Sheffield Cricket Lovers' Society Year Book 2017

13 Whilst rather frightening to reflect it was almost forty years ago, it does provide a reminder of the small touches which make Yorkshire so special. Rather like Nottinghamshire at Scarborough, we were pummelled on the field by a Yorkshire side including Jim Love, Arnie Sidebottom and Doug Padgett. But that is not the point of the story. It was in the days of the old Headingley pavilion, famous in my eyes for Mike Brearley beckoning to Ian Botham to stay out there after reaching his century during the extraordinary Ashes Test Match in 1981. At the end of the first day we left all our kit in the away dressing room. On returning the following morning, our pads and boots had been whitened immaculately by the dressing room attendant. He wasn’t asked to do it. He just did it. A very small touch which didn’t happen anywhere else. Returning to the 2016 season, the final match at Lord’s has to be mentioned, painful as it probably is for the majority of those reading this publication. The climax to the game has received plenty of air-time, and rightly so, but less publicity has been given to the behaviour of the Yorkshire team as James Franklin was being presented with the trophy, as the sun shone and the shadows lengthened. After giving their all and falling just short, Andrew Gale and his team, accompanied by Chief Executive Mark Arthur, stood close by, adding their own recognition to Middlesex’s achievement. It was sportsmanship of the highest order and a reminder that losing with dignity is just as important as winning with humility. For the almost unwatchable climax, the attendance on that extraordinary final afternoon grew to 7,500, which was the highest crowd for a County Championship match at Lord’s since 1966. The contribution of Somerset to such a thrilling end to the season should not be overlooked and the airtime given to the drama on the BBC News at 10 p.m. was a further reminder that the County Championship still matters. This, and my experience walking out of the North Marine Ground in August, seeing the contentment on the faces of all those who attended, really brought it home to me that the four-day game must not be allowed to die. It is the competition the players want to win and has a decent record in recent times of providing youngsters with the experience and grounding to play Test Match cricket for England. Those individuals and organisations who have responsibility for shaping and endorsing the fresh domestic structure bear a very heavy responsibility. And that includes M.C.C. and Yorkshire County Cricket Club. Visiting Scarborough on that perfect sunlit day provided a picture of the past. Might it also, within the new structure, present a vision of the future? Sheffield Cricket Lovers’ Society www.sheffieldcricketlovers.org.uk