Its the preserve of cricketers of any age, location and ability: a Thursday evening, a setting sun, and a practice wicket underdone.So here I am, a nominal batsman on the wrong side of youth, three overs into a spell of ungainly part-time net bowling, awaiting a bat.To the relief of just about everyone, a call finally comes for me to put em on. Ive done this dance a thousand times before, but the gruff command still elicits that short, electric bolt of adrenaline inside. Or is it nerves? Ive never quite worked it out. That Ive survived until this point should instil me with confidence that I will once more, but Ive no time for rationality at this point.Sam, youre in the first net, Im told. Im not usually in the first net. The first net is where our best bowlers bowl. The first net is the good net. I do my best impression of a casual saunter to the mess of cricket bags that lies 20 metres away, and manage to make an important mental note: the quickest bowler in our club is currently batting, so I am free from his thunderbolts for now.There are almost innumerable aims when it comes to net batting. Maybe today Ill summon the courage to use my feet to the spinners. Perhaps I should try to unearth that on-drive that has forever eluded me. Ditto a pull shot. But to bastardise the flightiest of corporate language, these are nothing but blue-sky goals. My true aims are better defined by what I want not to happen.Yes, when it comes to net batting, its simple: dont get hit and dont get out.I unzip my cricket kit with a familiar, concealed tremble of hands. They contradict an external composure as I rifle through my still-disorganised bag in the only way I know how - hastily. Left pad, right pad, wheres my box? Last couple! bellows our organiser as I fumble further for a thigh pad and helmet.My eyes may be trained on my gear but my ears are elsewhere. I hear a distant grunt from an imposing quick in the nets, immediately followed by the thud of leather into flesh. It sounds like inside thigh. A chorus of oohs trails from the bowling cohort, and then a sound even more chilling that that: laughter. The auditory terror prompts me to re-tighten my gloves for the third time as my heart quickens appreciably.My batting predecessor finally completes the third iteration of his last one and the net is mine. Not that Im feeling much ownership of this space. Three sinewy top-grade quicks and a solitary spinner await as I take guard - something I do to simulate a match situation. It immediately feels ridiculous. The bowlers arent fooled; my bat wafts at the first one as I contemplate the concrete in my feet. The ball springs from the back net with a vigour that suggests to me, for a moment, that it may roll all the way back to the bowler. It stops some way short of that. Our eyes meet as if to say Whos fetching this thing? I dont think twice. I get the ball, because for now I am the servant.Minutes pass and I still cannot find the upward social mobility I desperately seek. Balls seem to cannon into a thick outside edge here, the splice of the bat there, or just fizz past me entirely. Like any seasoned cricketer I first turn to my internal compendium of excuses. Is it the wicket? Is it the fading light? Is it that our bowlers regularly bowl from 18 yards? Whatever it is, its hard to find solace when Ive forgotten how the middle of my bat feels. To make matters worse, this always seems to be the time when batsmen in the other nets start receiving praise for glorious front- and back-foot play. I can only guess they are on better wickets.Even so, Ive not been hit, and Im not out.With a hypothetical score of 3 from 17 deliveries, my personal stakes are raised. Our fastest bowler, previously batting, decides to join the first net. I calculate that we are halfway through our allotted batting time, so Ill face a maximum of four or five deliveries from him.We face them more than anyone else, but theres always an oddity to competing against your team-mates. Together on the weekend, you appreciate their efforts from multiple angles - a view from mid-off, a view from gully, a view from the pavilion. Perhaps this is why its so chastening to study the strained face of your clubs fastest bowler front-on as he hurtles in to bowl at you. I feel paralysed by the sum of his physical aggression as I brace for the hard flash of red. He enters his delivery stride, I see something and I waft at that something again. Except, this time it strikes the middle of the bat, sending the ball careering through hypothetical cover-point. The ball rolls back off the net and settles at my feet as I look up to survey the scene.I see an angry young muscular man who wants his ball immediately, so I oblige. I am still in mild shock. My bottom hand, the protagonist in my heroic victory seconds earlier, then became the villain. In returning the vanquished ball to my opponent, my underarm is so limp that it arrives on the half-volley, forcing him into an unwanted bend of the lower back and a higher level of coordination to retrieve the ball. It rolls past him and into the path of a bowler in the second net, who now stops his run-up with a deep groan.My high-pitched Sorry, mate is received without acknowledgement.To be continued… Cheap Jordan Shoes Free Shipping .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Jordan 12 Cheap Real . Third-seeded Murray had the easiest path to victory on New Years Eve, barely breaking a sweat during his 6-0, 6-0 win over 2,129th-ranked Qatari wildcard recipient Mousa Shanan Zayed. http://www.cheapjordansneakerswholesale.com/cheap-jordan-7.html . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Rosso Corsa Jordan 32 Shoes . Their 38th instalment is arguably their biggest fight card to date, including three-title fights and a main event which was selected by the fans. The promotion boasts 14-straight years of business and is operated by MFC president Mark Pavelich, who is often overlooked in this country for the foundation hes established for MMA in Canada. Cheap Jordan 13 For Sale . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. For this mid-training check-in, I was supposed to tell you that my speed was improving and that my body was holding up to the increases in mileage. I was supposed to tell you how much closer I was to achieving my goal of qualifying for the Boston Marathon.But since my last blog post on Aug. 31, I suffered a setback. I bruised the bottom of my foot after running in poorly soled shoes through a parking lot full of rocks (an idiotic move on my part). Running became excruciating after it happened.Before that, I felt fairly confident in how my training was progressing. But now, Im behind by 10 workouts (Ive completed only 48 of the 58 I shouldve finished by now). And I struggled through two 10-mile easy runs.It was difficult to realize that I had to take time off, but the ultimate goal of crossing the finish line helped me see the need for it. Regardless, I feel like my goal to qualify for Boston is slowly slipping out of my reach. There is no perfect barometer for judging how my training is going, so Im going off of my past experiences. Based on how I felt at this point during previous training cycles, I think I have an uphill battle to get to race day.But Ive had a lot of time to reflect while running -- and had even more for the period when I wasnt running. These setbacks are part of the journey and part of the glory that I can celebrate once I cross the finish line. As much as qualifying for Boston is the goal for Nov. 6, I cant forget to enjoy the ride and know that, at the end of the race, no matter what time the clock reads, I will have run another marathon.Kara Goucher, a long-distance runner and former Olympian once said, Progress is rarely a straight line. There are always bumps in the road, but you make the choice to keep looking ahead. If that doesnt express my feelings about training these past few days, I dont know what would.I still have a little more than two months to train as best as I can and set up a comeback story. There will always be self-doubt, all the way up to the starting line, and controlling that self-douubt is something I need to continue to work on.dddddddddddd.So -- there are three things I want to address in the next two months of training. The first is to be more consistent with my cross training to improve my core strength, with the goal of improving my running form. I also want to practice yoga once a week to improve my flexibility and strength.The second is focus on my attitude. No one said running or training for a marathon is easy, and during this recent setback, Ive been too focused on the big picture of qualifying for Boston and have convinced myself I wont achieve my goal. But I still have about two months to become stronger and faster, and Ill set smaller, achievable hurdles to get my attitude back on track.Lastly, I want to have little more discipline with my eating habits. It was easy to fall into the summer trap of eating ice cream and thinking I had plenty of time until race day. Well, now Im 10 weeks through my 18 week program, and I really need to tighten the belt (pun intended) on my eating habits.The last two weeks have been far from what I envisioned for this training cycle. The next two months will test my mental and physical limits with strange work hours, longer workouts and the desire to get better. I cant predict what exactly will happen on Nov. 6, but I can assure you Ill be doing everything in my power to finish the New York City Marathon without any regrets.Training Notebook:Longest run: 14 miles Hardest run: 10 easy miles after coming back from a week off Highest weekly mileage: 41 miles (hasnt changed since the last post) Biggest accomplishment: Listening to my body during my most recent setback and not hurting it moreMegan Flood is a seven-time marathoner and half marathoner. She is on a quest to qualify for the Boston Marathon and hopes New York 2016 is her ticket to Boston. You can follow her progress every other week here on espnW.com and on Twitter @meganflood11. Cheap NFL Hoodies Cheap Jerseys Online Wholesale NFL Autographed Jerseys White NFL Jerseys Cheap Stitched Jerseys Wholesale Black NFL Jerseys Wholesale Stitched Jerseys ' ' '