Male, 32 years old (just), with a littl'un on the way in late May! Enjoys watching football (QPR), p...
Male, 32 years old (just), with a littl'un on the way in late May! Enjoys watching football (QPR), playing cricket, music, cinema and good food and drink. Keen amateur cook too...
Member since:16.01.2003
Reviews:34
Members who trust:2
A few years back, Woodworm were THE cricket supplier. Providing gear to the likes of Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen, their stuff was in demand from every youngster taking up the game.
However, it soon became clear that the company may have bitten off a little more than they could chew with their costly sponsorships outstripping profits. They went under and the brand name has now resurfaced under the ownership of online sports equipment supplier, the Sports HQ. (www.thesportshq.com)
As a result, it is now possible to pick up a number of bats at very reasonable prices. I plumped for the Gold (they have Bronze, Silver and Gold available, which vary in line with the grade of willow used to make the bat, with Gold being Grade 1 English Willow) Mega Bite, which used to be Freddie Flintoff's choice of bat.
This bat comes with natural finish, meaning it needs to be oiled and a bowed blade and very thick edges. This means that if you like to play big shots, the bat should be more suitable for your style.
The bat comes in a weight range between 2lb8 and 2lb15oz, I plumped for a 2lb 10oz bat.
The first thing that struck me on receiving the bat (I ordered online and service was swift) was of the excellent look and finish of the wood used. The bat felt light in the hands and had a good 'pick-up', meaning it felt comfortable and lighter that it's actual weight. The logo stickers on the bat are relatively bland but the gold bat grip looks distinctive and conveys a premium quality.
I spent around 5 hours knocking the bat in (my own personal choice as I have seen too many people just knock a bat in for an hour or so only for it to break early on) and applied a scuff sheet after oiling it.
The bat-makers claim the bat is pre-knocked in but i would advise anyone to spend plenty of time using an old ball hitting the bat all round the edges if they want to get some value out of their investment.
Using the bat for the first time, I noticed how 'springy' it felt when i middled the ball - I definitely got more power out of it than with my previous bat (a Morrant Ultramax), and even edges seemed to disappear to the boundary more quickly.
In addition, it seems to play well when you are looking to hit lofted, in-the-air shots, sometimes giving you more power even when you mistime a shot.
For any player that looks to hit hard and through the line, the bat seems to be ideal. Several of the better batters at my club have used the bat to net for a few balls and commented positively on this.
The only negative I can think of is that for the 'touch' player, who uses the pace of the ball to 'guide shots', there may be a better bat out there for you. In addition, if you hit a shot 'low' on the bat (below the sweet spot), you get no power at all, something you might get from abat such as the Woodworm Satellite, which is more balanced.
However, for £99 - and cheaper if you can find one of the many discount codes online for the SportsHQ, this is a great value, decent quality bat.
I've now gone through my first season with this bat, scoring about 350 runs in 12 matches and it is in great nick - I can see it lasting for a good few years.
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