Sir Ian Bothams impending return to Durham as chairman comes 25 years after he joined the county in the twilight of his playing career. Milan Lucic Bruins Jersey . The clubs ambition to shake up the first-class scene and its proximity to home convinced the England all-rounder in 1991 that the wrench of leaving Worcestershire after five happy seasons was worth it.It appeared the perfect match… On the upBotham wasnt the countys only big-name player - Australian Dean Jones and Wayne Larkins, his 13-Test England career recently over, teamed up with the likes of Paul Parker and Simon Hughes under the captaincy of David Graveney. It was Botham who stole the headlines, though, and many - including Beefy himself - expected Englands greatest all-rounder of all-time to lead the team after Durham became the first county to be granted first-class status for 70 years. So when Director of Cricket Geoff Cook preferred Graveney as skipper it didnt make for the happiest of starts. Dean Jones: scored 904 Championship runs for Durham in 1992 Instant impactBotham didnt disappoint in the countys maiden County Championship match against Leicestershire at the Racecourse in April 1992. He struck a run-a-ball second-innings century after claiming Durhams first two wickets in the big-time - dismissing Foxes skipper Nigel Briers caught and bowled for 12 before bowling current National Selector James Whitaker for just two on his way to figures of 2-51 off 25 overs. However his swaggering hundred, which featured seven fours and five sixes, couldnt save the new boys from a seven-wicket defeat.Still in the swingBotham would make just one more first-class hundred for Durham in his remaining 24 matches - his batting average for the county eerily echoing his final statistics for Worcestershire in half as many games, but his bowling a fading force. Bothams first-class batting record at Durham Matches Innings Not Outs Runs Highest Average 100 50 Ct 25 40 3 1,121 105 30.29 2 7 15 Bothams first-class batting record at Worcestershire Matches Innings Not Outs Runs Highest Average 100 50 Ct 54 75 6 2,097 161 30.39 4 10 36 Bothams first-class bowling record at Durham Overs Maidens Runs Wickets Best Average 5w 10w 507.5 108 1,599 39 4-11 41.00 0 0 Bothams first-class bowling record at Worcestershire Overs Maidens Runs Wickets Best Average 5w 10w 1,105 224 3,372 131 7-54 25.74 6 1 In June 1992, Botham became the first Durham player to play Test cricket for England, against Pakistan at Edgbaston, but by his own admission was a mere shadow of his best self in both that rain-ruined match and the Test that followed at Lords - the last of his 102 England caps.One final flingHow else to sign off? With a bit of Aussie bashing, of course. By the time the tourists rolled up at The Racecourse, Bothams mind was long made up that he wouldnt see out the 1993 season - a two-day defeat to Surrey in the Championship at the start of the month in which he made eight off eight balls across two innings on the same day deciding matters once it was clear he didnt have a chance of forcing his way back into Englands plans. Batting at six, Botham made a bullish 32 off 37 balls before falling to Steve Waugh before the match fizzled out into a draw. Bothams overall first-class batting record Matches Innings Not Outs Runs Highest Average 100 50 Ct 402 617 46 19,399 228 33.97 38 97 354 Bothams overall first-class bowling record Overs Runs Wickets Best Average 5w 10w 10,576.1 31,902 1,172 8-34 27.22 59 8 The aftermathLater on in his autobiography Dont tell Kath Botham would describe his move to Durham as one of the worst decisions he ever made. Generally speaking, I got on well with most of the playing staff, he wrote, but my real problems were with members of the committee. Initially, promises were made that were never kept and the level of in-fighting grew and grew. A quarter of a century on, Bothams comeback gives him the opportunity to fashion the club just as he played his cricket - his way. Ian Botham, pictured in Durham colours in 1992 Botham will be part of our team in India for all five of the Tests between India and England live on Sky Sports 2, starting with the first Test from 3.30am on Wednesday 9th November. Or watch the whole of the first Test for £10.99 with no contract, with a week pass from NOW TV. Also See: Botham confirmed as chairman Live cricket on Sky Get Sky Sports Cricket videos Sean Kuraly Jersey . Funny, they looked like longtime friends during Pittsburghs 5-1 demolition of Dallas on Tuesday night. Quick to the puck and even quicker to the net, the Penguins top line overwhelmed the suddenly struggling Stars as Pittsburgh bounced back from a dismal weekend sweep at the hands of Philadelphia by jumping on Dallas early. Torey Krug Jersey . They have watched it from afar. And now they have seen it for themselves. http://www.cheapbruinsjerseys.info/authentic-jaroslav-halak-bruins-jersey/ .ca. Kerry, In the first period of Saturdays Montreal-Ottawa game, Brendan Gallagher is called for goaltender interference. Craig Anderson is outside the blue paint trying to make the save.There is little question that Toronto Argonauts quarterback Ricky Ray has been incredibly hot of late, but is he in the zone? The numbers back up the indisputable fact that Rays play has been incredible, even by his own lofty standards. His last three outings havent been complete games for a couple of reasons. He was injured mid-way through the third quarter against Winnipeg, missed the BC game, returned for a game in Montreal where he only played the first half, then played the entire game against Edmonton. So in a little over two games of actual playing time what have the numbers been? Try 64-73 passing (87.7% completion rate), 851 yards, eight touchdowns and zero interceptions. So hes definitely in the zone. "Ive felt like Ive been there a few times", Ray told TSN.ca. "Its just when things are going well you have complete confidence and it seems like everything you see is open. Thats when youre really playing well, when you can just drop back and trust exactly what your eyes are telling you and then just let it go without any hesitation." Rays coach knows what its like to be playing at that level. When Scott Milanovich finished his career at the University of Maryland he had the NCAAs second-highest completion percentage (66.2%) in history. Hes been there. "I had a couple of pretty good games in college, but nothing consistently over a stretch of time like Ricky has," said Milanovich. "I think its a comfort level thing and a huge part of it is the fact that hes not getting hit a lot. I can just see it in his feet and just how much more comfortable he is in the pocket and how much more he trusts his protection." Chad Owens is the defending CFL Most Outstanding Player. As a returner and receiver hes been almost unstoppable at times. "Its a really good feeling. Its a feeling of I cant be stopped and you feel like every time you touch the ball its going to be a score or a big play." "It seems like the game has slowed down, but youre doing it effortlessly, youre just letting things happen." Can you be in the zone on defence? Middle linebacker Robert McCune, currently third in the CFL in tackles, says absolutely. "I get in that zone sometimes when the game slows down" said the native of Mobile, Alabama. "It helps when you just let the game come to you. Sometimes when I try too hard, thats when I make my most mistakes. Adam Oates Jersey. You just have to play your game and relax." Khalif Mitchell has made a career trying to get offensive players out of the zone. The defensive tackle looks to his teammates to get himself in a good place. "I pretty much feed off my other guys" said Mitchell. "I understand that if were all out here and of the same accord then Ill be in the zone and then its pretty much a natural flow and not something we create artificially." Staying in the zone this week wont be easy for Ray or any of his teammates. The Calgary Stampeders are in Toronto for a Grey Cup rematch. Sacramento State 64, Cal. State Northridge 61. November 4, 2000. It was the second-highest point total in NCAA footballs modern era and amazingly it came without an overtime session. The reason this obscure college football game is noteworthy in Toronto is that the two quarterbacks were Sacramento States Ricky Ray and Cal Northridges Marcus Brady, now the Argos Offensive Coordinator. Ray passed for 344 yards and three touchdowns that day and rushed for three more himself. Brady threw for 493 yards and four majors. The game was played at Fred Anderson Field, named after the owner of the defunct CFL team the Sacramento Gold Miners. The two were asked by TSN.ca to reflect on that amazing afternoon. Ray: "That was a fun game, it was my last home game in college. The year before we went down to their place and he (Brady) lit us up pretty bad. Coming back my senior year and playing my last game at home it was nice to finally get a win against him and man, we put up some points. He put up big numbers, we were able to so the same and squeaked one out on them." Brady: "We were just going up and down the field. (Former Winnipeg star) Charles Roberts was his running back (he had 159 yards rushing and two TDs in the game). They were going down and scoring and we had to answer. We both had explosive offences and it came down to the fourth quarter. I had a 50-yard run for a touchdown and threw for four, but I threw a late interception. Ricky had three quarterback sneaks in that game and was the Conference Player of the Week even though I had better numbers than him (laughs), but they got the win so he deserved it." The Argonauts play Calgary Friday night at 7:30. Follow the Argos all season long on TSN1050 with Mike Hogan and Sandy Annunziata. ' ' '