An emotional triumph

I endured a couple of rough days in Birmingham before the Final, having earlier spent a few days in Norfolk on a little holiday with my girlfriend – although I should point out that’s no reflection on Norfolk…or my girlfriend!

The upside of the unfavourable weather over the first couple of days of our Championship match at Edgbaston meant I had some time to rest. I had a few concerned text messages about my virus so I had to let them know I wasn’t quite on my death bed!

We managed to get in around a day and a half of cricket on a spicy Edgbaston wicket and that was ideal preparation as a team, as it meant we didn’t have to expend too much energy ahead of Lord’s.

All the guys had a bat or a bowl and it was better to have something to concentrate our minds on rather than be bored at home thinking about the Final.

We were able to agree on an early finish, as the earlier rain had meant there was no prospect of a result, so it was then time to hit the road for Lord’s.

When we arrived at the Cumberland Hotel we sat down and watched some inspirational footage put together by our psychologist Clive Reeves.

We left that meeting with clear plans about how we wanted to play as individuals and as a team. If we were feeling the pressure before then, after that we felt better about knowing how to deal with it on the day.

After that myself, Ryan ten Doeschate and our girlfriends went out for a quiet meal at ‘ASK’ and then it was off to dream of FPT glory!

On the morning of the game all the squad were kitted out in their Hugo Boss suits and feeling the part. We watched another montage of us in action on the short coach journey to the ground and that put us in a very good mood for our arrival at Lord’s.

Everyone was very aware of how important the game was but we were, nonetheless, very relaxed going into the Final – which was one of the keys to our performance.

It turned out to be a good toss to lose as our opening bowlers Graham Napier and David Masters set the tone on a wicket where you never felt in as a batsman. That it wasn’t a flat one-day wicket made for gripping cricket.

After bowling them out for 214 we were all relaxed at lunch and very confident of reaching our target.

After a reasonable start to our reply we then had a bit of a wobble as we lost two important wickets – two potential matchwinners in Ravi Bopara and Alastair Cook – in quick succession. It was clearly going to need someone else to play the lead role on this occasion.

Myself and Grant Flower regained the momentum for us at a crucial time when we needed to put a partnership together. I didn’t feel like I ever had any fluency at the crease but Grant was typically cool and calm and he just told me to hang on in there.

I was upset and hugely disappointed to get out to a loose shot but when I saw Ryan ten Doeschate passing me to the wicket - a big-match player – I was still confident we would get home.

Only Martin van Jaarsveld and Ryan McLaren for Kent and Grant and Ryan for Essex managed to score quickly and look confident from ball one during the match. Our sixth-wicket pair ran really hard between the wickets and that was the main feature of the stand that goes us through to victory.

In truth I didn’t see much of the game after I got out as I spent a lot of it with a towel over my head. But I was listening to what was going on and the sound of ball on bat was a comforting noise! It was only with five runs to go that I moved from my spot in the dressing room as I felt I couldn’t jinx our run-chase at that point!

It turned out to be an amazing day for Essex and particularly special for all of those involved in the whole journey. We play a lot of matches to get to the final and to win when you get there is a wonderful experience.

One of the best moments of the day was walking around Lord’s after the match and seeing the Essex fans, who supported us phenomenally throughout, all over the ground.

Much has been made of my giving away of my medal to a young supporter in a wheelchair and I felt it was a nice gesture to make to someone who has given us great support over the last few years. Despite his disability he is such an upbeat young man and it was great to see him on our walk-round. I’ve given him shirts in the past but I’m sure this medal will be a nice addition to his collection!

I explained to the written press afterwards that I had gone through a tough winter and, for the first time, I spoke briefly about the death of my mother. It wasn’t something I wanted to dwell on during the interview but I just felt it was an appropriate time to bring the situation out into the open. Winning a Lord’s final in any circumstances is a special moment in any player’s career but this was a very emotional day not just for me but also my family.