The
Lee Cricket Club August – SeptemberBy Jon Swain
After one of the coldest Augusts on record, the cricket season is drawing to an end and the long wait until May will soon begin, giving us all time to reflect on the huge influence it has on many of us. For long-suffering partners, the chance to see more of us at weekends. That may increase the suffering in some instances. For coaches, a chance to think up new drills; for players, new excuses for bad shots, or bowling. For all of us, the realisation that cricket, whilst relying on the individual confrontation of batsman and bowler, is, above all, a team game. Learning to appreciate the success of team-mates, supporting those who are experiencing a lack of form, coping with disappointment, being generous in victory and graceful in defeat: all are life-skills that are learnt on the playing fields of The Lee.
We are lucky to have such a beautiful place to play, and so much enthusiastic support. The club gratefully received a generous donation from our President, Liz Stewart-Liberty: the proceeds of filming carried out in the village.
We are in a period of transition; our younger players are still acquiring the maturity to compete in an adult game, whilst our ‘mature’ players are wistfully remembering rose-tinted memories of skills we are sure we once possessed. That shaped our performances and results. The 1st XI promised much, slid down towards relegation and then re-discovered itself and ended mid-table. The 2nd XI promised to push for promotion in its division, but ended mid-table too, but was the source of many promising younger players. The Sunday XI has had a good season, particularly in the second half of the season, as availability of younger players improved.
Now some thanks to contributors. Andy Devoy has organised the soft-ball cricket on Friday nights for the last seven seasons, with huge help from his partner Lynn. The importance to the club cannot be over-stated; without this, I believe the club would be struggling for survival. It provides funds, involves families from all around and sets young cricketers on a course towards playing for England one day. Andy is standing down from this role and will be difficult to follow, but we have a replacement in position, thank goodness, as Fridays are an institution now.
Andy was cheered to the rafters on the final evening of presentations and he and Lynn received a gift from the club as a modest token of our gratitude to them both. I pay tribute to all the coaches who have put in so much time and energy on Friday evenings and on Saturday mornings for training. Then there are the matches at all age groups from U10 to U14 on weekday evenings; so much, owed by so many, to so few, to borrow a phrase. Also, the volunteers helping with the vital refreshments on Fridays and in games; absolutely crucial.
How should we measure our success as a club? County and District representation? We have achieved that again, from the Over 50s XI (cricket played by statues) to U9s. We are rightly proud of those players, some of whom won awards at the Bucks Cricket Board presentations, and congratulate them. They are an inspiration to others. However, the most important yardstick for our club is the development of every player’s potential, in the way most appropriate for that cricketer, within the spirit of cricket.