NICK FRIEND AT TRENT BRIDGE: Defeat at Trent Bridge means Lancashire will finish the campaign without a trophy to show for two white-ball finals and a strong County Championship season
Keaton Jennings bemoaned the loss of regular wickets in his side's Royal London Cup final run-chase as Lancashire were beaten at the last hurdle for the second time in white-ball cricket this summer.
In July, they lost in dramatic fashion against Hampshire in the T20 Blast, and they were beaten once again with a trophy on the line at Trent Bridge against a Kent side inspired by Joey Evison, who starred with bat and ball.
Lancashire had started well after losing the toss, dismissing Ben Compton without scoring in the first over, but otherwise they were unusually ragged, dropping Darren Stevens twice and Alex Blake once, as well as committing several uncharacteristic errors in the field.
"We had our opportunities to win the game, but unfortunately we weren't quite good enough," said Jennings, who top-scored jointly with Steven Croft, making 72. Their dismissals, however, ended developing stands which – had they gone on for an extra half-hour – might well have changed the game's outcome.
"There were moments all the way through the day when we could have been better, with a 25-run or 30-run sway, but unfortunately it's not and we sit here as losers today, which is a tough pill to swallow having been in two finals.
"But there have been some really good experiences, especially for the younger lads. To play in front of near-enough a full house on Sky in a big-pressure situation will hold them in a good place, not only as people but as cricketers."
George Lavelle, the only player in Lancashire's side under the age of 25, impressed behind the stumps; he took a remarkable catch to catch Ollie Robinson off his inside edge, while Liam Hurt – 28 years old but still early in his professional career – bowled with good pace to take the wickets of Robinson and Joe Denly.
Lancashire beat Nottinghamshire and Sussex in the knockout stages to reach the final but were beaten by Kent at Trent Bridge (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
The defeat means Lancashire will finish the campaign without the silverware to show for an encouraging summer. As well as reaching the final of both limited-over competitions, they were in the running for the County Championship title until a six-point penalty for an accumulation of player-conduct breaches pushed them too far from Surrey and Hampshire above them.
"I suppose the one positive is we have given ourselves the chance to win," added Jennings. "All the way through the Championship, we have played some really good cricket. Had a couple of results gone differently and been able to force a result, you never know. But unfortunately, we haven't and we've lost two finals.
"It's tough to take; it's one of those where you can look back on every moment, every dismissal, every dropped catch, every bad ball bowled. You can be incredibly harsh on yourself, but the fact is that the guys have played some really good cricket. They've had some fun, which is brilliant, and we've got to the final again. Just unfortunately, we leave with a sad taste in our mouth."
On the tournament itself, Lancashire have fielded more experienced line-ups than most, and Jennings insisted he and his team had thoroughly enjoyed the different challenges posed by the unusual circumstances, playing at outgrounds and against several players they had not previously come across.
"It has been brilliant," he said. "It's been really good competitive, which has been good fun. I think it's allowed guys to step up – some of the young guys in our side have had the opportunity to step up and play some really good, competitive cricket. We've played on some good wickets, we've played on some tough wickets. Hopefully, the guys have learnt a bit.
"I've loved the last month, and it's been a real privilege to represent the club and the lads, and go about captaining the guys, which has been really good fun."
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