The Twelfth Man 2011

21 Brian’s Net – The John Arlott Trophy The runner up is an eager student always trying to do his best and has steadily improved through the weeks. He is always ready to listen to instruction and produces especially as a batsman. The runner up is Nathan Newman I’ve been very impressed by this young man’s progress this year. His commitment is top class he has all the skills to be an excellent all-rounder. The winner is Joe White David Musgrave Memorial Award The winner is one of the most promising youngsters we’ve ever had at the winter nets. For such a young age he bowls with tremendous pace and aggression, which is frightening to watch at times. Above all he appears to have a good cricketing brain – he uses his tall frame to his advantage as a bowler, knowing when to pitch the ball up or test the batsman with a shorter delivery. When batting he stands tall at the crease and hits the ball hard. All the coaches are looking forward to seeing how he progresses over the coming years – he is an exciting prospect and could go all the way. The winner is Jacob Hadfield The Jack Sokell Award This young fellow has shown great improvement since he first started attending the Society nets s few years ago with his willingness to learn and his attention to detail his leg spin bowling has improved no end his batting has come on well and he has the ability, eventually to make a good bats man. He plays straight and shows flair and has a liking to hit the ball and has the makings to become an all-rounder. The winner is Shaun Todd Message from WCLS Coaching Co-ordinators Beryl and John Ambler It has been a pleasure to meet all the parents/guardians up on the balcony and we would like to thank you for taking the time and effort to bring the youngsters to this year’s nets. It has been one of the best sessions for a number of years with good attendances and thank goodness no snow to contend with. The coaching reminder letters will be going out about the end of October as the registration night is usually in November it would be great to have a good attendance on that night as it saves me a lot of phone calls before the spare places are thrown open to the general public. The Society would like to thank all the coaches for their time and effort including Darren Crossland and Simon Potter who stepped in to fill the gap when we were short of manpower. A Bacon Sandwich and a Good Yarn Sunday morning. It’s time to open the curtains to check if it has snowed again overnight. Thank goodness it hasn’t…! Slowly the clock ticks round to eight thirty and it is time to get the lad’s kit into the bag. “Where’s the ball?” Normally it’s in the same place as he left it last time, but it’s simply part of the ritual before setting off to Bawtry Road. The gallery is filling up and down below, some of the younger lads are looking anxiously across at Sam. “What torturous exercises has he got in store for us in this morning’s warm-up?” Finally, the arduous laps are done, the acrobatics have caused some hilarity among the parents, whose children have not quite displayed the grace and agility of a Bolshoi diva and the nets are extended. Christian starts his session with the younger members, always patiently observing and encouraging; Big John Ambler, having belied his years with a pre-session master class in left-arm slow bowling, continues to beguile his participants with metonymic line and length and encourage with wise words and actions; in Brian’s net the pace of the bowling produces the archetypal sound of willow striking leather and some billowing nets as the cracking cover drive is contained. Meanwhile, up on the gallery, the early greetings exchanged, parents discuss social events of the week, football results, the weather, all the while fixing their gaze on the activities of their loved ones below. “Great shot son” or “nice bowling”. During all this, Beryl moves among the parents, handing out forms, essential information and good advice or even mildly rebuking members for having missed a great Wombwell meeting, before returning to her centrally located viewing point. The signal that a game will be played is not only an opportunity for the lads to put into practice what the coaches have patiently been drilling, but, more importantly that it is nearly time to get in the queue for a well-deserved bacon sandwich. Before anyone realises, 11 o’clock is approaching and John or Sam or Brian is winding up the session with more wise words of encouragement. From the evening in November when registration takes place at Ardsley to the Sunday in March when John delivers his end of term message, the winter has suddenly turned into spring and the new season is nearly upon us. It is sad that the enjoyable Sunday morning routine will have to be consigned to the memory bank for another nine months. But, as a consequence, the valuable knowledge gained during the previous ten weeks will be processed and put into practice. A big thank you to our excellent coaches: John, Christian, Sam, Brian and Mark with help from a couple of the parents. A fabulous institution! Brian Walkman