us.”If Gloucestershire’s indomitable spirit needed physical representation on T20 Finals Day, there could be no better candidate than the figure of David “Syd” Lawrence, the former England fast bowler who is now the club’s president. Lawrence watched both games at Edgbaston from his wheelchair, the debilitating effects of motor neurone disease (MND) already beginning to take hold. Jack Taylor, Gloucestershire’s captain, dedicated their success to him and there were tears amid the triumph when James Bracey climbed up to Lawrence’s box in the Wyatt Stand to present him with the Blast trophy.Gloucestershire’s appearance at Finals Day for only the fourth time in the competition’s 21-year history had been accompanied by an appeal from the Cricketers’ Trust, the charity which supports past and present players in need. Lawrence was in attendance alongside Shaun Udal, the former England spinner who is suffering from Parkinson’s disease. Having previously received aid from the trust after suffering a career-ending knee injury in the 1990s, Lawrence spoke movingly in a video about his MND diagnosis earlier this year.”Whatever the disease is, it can’t take my fighting spirit,” Lawrence said. “That will always be with me. I don’t know what I’ve done to upset the big man upstairs but he ended my career early and he’s given me this disease now. He’s obviously not a Gloucester fan.”
Simply, the perfect day.
For you, Syd pic.twitter.com/Fa5NLvwt3B
— Cricketers’ Trust (@CricketersTrust) September 14, 2024
But Gloucestershire were not short of support as they ripped through the opposition at Edgbaston, back-to-back eight-wicket victories securing a maiden T20 title that could be celebrated throughout the shires – perhaps, even, across the county border in Somerset. The beaten champions do, after all, have two more chances to secure silverware this season. West Country cricket may yet sweep the board.Never mind the favour of the gods, Gloucestershire had a demon bowling attack perfectly suited to the conditions, as well as an in-form batting group to help control their destiny. Despite going into the day as the least-fancied of the four South Group teams to have reached this point, they were utterly dominant, taking all 20 wickets in games against Sussex and Somerset and losing just four of their own in getting the job done (two in the final after the result had already become a formality).The same could not be said of Gloucestershire’s run to the knockouts, after winning just one of their first five games and edging out Essex on net run rate. But in a disjointed Blast, which began in May and ended in mid-September, they peaked at the perfect time, ousting the North Group winners, Birmingham Bears, on their own patch in the quarter-final – a game that served as a perfect recce for what to expect on Finals Day.In the success of their bowlers, there was a nod to Somerset’s dominant 2023 campaign. Where Matt Henry and Ben Green took 31 and 30 wickets respectively, as Somerset followed a blueprint of ruthless attack with the ball, David Payne (33) and Matt Taylor (29) combined to similar effect. Payne’s three-for in the final meant that he equalled a record for wickets in a season that had been held by Somerset’s Alfonso Thomas since 2010 – a season in which the teams played 16 group games rather than 14.Payne may never get the opportunity to add to his one England cap, but his performances more than vindicated the decision late last year to sign a white-ball contract with Gloucestershire, resulting in a first trophy since the 2015 Royal London Cup. “For the club, this is going to mean everything to them,” he said. “Those fans, I remember it felt like we celebrated the one-day win in 2015 for about a whole year. I’m sure it will be similar this time.”Gloucestershire supporters have needed reasons to celebrate in recent times. The joy of returning to Division One of the County Championship for the 2022 season was swiftly followed by relegation and a winless campaign that resulted in a first wooden spoon since 2012. Earlier this year, the club announced losses of £1.2m in their annual report, while discussions around potentially selling their historic Nevil Road ground have proved controversial – to the point of becoming Brexit adjacent, after businessman Arron Banks tried to get involved in the decision-making process.Related
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Such existential issues are often the lot of the smaller counties that don’t host regular international cricket (although, it should be noted, three of the four teams at Finals Day do not have men’s Test venues). They make those rare days in the sun something to savour.”It almost lets you know that we’re still there, we’re not just people making up the numbers,” Payne said. “It feels like you’re fighting the uphill battle, that we’re not a favoured county, that sort of vibe. So it will make it that much more special.”It matters, too, that Gloucestershire is genuinely a family club. Two pairs of brothers – Jack and Matt Taylor, Ollie and Tom Price – were part of the XI; Ben Charlesworth’s younger brother, Luke, is also on the books. While Jack Taylor was Player of the Match at Lord’s nine years ago, Matt took the accolade this time around. Eight of the team came through the pathway, and the coach, Mark Alleyne, is a club legend, an integral member of the “Glorious Glosters” that dominated limited-overs competition in the late ’90s and early noughties.”Obviously, a few of us have had a bit to do with Mark over the years,” Jack Taylor said. “He’s been a really calming influence. He’s freed up the guys to go out and express themselves, and we want to enjoy our cricket. I think there’s no limit on what this group can do. We’ve got a great blend of youth and experience now. It’s just reward for how well we’ve played this year.”Despite the arrival of the Hundred, Blast Finals Day still feels like the biggest day out in the English domestic calendar. It is the closest cricket gets to channelling football’s mass appeal – complete with wizards, butchers and characters getting absolutely leathered in the stands. But while the “magic of the cup” is largely a thing of the past in the Premier League era, the Blast still offers a genuine route for all the counties to taste success.In the last ten years alone, Northamptonshire, Worcestershire, Essex, Kent and Somerset – clubs at the less-affluent end of the spectrum – have all lifted the trophy. Gloucestershire adding their name to the list means that now only four teams have yet to win the T20 title. The beauty of the Blast is that fans of Derbyshire, Durham, Glamorgan and Yorkshire can dream next year will be theirs.