Kent County Cricket Club in 2005 played their cricket in Division One of the County Championship and Division Two of the totesport League. They started the Championship at 11–2 to win it, behind Surrey and Warwickshire. Their first first-class game, however, was against the students of Cardiff UCCE. They fell to 104 for 6 before rain prevented any further play. They had little luck in their first Sunday League game, against Derbyshire, which was also abandoned through rain.
The match against Warwickshire at Canterbury was a close one. However, depressingly for Kent they could not finish the match off, and Warwickshire survived for the draw, 9 wickets down. Kent then went on to win their Sunday League game against Leicestershire narrowly on the Duckworth-Lewis method. They then drew with Gloucestershire in the County Championship, before losing to the Warwickshire Bears on the Sunday.
Kent came close to humiliation in the first round of the C&G Trophy, when they were bowled out for 160, though eventually they came home, dismissing Wiltshire for 151. Kent then made their highest-ever fourth innings total (447 for 9) as they held on for a draw against Hampshire, before taking advantage of an easy draw in the C&G Trophy, beating Derbyshire by 127 runs to go through to the quarter-finals. There then came a victory over Nottinghamshire and a close draw against Surrey in the Championship, which left them fourth at the end of May. They then beat Gloucestershire in a 3-day match at Maidstone, which also got them an eight-point deduction for a poor pitch. However, in the next match it seemed anything but poor, as Derbyshire racked up 304 for 3 to win by 90 runs.
In June they beat Glamorgan easily in three days, before taking a solid National League victory at Taunton against Somerset, and going top of the table in the Championship after an innings victory over Warwickshire. The Twenty20 Cup kicked off the following week, and Kent almost set a record for poor performance – they lost six successive matches, before rain let them off with a no-result against Sussex and a win over Essex, which did nothing apart from permanently damage the Essex lads' chances.
Following the Twenty20 Cup, Kent still had not shook their losing habit, although losing the toss against Sussex probably had something to do with their 66-run loss – they were forced to bat in poorer conditions. A loss in the C&G Trophy quarter-finals followed, not all that surprising given Kent's one-day form, and that meant Kent's only realistic chances of winning anything this season were in the County Championship, and after giving up 457 runs in the first innings against Surrey that looked difficult. However, they chased 232 in 35 evening overs to take 21 points and retain the lead in the Championship. In a National League match shortened to 16 overs due to rain, Kent lost to Somerset by eight wickets, and they also lost to Warwickshire in a midweek match in the National League, but beat Yorkshire in their last match of July, also a one-day game.
The first match of August was an expected win over Glamorgan, by an innings and 124 runs, but their one-day promotion hopes were dented as they lost to Surrey. A drawn match with Hampshire followed, after two successive Championship victories, which meant that the title battle in Division One still was exciting. Bangladesh A were then defeated inside two days, but the margin of victory was only three wickets. Kent then got a National League no-result against Surrey, and rain continued to blight them as their match with Middlesex ended in a draw. They repaired their poor National League season somewhat, beating Yorkshire Phoenix and Scottish Saltires, but on the first Sunday of September they fell to 140 and lost by eight wickets to Durham Dynamos. With only nine points from their second Championship draw with Middlesex in three weeks, Kent trailed league leaders Nottinghamshire by 19.5 points before their match on 14 September. Needing a win to have any chance of Championship glory, they declared their way out of the match, and lost by 204 runs. They also lost their final three games – a home one-day game with Sussex, a Championship game at Sussex, and a League game with Leicestershire.
Squad Ages given as of the first day of the County Championship season, 13 April 2005. Name Nationality Birth date Batting style Bowling style Notes BatsmenMichael Carberry Left-handed Right arm off break Joe Denly Right-handed Right arm leg break David Fulton Right-handed Slow left arm orthodox Club captainKevin Jones Right-handed Right arm medium Rob Key Right-handed Right arm off break Martin van Jaarsveld Right-handed Right arm medium / Right arm off break Kolpak playerMatt Walker Left-handed Right arm medium All-roundersMatthew Dennington Right-handed Right arm fast-medium European passportAndrew Hall Right-handed Right arm fast-medium Overseas playerJustin Kemp Right-handed Right arm fast-medium Overseas playerDarren Stevens Right-handed Right arm medium Wicket-keepersPaul Dixey Right-handed — Geraint Jones Right-handed — Niall O'Brien Left-handed — BowlersSimon Cook Right-handed Right arm medium-fast Simon Cusden Right-handed Right arm fast-medium Rob Ferley Right-handed Slow left arm orthodox Robbie Joseph Right-handed Right arm fast Amjad Khan Right-handed Right arm fast-medium Min Patel Right-handed Slow left arm orthodox Martin Saggers Right-handed Right arm fast-medium David Stiff Right-handed Right arm fast James Tredwell Left-handed Right arm off break
Tables
Championship + 2005 County Championship – Division One Pos Team Pld W D L Pen BP Pts 1 Nottinghamshire 16 9 4 3 0 94 236 2 Hampshire 16 9 4 3 0.5 92 233.5 3 Sussex 16 7 6 3 0 102 224 4 Warwickshire 16 8 3 5 0.5 86 209.5 5 Kent 16 6 7 3 8.5 99 202.5 6 Middlesex 16 4 7 5 0.5 98 181.5 7 Surrey 16 4 9 3 8.5 97 180.5 8 Gloucestershire 16 1 5 10 2 72 104 9 Glamorgan 16 1 1 14 0 71 88.5
totesport League + 2005 totesport League – Division Two Pos Team Pld W L NR T Pts 1 Sussex Sharks 18 13 4 1 0 54 2 Durham Dynamos 18 12 4 2 0 52 3 Warwickshire Bears 18 10 6 2 0 44 4 Leicestershire Foxes 18 10 7 1 0 42 5 Derbyshire Phantoms 18 9 7 1 1 40 6 Somerset Sabres 18 9 8 1 0 38 7 Surrey Lions 18 7 10 1 0 30 8 Kent Spitfires 18 6 10 2 0 28 9 Yorkshire Phoenix 18 5 13 0 0 20 10 Scottish Saltires 18 2 14 1 1 12
Match details
Kent v Cardiff UCCE (13–15 April)
Match drawn
Kent had a tough rain-affected first day at the St Lawrence Ground, Canterbury. They struggled against the bowling of Dai Rushbrook, who took 3 for 25 in 8 overs, and Luke Sellers, who took 2 for 23 in 7. At one point they were reduced to 86 for 6, before recovering to 104 for 6 in the 30 overs the weather allowed them before close of play on the first day. The next two days of this three day match were then both abandoned because of rain. (Cricinfo scorecard)
Derbyshire v Kent (17 April)
Match abandoned – Derbyshire (2pts), Kent (2pts)
Derbyshire, playing for the first time as the "Phantoms" lost the toss and were put in to bat at Derby. Opener Jonathan Moss made free at the start of the innings with 79 off 81 balls before he was bowled by Rob Ferley. His team-mates struggled, with only captain Luke Sutton, with 46, adding much to the score. Derbyshire scored 197 for 8 in their 45 overs. Only 5 overs of Kent Spitfires' innings were possible, in which time they made 9 for no loss. Rain then meant the match was abandoned. (BBC scorecard)
Kent v Warwickshire (20–23 April)
Kent (10pts) drew with Warwickshire (10pts)
The first day at the St Lawrence Ground saw Warwickshire and England left arm spin bowler Ashley Giles take 5 for 86, and Martin van Jaarsveld 118 as Kent finished on 342 for 9. At the end of a second day, Kent took their score to 347. Nick Knight, who scored 100, and Ian Bell, with 63, got Warwickshire off to a good start. But from 179 for 1, Min Patel and Amjad Khan bowled Kent into the match. Warwickshire finished the day on 288 for 7 off 100 overs.
On the third day, Warwickshire were soon finished off for 309, 38 behind Kent. The Dane Khan did the brunt of the damage, finishing with on 6 for 73. Then van Jaarsveld and David Fulton played with great determination and put together their second century stand of the game with 155. At close, Kent were 308 for 6, 346 ahead, and they declared overnight.
On a fourth-day pitch favouring the spinners, Warwickshire found themselves in deep trouble on 73 for 5. If Kent were to finish champions, they really should have won from that position, but Tony Frost and Alex Loudon had different ideas when they batted throughout the whole afternoon session. After tea, Patel took three quick wickets, and Kent again looked on course for the win. But Frost, who scored 82, survived throughout the entire evening session, and after the ninth wicket fell, last man Nick Warren survived for 15 balls to earn Warwickshire the draw. They were 233 for 9 at stumps. (BBC scorecard)
Kent v Leicestershire (24 April)
Kent (4pts) beat Leicestershire (0pts) by 6 runs (D/L method)
At Canterbury, Leicestershire Foxes scored 214 from their 45 overs, with Dinesh Mongia contributing 62. Martin Saggers, who is not yet fully fit, took 3 for 46 for the Kent Spitfires. In reply, England openers Rob Key and Geraint Jones both failed, before South Africa's Martin van Jaarsveld continued his great start to the season with an unbeaten 69. Kent were 150 for 4 after 33.5 overs when rain and bad light brought an end to a closely fought game, which Kent took after being ahead according to the Duckworth-Lewis method. (Cricinfo scorecard)
Gloucestershire v Kent (27–30 April)
Gloucestershire (8pts) drew with Kent (11pts)
Play started at 4.30pm on the first day at Bristol. Kent progressed to 66 for 2 at close, with Rob Key (26) and Matthew Walker (22) the not out batsmen. On the second day, Key and Walker proceeded to their centuries. Key top-scored with 164, an innings which gave him a good shout for the No.3 spot in the England national team. When Walker was third man out with the score on 260, it precipitated a minor collapse, and Kent finished the second day on 339 for 6.
On the third day Kent lost their last four wickets in 40 minutes, finishing on 359. Gloucestershire, however, lost wickets steadily, and would have lost more had Kent not dropped four chances. Chris Taylor, the Gloucester captain, was the mainstay of the innings with a painstaking 66 from 173 balls. They finished the day on 208 for 7, 2 away from saving the follow-on, and most probably the match as well.
Gloucestershire added 40 runs on the last day, and then Kent batted out the day for a draw, finishing on 229 for 5 declared. Walker and Stevens had time to score half-centuries, and Geraint Jones had some useful batting practice in getting to 36 not out, but there was never much prospect of a result once the follow-on was saved. Kent captain David Fulton said, "If there had been any realistic chance of a result we would have been happy to go for it. But the pitch has just got flatter, and it was obvious we couldn't really hope to bowl them out quickly." (BBC scorecard)
Warwickshire v Kent (1 May)
Warwickshire (4pts) beat Kent (0pts) by 19 runs
Nick Knight scored 122 off 125, the highest score of the National League season thus far, to boot the Bears up to 279 for 7 off their 45 overs. A spirited fightback from the Spitfires saw them hang in until the 44th over, but eventually, despite 82 from Martin van Jaarsveld and a 40-run last wicket stand between Simon Cook and Martin Saggers, they perished for 260 all out with 11 balls to go. (BBC scorecard)
Wiltshire v Kent (3 May)
Kent beat Wiltshire by 9 runs to progress to Round Two of the C&G Trophy