Remember when teams used to have overseas players...

... of the calibre of Malcolm Marshall, Barry Richards, Shane Warne, Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara?

Slurrey sign Grant Elliott

Are there really no English cricketers available that are better than him? Couldn't Surrey have promoted someone from the groundstaff? Perhaps the tea lady? "Arlo" the tramp who is sometimes seen outside the Oval, clutching a tin of Thunderbird and half a pasty?

Actually, JD, I was just looking at the overseas players team some one posted for Yorkshire . . . you can see a real falling off of talent there . . .

Of ourse, now test players are busy 10 or 11 months of the year, it's tough to get good ones over to play county cricket . .

And with the IPL money around, some don't have to supplement their incomes with county money anymore.

Of course, now test players are busy 10 or 11 months of the year, it's tough to get good ones over to play county cricket . .

Then why bother signing overseas players? Grant Elliott will do sweet f*ck all to help Surrey. He'll do a decentish job with bat and ball (perhaps), but no youngsters will learn from him, and it's unlikely that he will improve Surrey's title chances.

He'll probably take the place of Chris Jordan, who is young, talented, and a potential future England player. It's f*cked.

Henry wrote:

Of course, now test players are busy 10 or 11 months of the year, it's tough to get good ones over to play county cricket . .

Then why bother signing overseas players? Grant Elliott will do sweet f*ck all to help Surrey. He'll do a decentish job with bat and ball (perhaps), but no youngsters will learn from him, and it's unlikely that he will improve Surrey's title chances.

He'll probably take the place of Chris Jordan, who is young, talented, and a potential future England player. It's f*cked.

This, dont forget, is the side that signed Shoiab Akhtar last season for two games in a desperate attempt to stay in Div 1.

I really don't see the point in counties signing overseas players for the Championship - the calibre of players willing to commit to a whole season has dropped through the floor and, as Henry says, it takes up a place which could be otherwise available to a young England-qualified player.

This thread is spot on. Overseas players are good for English cricket only if they are bringing players of proven quality. At times the counties appear to be not much more than breeding grounds for every test team bar England.

Counties must be allowed to sign overseas players only when they have already played a certain number of tests.

ten years after wrote:This thread is spot on. Overseas players are good for English cricket only if they are bringing players of proven quality. At times the counties appear to be not much more than breeding grounds for every test team bar England.

Counties must be allowed to sign overseas players only when they have already played a certain number of tests.

And with a signing such as Elliott you wonder if some counties feel they have to sign someone for the sake of it. As you suggest, there are probably budding Englishmen who can use some county time as a launching point for their career whose spots are being taken by journeymen types.

Is Grant Elliott really the best the richest county in England can do?

Red wrote:

ten years after wrote:This thread is spot on. Overseas players are good for English cricket only if they are bringing players of proven quality. At times the counties appear to be not much more than breeding grounds for every test team bar England.

Counties must be allowed to sign overseas players only when they have already played a certain number of tests.

And with a signing such as Elliott you wonder if some counties feel they have to sign someone for the sake of it. As you suggest, there are probably budding Englishmen who can use some county time as a launching point for their career whose spots are being taken by journeymen types.

Spot on.

Jesus, that's farking desperate is that.

But typical Slurrey.