Finals Day .

[pablo]

Brilliant performance and worthy swansong - allegedly- for Ravi. Loved the fact that Harmer took the opportunity to have a coded swipe at Yorkshire and Graves. Obviously terrified Bumble.

[AndrewH13]

Wow, that was exhausting. Having been so impressed with Harmer's unbeaten 50 at Chelmsford Wednesday, I was screaming at tv for him to get in as Walter was clearly out of touch. Just in the nick of time! I really thought we had lost it, but glad to be wrong. Great congrats to players and staff. Go easy tonight, the big one awaits!

[nat]

Terrific win well done everyone. Eddie the eagle - hang your head in shame.

[nat]

I also hope the club give Aron Nijjar a new contract and play him!

[Postman]

My first ever post on the T20 thread. Brilliant! Tremendous team spirit and self belief from everyone. Now let's finish the season off in style, rain or shine, next week.

[feralkitten]

Wow, that was a real nailbiter. I'm so happy for the lads.  Please celebrate, but then have a bit of a lie down ready for Somerset.  It would be just brilliant to pull off the double - then you can all go bananas1

[Andy]

Jobs half done. Well done thus far.

[Bath Hammer]

Another terrific performance particularly as I don’t really consider us a T20 team, more a team of nurdlers plus Delport. However, we do have Harmer who may be the best spinner in the world at present! It amuses me to read back all the selection suggestions on here. Once again our selectors have got things right. The fielding was excellent, everyone chipped in & the team spirit is superb. They seem to be getting most things right at present. Let’s hope for more of the same next week.

[afinetickletoleg]

Well done lads.

Showed a lot of bottle and proved a lot of people wrong.

[golden duck]

Harmey army.
Stressful and brilliant. Some great performances Harmer, Nijjar, Lawrence, Ravi. Thought Wheater was magnificent behind the stumps all day.
Loved being part of the support. Superb.

[LeedsExile]

They should get an extra award for the unlikeliest winners of the event. Qualification hang by a thread, no overseas stars left and no person on this site could have thought at the outset that we had a cat in hells chance of winning the thing. Crazy season.

[essexspur]

Very proud to support this amazing side. Nothing better to see so many players from Essex growing into top players and loving our/their club. Ever since I went to Leyton in 1972 there has been something so special about this club that surpasses anything any other county has. In tough times it is this camaraderie and togetherness that gets you through as has happened over the last 4 successful seasons. Chuck in captains who really care and can make tough decisions and you are nearly there. Finally we have some really talented cricketers who are sometimes undervalued and who occasionally we are quick to criticise. We support a very special club and from Tonker/Gnome to Tendo/Harmy I’ve loved every minute of it.

[essexfan548]

Interesting comment on ESPNcriccinfo:

"And it is even more important to recognise The Blast's value because it appears under challenge; because, so the argument goes, if the ECB can use The Hundred to kill The Blast it will foreshadow the introduction of a hierarchy of ten or so first-class teams with the smaller counties permanently relegated or forced out of business altogether: counties like Essex, who won The Blast and may well win the County Championship, the greatest prize of all; counties like Somerset, who won the Royal London One-Day Cup; counties like Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire, who are on the verge of promotion to Division One; counties like Derbyshire, who so relished their first Finals Day; counties like Leicestershire, who continue to nurture great talents like Hasan Azad and Harry Swindells."

[nat]

Interesting comment on ESPNcriccinfo:

"And it is even more important to recognise The Blast's value because it appears under challenge; because, so the argument goes, if the ECB can use The Hundred to kill The Blast it will foreshadow the introduction of a hierarchy of ten or so first-class teams with the smaller counties permanently relegated or forced out of business altogether: counties like Essex, who won The Blast and may well win the County Championship, the greatest prize of all; counties like Somerset, who won the Royal London One-Day Cup; counties like Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire, who are on the verge of promotion to Division One; counties like Derbyshire, who so relished their first Finals Day; counties like Leicestershire, who continue to nurture great talents like Hasan Azad and Harry Swindells."

Spot on. That is why everyone should oppose it.

[essexfan548]

Very proud to support this amazing side. Nothing better to see so many players from Essex growing into top players and loving our/their club. Ever since I went to Leyton in 1972 there has been something so special about this club that surpasses anything any other county has. In tough times it is this camaraderie and togetherness that gets you through as has happened over the last 4 successful seasons. Chuck in captains who really care and can make tough decisions and you are nearly there. Finally we have some really talented cricketers who are sometimes undervalued and who occasionally we are quick to criticise. We support a very special club and from Tonker/Gnome to Tendo/Harmy I’ve loved every minute of it.

Totally agree - replace Leyton by Chalkwell Park and 1972 by 1971 and I could have written that

I've not lived in Essex since 1975 but still follow them whenever I can [nearly 50 different grounds now] and am one very proud Life Member.