Somerset County Cricket Club competed in four competitions in the 1979 season: the first-class County Championship; and three limited overs competitions — the Gillette Cup, the John Player League and the Benson & Hedges Cup. The county fared well in the limited-overs competitions, winning both the Gillette Cup and the John Player League (the first two trophies ever won by the club), but were ejected from the Benson & Hedges Cup when the TCCB ruled they had brought the game into disrepute after a declaration during a match against Worcestershire.

Squad The following players made at least one appearance for Somerset in First-class or List A cricket in 1979. Age given is at the start of Somerset's first match of the season (29 April 1979). Name Nationality Birth date Batting style Bowling style Notes Ref Batsmen Peter Denning Left-handed Right arm off break Mervyn Kitchen Left-handed Right arm medium Martin Olive Right-handed Right arm medium Viv Richards Right-handed Right arm slow Overseas player Peter Roebuck Right-handed Right arm off break Brian Rose Left-handed Left arm medium Club captain Phil Slocombe Right-handed Right arm medium All-rounders Ian Botham Right-handed Right arm fast-medium Dennis Breakwell Left-handed Slow left-arm orthodox Graham Burgess Right-handed Right arm medium Jeremy Lloyds Left-handed Right arm off break Vic Marks Right-handed Right arm off break Nigel Popplewell Right-handed Right arm medium Wicket-keepers Trevor Gard Right-handed — Derek Taylor Right-handed — Bowlers Colin Dredge Left-handed Right arm medium Joel Garner Right-handed Right arm fast Overseas player David Gurr Right-handed Right arm fast-medium Keith Jennings Right-handed Right arm medium Hallam Moseley Right-handed Right arm fast-medium Overseas player

County Championship Season standings Note: Pld = Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, D = Draws, A = Abandonments, Bat = Batting points, Bwl = Bowling points, Pts = Points. County ChampionshipTeamPldWLDABatBwlPtsEssex (C)22134415669281Worcestershire22741015862204Surrey22631215070192Sussex 22641024765184Kent22631304960181Leicestershire22451216068176Yorkshire 22531315263175Somerset22511515655171Nottinghamshire2264934354169Gloucestershire22541125354167Northamptonshire22361215958153Hampshire2239913966141Lancashire22441403755140Middlesex22331424460140Warwickshire22371114651133Derbyshire22161414660118Glamorgan22010111355893Source: CricketArchive

Match log No.DateOpponentsVenueResultRef 1 2–4 May Worcestershire County Ground, New Road, Worcester Drawn 2 9–11 May Northamptonshire County Ground, Taunton Won by 10 wickets 3 16–18 May Surrey County Ground, Taunton Drawn 4 26–29 May Gloucestershire Phoenix County Ground, Bristol Match abandoned 5 30 May–1 June Warwickshire Edgbaston, Birmingham Drawn 6 2–5 June Hampshire County Ground, Taunton Drawn 7 13–15 June Kent Hesketh Park, Dartford Drawn 8 16–19 June Essex Recreation Ground, Bath Drawn 9 20–22 June Glamorgan Recreation Ground, Bath Drawn 10 27–29 June Worcestershire County Ground, Taunton Won by 208 runs 11 30 June–2 July Yorkshire St George's Road, Harrogate Drawn 12 7–10 July Glamorgan St Helen's, Swansea Won by an innings and 8 runs 13 11–13 July Warwickshire County Ground, Taunton Won by 153 runs 14 14–17 July Leicestershire Grace Road, Leicester Drawn 15 1–3 August Hampshire County Ground, Southampton Drawn 16 4–7 August Lancashire Old Trafford, Manchester Drawn 17 11–14 August Sussex Clarence Park, Weston-super-Mare Won by 6 wickets 18 15–17 August Nottinghamshire Clarence Park, Weston-super-Mare Drawn 19 18–21 August Middlesex Lord's Cricket Ground, St John's Wood Drawn 20 25–28 August Gloucestershire County Ground, Taunton Drawn 21 1–4 September Derbyshire County Ground, Taunton Drawn 22 5–7 September Sussex County Ground, Hove Lost by 9 wickets

Batting averages Player Matches Innings Runs Average Highest Score 100s 50s 20 32 0 10 20 31 2 6 20 31 2 8 15 24 3 4 9 10 0 1 21 27 0 7 11 15 1 1 20 20 0 1 20 32 1 6 21 26 0 2 3 5 0 0 14 10 0 1 5 6 0 0 6 4 0 0 6 8 0 0 16 9 0 0 3 1 0 0 1 1 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

Bowling averages Player Matches Wickets Average BBI 5wi 10wm 14 55 4 0 20 1 0 0 6 17 1 0 21 50 4 0 21 40 1 0 9 21 0 0 11 26 1 0 16 16 0 0 6 5 0 0 15 3 0 0 3 2 0 0 3 0 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

Other first-class matches Match log Match typeDateOpponentsVenueResultRef University match 9–12 June Oxford University The University Parks, Oxford Drawn University match 23–25 June Cambridge University Recreation Ground, Bath Won by 6 wickets Tourist match 28–30 July Indians County Ground, Taunton Drawn

Gillette Cup Match log No.StageDateOpponentsVenueResultRef — First round No game (bye) 1 Second round 18 July Derbyshire County Ground, Taunton Won by 8 wickets 2 Quarter-final 8 August Kent County Ground, Taunton Won by 130 runs 3 Semi-final 22 August Middlesex Lord's Cricket Ground, St John's Wood Won by 7 wickets 4 Final 8 September Northamptonshire Lord's Cricket Ground, St John's Wood Won by 45 runs

Batting averages Player Matches Innings Runs Average Highest Score 100s 50s 4 4 1 1 4 3 0 1 4 4 0 1 3 2 0 1 4 2 0 0 4 3 0 0 4 4 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 1 0 0 4 1 0 0 4 2 0 0 4 2 0 0 1 0 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

Bowling averages Player Matches Overs Wickets Average Economy BBI 4wi 5wi 4 1 2 3 0 0 4 0 0 4 0 0 4 0 0 1 0 0 4 0 0 2 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

John Player League Season standings Note: Pld = Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, NR = No result, A = Abandonments, Pts = Points, RR = Run rate. John Player LeagueTeamPldWLNRAPtsRRSomerset (C)1612301504.257Kent1611302484.185Worcestershire169412425.032Middlesex169502404.385Yorkshire168413404.322Essex168611364.277Leicestershire167513364.361Gloucestershire167702324.414Nottinghamshire166613324.376Hampshire167801304.368Lancashire166730304.154Glamorgan1661000244.108Northamptonshire165911244.170Surrey165911244.255Sussex1661000244.220Derbyshire164903224.065Warwickshire1621301104.694Source: CricketArchive

Match log No.DateOpponentsVenueResultRef 1 29 April Surrey Kennington Oval, Kennington Won by 6 runs 2 13 May Warwickshire County Ground, Taunton Won by 4 runs 3 20 May Worcestershire County Ground, New Road, Worcester Match abandoned 4 3 June Hampshire County Ground, Taunton Won by 3 wickets 5 10 June Gloucestershire Imperial Athletic Ground, Bristol Won by 8 wickets 6 17 June Essex Recreation Ground, Bath Won by 9 wickets 7 1 July Yorkshire North Marine Road, Scarborough Won by 6 wickets 8 8 July Glamorgan St Helen's, Swansea Won on faster scoring rate 9 15 July Leicestershire Grace Road, Leicester Lost by 4 runs 10 22 July Northamptonshire County Ground, Taunton Won by 7 wickets 11 5 August Lancashire Old Trafford, Manchester Lost by 8 wickets 12 12 August Sussex Clarence Park, Weston-super-Mare Won by 75 runs 13 19 August Middlesex Lord's Cricket Ground, St John's Wood Won by 28 runs 14 26 August Kent County Ground, Taunton Lost by 64 runs 15 2 September Derbyshire County Ground, Taunton Won by 55 runs 16 9 September Nottinghamshire Trent Bridge, Nottingham Won by 56 runs

Batting averages Player Matches Innings Runs Average Highest Score 100s 50s 15 15 0 4 9 8 0 1 12 12 0 3 15 15 0 1 15 6 0 0 4 3 0 0 11 11 0 1 10 6 0 0 13 11 0 0 13 10 0 0 6 4 0 0 13 5 0 0 3 3 0 0 15 10 0 0 8 3 0 0 3 0 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

Bowling averages Player Matches Overs Wickets Average Economy BBI 4wi 5wi 13 0 0 9 1 0 13 0 0 12 0 0 8 0 0 3 0 0 15 0 0 13 0 0 10 0 0 3 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

Benson & Hedges Cup Season standings Note: Pld = Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, NR = No result, Pts = Points, BowSR = Bowling strike rate. Benson & Hedges Cup: Group ATeamPldWLNRPtsBowSRSomerset (DSQ)4310933.321Worcestershire*4310936.920Glamorgan*4211736.040Gloucestershire†4130353.100Minor Counties South†4031155.692Teams marked progressed to the next stage of the competition.Team marked were eliminated from the competition.Source: CricketArchive

Match log No.StageDateOpponentsVenueResultRef 1 Group A 5, 7 May Glamorgan County Ground, Taunton Won by 5 wickets 2 Group A 12, 14 May Gloucestershire Phoenix County Ground, Bristol Won by 7 wickets 3 Group A 19 May Minor Counties South County Ground, Taunton Won by 8 wickets 4 Group A 23, 24 May Worcestershire County Ground, New Road, Worcester Lost by 10 wickets

Batting averages Player Matches Innings Runs Average Highest Score 100s 50s 3 2 0 0 4 4 0 0 4 2 0 0 4 4 0 0 1 1 0 0 4 1 0 0 4 3 0 0 4 1 0 0 4 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 4 0 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

Bowling averages Player Matches Overs Wickets Average Economy BBI 4wi 5wi 3 0 0 3 1 0 4 0 0 4 0 0 4 0 0 4 0 0 2 0 0

Source: CricketArchive

Statistics Batting Player First class List A Refs Matches Innings Runs Highest Score Average 100s 50s Matches Innings Runs Highest Score Average 100s 50s Batsmen PW Denning 22 35 1,222 106 42.13 2 7 23 22 558 90* 29.36 0 2 MJ Kitchen 7 10 146 36 14.60 0 0 5 4 56 22 18.66 0 0 M Olive 1 2 77 39 38.50 0 0 IVA Richards 16 26 1,043 156 40.11 3 4 19 18 661 117 38.88 1 4 PM Roebuck 23 37 1,273 89 47.14 0 11 19 17 309 50 23.76 0 1 BC Rose 21 33 1,317 133 41.15 2 8 23 23 701 88* 41.23 0 5 PA Slocombe 23 38 956 103* 27.31 1 6 8 6 73 38 14.60 0 0 All-rounders IT Botham 11 15 487 120 34.78 1 1 17 12 236 55* 26.22 0 1 D Breakwell 24 31 510 54* 23.18 0 2 23 13 106 36* 9.63 0 0 GI Burgess 1 2 20 11 10.00 0 0 13 8 147 50* 21.00 0 1 JW Lloyds 4 7 117 43 16.71 0 0 VJ Marks 24 33 894 93 37.25 0 7 19 15 184 30 18.40 0 0 NFM Popplewell 7 10 119 37 13.22 0 0 3 3 14 8 7.00 0 0 Wicket-keepers T Gard 4 5 71 51* 71.00 0 1 DJS Taylor 20 20 318 50* 31.80 0 1 23 8 50 14* 16.66 0 0 Bowlers CH Dredge 11 11 215 55 35.83 0 1 13 3 6 3* 6.00 0 0 J Garner 14 10 106 53 17.66 0 1 20 12 126 32 15.75 0 0 DR Gurr 4 2 31 20* — 0 0 KF Jennings 19 11 19 11* 3.16 0 0 20 6 24 8* 8.00 0 0 HR Moseley 8 5 25 15 8.33 0 0 5 0 — — — 0 0

Bowling Player First class List A Refs Matches Overs Wickets Average BBI 5wi 10wm Matches Overs Wickets Average BBI 4wi IT Botham 11 257.4 26 32.53 6/81 1 0 17 136.4 24 18.41 4/10 1 D Breakwell 24 567.3 47 27.89 6/41 1 0 23 121.0 16 27.12 3/20 0 GI Burgess 1 5.0 0 — — 0 0 13 90.0 13 24.46 3/25 0 CH Dredge 11 251.0 25 30.36 4/40 0 0 13 94.3 16 19.87 3/21 0 J Garner 14 393.1 55 13.83 6/80 4 0 20 167.2 39 10.33 6/29 3 DR Gurr 4 71.0 2 94.50 2/36 0 0 KF Jennings 19 245.3 20 31.00 4/25 0 0 20 148.1 24 20.54 4/11 1 JW Lloyds 4 6.0 0 — — 0 0 VJ Marks 24 568.4 57 27.73 6/33 4 0 19 46.3 12 11.75 3/19 0 HR Moseley 8 196.4 31 15.96 6/52 2 0 5 31.0 3 30.33 1/18 0 NFM Popplewell 7 102.0 6 45.16 3/43 0 0 3 21.0 1 41.00 1/7 0 IVA Richards 16 77.3 5 54.00 2/47 0 0 19 54.1 9 23.11 2/13 0 PM Roebuck 23 6.0 1 22.00 1/2 0 0 BC Rose 21 5.0 0 — — 0 0

Fielding Player First class List A Refs Matches Catches Matches Catches IT Botham 11 11 17 11 D Breakwell 24 9 23 6 GI Burgess 1 0 13 3 PW Denning 22 18 23 3 CH Dredge 11 5 13 1 J Garner 14 4 20 1 DR Gurr 4 0 KF Jennings 19 9 20 3 MJ Kitchen 7 8 5 1 JW Lloyds 4 2 VJ Marks 24 8 19 4 HR Moseley 8 1 5 0 NFM Popplewell 7 1 3 3 M Olive 1 0 IVA Richards 16 13 19 7 PM Roebuck 23 22 19 2 BC Rose 21 11 23 6 PA Slocombe 23 8 8 1

Wicket-keeping Player First class List A Refs Matches Catches Stumpings Matches Catches Stumpings T Gard 4 6 3 DJS Taylor 20 30 10 23 20 8

References