scoresheet NEWSLETTER OF THE AUSTRALIAN CRICKET SOCIETY INC. www.australiancricketsociety.com.au Volume 41 / Number 3 / WINTER 2020 Patron: Ricky Ponting AO ONE IN A MILLION e all remember Mike Rose with love and affection. His passing has affected so many – especially everyone at the Australian Cricket Society Wwhere he has been such a good friend to so many for years. Mike attended all our functions, was a friend to everyone and at events, ‘doubled’ as our merchandising officer. Approaching one annual dinner, featuring our patron Ricky Ponting, I asked him to run our table of goodies and gave him a sheet of paper outlining what was there, the ties, the CDs, back issues of Pavilion – and their prices. Telling me the type was too small, Mike – ever ingenuous – borrowed a whiteboard and a marker and soon had arrows going in crazy directions everywhere, a little like a family tree, except not as neat. He might have had a drink this night, too. ‘How did the sales go Mike?’ I asked afterwards. ‘Didn’t sell a #@%ing razoo Master.’ Afterwards Mike was meandering out into the foyer (he was the non-driver that night) and looked back to see Maree, the love of his life, calmly walking out with none other than Ricky, the guest of honour and the best since Bradman WITH ONE OF HIS ‘@#$%, Maree... do ya know oo you’re with? HEROES: Mike and Jimmy Stynes ‘Hey mate,‘ he said to Ricky. ‘That gorgeous girl there... she’s wid me!’ CRICKET UMPIRE: Mike Turning to Maree, Ricky asked: ‘Do you know that fella?’ during his first XI debut ‘Never seen him before in my life.’ match last November Mike loved the Dees and had followed them up to Darwin for a game. Post- match he went off to get some drinks and Jimmy Stynes, the-then MFC president was looking for a vacant seat and asked Maree if he may sit down. ‘Sure,’ she said. Mike returned with some cold ones, saw Jimmy and almost dropped the tray. ‘@#$%, Maree, do ya know who you’re sittin’ with? Mike loved footy and music almost as much as the cricket. He umpired many of our games, including a match in mid-March in Echuca, just weeks before his passing. He achieved one of his ambitions in 2019 when umpiring his first-ever Premier Firsts fixture in November. His considerable ‘CV’ included 161 games, through all the grades at Cricket Victoria. Well played Mike, you were one in a million mate. – KP • Mike William Rose died on April 20, he was 67. There will be a celebration of his life at the Melbourne Bowls Club at a date to be announced. We wish all our ACS members, families & friends all the very best in these very trying times. May we all meet again soon. OUR CORPORATE SPONSORS CHAUFFEURS LEGENDS AT CALL & 1300 139 740 HEROES INSURANCE BROKERS Editor: Ken Piesse Phone (03) 9787 8023 E: [email protected] W: Cricketbooks.com.au Mail: PO Box 868, Mt Eliza, 3930, Vic The President’s Piesse COUNTY CRICKET’S VERY BEST nternational stars have graced English Prominent Aussies from Graham • Derbyshire: Michael Holding (who cricket for decades. They have added a McKenzie and Alan Connolly through to polled 51 per cent of the votes) Itouch of the exotic, lifting the standard Shane Warne, Mike and Dave Hussey and • Durham: David Boon (33) and wooing big crowds. David Boon had their already-considerable • Essex: Ken McEwan (33) In the ‘60s English cricket was on its virtual reputations enhanced by playing 12 months • Glamorgan: Viv Richards (33) deathbed, until the arrival of the International of the year. • Gloucester: Mike Procter (50) Cavaliers bringing glamour, skill and zest to Going back a generation, George Tribe, • Hants: Malcolm Marshall (47) the game like never before. A national tv a western suburbs boy, became one of the • Kent: Asif Iqbal (56) audience was created, starting a stream of great allrounders of all at Northants, having imports into the traditional system. begun in the Lancashire Leagues. • Lancashire: Clive Lloyd (66) • Leicester: Brian Davison (56) The West Indians and the South Africans So... who are your favourite county’s • Middlesex: Dessie Haynes (50) were particularly popular, Garry Sobers greatest-ever overseas import? • Northants: Curtly Ambrose (45) becoming a hero at Nottinghamshire and BBC Sport journalists and local radio • Notts: Richard Hadlee (42) Barry Richards and Gordon Greenidge commentators came up with a shortlist of • Somerset: Viv Richards (90) pummelling attacks for years at Hampshire four from each county to choose from and • Surrey: Kumar Sangakkara (45) and beyond. asked their listeners and viewers to vote. • Sussex: Imran Khan (63) They were folk heroes and ensured that The winners for each team are listed • Warwickshire: Allan Donald (42) cricket again cornered at least a share of below. They include two Aussies ‘Boony’ • Worcester: Glenn Turner (73) the headlines normally reserved even out of (at Durham, a relative new face in county • Yorkshire: Darren Lehmann (69) season for English football. cricket) and Darren Lehmann at Yorkshire. Country by country: West Indies 7, All of us have a favourite overseas player. He was named ahead of even Sachin Tendulkar (Darren would have a drink, South Africa 3, Australia 2, Gloucestershire almost renamed its county New Zealand 2, Pakistan 2, Sachin not so) ‘Proctershire’ after the all-round doings of Zimbabwe 1, Sri Lanka 1 Springbok Mike Procter. There were a few surprises: HIDDEN GEMS I ife in isolation these last weeks has had its advantages, especially for those of us Lsurrounded by books. The Queen’s Speech had just been delivered and I was thinking about the contributions of all the Royals, especially Queen Elizabeth and her husband the Duke of Edinburgh and what a fine life he too had led. The Duke was quite a cricketer and a regular at grounds like Arundel Castle in the ‘50s. He’d often lead his Duke of Edinburgh’s XI in 50-over friendlies, bat in the first five and bowl some offies in mid-innings. It was while reading about the Duke and the games he’d played and sponsored at Arundel – so often the launching point for Australian tours – that I came across this little gem, which I simply had to share. It’s from the little-known Cricket at the Castle by Sir Michael Marshall, published in 1995. It was April 1964 and the Queen Mother was presented to both the visiting Aussies and the Duke of Norfolk’s XI, which was a virtual Test team in itself. Bob Gray, a fine, underrated cricket writer from The Australian began his piece about the Queen Mum and her delightful manner as a prelude to his match report: ‘(Neil) Hawke distinguished himself by becoming the first bowler ever at Arundel – and probably anywhere else – to take the first CRICKET LOVER: HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, a regular three wickets of the innings while seated at Arundel in the ‘50s. in a deck chair,’ he said. ‘The man on the CRICKET AT THE CASTLE: 100 Years of Cricket at loudspeaker was in error and it was really Arundel Castle, Sir Michael Marshall, $25 including (Grahame) Corling bowling from the far end.’ post from cricketbooks.com.au 2 / scoresheet Volume 41 / Number 3 / WINTER 2020 3 The President’s Piesse HIDDEN GEMS II: The Albert Ground 1966. Bill Lawry desperately tries to re-find his crease after a leg-side fumble by Essendon’s wicketkeeper Tom O’Neill during the most famous District cricket final of them all... the one where Essendon declared at 514 and lost. Lawry at the time was 205 and 167 more were still needed. He finished on 282 not out in a five- wicket victory. The bowler? Barry Davis the champion footballer. Pic courtesy of Ken Davis/ Born to Win, the story of Barry Davis, out November. Our Playing XIs ECHUCA 2020 Inspired by his success at one end, captain Bovo then re-enlisted our No.1 Bruce Bennett STUART STOCKDALE is not only a belligerent who took three and Peter Robinson two as No.3, he can write... and penned these words we stole victory from the jaws of defeat... after our Echuca Over 60s carnival in mid-March the final wicket being neatly caught by gully specialist Drew Payne, nursing calf, wrist, he now traditional end-of-season groin and knee problems. The Gippsland tournament in Echuca was called Toff two days early by order of the Cricket Australia head honchos. The news filtered through on the Tuesday, a rest day. Our intrepid ACS boys were scattered all THE ACS AT ROCHESTER: Our Over 60s lads, around the border towns, most quenching left to right: Stockers, Bruce Bennett, Dave considerable thirsts at local wineries or at Long, Peter Gregory, Paul Morrey, Ken Piesse, Rich River, indulging in their own versions of Graeme Anderson. Front: Peter Robinson, the old CBS Golf Classic. Peter Gregory, Marino Boco (captain) and Concerns about the Coronavirus outbreak Drew Payne (then uninjured). put all official sport on hold so back we headed to the Big Smoke via coffees in scenic virus-free which we hoped might be semi-competitive. Heathcote, having won one and lost one. Marino was sure we had enough and went We assembled an impressive squad in on the full attack, chopping and changing the weeks leading up to the event but were the field after most balls. Lucky they didn’t restricted with some not being able to play have a clock on us. (Marino was to be heavily early and an injury or two along the way.