EAST RIDING CRICKET SOCIETY

What a cracker Maggie can pull! She’s welcome at my seasonal table, as is Mr John Barclay with his entertaining, witty and thoroughly good-natured cricket chat. Almost fifty of us turned up to hear John – former captain of Sussex CCC; MCC President (2009–10); president, English Schools Cricket Association (ESCA); and vice-president of the Arundel Castle Cricket Foundation – who also happened to be our last speaker prior to lockdown in March 2020. He seemed flattered to be back, saying he rarely gets a second invite – although I find that hard to believe. Not only did he talk cricket. He also illustrated it vividly, with walkabouts and grand arm and hand gestures to bring his words to life. There was something of the pantomime in the way he involved us in his performance – for this was far more than a traditional 'speech'. We heard about his appointment as MCC President, as the choice of his predecessor Derek 'Deadly' Unde...

A quick snow flurry seemed to have only minor impact on our November 2023 meeting , which included our now celebrated AGM – famed that is for its brevity. Our chairman offered due thanks to Maggie , Ian and Brian for their work , and all the officers were re-elected unopposed.  Maggie outlined our past and future speakers before Brian commented on the accounts , which covered a three-year period from October 2020 to September 2023.  We made a small profit over this period and our finances are strong.   After falling from a high of c.100 in March 2020, our numbers are growing steadily, with a warm welcome extended to many recent new members.  Our successful raffle makes a vital contribution , while our first all-pay summer special, with Barry Richards , raised our profile and paid for itself . Then we were into the meat of the evening with Jeremy Lonsdale – historian, author and deputy editor of the quarterly County Cricket Matters .  Although res...

Dean Headley – former England, Middlesex and Kent paceman and the third generation of a famous cricketing family – opened our 2023/24 programme with a superb informal Q&A .  Dean retired early after a first-class career (1991-2001) cut short by a chronic back injury and is now an ECB match referee.  He is also heavily involved in coaching young cricketers, as Director of Cricket at Stamford School (2018-23) and now as Head of Cricket at Blundells School, Tiverton (2023-). Read more about Dean here: https://wisden.com/stories/features/golden-streaks-and-fractured-dreams-the-cautionary-tale-of-dean-headley https://www.thecricketmonthly.com/story/1129399/dean-and-daz-make-merry-in-melbourne https://www.thecricketmonthly.com/story/725159/-it-burnt-to-be-told-i-didn-t-have-the-heart-to-play-as-a-bowler https://www.thecricketmonthly.com/story/1226317/like-father--unlike-son https://blundells.org/devoffice/news/new-head-of-cricket-dean-headley

Well, what a surprise! How nicely we all scrub up in warm weather – some even had knees on display. And it was quite the turn - out too , although with Mr Barry Richards visiting from South Africa that was only to be expected.   Barry's career speaks for itself but few of us kn e w that as a Hampshire Colt he played his second - ever professional match in Harrogate .   He took us to South Australia, whe re he got to know the legendary Don Bradman, then walked us through his Packer years.  He stress ed the relentless stream of innovations introduced by World Series Cricket – to the game and to its portrayal and discussion in the media .   Packer certainly had ideas and the ability to implement them.  Like other recent speakers , Barry is concerned about the current risks to t est and c ounty cricket.   When cricketers now have so many other options to maximise their earnings, these longer formats will inevitably be disadvantaged. Where the money is...

What a night! We went out with more than a bang thanks to Mr Marks. Vic opened with his proudest record – that no first-class bowler in the 1980s conceded more runs than him – and rather set the tone for what followed.  With more than a nod to his location, he commented that Joe Root is probably the best batsman he's ever seen but that watching in Pakistan suggests that Harry Brook isn't far behind. No stranger to matters cultural as well as sporting, Vic ensured that Michelangelo and Harold Pinter both featured during the evening – perhaps a first for our society! Vic made his England ODI debut in 1980, playing two matches vs the Windies under captain Ian Botham. As 12th man at Headingley , Vic spent time usefully in the nets bowling Boycott back into form. Sir Geoffrey, however, did not return the favour! Vic played at Lords in the second game – perhaps Botham’s finest d isplay of captain cy as England won a tight game . Man-of-the-match Boycott was run out for 70...

Another 'in conversation' evening introduced us to James Carr – director of cricket of the Northern Diamonds and of the wider women's game in Yorkshire and the North-East.  This relaxed format was a perfect way to get to know James, a relatively new name to many but a coach fizzing with energy, enthusiasm and ideas. James first got interested in cricket through watching on Channel 4 and playing Kwik and street cricket while at primary school in Lancashire.  He played more formal, red-ball cricket at high school and joined a local club in 2001. While studying PE at college, he naturally veered towards coaching and over the next ten years completed his qualifications while working full-time in retail and project management. He was constantly looking for a role in cricket and his first opportunity came in New Zealand – as Cricket Development Officer for Southland, next stop Antarctica! There he found an area the size of Yorkshire but with a population of only 100,0...

Well, the high turnout certainly wasn't due to clement weather – it was a freezing night. So it must be attributed to the presence of the very mild-mannered and unassuming Mr Graham Onions himself. The evening took a slightly unusual format, with the opening session conducted interview style prior to the open-floor Q&A after the interval. Rather than report verbatim, I'll try to summarise the information we gathered from our guest. As a lad of about thirteen, Graham lived near a cricket ground and would often come home from school, don his whites and walk there. He started out as a batsman, but as he grew taller and became more athletic turned more to bowling. He played several sports in his teens, so wasn't part of any academy or other formal set up, and was about to go to university when he was spotted by Durham coach Geoff Cook and instead decided to opt for professional cricket. Graham made his Second XI debut, aged 18, and soon realised that he had to impro...