County Cricket Imperialism

Aislabie

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So, as this is something of a trend recently, I'm going to do a quick run of "County Cricket Imperialism".

1677583356995.png

The rules will be as follows:
  1. The invading team will be chosen at random, and will invade in a direction also selected at random.
  2. If they invade terra nullius, then they unlock a retired player from their own history.
  3. If they invade occupied territory, then they must win a Test match to claim the territory.
  4. The winning team in any match takes the best player from the opposition team.
  5. If a match ends in a draw, then both teams lose their best player.
  6. If terra nullius is completely surrounded by one team's territory, then they take ownership of it without a challenge.
  7. There will be no overseas players, because Brexit means Brexit.
I won't be posting big match reports or anything, and I will be playing as whichever team finished lower in the 2022 County Championship. I will select both teams' XIs.
 

Aislabie

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Invasion 1

Our first invading team is Somerset, and they will be invading to the South. To their south is Dorset, a minor county.

Somerset bring :eng: :ar: Ian Botham out of retirement.

- - - - -

Invasion 2

Our next invading team is Middlesex, and they will be invading to the South.

This means a London derby as our first match of this game!

Surrey XI
:eng: :bat: Rory Burns
:eng: :bat: Dom Sibley
:eng: :wkb: Ollie Pope
:eng: :wk: Ben Foakes
:eng: :wkb: Jamie Smith
:eng: :ar: Will Jacks
:eng: :ar: Sam Curran
:eng: :ar: Tom Curran
:eng: :ar: Jamie Overton
:eng: :ar: Chris Jordan
:eng: :bwl: Amar Virdi

Middlesex XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Mark Stoneman
:eng: :bat: Sam Robson
:eng: :wkb: Robbie White
:eng: :bat: Max Holden
:eng: :bat: Stevie Eskinazi
:eng: :wk: John Simpson
:eng: :ar: Ryan Higgins
:eng: :ar: Luke Hollman
:eng: :bwl: Toby Roland-Jones
:eng: :bwl: Tom Helm
:ire: :bwl: Tim Murtagh

1677585082897.png

Well, I did everything I could to force a result but Surrey just didn't want to know. Based on performances in this match, Middlesex lose John Simpson and Surrey lose Will Jacks.

The map so far:
1677585231590.png
 

Aislabie

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Invasion 3

Our next invading team is Somerset again, who choose to invade to the North East.

This means they will be playing Gloucestershire!

Gloucestershire XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Chris Dent
:eng: :bat: Ben Charlesworth
:eng: :wk: James Bracey
:eng: :bat: Miles Hammond
:eng: :ar: Ollie Price
:saf: :ar: Graeme van Buuren (UK passport)
:eng: :bat: Jack Taylor
:eng: :ar: Tom Price
:saf: :bwl: Marchant de Lange (UK passport)
:eng: :bwl: David Payne
:eng: :bwl: Ajeet Dale

Somerset XI
:eng: :bat: Tom Lammonby
:saf: :bat: Sean Dickson (UK passport)
:eng: :bat: Tom Abell
:eng: :bat: Tom Kohler-Cadmore
:eng: :ar: Ian Botham
:eng: :wk: Stephen Davies
:eng: :bat: Tom Banton
:eng: :bwl: Craig Overton
:sco: :bwl: Josh Davey
:eng: :bwl: Jack Leach
:eng: :bwl: Jack Brooks

1677586781856.png

Based on this game, Graeme van Buuren becomes a Somerset player; I think he makes the playing XI at number seven for now.

Here's the new map:
1677586864438.png
 

ddrap14

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The southwest corner of the map:
1677588472562.png
 

Aislabie

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Invasion 4
Our next invading team is Durham. Durham, for reasons known only to them, have chosen to invade to the South.

They'll be taking on Yorkshire.

Yorkshire XI
:eng: :bat: Adam Lyth
:eng: :bat: Finlay Bean
:eng: :bat: Dawid Malan
:eng: :bat: Joe Root
:eng: :bat: Harry Brook
:eng: :wk: Jonny Bairstow
:eng: :ar: Jordan Thompson
:eng: :ar: Dom Bess
:eng: :ar: Adil Rashid
:eng: :bwl: Matt Revis
:eng: :bwl: Matt Fisher

Durham XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Alex Lees
:sco: :bat: Michael Jones
:eng: :ar: Scott Borthwick
:eng: :wk: Ollie Robinson
:eng: :ar: Ben Stokes
:eng: :ar: Paul Coughlin
:eng: :ar: Liam Trevaskis
:eng: :ar: Ben Raine
:eng: :bwl: Brydon Carse
:eng: :bwl: Mark Wood
:eng: :bwl: Matty Potts

(not many specialist batters here)

1677588896186.png

YOU CAN'T FIGHT THE BAZBALL.

I promoted Stokes to three in the run chase, and he repaid me with an 84-ball hundred. Joe Root moves to Durham.

The new map:
1677588986580.png
 

Aislabie

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Invasion 5
Our next invading team is Hampshire, and they are invading to the South (can't go that way, that's the sea) West!

That sets up an enormous fixture against Somerset.

Somerset XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Tom Lammonby
:saf: :bat: Sean Dickson (UK passport)
:eng: :bat: Tom Abell
:eng: :bat: Tom Kohler-Cadmore
:eng: :ar: Ian Botham
:eng: :wk: Stephen Davies
:saf: :ar: Graeme van Buuren (UK passport)
:eng: :bwl: Craig Overton
:sco: :bwl: Josh Davey
:eng: :bwl: Jack Leach
:eng: :bwl: Jack Brooks

Hampshire XI
:usa: :ar: Ian Holland (UK passport)
:eng: :ar: Felix Organ
:eng: :bat: Joe Weatherley
:eng: :bat: Nick Gubbins
:eng: :bat: James Vince
:eng: :wk: Ben Brown
:eng: :ar: Liam Dawson
:eng: :ar: James Fuller
:eng: :ar: Keith Barker
:eng: :bwl: Chris Wood
:eng: :bwl: Mason Crane

1677591499506.png

And thanks to a freakishly good batting performance, Hampshire have defeated Somerset and will take Ian Botham for their very own.

The new map:
1677591604134.png
Post automatically merged:

Wait, what?
 

Aislabie

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Invasion 6
Our next invading team is Kent. They will be invading to the West.

That sets up a clash against Surrey.

Surrey XI
:eng: :bat: Rory Burns
:eng: :bat: Dom Sibley
:eng: :wkb: Ollie Pope
:eng: :wk: Ben Foakes
:eng: :wkb: Jamie Smith
:eng: :bat: Jason Roy
:eng: :ar: Sam Curran
:eng: :ar: Tom Curran
:eng: :ar: Jamie Overton
:eng: :ar: Chris Jordan
:eng: :bwl: Amar Virdi

Kent XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Ben Compton
:eng: :bat: Zak Crawley
:eng: :bat: Joe Denly
:eng: :bat: Dan Bell-Drummond
:eng: :wk: Sam Billings
:eng: :wkb: Jordan Cox
:eng: :ar: Joey Evison
:ita: :ar: Grant Stewart
:eng: :bwl: Hamidullah Qadri
:nzf: :bwl: Matt Quinn (UK passport)
:aus: :bwl: Matt Hogan (UK passport)

1677592832883.png

Surrey were just too good. Kent fail to take any territory, and lose Zak Crawley to Surrey. I know that's a controversial pick for "best", but at least he's best-rated in the game.

The map is unchanged.

Invasion 7
The new invaders are Durham again. They invade to the North West and take Cumberland. As a result, Paul Collingwood comes out of retirement for Durham.

1677593510917.png
 

Aislabie

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Invasion 8
Our new invaders are Sussex and they are invading to the West.

That means they take on geographical giants Hampshire.

Hampshire XI
:usa: :ar: Ian Holland (UK passport)
:eng: :ar: Felix Organ
:eng: :bat: Joe Weatherley
:eng: :bat: Nick Gubbins
:eng: :bat: James Vince
:eng: :ar: Ian Botham
:eng: :wk: Ben Brown
:eng: :ar: Liam Dawson
:eng: :ar: Keith Barker
:eng: :bwl: Chris Wood
:eng: :bwl: Mason Crane

Sussex XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Ali Orr
:eng: :bat: Tom Haines
:eng: :wk: Tom Alsop
:eng: :bat: Oliver Carter
:eng: :bat: Tom Clark
:ber: :ar: Delray Rawlins
:eng: :ar: Danial Ibrahim
:eng: :ar: George Garton
:eng: :bwl: Jofra Archer
:eng: :bwl: Ollie Robinson
:eng: :bwl: Steven Finn

1677622151859.png

In the world's least surprising development, Hampshire win. They claim Ollie Robinson, one of the few bright points in this Sussex performance.

The map is unchanged.

Invasion 9
Our next invaders are Northamptonshire, and they will be invading to the South West.

They claim Oxfordshire unopposed, and Frank Tyson comes out of retirement.

Invasion 10
Our next invaders are Glamorgan, and they will be invading to the South East.

They could have gone in any direction they liked, and instead they chose to invade Hampshire across the Bristol Channel. I'm in awe.

Hampshire XI
:usa: :ar: Ian Holland (UK passport)
:eng: :ar: Felix Organ
:eng: :bat: Joe Weatherley
:eng: :bat: Nick Gubbins
:eng: :bat: James Vince
:eng: :ar: Ian Botham
:eng: :wk: Ben Brown
:eng: :ar: Liam Dawson
:eng: :ar: Keith Barker
:eng: :bwl: Ollie Robinson
:eng: :bwl: Mason Crane

Glamorgan XI (player team)
:eng: :ar: David Lloyd
:ire: :bat: Eddie Byrom
:eng: :bat: Kiran Carlson
:eng: :bat: Sam Northeast
:eng: :bat: Billy Root
:eng: :wk: Chris Cooke
:eng: :ar: Andrew Salter
:eng: :ar: James Harris
:eng: :bwl: James Weighell
:ned: :bwl: Timm van der Gugten
:eng: :bwl: Harry Podmore

1677623891705.png

There was a time there where I genuinely thought I was on track for a massive upset - only for the fact that Hampshire now bat down to number 10 to present itself as a genuine problem.

Now both teams lose their best players (from their own squad; imported players will be immune to this). That means we bid goodbye to Joe Weatherley (because he's scored about a million runs in this playthrough) and Chris Cook respectively.

The map remains unchanged.

Invasion 11
Our next invaders are the powerhouse that is Surrey, and they will be invading to the South.

That's where Sussex are.

Sussex XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Ali Orr
:eng: :bat: Tom Haines
:eng: :wk: Tom Alsop
:eng: :bat: Oliver Carter
:eng: :bat: Tom Clark
:ber: :ar: Delray Rawlins
:eng: :ar: Danial Ibrahim
:eng: :ar: George Garton
:eng: :bwl: Jofra Archer
:eng: :bwl: Archie Lenham
:eng: :bwl: Steven Finn

Surrey XI
:eng: :bat: Rory Burns
:eng: :bat: Dom Sibley
:eng: :bat: Zak Crawley
:eng: :wkb: Ollie Pope
:eng: :wk: Ben Foakes
:eng: :wkb: Jamie Smith
:eng: :ar: Sam Curran
:eng: :ar: Tom Curran
:eng: :ar: Jamie Overton
:eng: :ar: Chris Jordan
:eng: :bwl: Amar Virdi

1677625306189.png

I really really thought we were going to defend our territory there. But really that was a bonkers chase from Surrey: Burns 51, Sibley 45, Crawley 67, Pope 34, Foakes 64, SCurran 57, TCurran 55 not out and Jordan 52 all contributed.

And with that, Surrey claim Sussex, and also Jofra Archer.

Invasion 12

Our next invaders are Middlesex and they invade to the North West.

They take Buckinghamshire unopposed, and Denis Compton comes out of retirement for them.

That will be the last action for the evening, which means the map looks like this:
1677625874989.png
 

Aislabie

Test Cricket is Best Cricket
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Invasion 13
So Middlesex are on the move again, and will be attacking to the South East.

That means they will face Kent.

Kent XI
:eng: :bat: Ben Compton
:eng: :bat: Dan Bell-Drummond
:eng: :bat: Joe Denly
:eng: :wkb: Jordan Cox
:eng: :wk: Sam Billings
:eng: :bat: Jack Leaning
:eng: :ar: Joey Evison
:ita: :ar: Grant Stewart
:eng: :bwl: Hamidullah Qadri
:nzf: :bwl: Matt Quinn (UK passport)
:aus: :bwl: Matt Hogan (UK passport)

Middlesex XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Mark Stoneman
:eng: :bat: Sam Robson
:eng: :bat: Max Holden
:eng: :ar: Denis Compton
:eng: :bat: Stevie Eskinazi
:eng: :wk: Robbie White
:eng: :ar: Ryan Higgins
:eng: :ar: Luke Hollman
:eng: :bwl: Toby Roland-Jones
:eng: :bwl: Tom Helm
:ire: :bwl: Tim Murtagh

1677666034947.png

Imagine finding out that Zak Crawley was the only thing holding your team together. Anyway, Middlesex conquers Kent and takes Sam Billings to add to their team. (Not strictly the best player on the Kent team, but definitely the one that Middlesex most need since losing John Simpson earlier on).

Invasion 14
Our next invaders are Essex. They invade to the North East.

They take Suffolk unopposed and Graham Gooch comes out of retirement for his county.

Invasion 15
Our next invaders are Northamptonshire. They invade to the South.

They take Berkshire unopposed and Raman Subba Row comes out of retirement for his county.

Invasion 16
Our next invaders are Hampshire. They invade to the West.

They take Devon unopposed and David Gower comes out of retirement for his county.

Invasion 17
Our next invaders are Glamorgan. They invade to the East.

They take Monmouthshire unopposed and Don Shepherd comes out of retirement for his county.

Invasion 18
Our next invaders are Northamptonshire again. They invade to the North.

After a brief RNG about what what means, they take Rutland unopposed. Vallance Jupp comes out of retirement for his county.

Invasion 19
Our next invaders are Northamptonshire again. They invade to the East.

After another brief RNG about what what means, they take Huntingdonshire unopposed. Colin Milburn comes out of retirement for his county.

And after that flurry of activity, our map now looks like this:
1677667477825.png
 

Aislabie

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Invasion 20
Our next invaders are Derbyshire and they will be invading to the South.

That means they're taking on Leicestershire.

Leicestershire XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Hassan Azad
:eng: :bat: Sam Evans
:ned: :bat: Colin Ackermann
:eng: :wkb: Lewis Hill
:eng: :ar: Rehan Ahmed
:eng: :wk: Harry Swindells
:eng: :ar: Ben Mike
:eng: :ar: Roman Walker
:eng: :bwl: Callum Parkinson
:eng: :bwl: Matt Salisbury
:eng: :bwl: Michael Finan

Derbyshire XI
:eng: :ar: Luis Reece
:eng: :bat: Billy Godleman
:eng: :wk: Brooke Guest
:ita: :bat: Wayne Madsen
:saf: :bat: Leus du Plooy (Hungarian passport)
:eng: :bat: Matty Lamb
:eng: :ar: Anuj Dal
:eng: :ar: Alex Thomson
:sco: :bwl: Matt Watt
:eng: :bwl: Ben Aitchison
:eng: :bwl: Toby Pettman

1677671149236.png

As one might have expected, Derbyshire emerge victorious. They claim Leicestershire and take Rehan Ahmed (Ben Mike had a fantastic game though, and nearly made the cut).

Here is the map so far:
1677671371895.png
 

Aislabie

Test Cricket is Best Cricket
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Invasion 21
Our next invaders are Glamorgan who will again invade to the South East.

This means a rematch with Hampshire after that went so well for them last time.

Hampshire XI
:usa: :ar: Ian Holland (UK passport)
:eng: :ar: Felix Organ
:eng: :bat: David Gower
:eng: :bat: Nick Gubbins
:eng: :bat: James Vince
:eng: :ar: Ian Botham
:eng: :wk: Ben Brown
:eng: :ar: Liam Dawson
:eng: :ar: Keith Barker
:eng: :bwl: Ollie Robinson
:eng: :bwl: Mason Crane

Glamorgan XI (player team)
:eng: :ar: David Lloyd
:ire: :bat: Eddie Byrom
:eng: :bat: Kiran Carlson
:eng: :bat: Sam Northeast
:eng: :bat: Billy Root
:eng: :ar: Andrew Salter
:eng: :ar: James Harris
:eng: :wk: Alex Horton
:eng: :bwl: James Weighell
:ned: :bwl: Timm van der Gugten
:eng: :bwl: Don Shepherd

1677672849343.png

Things go from bad to worse for Glamorgan. The map is unchanged, and Hampshire take Don Shepherd because of course they do.

Invasion 22
Our next invading team is Worcestershire. They will invade to the South, taking on Hampshire again.

Hampshire XI
:usa: :ar: Ian Holland (UK passport)
:eng: :ar: Felix Organ
:eng: :bat: David Gower
:eng: :bat: Nick Gubbins
:eng: :bat: James Vince
:eng: :ar: Ian Botham
:eng: :wk: Ben Brown
:eng: :ar: Liam Dawson
:eng: :ar: Keith Barker
:eng: :bwl: Ollie Robinson
:eng: :bwl: Don Shepherd

Worcestershire XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Jake Libby
:eng: :bat: Ed Pollock
:eng: :bat: Adam Hose
:eng: :bat: Jack Haynes
:eng: :ar: Brett D'Oliveira
:eng: :ar: Ed Barnard
:eng: :wk: Gareth Roderick
:eng: :ar: Matty Waite
:eng: :ar: Joe Leach
:eng: :bwl: Dillon Pennington
:eng: :bwl: Charlie Morris

1677674273717.png

Sometimes you just get absolutely Gowered. The map remains unchanged, and Hampshire take Dillon Pennington, who was unplayable until he got himself injured.

The map remains unchanged.

Invasion 23
Our next invaders are Derbyshire. They invade to the West.

They take Staffordshire unopposed, and Les Jackson comes out of retirement for the county.

Invasion 24
Our next invaders are Nottinghamshire and they invade to the East.

They take Lincolnshire unopposed, and Harold Larwood comes out of retirement for the county. (I was also very tempted by Joe Hardstaff.)

Invasion 25
Our next invaders are Northamptonshire and they invade to the East.

Another RNG was needed, and it determined that they took Bedfordshire unopposed. Peter Willey comes out of retirement for the county.

Invasion 26
Our next invaders are Durham and they invade to the North.

They take Northumberland and Steve Harmison comes out of retirement for his county.

After all of that, here's the map:
1677675913250.png
 

Aislabie

Test Cricket is Best Cricket
Moderator
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Joined
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Location
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Invasion 27
Our next invaders are Worcestershire. They will be invading to the North West.

That means they play Derbyshire.

Derbyshire XI (player team)
:eng: :ar: Luis Reece
:eng: :bat: Billy Godleman
:eng: :wk: Brooke Guest
:ita: :bat: Wayne Madsen
:saf: :bat: Leus du Plooy (Hungarian passport)
:eng: :bat: Matty Lamb
:eng: :ar: Anuj Dal
:eng: :ar: Rehan Ahmed
:sco: :bwl: Matt Watt
:eng: :bwl: Ben Aitchison
:eng: :bwl: Les Jackson

Worcestershire XI
:eng: :bat: Jake Libby
:eng: :bat: Ed Pollock
:eng: :bat: Adam Hose
:eng: :bat: Jack Haynes
:eng: :ar: Brett D'Oliveira
:eng: :ar: Ed Barnard
:eng: :wk: Gareth Roderick
:eng: :ar: Matty Waite
:eng: :ar: Joe Leach
:eng: :bwl: Josh Tongue
:eng: :bwl: Charlie Morris

1677711154000.png

Oh god, that was nearly super embarrassing. at least we managed to survive, but at a price: both teams lose their best players (from their original squad). That means we bid goodbye to Leus du Plooy (Derbyshire) and Joe Leach (Worcestershire).

The map doesn't change though.

Invasion 28
Our next invaders are Derbyshire, looking to bounce back from that last game. They will invade to the North West.

They claim Cheshire unopposed, and Kim Barnett comes out of retirement.

Invasion 29
Our next invaders are Warwickshire. They will invade to the West.

That means they'll be taking on Worcestershire.

Worcestershire XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Jake Libby
:eng: :bat: Ed Pollock
:eng: :bat: Adam Hose
:eng: :bat: Jack Haynes
:eng: :ar: Brett D'Oliveira
:eng: :ar: Ed Barnard
:eng: :wk: Gareth Roderick
:eng: :ar: Matty Waite
:eng: :bwl: Josh Tongue
:eng: :bwl: Charlie Morris
:eng: :bwl: Pat Brown

Warwickshire XI
:eng: :bat: Rob Yates
:eng: :ar: Will Rhodes
:eng: :wkb: Alex Davies
:eng: :bat: Sam Hain
:eng: :ar: Moeen Ali
:eng: :wk: Michael Burgess
:eng: :ar: Chris Woakes
:eng: :ar: Jacob Bethell
:eng: :bwl: Henry Brookes
:eng: :bwl: Liam Norwell
:eng: :bwl: Oliver Hannon-Dalby

1677713547921.png

This game definitely doesn't have a problem with OP run-chases. But I felt proud of myself here - I'd have happily seen Warwickshire lose, but I showed integrity to myself.

Not only does the map remain unchanged, but Chris Woakes stays at New Road and will play for Worcestershire next time out.

Invasion 30
Our next invaders will be Nottinghamshire, and they will be invading to the West.

That means they take on bitter rivals neighbours, Derbyshire.

Derbyshire XI (player team)
:eng: :bat: Billy Godleman
:eng: :bat: Kim Barnett
:eng: :wk: Brooke Guest
:ita: :bat: Wayne Madsen
:eng: :ar: Luis Reece
:eng: :bat: Matty Lamb
:eng: :ar: Anuj Dal
:eng: :ar: Rehan Ahmed
:sco: :bwl: Matt Watt
:eng: :bwl: Ben Aitchison
:eng: :bwl: Les Jackson

Nottinghamshire XI
:eng: :bat: Haseeb Hameed
:eng: :bat: Ben Duckett
:eng: :bat: Ben Slater
:eng: :bat: Joe Clarke
:eng: :bat: Alex Hales
:eng: :ar: Samit Patel
:eng: :wk: Tom Moores
:eng: :ar: Liam Patterson-White
:eng: :bwl: Harold Larwood
:eng: :bwl: Stuart Broad
:eng: :bwl: Olly Stone

1677714550638.png

And Derbyshire are eliminated! Nottinghamshire claim their lands, as well as Kim Barnett.

Here is the map after 30 invasions:
1677714705574.png
 

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