Young Passions, Old Bodies

Hi everyone!

My friends are gone, and my hair is grey

I ache in the places where I used to play

    Tower of Song by Leonard Cohen

Season 2016 is now well into its second half.

Plenty of days already at Hove and the much-loved annual trips to Arundel and to the Nevill at Tunbridge Wells.

And to Lords and the Oval too.

But - though my hair is grey - at the start of the year I set myself the goal of visiting some New Grounds.

For as Mr Cohen went on to sing:

Warm sacred dancing us to the end of love;

Young Passions, Old Bodies

So it was that back in May Mr Squire & I had a daytrip - by rail via Oxford and lots of stops in the Cotswolds - to Worcester for Worcestershire v Sussex in the Championship.

Worcester has a reputation as a very pretty ground.

The view from the Pavilion is wonderful:

Encouraged by the first New Ground it was off to Windsor Castle for the Royal Household CC v RSM Accountants; accompanied by the good Lady Piper no less.

Another wonderful setting:

Then to Canterbury for Kent v Worcestershire.

A bit of stretch to say Canterbury is a New Ground.

But I had not been for some 7 years and the ground now has some new stands.

And – would you believe it - a TESCO Express as you enter. (Ideal for buying a Pork Pie; Obviously !!).

It was great to meet up with The Lads, most of whom I had played cricket with at Tunbridge Wells Borderers in the (19 !!)70s and 80s.

I’m really looking forward to seeing them at Hove later this month for the Sussex v Kent game, when we will be joined by the Young Man over from New Zealand.

And from Canterbury it was to Colchester - again with Mr Squire - for Essex v Sussex.

A Quintessentially English county outground, the Castle Park had a good size crowd for an exciting day’s play, with Chris Jordan and Jofra Archer batting Sussex away from danger.

Let’s hope that the outgrounds survive the reduction in the number of Championship games in 2017 .

And so to the final New Ground of Season 2016: Sir Paul Getty’s Wormsley, off Junction 5 of the M40, for England U19 v Sri Lanka U19.

This is Country House cricket at its very finest.

You turn off the public highway, through the first security check and drive about 2 miles on a private drive, past the grazing sheep and avoiding the pheasants (pheasants, not peasants!!).

Just before the car park, you reach the second security check.

“May I have your name, Sir?”

    “Lord Piper of Beckley Furnace.”

The guard checked his list.

“Welcome to Wormsley, Lord Ric.”

Is Wormsley the prettiest ground in England?

Well perhaps it is …Though Arundel runs it very, very close.

Sri Lanka scored at 5 runs per over in their 257 for 7. 
Captain Asalanka with 70 and Ashan with 60 both looked promising batsmen. 
Dominic Bess (Somerset) bowled his off breaks tidily with 10 overs for 30 and 1 wicket. Wicketkeeper Ollie Pope (Surrey) made a wonderful stumping to dismiss Bandara off Hugh Bernard (Kent).

In their innings England were all out 149, losing by a whopping 108 runs. 
Only Captain Max Holden (Middlesex) with 40 looked up to much on the day.

I will be following the careers of all 22 players, in the hope that there will be a Test Player or two amongst them in the years ahead.

Plenty to have enjoyed  at the New Grounds of 2016.

And some more new ones to visit in 2017.

Taunton: which I had hoped to go to in 2016.

And Eastbourne: where Sussex are planning to play their first match since 2000.

But before then: there’s still time to come & watch some cricket at Hove with me this Season

After all ….

Why read a Lord Ric Cricket Blog, when you can be in one. ^©

See you soon !!

Lord Ric of Beckley Furnace

Follow me on Twitter: LordRic52

PS

In the hope of finding an Ice Cream– which I never did !! – after lunch I wandered round the ground.

I did find a statue:

And then just outside the perimeter of the ground I saw some young boys playing :

My thoughts went back to playing in the late 50’s and early 60’s at the Upper Banner Farm Cricket Club; the famous UBFCC, who’s home ground was the field at the top of Farmcombe Road.

OK: Next Season I turn 65, my hair may be grey and my body old… 
But I’m still up for Young Passions.

Hope you are too!!!