Cricket is very much a reflection of life itself with what happens on the pitch
and all of its emotions often being mirrored by life off the pitch. And how it has
evolved over the years. Unlike football, which is still basically the same game
that was first played over 100 years ago, cricket now offers various formats
ranging from 5 day Test Matches to 4 day County Cricket games, limited over
1 day matches and more recently the introduction of Twenty/20 competitions.
And without all the participation at grass roots, there would be no structure
and so no international teams to support. Thankfully there remains a strong
grass roots support for the game, mainly because it is such good fun, bringing
out the best that team games offer. I am a keen horse racing fan and the
name of the Grand National winner in 1964 sums up life at Tanworth and
Camp Hill cricket club - Team Spirit.
And so, we are on the verge of a new season with the club operating 6 teams,
as follows
1st XI
2nd XI
3rd XI
Sunday XI
Midweek XI
Under 11's
Chris Barber and Dave Hill remain 1st and 2nd team captains respectively
whilst Pete Carey takes over the reins of the 3rd team and Andy Turnbull has
added the Sunday team to his existing leadership of the midweek side. He is
also the junior section's Head Coach. It is especially encouraging to see more
new members in the junior section, which of course is the future lifeblood of
the club
The preparation for the new season is now complete, with indoor nets having
started back in February and hopefully the players and their equipment are all
cobweb free and ready for action for the first round of competitive games
which start on Saturday 2 May. On this opening Saturday the 1st XI are away
at Catherine de Barnes, whilst the 2nd XI are the hosts to Badsey at Tanworth
Lane. The 3rd team is away at Bidford.
There is an institution on BBC Radio which goes by the name of Test Match
Special, where respected (and some would say eccentric) broadcasters report
the action, both on and off the pitch, from international matches. And the start
of the season reminds me of an anecdote related by Henry Bloffeld, a
longstanding member of the BBC team. He told a story of being invited to a
fancy dress party and how he was dared by a colleague to go naked, as
Adam, of Adam and Eve fame. Henry thought that this was a step too far and
came up with the idea of going as a set of jump leads. So, he wrapped a set
of jump leads around his otherwise naked torso and off he went.
On arrival the doorman immediately refused him entry on the grounds of bad
taste and obscenity but Henry used all of his persuasive powers to obtain
entry, pointing out that that there were no conditions set out in his invitation
and so he was doing nothing wrong. The doorman saw him as a troublemaker
but eventually relented and let him in with the profound threat that " You had
better not start anything!!!!"
The start of the season is always an exciting time as optimism runs high and
all of the teams are tied at the top of the league on the same number of
points. Every one is looking to get off to a winning start and to build that
momentum of enthusiasm and positivity that comes with success. And yet it is
a step into the unknown as there are no form lines and no knowledge of who
is ultimately going to top and tail the league. Every one is agreed however
that getting off to a good start is the preferred option. So, for each of these
opening matches let's hope the sun shines, the bowlers take wickets and the
batsmen score more runs than the opposition. And if that happens then let's
hope we can build on that as the season progresses.
Off the pitch, there is one specific change to what has been the routine for
many years. In the past the annual dinner has taken place in the Spring, as a
forerunner to the season. However, from this year it's all change as the
annual dinner will be held on 11th September, not long after the end of the
season. The awards will also be presented that evening, whilst the season is
fresh in everyone's minds
So, it is with great anticipation that we countdown to 2 May. Let's hope our
boys can do us proud. It won't be much longer before we find out.
As always, full details including fixture list can be obtained on our
website www.tachcc.co.uk or on twitter: @tachcc
Alastair Turnbull