Using Play-Cricket Scorer Pro
Earlier this year I was invited to help with user acceptance testing of Play-Cricket Scorer Pro ( PCSP ). I was sceptical at first because of the rapid product development ; however , the level of effort from the developers and the ECB has been admirable , culminating in a successful product launch this year and a very positive take-up by many scorers , both recreational and professional .
On loading PCSP , you are presented with a slightly scary , almost blank screen , but once you either create a match or download a fixture , things start to look more familiar . An excellent feature is that PCSP uses a centralised server concept for data , including clubs , teams , players , venues , officials , match types , competitions , fixtures and actual match data . This means that although you have a local database , it ’ s not critical since all data can be retrieved from the server .
Beginning a match is a logical process of going through the play states of ‘ pre-toss ’, ‘ pre-start ’ and then ‘ in play ’. You are then presented with the scoring controls – a panel of coloured buttons allowing you to score most combinations of scoring shot , extras and wickets with a single mouse click or keyboard press . You can also record additional data such as wagon wheels , type of shot and fielder ’ s name .
As the match progresses , various programme windows show match summary ( including Duckworth Lewis Stern ), ball-by-ball data , innings notes , scoreboard and scorecard information .
Ball-by-ball editing is very well handled , allowing you to select any ball in the innings and then edit the information using the same scoring controls .
A built-in auto correct feature then gives you the option of making multiple automated changes , for example , if you ’ ve swapped two batsmen .
PCSP integrates directly with Play-Cricket , allowing fixture information to be downloaded prior to the game . It also then allows live score updates to Play-Cricket as the match progresses and upload of the result on match completion . Twitter integration means automatic tweets can be selected for various milestone events . These work well and I find them a useful way of keeping supporters updated and for also providing a link to the Play-Cricket live scorecard .
I have successfully tested scoreboard integration with an FSL-type controller . If you already have an interface cable , PCSP can directly control your FSL-type scoreboard , you just need to initially configure the correct data parameters within PCSP . The default scoreboard commands are suitable for most scoreboard layouts , but again , these are easily configurable .
As with any new product , there have been teething problems . The Play-Cricket interface was problematic on the first day of our league season in early May , but things have steadily improved since then and I have successfully downloaded , live-scored and uploaded my league matches without too much heartache .
Support for PCSP has been excellent through the Play-Cricket help desk . I have received prompt assistance and there is a good selection of support documentation and FAQs that answer many of the common questions .
So what would I like to see next ? Well , from a PCSP perspective , perhaps a linear scorebook view and better multi-match statistics tools for things like batting and bowling averages .
From a supporter ’ s perspective , a better live score experience through Play- Cricket , so that things like wagon wheels and run rate / worm graphs are available both within the website and through the Play-Cricket live app .
In conclusion , I ’ ve been very impressed with PCSP considering the short development time frame . The level of support has been excellent and I ’ m glad I made the switch this season and hope for many more happy days of electronic scoring .
Andy Nott , Wiltshire
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