2009 Season Review
After the lamentable results of the 75th anniversary year, SOA started the next chapter of its history by winning more games than were lost. There were several heavy losses, but very few humiliations. Even when heavily defeated we could usually persuade ourselves we had a cricketing argument on our side. One-sided games cannot be completely avoided in amateur cricket; the reports show how on several occasions the spirit of the game prevailed, with the captains agreeing a formula to make a worthwhile day's cricket possible. The game against Shobrooke Park demonstrated to all the futility of 'overs cricket' when sides are very unequal.
The hard work of the President throughout the year has extended even to his writing a full account of the season, lightening the Scribe's task considerably. In 2009 we saw further evidence of how a Club benefits from developing and evolving: we had the President's match in a delightful new location, and a new format for the Dinner which certainly attracted many members. It was bad luck indeed that Howard should have broken his finger early in the season, but there seemed to be few matches that he did not grace with his beaming presence; all those who enjoyed SOA cricket in 2009 have much to thank him for, not least for the almost incessant work that he did to keep the Western Tour afloat.
We had a desperate time turning out teams on occasion in Devon, even discovering at the last moment that players who had committed themselves had had 'a change of heart.' Raising the team for South Africa seemed largely free of such problems, and one can only grimace wryly at the comparative difficulty of getting good club players to come to Devon, which offers The Bridge Inn and a virtual guarantee against sunburn.
Lastly, there are several games for which no report appears. All the Scribe can plead in mitigation is that it is not for lack of badgering the managers concerned.
The President reflects …
It is difficult to gauge success with an outfit like ours but I think, on reflection, the Club has continued to thrive in 2009, and on the field of play has had one of its more successful seasons. We were helped by a number of factors. Firstly the work put in by all the Match Managers in the unenviable task of raising teams and the behind-the-scenes activities of the Officers and committee members who put in so much time and devotion to running the club. Secondly, we had a slightly better Summer than recently which enabled us to play 32 games in the regular season of which we managed to win 12, draw 7, lose 13 and have 10 called off. Only one game was cancelled due to our failure to raise a team, and that could have been avoided. I do not know for sure, but suspect we organise more fixtures than equivalent friendly, itinerant clubs and it is to our credit they were nearly all fulfilled.
A fair reflection of the spirit of things came in mid-Summer when we took on our antipodean alter ego, the Melbourne XXIX club at Radley College. Blessed with a fine day we managed to win the game (always a pleasure against Australians) but more importantly went on to enjoy a riverboat cruise down the Thames with our guests who joined in the entertainment with typical gusto and pronounced themselves well satisfied – and well lubricated. More than thirty SOA members came on the trip, which was a good turn-out. This was probably the highlight of the season but we were able to secure some other good wins against Radley College, Worcester Gents, Stoics, and Somerset Stragglers on tour.
The traditional Western Tour proved more successful in terms of results than recently with us managing to win 4 games, lose 2, and draw 2 with one cancelled due to rain. Again everyone seemed to enjoy themselves both on the field of play and in the watering holes afterwards, and my thanks go to Sheena for organising the accommodations as usual and to Tony Lurcock for assisting me in raising players for the Tour. This is a harum-scarum activity, going down to the line whether we would have 11 players for every game. Without the juniors who came down we would have been in serious trouble, and they contributed excellently both on the field of play and afterwards. The general consensus is that we will continue with a two week tour but, if so, we need more commitment from younger (not necessarily junior) members to ensure reasonable playing strengths. This is a point probably made every year but still bears repetition. I shall also make a shameless appeal for donations to the SOA Youth Sports Charity which is building up a fund to assist junior tourists who will hopefully go on to play more SOA cricket. Anyone wishing to donate please get in contact with Andrew Moss or Ralph Cobham.
The season was rounded off by the Annual Dinner, which attracted nearly a hundred people, to enjoy the ‘Q & A’ session from John Inverdale, who was as loquacious and chatty in the flesh as on television. I was also very pleased to unveil Dick Giles as our President elect. Dick will assume the Presidential mantle in 2011.
So in the 2009 calendar year we played 50 games of cricket out of a possible 61 - taking in account the Cape Town trip already reported on, and it must be said admirably organised by Colin Bedford. This is achieved with a club whose membership numbers about 300 but of whom only a quarter or so actually seem to play. We often succeed despite ourselves and against the odds.
Mention is made elsewhere of the members we have lost this year, but I would like to add one final thank you to Miles & Margaret Hedges for nearly 20 years unstinting work at the coalface. It is not a glamorous job being Treasurer but it has to be done and to accept the burden for such a length of time is above and beyond the call of duty.
If I have one particular personal memory it is sneezing uncontrollably outside the Falkland Arms post-match due to a ‘snuff attack’ after accepting a pinch from a blazered Leicester Gent. Such are the duties of a President!
Finally my best wishes go to Den Harvey for the coming year and many thanks again to all those who assisted me in a most enjoyable season of SOA cricket.
25 Years Ago (From the 1985 Report. President J.R. Hartley, Esq.)
The 'summer' of 1985 was dispiriting for cricketers, and probably even more for such spectators as did not succumb to the damp and the cold. Six games were not started because of the weather, two more were abandoned, and many of those which were completed were played in conditions more suited to an Outward Bound Course than to our National Summer Game. Apart from isolated days, there was only one week of real cricketing weather, and memories of the season include wearing long-johns, wringing out of socks, and umpires clad like polar explorers or deep-freeze inspectors. A number of fixtures were scrubbed by our opponents, notable the Amateurs of both Notts and Northants, and the Berkshire Gents. Of the surviving 'county' fixtures there were decisive victories against the Stragglers and the Dumplings on tour, and a decisive defeat by the Queries. We narrowly failed to force a third consecutive win over the Worcester Gents in a close finish. Of the 48 games on the card 36 were completed and the results were better than for several seasons: Won 14, Lost 12, Drawn 10.
The bowling was dominated by the over-40s. Edwards returned the astonishing figures of 27-12-45-5 against the Decanians; Hichens had his best figures for the Club for some years with 19-4-52-5 against the Cricket Society, O'Connell bamboozled both North Oxford and the Dumplings with 14-4-27-6 and 14-2-40-5 respectively, while Lurcock had 18-6-36-6 against Bloxham School.
Western Tour. ...We were glad to welcome some wives and families again, together with the Brown Dalmation, who was in good form, except when faced with a dark Lassie at Instow, when he was quite at a loss. Brian Pearce was again our mainstay umpire, and we were also grateful to Alan Grindrod. Miles Hedges came for the first time to score at the week-end, but most of the scoring fell to Elizabeth Bacon, and we appreciated especially her comments in the book on some of the many incidents which form an essential background to the tour.
Obituaries
Stewart Pether (1916-2010)
It has proved impossible to find any first-hand memories of Stewart Pether as a SOA cricketer. Members will recognise the name because he appears on the frontispiece of Seventy-five years of the SOA, pictured with Malcolm Elwin walking out to play at Instow in September 1952. In that two-innings game he had figures of 19.2-6-39-4 and 14-3-34-5. Later in the week against the Dumplings he had second-innings figures of 16.2-4-52-6.
At Oxford before the war he was awarded blues for cricket, rugby and golf, and played ten first-class matches for Oxford. After the war he spent his life in Oxford, teaching geography at St Edward's School, and later house master of Field House.
Phil Garner (1946 -2009)
Oxfordshire cricket was greatly saddened at the loss of Phil Garner, from a brain tumour, in September. Phil was a great supporter of SOA cricket in the 1970s and early 1980s, and played many games. He was a legend in Oxfordshire cricket as an inspirational captain, and he led Oxfordshire to two Minor County championships. He also captained the England Amateur XI and the Club Cricket Conference. He was a great captain, an aggressive batsman with a wide range of shots, an accurate off-spin bowler and a fine fieldsman.
Phil loved playing cricket at all levels, and brought his skills and enthusiasm to many SOA matches. I well remember batting with him on Christ Church for SOA against the Old Cranbrookians from Sydney. He destroyed a quick Australian bowler with a wide range of strokes, and we thoroughly enjoyed the 'verbals' that followed. Many SOA players will have their own memories of Phil, not least his splendid singing after matches. I personally enjoyed many battles against him captaining North Oxford against Cowley St John, and uncounted happy hours playing with a man who was an excellent cricketer and friend.
Phil was talented in many ways in addition to his cricket, being heavily involved in local shows and operatic productions. He was also a good golfer, and captained Wychwood Golf Club in 2008.
Richard Pineo
The large church at Shipton-under-Wychwood was full for his funeral service. Alan Crossley spoke movingly about Phil as a cricketer, while other tributes told of the many other lives he led, some of them quite unknown to his cricketing friends. His only game for SOA in recent years was against the Somerset Stragglers on tour in 2006; he was at the crease when Alec Cunningham joined him just before noon, with SOA 10-5. SOA lost the game after declaring at 252-5.