|
Year
|
Month
|
Day
|
Speaker
|
|
Topic
|
|
2016
|
Oct |
6th
|
Chris Finch & John White
|
|
27 members gathered for the 1st meeting of the new season. The EGM
business of approving the accounts was swiftly dispatched. The remainder of the time
was spent discussing the season just past, ably led by Chris Finch (a man of Kent)
and John White (Hampshire's announcer at the Ageas Bowl). Unsuprisingly, the controversy
over Hampshire's late reprieve and Durham's demise was foremost in the discussion.
The addition of Kent into the mixing pot added extra spice! Another topic to get
a considerable airing was the proposals for the new T20 competition. Local cricket
was also discussed, it was noted how many teams from outside the county played in
the Hampshire League! |
|
|
|
13th
|
Alastair Hignell
|
|
39 members gathered for the 2nd meeting of the season to hear the
sad news that Leo Harrison, Hampshire W/K, had passed away this week. Leo came to
a Society meeting with Jimmy Gray back in the early days.
We then had an excellent afternoon listening to Alastair Hignell. He signed for Gloucestershire
when he was 18 and waiting to go up to Cambridge University. At Uni he was 1st XI
Captain of both the cricket and rugby sides, the first person to hold both those
positions. He also joined Bristol rugby club and found his way into the 2nd XI due
to the 3-day week!. From there he progressed to the 1st XI, before England came calling
with the 1st of 14 international caps. However Alastair mainly talked about his cricket
career and the experience of playing with batsmen like Mike Proctor and Zaheer Abbas,
relating many stories from his playing days. Unfortunately the effect of playing
two sports gradually told on him and he spent increasing amounts of time injured.
During one of these winter spells he was invited to do some radio work with the local
BBC station as an expert summariser. So a new career was born. He worked his way
onto Radio 2 and continued until around 2008 when the effects of MS made it too difficult
to continue. After that he still managed to write a book, Higgy, which was voted
Rugby Book of the Year 2012. Many thanks Alastair for a fabulous afternoon! |
|
|
|
20th
|
David Allen
|
|
45 members and guests assembled as old friend of the Society Dave
Allen returned to entertain us. Dave has recently stepped down as archivist of Hampshire
CC, but it was more the changes in county cricket that concerned him. His theme was
that for the 1st half of the 20th Century there had been little change to the way
the County Championship had been played, whereas in the 55 years since Dave had become
a Hampshire life member, change had become relentless. Throughout all this, his concern
was that the County game was being diminished. Next season will see only 14 games
and Dave envisaged a future structure of three divisions of six teams, with only
one home match per month on average. As ever, members were keen to contribute to
the debate, which made for a lively afternoon. Many thanks Dave for returning once
again. |
|
|
|
27th
|
Jimmy Adams
|
|
A bumper turnout of 57 members and guests came to see Jimmy on his
return. Jimmy, as ever, was very candid with his assessment of Hampshire's season
and discreet about the future progress of the side. After half an hour of prepared
talk there followed a full hour of questions and answers, with a multitude of topics
covered from the amount of first class cricket played to the merits of relegation
to allow a side to rebuild. Many thanks Jimmy and here's to a more successful season
in 2017. |
|
|
Nov |
3rd
|
Keith Booth
|
|
37 members gathered as Keith Booth and his wife Jennifer came to tell
us the story of Jack Crawford and also about the difficulties of creating a biography
from scratch, when the subject is someone who was born in 1886. Jack Crawford was
an amateur player who played for Surrey from a very young age. He became the
youngest player to score a century and a double century in the same season in the
county championship. He was selected 12 times for England going on two overseas tours,
but fell out with Surrey when he was asked to captain a team which had been weakened
for disciplinary reasons against the touring Australians. Although, as an amateur,
he was at liberty to decline to play, Surrey chose not to select him again.
He journeyed to Australia and played for South Australia, then moved to New
Zealand and played for Otago. World War I then intervened, but after the war he did
return to England and made his peace with Surrey playing a few more games. He was
described as the Kevin Pietersen of his times. An interesting delve back almost
a 100 years. |
|
|
|
10th
|
Chris Finch
|
|
38 members attended this week's meeting to hear Chris Finch talk about
his personal friend Colin Cowdrey. Chris promised us a 'warts and all' talk and he
certainly delivered. While applauding Colin's masterful batting at times, Chris also
drew attention to what he was not; not as careful with his wicket as Geoff Boycott,
not as dashing as Ted Dexter, not as resolute as Ken Barrington. However he had a
wonderful career spanning 27 seasons and was a mainstay of England's middle-oredr
for much of that time. The Basil D'Olivera affair was highlighted and Chris felt
that Colin should have been much more forthright in his support for Basil. With contributions
from Alan Rayment, who played against him and Peter Pemberton who knew him from Colin's
sons playing for Pete's club, we had some extra information to round off the afternoon.
Many thanks Chris. |
|
|
|
17th
|
Don Crossley
|
|
35 members gathered to hear Don Crossley's tales of his time in the
Merchant Navy back in the 1960's. He sailed on several of the big liners of the day
including the Queen Mary. His itineraries around the Caribbean and the Pacific made
many of us envious, on a cold November's day. Don started as a ship's writer with
P&O, but as his career progressed he was a steward, a wine waiter and the ship's
medic. Throughout the afternoon, we were let into the secrets of how to make a bob
or two to augment the pay. Techniques such as mixing the soft drink leftovers from
earlier in the day into a 'fruit punch' for the children and then standing at their
end of the table to enquire from the parents as to whether the children wanted drinks!
By the end of the afternoon HMRC should have been marching him away. A most enlightening
afternoon, with much prompting from the audience and a brief sing-song! Many thanks
Don. |
|
|
|
24th
|
Stephen Chalke
|
|
40 members attended Stephen Chalke's talk about character or characters
in county cricket. As ever Stephen wowed us with his immense knowledge of county
cricket and all seemingly delivered so effortlessly. He had us roaring with laughter
about Bomber Well's delivery action and his attempt to bowl an entire over while
the local clock struck twelve o'clock, then you could have heard a pin drop as he
recounted Jeff Edrich's experiences as a Japanese POW. We had some insight into why
Robin Smith was unceremoniously dumped from the England Test team by Ray Illingworth
and other stories which kept us marvelously entertained. In truth the 90 minutes
went faster than a Bomber Well's over! A brilliant afternoon, many thanks Stephen. |
|
|
Dec |
1st
|
Paul Pearson
|
|
Paul Pearson entertained 35 of his fellow members to a glimpse of
his impressive collection of autographed sports memorabilia. Such is the breadth
and quality of his collection that Paul only had time to scratch the surface of his
football and Olympian items. As his enthusiasm, dedication and determination shone
through, it became evident that behind most signatures there lay an interesting story.
As in other walks of life the landscape of autograph hunting has changed and Paul
bemoaned the growing wall of security around the leading sports players, the increasing
illegibility of their signatures and the negative effect of dealers. As there is
a little bit of the autograph hunter in all of us we closely identified with his
early steps in his hobby and we began to wonder if there was anyone's signature that
he didn't possess. A most enjoyable nostalgic afternoon, which prompted demands for
a return visit. |
|
|
|
8th
|
Neil Middleditch
|
|
Neil Middleditch returned for a second visit to keep 42 members and
guests entertained with a talk and Q & A session, which had something for everyone;
from the diehard supporter to those like me who wouldn't know a straight through
silencer from a two stroke! Neil explained that two potential sources of sponsorshsip
were unavailable to speedway as the bikes run on methanol rather than petrol and
they were totally different from anything ridden on the road, so road bike manufacturers
weren't interested. There was a considerable discussion of the rule changes for the
2017 season which meant that some of Poole's top talent may be moving on. In all,
a good afternoon with a different sport. |
| |
|
15th
|
Members
|
|
32 members and guests gathered for the final meeting of the year,
the traditional Christmas Buffet and film. As usual Mollie and all the members came
up trumps with the buffet. We then watched a compilation of former Test captains
talking with Jonathan Agnew, including such greats as Gary Sobers, Clive Lloyd and
Richie Benuad. The 2nd half of the programme showed the last innings of the highest
successful run chase in Test history, when the West Indies reached their target of
418 against Australia with three wickets to spare. The warmth of a Caribbean calypso
certainly warmed a December afternoon. |
|
2017
|
Jan |
5th
|
Matthew Maynard
|
|
51 members and guests turned out to hear Matthew Maynard open the
2017 season. He had a succesful career as a hard-hitiing batsman and occasional wicket-keeper
playing 4 Tests and 14 ODIs for England before he moved into coaching. He explained
how hard it was coming into the England dressing room at that time, being the 29th
player selected for England in that series against the West Indies. Even the cap
he was presented with was 2nd hand! He talked frankly about his participation in
the rebel tour to South Africa, with the financial rewards on offer far exceeding
anything the county game could offer. In his latter days at Glamorgan, he played
with Viv Richards. After retiring from playing he has coached and was Director of
Cricket at Glamorgan before moving to his current post at Somerset. Many thanks Matthew
for a most enjoyable afternoon. |
|
|
12th
|
Members
|
|
A record 72 members, partners and guests attended our 8th New Year's
Lunch, held for the 1st time at the Remedy Oak Golf Club. Many thanks to David Hain
for his organisation of another successful event, as we enjoyed a three course lunch,
a 'cracker' of an introduction from the chairman, Chris Finch, followed by Derek
Hopkins' Heads & Tails and a free raffle to conclude. |
|
|
|
19th
|
Paul Prichard
|
|
An excellent audience of 46 turned out to hear Paul Prichard talk
to the Society. Paul started from his early years at Hutton Cricket Club, which was
the sole inspiration to his rise in cricket. He swiftly established himself in age-group
representative teams, often playing a couple of years under-age. At 16 he was offered
a contract by Essex and jumped at the chance. Almost immediately he wintered in South
Africa, where the apartheid system came as a shock to a naive ex-schoolboy. Future
winters would be spent in Australia playing grade cricket where, by the age of 21,
he was captaining a side including Australian Test players such as Lenny Pascoe.
Once he broke into the Essex side, he quickly established himself, scoring 84 on
debut. He succeeded Graham Gooch as Captain of Essex, as they then achieved a number
of one-day successes. Following his retirement from 1st Class cricket he played for
Berkshire for three seasons and has coached at Canford School. He is now starting
his 2nd season as the Dorset Coach. An excellent afternoon's enjoyment. |
|
|
|
26th
|
Members
|
|
27 members gathered on a bitterly cold January afternoon to show sporting
artefacts and swop stories. We were shown a World Cup Final ticket from 1966 along
wi th a programme carrrying signatures of Booby Moore and Alf Ramsey. Chris Finch
brought along a commerative jug depicting Percy Chapman (see picture). We had a book
detailing 175 years of Ormskirk Cricket Club, written by our club member Ken Lea
and signed by three of "The Invincibles'. On the story front, we heard of John
Wellman's woes at the racetrack and how finally a winner turned out to be very expensive.
Many thanks to all those who contributed to the afternoon's entertainment. |
|
|
Feb |
2nd
|
Jeff Mostyn
|
|
59 members, family members and guests gathered to hear AFC Bournemouth's
Chairman Jeff Mostyn on his return to the Society. Jeff updated us all on the current
state of the team and the difficulties that they had encountered as the transfer
window closed, without the hoped-for signings. He also went in to some detail about
the club's ambition to move to a new ground and how they were working closely with
the local council to find a suitable site, bearing in mind factors such as transport
and access, as well as a training ground. Throughout the afternoon Jeff was candid
while being discrete, so nobody found out where the new site was likely to be, despite
some probing questions. There followed an insightful question and answer session,
with topics such as Matt Richie's departure, Jack Wilshere's future and referring
standards amongst those discussed. Jeff very kindly delighted us for a full 90 minutes,
without a half-time interval! Many thanks once again Jeff. |
|
|
|
9th
|
Jack Winn
|
|
31 members attended on a freezing February day to hear Jack's sporting
memories. Now we like to hear of other sports as well as cricket and Jack did us
proud, as his talk encompassed football and squash as well. In addition there was
a showbiz angle as Jack was involved in arranging charity games with characters from
stage and screen and personalities such as Ertha Kitt who came for the raffle and
stayed! Locally Jack played for Old Bournemouthians, Bournemouth Amateurs, then became
a founder member of Wayfarers. Initially an opening batsman, he was turned into a
useful bowler by his coach at Bournemouth School, a former Glamorgan player. With
tales of football and squash it was, in all, an interesting afternoon of local sport.
Thanks to Jack |
|
|
|
16th
|
James Tomlinson
|
|
An audience of 49 members and guests turned up to hear James Tomlinson
speak. He has just retired as a Hampshire player during the 2016 season. He told
us of his career, mainly up to his break-through in county cricket in 2008 and particualrly
of his trials in getting acceptance as a good enough player as a youngster. More
than once he was told that he wasn't good enough/tall enough/fast enough to succeed
at the top level. Despite that he followed his own path through university before
succeeding in the county game. We then had a fascinating Q&A session, in which
we learnt some of the techniques necessary to bowl at the highest level. We also
gained insight into the likes of Shane Warne, Dominic Cork and Dimi Mascarenhas.
With just over an hour of Q&A, James was delighted to beat Jimmy Adams - competitive
to the end! Many thanks James. |
|
|
|
23rd
|
Bobby Parks
|
|
48 members and guests welcomed Bobby Parks to the Society. He had
the unique experience of being one of four players to keep wicket for England in
the same Test Match. This all occurred after Bruce French had been hit on the head
while batting. Bobby had a long career with Hampshire finishing with over 700 1st
Class dismissals and over 1000 in total. He is now involved in women's cricket and
was the successful coach/manager to the Southern Vipers T20 side that won the first
year of the women's T20. After his initial talk, there was a considerable question
and answer section, until finally his coaching committments at Hampshire called.
Another very interesting afternoon. |
|
|
March |
2nd
|
Mike Vimpany
|
|
Mike Vimpany told us of his recent trip to Australia, with visits
to cricket very much in the foreground. Mike toured Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and
Perth, watching cricket in all of those locations. He was present to see David Warner
score 100 before lunch on the 1st day of a Test Match. He concentrated primarily
on T20 cricket or the Big Bash as it is quaintly entitled down under! The majority
of matches were sell outs, the teams are franchises, merely hiring the ground and
matches are on free-to-air tv. This led on to discussion about how successful a similar
T20 competition would be over here. It was felt that support was of a more 'tribal'
nature over here (as in football) and that few people would be enticed to travel
from Southampton to Hove for a Southern franchise home match. Particularly as the
game is only a 3 hour experience. Many thanks to Mike for a thought-provoking afternoon. |
|
|
|
9th
|
Andy Walsh
|
|
Andy was the general manager of FC United of Manchester for 11 years.
The team was established by Manchester United fans upset by the purchase of Man U
by the Glazer brothers. For several seasons they played at Bury's ground, but have
recently built a brand new stadium, which was officially opened with a match against
Benfica. Andy gave a fascinating insight into the finances of professional football
and a truly inspirational talk about what can be achieved by volunteers with a vision.
We wish him and them every success in the future. |
|
|
|
16th
|
Joe Hardstaff
|
|
38 members and guests were well entertained by Joe Hardstaff, a gentleman
with a fine sense of humour. His father and grandfather both played for Nottinghamshire
and England, but when Joe's chance of a professional contract came, he was forbidden
to sign it by his father. He entered the RAF and after a career flying planes around
the world, he retired 34 years later as an Air Commodore. Joe then served as the
secretary to Middlesex CCC for nearly 10 years. Joe's father was a fairly feisty
character and had several altercations with Gubby Allen, which ultimately ended his
England career, despite considerable prowess with the bat. Many thanks to Joe and
Phil Brightwell, who conducted the question and answer session. |
| |
|
23rd
|
John Barclay
|
|
John Barclay brought out the best attendance of the season, as 58
members and guests crowded the hall to hear him speak on his fourth visit to the
Society. Proceedings commenced with a minute's silence following the terrorist attack
the previous day. Chris Finch then invited John to become our 3rd Life Vice-President,
which he gratefully accepted along with a cheque for his Arundel Foundation.
After all these formalities, John then gave another masterclass in public-speaking.
On this occasion he welcomed audience participation almost from the start. His theme
of the afternoon was 'Changes' in the game of cricket and urged the audience to suggest
changes that have occured for the good (in our opinion) in the past few years. He
started with the 1 day game and covered pitches, weaving in his wonderful stories,
before passing over to us. Minimum overs in the last hour, overseas players from
1968, World Series cricket & the introduction of helmets plus 20 overs cricket
were all signalled as good changes. At present the number of amateur participants
is declining rapidly and this needs to be addressed urgently. We heard how John and
Devon Malcolm tried to ruin a generation of South African batsmen in Soweto, then
John wrapped up the proceedings by retelling his experience of upsetting Malcolm
Marshall and Michael Atherton's explanation for not walking. A truly wonderful afternoon's
entertainment and as a Vice-President we have him on a retainer to come back! Many
thanks John. |
| |
|
30th
|
Members
|
|
28 members attended the AGM. Chairman Chris Finch reported a highly
successful season, with membership increased and average attendances at a record
high. Thanks were expressed to the many guest speakers who had entertained us during
the season. The Society had donated over 600 pounds to charity. Chris Finch very
kindly averted a crisis in the running of the Society by agreeing a final, fourth,
year as Chairman. After the formal business, members settled down to hear from some
of our previous speakers. Jimmy Gray, Johnny Dennis, Michael Simkins and John Barclay
all stirred memories as excerpts from their talks raised many a laugh. |
| |
April |
6th
|
Derek Hopkins
|
|
28 members came to bring the curtain down on the 2016-17 season. We
started with Derek's quiz - with a difference, well two actually. Firstly some of
the questions could be answered! Some were even 'Yes - No', Derek is obviously mellowing
with age. Secondly he was joined in the setting of questions by John Wellman who,
having celebrated his birthday the day before, asked a round of questions based on
his sporting life. All in all, a very entertaining afternoon ensued. Many thanks
to Derek and John. The afternoon was then completed in time-honoured tradition with
the consumption of a cream tea accompanied by birthday cake from John. Thus ended
probably the most successful season of the DCS - we have a record number of members,
a record average attendance and undoubtedly we have had a cracking variety of excellent
speakers. Many thanks to all those who help us to achieve this and thanks to members
for their regular support. The new season will commence on Thursday 12th October
2017. |
