Vitality Blast Preview: Somerset v Essex Eagles

Somerset take on Essex in the Vitality Blast tomorrow (Sunday June 4th).

Play is due to get underway at 2:30pm.

Tickets for the game are still available.

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We have also introduced a special new ticket package for this match.

For just £50 you will get:

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Food, drink, T20 action and a guaranteed seat! What more could you possibly need?

The curry meal is available between 12:30pm and 1:30pm.

Gates will open at 12:00pm.

If you are using the SCCC Ticket App, your QR code may not become active until shortly before gates open. We are currently working on a solution to this issue and reassure users that access to the Cooper Associates County Ground will be granted.

Bag searches will be in operation and spectators are reminded that no glass or alcohol will be permitted within the Cooper Associates County Ground.

Ticket buyers can print and download their online tickets via their SCCC account.

All ticket or Membership collections will be from the Jack White Gates (St James Street).

The Club Enquiries Desk will be based in the Reception of the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion and not in the Andrew Caddick Pavilion on matchdays.

Due to the busy nature of a matchday, our telephone lines will closed for the duration of the game and will reopen at 10am on Monday June 5th.

Information on everything that you will need for a matchday at SCCC, including how to redeem your guest passes, how to download your e-tickets and how to use the SCCC Ticket App can all be found in our Visitor Guide:

VISITOR GUIDE

Children under 14 should be accompanied by a responsible adult when participating in the Somerset Cricket Foundation activities.

Scorecards will be available from the SCS Shop and Reception in the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion.

You can also keep up to date with a live stream and live blog via our dedicated Match Centre and on our Twitter feed.

MATCH CENTRE

In addition to this, a report on the day's play along with quotes will be posted on this website.

In association with Vertu Motors, Somerset County Cricket Club will be providing radio ear pieces to enable Members and supporters to enjoy our live ball-by-ball match commentary. These will be available to purchase from Reception in the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion at a cost of £12.

In addition to this, a report on the day's play along with quotes will be posted on this website.

In association with Jurassic Fibre, Somerset County Cricket Club will be launching a brand-new fan village at this match. The new and improved Jurassic Fibre Fan Village will still be situated at the St James Street side of the Cooper Associates County Ground and will feature more space and a much wider range of entertainment, food and drink offerings.

The Jurassic Fibre Fan Village will host a large selection of varied food and drink options and a large self-pouring bar. There will also be live music before and after each match.

In addition to this, there will be all manner of entertainment throughout, including a special virtual reality cricket game plus giveaways, competitions and much more!

Don't forget our ‘buy one get one free’ happy hour from 12:30pm to 1:30pm on Thatchers, Carlsberg, the Coca Cola range, spirit & mixer cans, wine and water before each match.

Essex Eagles

Captain: Simon HarmerOverseas players: Simon Harmer (South Africa), Daniel Sams (Australia)

Finals day appearances: 5Titles: 1 (2019)2022 finish: Quarter-finals2022 highest run-scorer: Michael Pepper (439)2022 highest wicket-taker: Simon Harmer (17)

Key winter moves: It is 2022 all over again as far as Essex are concerned. They were sufficiently impressed with the Australian T20 specialist Daniel Sams (a strike-rate of 171.87 with the bat last season alongside 15 wickets) that they have asked him to return.

Somerset will be without Sonny Baker (back) and Tom Banton will face a fitness test (side). Sean Dickson and James Rew have been added to the squad.

The starting XI will be selected from the following squad: Lewis Gregory*, Tom Abell, Kasey Aldridge, Tom Banton, Shoaib Bashir, Josh Davey, Sean Dickson, Ben Green, Matt Henry, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Tom Lammonby, Craig Overton, James Rew, Peter Siddle, Will Smeed and Roelof van der Merwe.

Previewing the match, Somerset Head Coach, Jason Kerr said: "We’ve played some really good cricket in the last few weeks. Everyone has been brilliant so far.

"Confidence is incredibly high at the moment and we have to keep on playing good cricket. Inevitably, we will come across different challenges as we move throughout the competition, but to have won five out of five gives us a great foundation moving forward.

"You can see the confidence in the way that the guys are executing their skills. The foundations are so strong at the moment that the guys will believe that they can win games from anywhere and that's what we’ve got to keep trying to do."

Today's classic match sees us to back to 2011 and a clash between Somerset and Essex that took place at Chelmsford.

It was a game that Somerset dominated and won by 143 runs.

Essex won the toss and elected to make Somerset bat first.

Craig Kieswetter fell with the score on 27, but Marcus Trescothick made an outstanding century and was well supported by James Hildreth (64* from 29 balls) and Peter Trego (36 off 21) as the visitors amassed 225 for two from their 20 overs.

The Somerset bowlers then took up the mantle and dominated the hosts as Essex were dismissed for just 82 from 10.3 overs. Craig Meschede was the pick of the bowlers, claiming three for nine from 1.3 overs. There were also two wickets for both Steve Kirby and Murali Kartik.

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Our next match is on Wednesday when we take on Hampshire Hawks at the Ageas Bowl in the Vitality Blast

Tickets for this match are still available.

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