Yeah I agree. They need to be careful not to kill the goose that lays the golden egg. When we first went to t20 finals day in 2005 at the oval when Lancs got there the entire thing cost £15 ish now a finals day ticket will set you back £60. I bought myself/the old man a one day membership (t20/50 overs only) which was £95 and mine was £135. Not sure I'll get most out of mine with midweek 50 overs stuff but in the context of giving up my rovers season ticket which was about £350 still saved over £100 on 2 lancs memberships for something I'm actually happy to watch.

I see lancs have signed chanderpaul and vilas. So lost petersen and smith but gained maclaren, chanderpaul and vilas. It's definitely a start. Can't say as I've heard of vilas and will be interested to see how a 42 year old chanderpaul gets on but moving in the right direction at least. Been needed for years. Chiv averages 40 odd in first class cricket but think it's key for our younger lads like davies, jones, Livingston even hameed as he's a lot of experience to pass on. Plus he scored a century yesterday in first-class West Indies cricket, his third in five weeks so not done just yet. With champions trophy we should have Anderson until mid-July as well. So hopefully few more faces. An opener and bowling all-rounder would be useful

Contrary to popular belief LCCC doesn't stand for Lancashire county cricket club it actually stands for Lancashire concerts corporate and conferences. That said I'd rather us be financially sound through external means than say Durham who are on their arse financially but at some stage I'd like to see a little cash redirected in the way of the playing/coaching staff.

I'm sure that's right. Plus his heart was probably still in the midlands but to say it's been rumbling on since more or less the end of the season it could have been sorted quicker. I cynically think Lancashire are more concerned with spending money on fancy towels in the new hotel than providing funds to improve the squad. I reckon it will be another season of trying to survive. A couple of things worry me. First, if a new bloke comes in it will be a need to assess the squad job and use "late" appointment as excuse for not recruiting. Or If it's chapple, as I suspect it will be, he's presumably on board with present squad and he'll try to improve what we've got which frankly isn't good enough and particularly poor in the batting department.

I see Giles has gone back to Warcs. Can't say I'm too bothered about that but hoping for a decent replacement.

97/0 at the end of the morning session. So far so good. Was half expecting a total capitulation by now India well into the middle order.

I never said it was more important his dad is South African just one of the factors that makes him South African in MY opinion. I don't expect you if all people to accept that and I will not accept your liberal view point either. I'm afraid we're now living in a world where your globalisation liberal clap trap is unravelling.

Yeah his mother was born in Sunderland. Fine qualifies him to play. But at the end of the day his dad is South African, he was born in South Africa, appears to have been brought up in South Africa and had played for South Africa u19s. So in my opinion (obviously not yours and others) that makes him more South African than English. Hence another plastic Brit.

Terrible morning. It's right to say it's almost irrelevant what the batsmen do when the bowlers just can't take wickets. This'll go against the popular opinion of the pundits but I really don't think our spinners Ali, Deirdre are good enough. In this match they took 6 wickets between then but for nearly 400 runs on a pitch which should be perfect for them. As for seam department what to do when jimmy and broad retire. Likes of Finn/Jordan are probably highest in pecking order but not ones for the future. So not many about. Jake ball is playing and mid 20s. Mark wood 20s. Mills from Sussex who played t20 vs Sri Lanka is supposed to be rapid but his county figures aren't great. Jamie Overton early 20s.

Bloody kholi. Can't we find some English ancestry in him and sign him up.

Fair enough better than some we've had. I knew there was a genealogy expert on here somewhere . But still born aboard and represented another country so for me at least he should stick to his original choice.

With my Lancashire hat on I'm more than happy to see Jennings open and hameed back at Lancs with the threadbare squad. Jennings' record in the county championship last season was tremendous and on the back of that I'm surprised he wasn't given a go before hameed and duckett in the first place. But he is another in the long line of plastic Englishmen to play for England. I forget who but someone on here gets upset with me when I say foreigners are playing for England. So will no doubt hear chapter and verse about an obscure English uncle of Jennings.

There was archive footage of England vs saffas from 1995 at Johannesburg on earlier where Atherton batted all day to save the match and get England the draw. Something of that magnitude is needed tomorrow. But on a spinning pitch vs Ashwin I can't see it. It's funny looking back at international cricket in the 90s. Away draws really felt like wins in those days. Shows how far we've come really.

Yeah sadly this test is going how I thought they'd all go. That said the pundits were saying this is a pitch only able to bat on for the first day so when you lose the toss and have to bowl you effectively lose the game before a ball is bowled.

Alviro petersen has been charged with six counts of match-fixing. All in South Africa by the look of things. That's him and hameed Lancs have lost today! They need to pull their finger out more than ever and buy some players. Barely a player for next season. At this rate I'll have to dig the bat out of the garage.

Recovered to 85 all out

I've only seen the morning sessions before have to go to work and highlights. But it seems like it's an ipl pitch. Considering the fact we can't play spin generally and our recent woes in Bangladesh I think the Indian cricket board have been crazy not to insist on spinning pitches. Still all the better for us because barring a total capitulation a probable loss has turned into a probable draw

So far so good....

Well Hameed is going to get his shot. I have huge reservations about a 19 year old lad who has had only one domestic season and only finished his a-levels in the summer. Playing against the current best test bowler in the world, against the current best test team in the world in their own back yard which just so happen to be conditions we historically/are struggling in. Kerrigan was destroyed by his England experience but on the other side of the coin Jimmy took his opportunity and became the leading English wicket taker. With my county hat on I don't see too many good scenarios for Lancs if he excels he'll not play much for Lancs again in a side with a woeful lack of batting quality or if he bombs and does a Kerrigan Lancs have lost their hottest prospect.

No. Results have little to do with being a manager of Blackburn Rovers. The only criteria to being a manager of rovers is towing the party line. Coyle will only get sacked if he starts to show ambition and wants the owners to match it.

Totally agree re comments on Clarke I was saying much similar myself. He got a lot of calls wrong and showed too much loyalty to his mates in the old guard like Westwood who ultimately let him down. I think he may have even surpassed Faldos terrible effort at Valhalla, but unlike Faldo, he could at least pronounce his players names.

To those who have a more thorough knowledge of boxing does this Joseph Parker have a chance vs Joshua? If that's indeed who he's fighting next as I've lost track since that lummox pulled out v Klitschko and everything's up for grabs. He looked devastating vs Alex Dimitrenko (who I've admittedly never heard of). Undefeated. But has he only fought numpties? Plus what's happened to David haye? He made a return from a long injury fought 2 bums on some strange channel like Dave then he said he'd fight that Shannon "lets go champ" Briggs but I've heard nothing of him or that fight since. I really rate him as a boxer and he can't have many yrs left so I don't know why he's not after a better fighter and ultimately a klitschko, Joshua, wilder type.

Garcia and cabrera bello did great to halve after being 4 down. Considering the disastrous 4-0 start 6 1/2 51/2 will do nicely.

So Ryder cup tee off today at 1.35. I would personally consider football (less so these days) and cricket as better than golf but I rank the Ryder cup as probably my favourite sporting event. And for all I wouldn't tune in to a random Scandinavian tour I wouldn't miss this. In fact was due to go Bham not any more. Just to spice things up Danny Willett's brother called "US golf fans fat stupid classless @#/?s. Who are a baying mob of imbeciles, angry unwashed, etc etc." The Americans are naturally livid at this but the irony is to prove Danny Willett's brother wrong I'm sure they will act like fat stupid classless baying mob of imbeciles.

I think Lancs have problems all over. I don't think just 2 batsmen will cut it I reckon they need 7-8 better players particularly if Hammed either excels for England and rarely plays for Lancs again or gets ruined by England like Kerrigan or schofield. I've been largely unimpressed by Giles who for all managed us to get the t20 monkey off our back last year in my opinion in his 2nd full season has taken us backwards this year in one dayers finishing bottom of 50 overs and other than win in the last t20 dead rubber game would have worse in t20. Then the capitulation in county championship was nothing short of a disgrace. The board also need to take a look at themselves with no significant player investment since probably Buttler and there was little before him. They need to decide whether they want old Trafford to be a cricket venue or a top notch north west conference centre come concert venue. I'm staring to think this season if likes of beyonce and Rihanna I think it was wanted to sing when Lancs were due to play we'd have been farmed off to an out-ground. I don't know between rovers and Lancs not a lot of sporting enjoyment currently. Rant over.