|
Year
|
Month
|
Day
|
Speaker
|
|
Topic
|
|
2017
|
Oct |
12th
|
Chris Finch & Graham Jones
|
 
|
The treasurer reported on a successful year financially for the Society,
before 32 members heard a review of the season from Chairman Chris Finch. Having
attended 37 days of county cricket throughout the season, it begs the question whether
Chris should become an England selector! He found it disappointing that England had
a no more settled top order at the end of the summer than they did 7 Tests previously.
He got to see every county at least once and felt that the player of the season was
undoubtedly Kumar Sangakkara, while Essex were unquestionably the team of the year
on account of their many victories in the Championship. Following on from the review,
Graham Jones then explained the many changes to the Laws of Cricket which came in
on October 1st. This prompted a lively discussion before tea and coffee. A good 1st
meeting. |
|
|
|
19th
|
Andy Murtagh
|
|
43 members attended Andy Murtagh's second visit to the Society. A
former Hampshire player, now a retired teacher, Andy has written about former colleagues
such as Barry Richards, as well as some of the other greats of English cricket. His
talk centred on the two gentlemen he has written about since his last visit: Colin
Cowdrey and John Holder. Colin was born in India of English parents and was educated
at Tonbridge School, where he was selected for the 1st XI in his first year, at the
age of 13. His Test career with England spanned 21 years, culminating in him being
called to Australia to face Lillee and Thompson at the age of 41. John Holder was
born in Superlative, Barbados and came to England to work for London Transport on
the Underground. From playing club cricket, he progressed to a career with Hampshire
followed by many years umpiring at 1st Class and International level. He still has
a newspaper column about the laws of cricket. Thanks Andy for a superlative afternoon. |
|
|
|
26th
|
Graham Jones
|
|
Local cricket came to the fore, as Graham lead 34 members around the
grounds of Bournemouth, Dorset and the New Forest. 57 seasons of competative cricket
produced many stories of exploits on the field and teas consumed off it. Several
members of the Society were mentioned as opponents of old, with the Wayfarers players
particularly coming to the fore. Lively audience participation made for an afternoon
of memories. |
|
|
Nov |
2nd
|
Jimmy Adams
|
|
52 members made for our best crowd this season, as Jimmy Adams returned
for his 7th visit. As always he was revealing, while being discrete and diplomatic.
He covered Hampshire's good start to the County Championship and their awful finish.
There were some interesting discussions around pitch preparation. Topics then were
as wide as England's chances in Australia and how Hampshire's tour members might
get on, to pink ball cricket. An hour of Q & A followed as all sorts of questions
were fielded and the good news was received that Jimmy has another year's contract
with Hampshire, so maybe that 8th visit will be on the cards. Many thanks Jimmy. |
|
|
Nov |
9th
|
Paul Pearson
|
|
A crowd of 31 arrived to hear Paul Pearson as he took us through the
world of autograph hunting, with a particular emphasis on cricket autographs. Paul
is, without doubt, a very enthusiastic collector of autographs. Not for him the single
signature, as he displayed sheets depicting the whole squad of county or international
teams. At times it was good to see the typewritten names underneath, as the modern-day
cricketer has perfected the art of disguising their signature. It was interesting
to see how, over time, Kevin Pieterson morphed into K.P. Paul is a frequent visitor
to stage doors and sporting events, purely to collect the autographs and occasionally
knocks on people's doors at home. He lamented the youngsters who harvest multiple
signatures to sell on, which perhaps caused Viv Richards to stare him down on one
occasion and say 'don't you dare ask me a second time". A fascinating afternoon
comprehending the lengths that true enthusiasts go for their hobby. Many thanks Paul. |
|
|
|
16th
|
Patrick Eagar
|
|
50 members and guests attended Patrick's talk. Patrick started his
career taking photographs during the Vietnam War. However sport was his main love
and initially he concentrated on cricket and rugby. However he decided that he could
follow the sun if he stuck to cricket and hence started a career of 325 Test Matches,
including 98 Ashes matches. We had the nostalga of Dean Park, portraits of great
icons of the game like Sobers, Viv Richards and Ian Chappell. We were transported
to Australia, the Caribbean and India as we viewed some historic grounds, then shown
great action photos such as Tony Grieg's dismissal by a flying Rod Marsh. Patrick
also filled us in with the technical side to keep our photographic enthusiasts happy
and he explained the difficulties of using film, particularly colour, in the early
days of his career and the problems in getting pictures back to London swiftly and
safely. he also explained that his job was not always lucrative. One Caribbean tour
made a loss until many years later when 'Fire In Babylon' was being made and many
of his stills were featured. A cracking afternoon, many thanks Patrick. |
|
|
|
23rd
|
Michael Burns
|
|
Michael Burns is an author and a filmmaker. Amongst his many credits,
he has made four films for MCC. It was the last of those four that he brought to
our meeting. 'Stretching Boundaries' reminded us of not only the cricket of the 1960's
and how it was changing, but also of the changes in society and the music of the
era. In addition to the traditional Pathe style news of Test matches, there was a
marvellous insight into the County game, with revelations such as the fact that there
were over 80 grounds being used around the country at the beginning of the 1960's.
One classic piece of film showed England batsman Kenny Barrington doing his impersonation
of W.G. Grace's batting style, which was cleverly cut-in to provide comparision.
The audience of 45 were fully appreciative of the time and effort that the film must
have taken. Another great afternoon, many thanks Michael. |
|
|
|
30th
|
Richard Ellison
|
|
Richard, who played for both Kent and England, arrived with questions
for us to answer, which was a novel twist. He posed questions about floodlit
cricket and what we thought of white/pink ball cricket, with particular emphasis
on the ball. It was interesting to hear of the variations between white, red and
pink balls, all from the same manufacturer. With Alan Rayment & Julian Shackleton
in the audience to add to the discussion, it was intriguing to hear of the differences.
we also had a straw poll of the audience to find their opinion as to whether Ben
Stokes was on the wrong island, down-under. A clear majority felt that he should
be playing and should be treated as innocent until proven guilty, the question as
to whether he could recieve a fair trial, if necessary, due to all the publicity
was also raised. Many thanks for a thought-provoking afternoon Richard. |
|
|
Dec |
7th
|
Members
|
|
A late change meant that our audience had the opportunity to be a
football manager for an afternoon, as the highlights and lowlights of AFC Bournemouth's
2nd season in the Premier League were picked over. We could enthuse over some wonderful
goals and cringe at some dodgy defending. However AFCB managed their highest position
in their existance, so they must have been doing something right. |
|
|
|
14th
|
Members
|
|
30 members attended the Christmas Buffet lunch, with many thanks for
all the food brought along. We then settled back to feel the warmth of a Carribbean
winter as we recalled a time when England had a fast bowling attack that worried
the opposition as Steve Harmiston bagged 7-12, West Indies capitulated for 47 and
Matthew Hoggard achieved a hat-trick. A welcome change from the woes Down-Under at
present. |
|
2018
|
Jan |
4th
|
David Allen
|
|
Dr David Allen attracted a strong audience of 40 to re-start the season
post Christmas. His talk was about Cricket In Literature, but more specifically how
Society had changed in 50-60 years. In days goneby cricket was a part of the fabric
of society, while today this is less true. He quoted from a Jane Austin publication
of 1817, in which cricket was woven into the story of the book, without it ever being
a cricketing novel. A very thought-provoking afternoon, with some members bringing-up
examples of modern rebuttals. Overall, it was a delight to hear Dave again, many
thanks. |
|
|
11th
|
Members
|
|
A record 75 members, partners and guests assembled for the 8th Annual
DCS Lunch, located for the 1st time at the Mayfair Hotel. Another successful event,
with grateful thanks to David Hain as usual for the smooth arrangements. Derek Hopkins'
Heads & Tails quiz rasied 127 pounds for the Alzheimer's Society. |
|
|
|
18th
|
Douglas Miller
|
|
Douglas made a welcome return to the Society as 42 attended to hear
about Raman Subba Row, the subject of his latest book. Raman played only 13 times
for England, but managed a century in two Ashes Tests, however it was his influence
after he retired from the game that Douglas focused on. He primed us by teasing out
the many changes in the game in the last 50 years and then proceeded to show how
many of these had been influenced by Raman in his various administrative positions
since then. By the end we could see the justification for the title of his book,
Raman Subba Row: Cricket Visionary. A great afternoon Douglas, many thanks. |
|
|
|
25th
|
Members
|
|
Ill health severely affected both attendance and the number of speakers
who were due to speak for their allotted 5 minutes. However those that were there
heard a variety of topics. Kit Bartlett got us of to a good start with a piece about
1st Class cricketers in this country who are better known for other things. We had
a prime minister Alec Douglas-Hume, a World Cup winner Geoff Hurst, and a famous
author, Arthur Conan Doyle. The we discussed the relative merits of Don Bradman &
Steve Smith, another item recalled how Don Bradman's Australian Cap came into the
possession of one of our members. We finished by hearing about matches between players
with one arm and one leg. |
|
|
Feb |
1st
|
Graham Jones
|
|
42 members turned up for an afternoon of humour and nostalgia, as
Graham Jones presented his third edition of Humour In Sport. There was laughter in
abundance as the likes of Max Boyce, Freddie Flintoff, Fred Trueman and Jeremy Coney
entertained us. The programme included a series of commercials as we looked back
at the exploits of Gary Lineker over the years, as he promoted Walkers crisps. The
afternoon embodied the purpose of our Society, to spread a little enjoyment. |
|
|
|
8th
|
Derek Hopkins
|
|
Derek Hopkins kept our audience of 38 well entertained as he took
us through 50 years of Suttoners Cricket Club, which he founded. From humble beginnings,
acquiring the kit which had lingered in the Sutton Rd church hall, when they had
only 1 car to get around in, to entering the Bournemouth Junior League which had
only been for larger clubs' 2nd XI's, the early days were a struggle. Gradually things
improved, a draw in the 1st season, then a win, but it was events off the field which
were probably more important in building the club. Suttoners were the 1st club to
have an established home at a council ground, Kinson Manor. Over the years the club
worked hard to improve the facilities, despite setbacks like 16 break-ins! The club
expanded to four adult sides, one playing at Dean Park as well as running 2 youth
sides. Last year Suttoners celebrated their 50th Anniversary with a dinner with many
of the original players attending. An excellent afternoon's entertainment, thank
you Derek. |
|
|
|
15th
|
Paul Pearson
|
|
A small, but discerning group of members (22) turned up to enjoy the
latest presentation of Paul's collection of autographs. Paul seems to have cornered
the market in KP's signature, with at least 7 on display, followed closely by Freddie
Flintoff's 6. The afternoon included tips on how to target sports celebrities: go
to practice grounds and sessions, never the main event, always be prepared with the
item you want autographed and always take at least two pens, finally look out for
previous winners and club or team members, they usually turn up to watch. Many thanks
Paul for stepping in at short notice. |
|
|
|
22nd
|
Vic Marks
|
|
Our 2nd largest attendance ever, 63, turned out to hear Vic Marks
answer a string of questions from Chairman Chris Finch and from the floor. In early
exchanges we learnt that Vic took some positives from the Ashes tour Down Under,
particularly Dawid Malan, the fact that the team didn't disintegrate and that he
felt Jimmy Anderson was our best bowler. Vic talked about his early career at Oxford,
playing with the likes of Chris Tavare and Imran Khan and then on to his later years
with Somerset, playing alongside Viv Richards, Joel Garner and Ian Botham. At one
point he came out with the classic line "If you were building a fast bowler......
you wouldn't use any parts of Bob Willis' body"! All too soon 110 minutes had
passed and we had to draw things to a close. A fascinating afternoon for all, grateful
thanks Vic. |
|
|
March |
1st
|
Tony Wharton
|
|
Meeting Cancelled Due To Snow |
|
|
|
8th
|
Geoff Cope
|
|
Once again we had an attendance of 63 for the visit of Geoff Cope.
From his experiences of his first match for Yorkshire, when nervousness brought him
to the ground two hours before the start, resulting in him usurping F S Trueman's
peg in the corner of the dressing room, to being denied a hat-trick for England on
debut in Pakistan, as Mike Brearley recalled the batsman, because he was unsure whether
the catch had carried, we heard from Geoff with his inimitable Yorkshire humour.
He was of the opinion that Geoff Boycott was the best man-made cricketer, with his
intense professionalism to improve those facets of his game in which he considered
himself weak. In the early part of his career Geoff was bannned for throwing, though
no-one gave him the slightest indication of what they felt was wrong. In later life
Geoff has been afflicted with eyesight problems and is now accompanied by his guide
dog Lester. A collection was held for Guide Dogs For The Blind which raised 130 pounds.
Many thanks Geoff for an excellent afternoon. |
|
|
|
15th
|
Members
|
|
The AGM heard that the Society had completed another successful year,
with membership growing and the Society in a healthy state financially. Chairman
Chris Finch was thanked for his efforts as he stepped down, to be replaced by Barrie
Wellman. |
| |
|
22nd
|
Derek Hopkins
|
|
The season was completed in traditional style as a Derk Hopkins quiz
was followed by a cream tea.
The new season will commence on 11th October 2018 |
