The Club Cricket Conference Yearbook 2020

- 13 - The CCC are working very closely with the ECB and with the CCC’s Gulfraz Riaz to recognise the enormous contribution that is made by the many ethnic and evening leagues and players that are all over the CCC area. These players were virtually unnoticed bby the cricket “establishment” until our innovative work. Mentioning the ECB – the Conference have been working very closely with them to improve the many aspects of the recreational game on and off the field. The forming of the CCC Charity, basically driven by Robbie Book, has been a great new initiative, particularly with the supply of many defibrillators which will be saving lives at very many clubs. The office, manned by Stan Nicholson, Donna Black and Gulfraz Riaz, do a terrific, largely unsung, role in managing the administration of fixtures, matches and finances as well as communicating with members and the many hundreds of clubs involved. They also help give advice and settle the occasional cricket dispute! My main involvement has been with the CCC lunch which is held every year on the last Monday in November. I have been honoured to MC this lunch for about 20 years – during which time we have moved from the Café Royal to the Porter Tun Room, The National Hotel (we do try hard not to mention that one!) and have now been resident for some years at the Home of Cricket – Lord’s. It is a brilliant lunch, not only providing the very highest level of entertainment but also is the major fundraising event of the year for the CCC. There have been Many memorable moments – particularly in our Centenary Year when our Patron, His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, graced us with his attendance. The speakers that day were Sir Tim Rice and Geoff Miller – the doyen of cricket speakers – and what a lunch it was with some 640 attending – we had a proper red-coated Toastmaster, Brian Greenan, and I was not allowed on the microphone until HRH had left the building. I have no idea why!! We have had other royalty – last year Mike Tindall; we had Dom Such, a monk and former headmaster, and many other brilliant entertainers and sports people. The lunch is now firmly established one of the finest cricket social events of the year: if you have never been, I urge you to come along: you will have a great time for sure – it is real ‘value for money’. The lunch is a huge undertaking and I have been lucky to serve on the lunch committee for many years with a dedicated group of people. Stuart Whitehead and Charlie Puckett are the main driving forces along with, until last year, (when he went off to organise the Ealing Cricket Club 150th anniversary celebrations) John Poore, David Collier and recently David Perrin. These guys are really doing a wonderful job. So that’s about it As I say, it is very exciting to be President for 2020: it could be memorable for the small amount of cricket played!!! Please support the matches for men and women and the social events: they are all on the website. I am a great believer in moving all sport forward – I am not one of those who say “it was better in our day” – it was different in our day. I love cricket now as much as I did when I played it; that is all cricket: country, county and club – championship, T20, 50 over, The Hundred. It is all there for our entertainment. Some will enjoy different types; I enjoy it all! Some of you will have noticed I have managed to get through this entire piece without mentioning hockey goalkeeping and 16 goals!