My first memory of watching the Ashes was in 1977. I was 10 at the time and don’t remember a great deal about it other than seeing Derek Randall taking the catch that meant that most famous of little urns would once again return to England. Oddly enough, what I seem to remember most, is Randall’s rather jaunty walk after he took the catch!
Looking up the scorecard now, I see that the match in question, the fourth test played at Headingly, was a far from close game with England winning by an innings and 85 runs – Rod Marsh, the Australian wicket keeper, being the last man out, caught by the aforementioned Nottinghamshire favourite off the bowling of Mike Hendrick. But in addition to those two greats of the game, there were also many other legendary English players on the team sheet back then. Mike Brearley captained the side that, as well as including the Kent trio of Bob Woolmer, Alan Knott and Derek Underwood, was made up of the likes of Tony Grieg, Bob Willis and Geoff Boycott who, I see, scored his 100th first class hundred in that game. I don’t suppose Geoffrey would be too happy if he ever learnt that I found his greatest achievement less memorable than Randall post-catch gait!
And of course there was also a certain I.T. Botham who made his England debut that year. I remember being at Weston-super-Mare that summer to watch Somerset and being exited to hear some in the crowd singing that all time classic, ‘Botham plays for England, Botham plays for England, La, la, la, la – La, la, la, la’, and being prompted by its imaginative lyrics to wonder who this new young player might be, a novice as I then was to watching Somerset. I soon, of course, found out!
If memory serves me right we were staying at my Great Aunt’s in Teignmouth when the Ashes were regained – the south Devon seaside town being a regular holiday destination for our family in those days. What is certainly true though is that it was there that I first saw Test cricket – watching some of the 1976 series against the West Indies on her, novel for us at the time, colour TV. My parents must have noticed my burgeoning interest in cricket as it was the following summer that they first took me to see Somerset in a game played against Northants. It was played at the Clarence Park ground in Weston-super-Mare and I remember being thrilled to see David Steele, England’s hero of the previous summer, fielding just on the other side of the boundary rope from where we were had laid out our picnic blanket and made ourselves comfortable.
I’m so glad my parents took me to that game for it was the beginning of what has been a life long love of cricket. And that’s why I’ve been so keen to introduce my grandson to the game.
Earlier this summer I took him to see his first game, also, coincidentally enough, a county championship game between Somerset and Northants though this match, played on the day that King Charles was crowned, took place at the county ground in Taunton.
At just 18 months old, though he had already mastered the necessary oral acrobatics to vocalise, when prompted, not only ‘T – K – C’ but also ‘La, la, la’, he was still unable to combine the latter with ‘Som-er-set’ in a way that would wholly endear him to the Taunton faithful. It was however an undoubtedly formative experience for him even if it is just possible that he was more interested in where Brian the club cat lived than spending time watching England stars of the calibre of Jack Leach and Craig Overton performing out on the playing field. Furthermore, despite my going to some considerable trouble to explain to him the details of how you can be given out LBW, his favourite bit of the evening session that we attended, seems to have been the opportunity he was afforded to splash in the puddles he found in the family stand.
Even so, if he is asked in years to come whether he remembers Coronation Day, I hope he’ll reply ‘Ah yes, that was the day I first watched Somerset’
Having then ticked the box for his first experience of championship cricket, I was looking forward to when I would have an opportunity to expose him to a little Test Match cricket. And this weekend, with him yet to reach the grand old age of two, my chance arrived when his visit with his parents coincided with the most recent encounter in this Ashes series. Unfortunately my plans were temporarily thwarted when on Saturday the match at Headingly was affected by bad weather. As such his cricketing education had to take the form of a game played in our back garden instead. The day’s play ended with me on 1658 not out. It was a hugely worthwhile afternoon since, as well as achieving my own highest ever score, I think I also taught the youngster a valuable lesson about the importance of good line and length when bowling. Especially when playing with a kookaburra ball!
I did consider declaring and putting him in for a tricky 20 minutes in fading light but unfortunately he got called in for his bath and bedtime! What’s more, caught up in the excitement of my belligerent batting display, we missed the opportunity to watch Australian wickets fall late on Saturday afternoon but I, very magnanimously, decided to forgo the chance to press home my advantage by making him field again on Sunday morning and together we watched a little of England’s run chase instead. As you’ll imagine, he was absolutely enthralled, as was all too evident by the fuss that he kicked up when his Dad had to drag him away for a nappy change!
Like me then, his first experience of Ashes cricket was watching a win for England over Australia at Headingly and I’m sure that one day he’ll delight in telling his grandchildren all about it. And perhaps he’ll also wax lyrical about the way his grandad played the cover drive!. Either way I hope it is the beginning of a life long of cricket for him too.
Other cricket blogs:
To read ‘Is Cricket Amusing itself to Death’, click here
To read ‘Safe and Sound at the County Ground, Taunton’, click here
To read ‘First of the Summer Wine’, click here
To read ‘When rain stops play’, click here
To read ‘Only a game’, click here
To read ‘Cigarettes, Singles, and Sipping Tea with Ian Botham: Signs of a Well Spent Youth!’, click here
To read ‘Bazball, Bazchess, Bazlife’, click here
To read ‘Lewis Calpaldi – Retired Hurt?’, click here
To read ‘Online criticism: it’s just not cricket’, click here
To read ‘It’s only a game’, click here
To read ‘When Rain Stops Play’, click here
To read ‘Cricket: It’s All About Good Timing’, click here
To read ‘’Twas the week of the final’, click here
To read ‘A Tale of Two Tons’, click here
To read ‘A Somerset Cricket Players Emporium’, click here
To read ‘A Cricket Taunt’, click here
To read ‘Scooby Doo and the Mystery of the Deseted Cricket Ground’, click here
To read ‘Brian and Stumpy visit The Repair Shop’, click here
To read ‘A Cricketing Christmas Carol’, click here
To read ‘for the third time of asking, CRICKET’S COMING HOME…surely’, click here
To read ‘At Season’s End’, click here
To read ‘A Historic Day’, click here
To read ‘On passing a village cricket club at dusk one late November afternoon’ click here
To read ‘Cricket – through thick and thin’, click here
To read ‘A Song for Brian’, click here
To read ‘I’ve got a little CRICKET list’, click here
To read ‘My love is not a red, red rose , click here
To read ‘Stumpy – a legend reborn’, click here
To read ‘A Cricket Tea Kind of a Day’, click here
To read ‘A Day at the Cricket’, click here
To read ‘The Great Cricket Sell Off’, click here
To read ‘How the Grinch stole from county cricket…or at least tried to’. click here
To read ‘How Covid-19 stole the the cricket season’, click here
To read ‘Life in the slow lane’, click here
To read ‘Frodo and the Format of Power’, click here
To read ‘If Only’, click here
To read ‘Eve of the RLODC limericks’ click here
To read ‘Somerset v Nottinghamshire T20 Quarter Final 2023’, click here
To read ‘It’s coming home…’, click here
To read ‘for the third time of asking, CRICKET’S COMING HOME…surely’, click here
To read ‘A Song for Ben Green’, click here
To read ‘Enough Said…’, the last section of which is cricket related, click here
A Jack Leach Trilogy:
To read ‘For when we can’t see why’, click here
To read ‘WWJD – What would Jack Do?’, click here
To read ‘On Playing a Blinder’, click here
To read ‘Coping with Disappointment’, click here
And now a couple of cricket blogs with a theological flavour
To read ‘Somerset CCC – Good for the soul’, click here
To read ‘Longing for the pavilion whilst enjoying a good innings’, click here
Some musings 