Bunny and Monkey in Scarborough - Day One

Scarborough itself

It�s a nice enough seaside town, is Scarborough.� Lots of older people and not a lot for a young bunny and monkey to do, to be honest.� Bananarama Monkey-Face comes from Pickering originally, which is just up the road, but he says all his friends have moved on now so we didn�t go there.

Not really our sort of food in Scarborough, either. Lots of fish and chips and that sort of thing.� Whereas I favour crunchy salad and Monkey-face likes fruit salad and soft leaves.�

We visited the Scalby Ness Rocks on our way to the ground.� Monkey-Face pronounces that �scabbiness�, but I think he�s joking.� I went quite close to the edge, until Monkey-Face told me that bits of Scarborough fall into the sea without warning.� I kept my distance after that.

Morning

Monkey-face and I always argue but it�s not fall-out arguing, you know, we just like a good bicker.� Our first argument was about where to sit.� I prefer a ground-level view whereas Monkey-face prefers some elevation.� We usually end-up mixing and matching a bit but we started the day in a nearby tree (Monkey-face�s choice).� He was pleased that Yorkshire won the toss and bowled.� Monkey-face was grinning like a chimpanzee when we were 39/3 with Hutton, Compton and Shah all gone.� All fell to Kruis.� Monkey-Face �pronounces that name �creche� and I don�t think he�s joking this time, although I can see why he might be called cr�che.� I wouldn�t want to leave my children with him, either.

But Monkey-Face was laughing the other side of his face when we were still only 3 down as lunch approached.� Smith and Styris my heroes for the morning.� I hopped on my branch when we reached 111/3.� �You might be hopping for an hour or so, bunny-friend� said Monkey-face.� �It�s lunch.� Hop till you drop�.

Afternoon

I�m not too sure about the protocol when the score is 111/3 at lunch.� Are you supposed to hop all the while? �Anyway, I couldn�t and didn�t and perhaps that did for Smith who fell just a few minutes after lunch.� We wandered round for a while taking in the views and the crowd and the atmosphere.� We saw the Turkeys all gathered in one place.�

I explained to Monkey-Face that they are called the Turkeys because they don�t mind watching Middlesex get stuffed all the time.� Monkey-Face suggested that they are a bit of a gaggle which also might explain the name.

There were a few gentlemen in flat caps to give me the atmosphere of the place, but Monkey-Face was disappointed with the low level of flat-capping these days.

Styris and Weekes steadied things up again until Styris fell to a blinder of a slip catch by McGrath.� I watched it over and over again on my imaginary big screen.� The good thing about my big screen is that you can sometimes get a different result in the replay.� A fumble, just fell short, went straight through him���� No, Scotty Styris was out and 186/5 looked a bit dodgy again.

We had trouble finding Monkey-Face some banana-flavoured ice-cream for his tea and had to leave the ground but eventually found a suitable outlet.� Monkey-Face was in very high spirits at this stage and kept telling me that Yorkshire were staying up and Middlesex going down.�

I don�t think so! I don�t think so!! I don�t think so!!!

Evening

By the time we got back, Nash was already out and we were 240 odd for 6, make that 7 when Pepsi went quickly and we�re 7 down with only 1 bonus point in our pocket.

But Weekesy was a sensation and the bowlers supported him magnificently.� First Chad, then Swing-Louw put on really good partnerships with Weekesy.� We were now enjoying my favourite (ground-level) view sitting near the Middlesex team and dignitaries.� When he got to 100, Weekesy made a gesture that looked like a mimed signature.� �Oh look, Monkey-Face�, I said, �Weekesy has seen us and is offering to sign autographs for us at stumps�.� �I think he might be after Vinny�s signature�, said Monkey-Face and it occurred to me that Monkey-Face might be on to something there.

�Any road�, said Monkey-Face (who always starts to sound more Yorkshire when we come up here) �if that geriatric of yours can score 100, our Lehmann can score 200 tomorrow�.� �Weekesy might take a geri-�atric� tomorrow and wipe out your middle order� I said in reposte. �(I have to stick up for meself with Monkey-Face cos he�s brighter than me and usually comes off better, but not today).

At 348/9 I thought we might just miss out on that 4^th batting point, but Silverwood smashed his first effort for 4 runs and therefore 4 bonus points.� �Yah-boo sucks� I said to Monkey-Face.� That told him.

Come stumps, Monkey-Face was talking about the weather looking poor for the next few days, which is usually a sign that he thinks his team is on the wrong end of it.�

My mentor, Gnomic the Leprechaun, said �now there�s a question� when I asked him who�d win.� And that�s exactly what he said at the end of day 1 against Yorkshire at Southgate, and we won that game.� Mind you, that is what Gnomic says whenever I ask him that question.

Thank you for reading this.�

� Hippity the Green Bunny 2006.�