Somerset trio 'must be shell shocked' says Anderson after Sydney defeat

In common with numerous other cricket fans back home, Somerset chief executive Peter Anderson got up early at his East Devon home to watch England play in the first VB final against the `old enemy' only to be bitterly disappointed at the outcome of the match.

After he had travelled to his office at the County Ground in Taunton later in the day he told me: "Casting aside patriotic feeling, which is very hard on this sort of occasion, one can only sit and wonder at the Australian performance, both as individuals and as a team. Individuals are technically uncomplicatedtechnically repetitive and an object lesson for all of our young cricketers."

Reflecting on the plight of the Somerset `trio' who had played in the match, Ian Blackwell, Andy Caddick and Marcus Trescothick, he said: "I feel very sorry for our three players, all of whom must be shell shocked by what happened."

He concluded: "All they can do as individuals is look at their own game and performance, stay positive and regard the second final that takes place in Melbourne on Saturday as a new start where both teams are equal, which is easy to say but hard to do."