Scrumpy & Sixes

October 2007 

My first memory of cricket is being selected, aged ten, for Taunton Junior School against Sherborne. I was forced to stand in the slips whilst our opening bowler, a hulking Somerset U10 speedster with wild hair and frightening pace, speared balls past a flailing bat. I was completely out of my depth and any edges had shot to the boundary long before the keeper and I blinked. Nonetheless, on that manicured lawn with their memorable tea, the seeds were sown for a long and eventful, if not celebrated cricket career.

Teams played for: Taunton School 2nd XI to St Mary’s, Strawberry Hill University Team to Teddington Town 1st XI with a healthy sprinkling of pub sides in between, not to mention the glorious honour of playing for these fine Somerset sides: Wootton Courtenay CC, Timberscombe CC and every now and then, Porlock CC.

Cricket Journalism: I have interviewed Ricky Ponting for Wisden when he was at Somerset. I asked him what difference he thought he could make in a month. Over the next few days, a Somerset team bereft of confidence or wins went oop north and thrashed Yorkshire in three days by ten wickets. Nice. I have also chatted to a grumpy Sanath Jayasuriya whose answers were about as fulsome and revelatory as John Major on tranquilizers.

I care enormously about Somerset CCC and am delighted that 2008 sees us re-join the top echelon of county cricket. The eternal optimist in me sees potential parallels with Hampshire and Sussex who bounced up to the top table and never looked back. We shall see…