The Essex Cricketer Magazine: Winter 2019 Edition

THE ESSEX

CRICKETER MEMBERS’ MAGAZINE WINTER 2019 | ISSUE 33

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JOHN FARAGHER CHAIRMAN

Welcome to the Winter Edition of the Essex Cricketer Magazine, which marks the end of the 2019 playing season.

I would like to begin by congratulating Chris Silverwood on his appointment as the England Men’s Head Coach. Chris played a major role in Essex winning the Division Two Championship in 2016 and the Division One title the following year, and he laid the foundations for current Head Coach Anthony McGrath. Everyone at Essex Cricket wishes Chris all the very best in his new role and we look forward to welcoming him back to Chelmsford whenever his time permits.

Well, 2019 will certainly be remembered for years to come as Essex became the first Club to complete the Vitality Blast and County Championship double in the same season. This is an outstanding achievement by the whole group of players and is just reward for the commitment and passion shown throughout the summer. We are indeed fortunate to have an outstanding team off the field as well, with those members of staff who rarely get a mention but without whom Essex Cricket would not flourish. This is Team Essex, one team, one dream.

After our success in 2017, we were disappointed in our failure to bring further silverware to the Club in 2018. Finishing third behind Surrey and Somerset demonstrated that we deserved our place in Division One, but looking at our squad we knew that we were capable of so much more.

At the start of this year’s campaign, I said we were focused on winning all three trophies, but we will settle for two! However, in 2020, we will look to dream, dare and deliver all three.

Why not? We have the talent and the belief to make further history.

Peter Siddle will again be back for the Championship campaign as our Overseas player and hard-hitting Cameron Delport has committed for a further season in the Vitality Blast. We won’t stop here though, and we’ll look to strengthen even further.

CONTENTS 3

John Faragher

At the end of the season, Matt Coles left the Club, and it’s always a difficult time when a player leaves us. It is a great shame that the move to Essex did not work for Matt, and we wish him well for the future.

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Ravi Bopara Interview

7

Derek Bowden

9

Anthony McGrath

11

Ryan ten Doeschate

13

Simon Harmer

15

End Of Season Awards Winners

17-18

Simon Harmer Interview

19

Contract News

21

Overseas Heroes - Mark Waugh

23

Second XI Season Review

25

The Road To Edgbaston

26-27

Sam Cook Interview

29

Boundary Club News

31

Now And Then - 1984 & 2019

33

Alastair Cook Interview

35

Womens XI Season Review

37

Last Season In Numbers

39

Aron Nijjar Interview

41

Essex Ability County Champions

43

Overseas Heroes - Keith Boyce

45

Club News

47

A Look Ahead To 2020

Another departure was Ravi Bopara, an outstanding cricketer with immense talent. We thank him for his service to Essex Cricket, both as a player and as an ambassador of the Club. He is without doubt a star of his generation and someone who represents everything that Essex Cricket is all about - high quality, passionate and a winner. I know he is particularly keen to explore further opportunities in the world of T20 cricket and we wish him well as he takes on this new challenge.

I am sure cricket has not seen or heard the last of Ravi Bopara.

I will again be holding several forums during selected Championship matches in 2020. I am keen for the positive and constructive interaction between the Members and the Committee to flourish. To me, communication is an essential ingredient in every successful business.

I would like to thank all the Members for their continued support this year.

I know how important a successful Essex is to you and all our supporters.

This has been a very special season and we are aiming to bring further success to the Club in 2020.

I look forward to seeing and talking to you all next year and wish you all well through the winter period.

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THANK YOU RAVI After 18 years, 499 games, 19,620 runs, 503 wickets, 37 centuries and 7 trophies, Ravi Bopara’s time with Essex has come to an end.

The 34-year-old has been widely acclaimed as one of the most reliable and consistent batsmen to play county cricket, having burst on the scene as a freshfaced teenager in 2002.

When reflecting on his debut season as a youthful 17-year-old, Bopara recalls a conversation with his then captain, Ronnie Irani, and said: “I was on the balcony and I was probably very insignificant to him.

“I asked him over for a chat and gave him an ultimatum, “if you don’t play me regularly from now on, I’m going to leave,” I remember telling him.

“He must have thought ‘who does this guy think he is? Go on then, crack on,’ but after a moment, he said “I’ll give you eight games. The first eight games of next season are yours. How’s that for a deal?”

“It was the quickest “yep done” of my life, I didn’t really know what I was saying and it was complete rubbish, but I’ve never been out of the side since then. It was probably a good move in the end.”

Bopara leaves having won the Pro40 League in 2005 and 2006, NatWest Trophy in 2008, Specsavers County Championship Division Two in 2016, Specsavers County Championship Division One in 2017 and 2019, and the Vitality Blast in 2019.

On his achievements, Bopara joked: “I’m not really the type to be really proud of myself. If I’ve done something good, I’m normally the type to put it to bed straight away. Well done, you’ve done it, enjoy it, have a sausage roll to celebrate.

“It’s always the next step. But after I announced I was leaving, I saw some of my records and I surprised myself.”

Ravi’s performances in the latter stages of the Vitality Blast campaign will live long in the memory of the fans at Chelmsford, and his reaction to Simon Harmer hitting the winning runs at Edgbaston indicated the raw emotion he was feeling. Whilst Harmer sprinted off with his bat above his head, Bopara slowly walked alone, taking everything in.

“It was a mixture of relief and joy. It was the one trophy we didn’t have in our cabinet, we had won everything else. This was always the one, the holy grail.

“It wasn’t one of those things where I planned to go crazy. I wasn’t in that mindset, it was more about taking it in. It was what dreams are made of, so take it in, soak it up and lose yourself in it.

“I had been thinking about that moment for so long. I’d been thinking to myself: ‘When I win the T20, I want to be chasing, I want to be there at the end.’ That’s what dreams are made of, so to be there at the end, it was what I’d always wanted.”

When discussing how the decision to leave Chelmsford came about, Bopara said: “It’s been incredibly emotional. It was a very tough decision. Initially, it wasn’t what I wanted. I loved playing at Essex, I loved playing with the lads, I loved playing for the supporters and I loved playing for the badge.

“My love for Essex will never die. They will always have a special place in my heart.

18 years is no joke. You’re part of the furniture, you’re sort of embedded into the walls a little bit. It’s a great place, a special place.

“Letting go was really tough and it plagued my mind for weeks, but Sussex is a brilliant Club and it’s an exciting time for me.”

Lastly, when referred to as an Essex legend, Bopara’s face lit up and he grinned with pride, and said: “I have heard a lot of people say that I’m an Essex legend, but that’s obviously for the fans to decide. With all of my performances and my records, I’d like to look back at it that way. That would be nice.”

Ravi Bopara. Essex legend.

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DEREK BOWDEN CEO

The 2019 season was certainly one that will live long in the memory for everyone involved with the Club and we certainly exceeded our expectations.

Clinching a second Championship title in three seasons is an incredible achievement, but to add a maiden T20 title to that in the same campaign is unparalleled and something that everyone at the Club should be proud of. The team was led superbly by Head Coach Anthony McGrath and Club Captain Ryan ten Doeschate, as well as Simon Harmer, who took on the role of T20 Captain this year. What they have achieved this season is extraordinary and they all deserve a huge amount of praise.

Seeing the team celebrate on the pitch in front of the packed-out crowd at Edgbaston, and then again a week later at Taunton is something that will live long in the memory, as the smiles on the faces of everyone present were there for all to see. It was a special week and it epitomised exactly what we are trying to achieve at the Club. We dreamed, we dared, and we delivered, all working together to achieve the same goal, and it has certainly worked over the last four years.

It’s very hard to pick a flaw in this season, but if you’re being picky you could say that our Royal London One-Day Cup campaign was slightly disappointing. I have no doubt that after winning the other two competitions this year, Anthony McGrath will be hungry to complete the set and add the 50-over trophy to his cabinet next time around.

The target is now to continue to improve and build on the 2019 season. Rest assured, discussions have already been held about where and how we can strengthen our squad for the upcoming campaign.

Work is also being done to secure our Overseas signings for the 2020 season and following the successes of Peter Siddle, Mohammad Amir and Adam Zampa, as well as Cameron Delport, we will make sure we bring in the right calibre of player and personality to Chelmsford. We have built a terrific team spirit here at the Club and anyone coming into the dressing room must help build that.

Alongside adding to the Club, we don’t want to lose any of our existing playing talent. The likes of Jamie Porter, Dan Lawrence, Nick Browne and Aaron Beard all committed their futures to the Club whilst we are still working to finalise a number of further contract extensions. It is an exciting time for the Club and I think we are now in a golden era which will be remembered for years to come.

Finally, I would like to thank you, our Members, for your continued support over the past year.

Membership numbers continue to grow and go from strength-to-strength, your backing doesn’t go unnoticed. It’s been a memorable year for the Club, but let’s keep getting better together and continue making memories that will last a lifetime!

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ANTHONY MCGRATH HEAD COACH

Well, what a season that was!

After being made Head Coach two years ago, I wanted to follow in Chris Silverwood’s footsteps and deliver more success to the Club whilst writing new history, and we certainly achieved that this year. Being the first side ever to complete a Blast and Championship double in the same season is some accomplishment, and something that everyone at Essex should be proud of.

That first game of the season against Hampshire in early April seems like a lifetime ago now. We lost, by an innings and 87 runs. Although it was a defeat, and it hurt, it was probably a good thing. It set the bar for us, we knew what we were up against and what we’d have to do for the remainder of the season if we wanted to be successful.

After that game, we got our heads down and got on a roll, and once the momentum was with us, we felt unstoppable. To go undefeated in the 13 games that followed, winning 9 of them, is a serious triumph and the boys should take great pride in their red-ball achievements this season.

One of the things I’m most proud of is that every player in that dressing room pulled their weight and stepped up at one point or another. As a Head Coach, knowing you have a squad full of players willing to give their all is all you can ask for, and I’m lucky enough to have that in abundance with this group of players.

Not many people gave us a chance when it came to the Vitality Blast, so it’s really satisfying to silence all of those doubters who wrote us off before a ball was bowled. We had a new T20 Captain this year in Simon Harmer, and I don’t think we could have asked for much more from him. He had a lot of important decisions to make and he wanted to do things his way, but once his methods were implemented in the team we saw immediate success.

The campaign was a bit stop-start due to the weather and we had four washed out games, but once we put a string of results together, we played some amazing cricket. Again, like in the Championship, every player played their part. All the batsmen scored runs during the competition whilst it felt like every one of our bowlers was doing damage with the ball.

Finals Day itself is something that will always live with me and the players and the staff at the Club. We knew going into the day at Edgbaston that Essex had never won it before, and we all really wanted to make that happen. The scenes in the ground when Harmy hit those winning runs on the final ball were unbelievable and to have a huge following supporting us meant an awful lot. More than anything, I’m so pleased that we were able to deliver the title for the fans.

I’ve always said that Essex has a uniqueness to it, the players, the staff and the fans have a togetherness which you can feel the moment you step into the ground. During the season that relationship was as clear as ever, with fans travelling all over the country to support the side.

For the players out there competing, that support is what makes the difference and helps get them over the line and ultimately, win trophies.

I hope you can continue to support the team and myself in the same way when the new season starts in April. Everyone in the dressing room wants to win more silverware and create more memories for themselves and the fans that will last a lifetime.

I look forward to seeing you around The Cloudfm County Ground in 2020 and once again, thank you for your loyal support.

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RYAN TEN DOESCHATE CLUB CAPTAIN

Wow, what a season! I think it’s fair to say that the 2019 campaign is one that none of us will forget in a hurry! We achieved something unprecedented and something that so many people thought we weren’t capable of, a Blast and Championship double, and to be honest, it’s only just started to sink in.

One thing I love about this side is that we all believe in each other. At no point during the season did we ever doubt the characters or ability we had in the dressing room. Of course, we were Champions just two years ago, so we knew we could do it again, but to chase Somerset down from overs 50 points behind and to win every home Championship match for the first time in the Club’s history, that was special, and it was achieved because we always believed.

The dressing room has the perfect blend of experience mixed with youthful homegrown talent that will be the future of Essex.

We feel that we are giving players the perfect platform to reach their potential and achieve their dreams whilst bringing success to the Club. Jamie Porter, Dan Lawrence, Sam Cook and Aaron Beard are just a few names that should all be pushing for international recognition, and there is no doubt in my mind that they will accomplish that sooner rather than later.

I am proud of the way everyone at the Club, from the players on the pitch, to the coaching staff, to the ground staff and the commercial staff have all come together and achieved this as one. Make no mistake, this has been a joint effort from everyone across the Club and Essex really is a special place to come into work every day. I feel privileged to lead this great County, a Club which has given so much to me over my time here.

A special mention must go to our Head Coach Anthony McGrath, as well as his team, Andre Nel, Tom Huggins, Chris Clarke-Irons, Harry McQueen, Billy Fordham, Barry Hyam, Paul Hutchinson, Donovan Miller and William Winstone. They made sure we never lost our focus and pushed us right up until the very end. Without them, the success we experienced this year wouldn’t have been possible.

Our attention has already turned to the 2020 season. We’re continually striving to improve, and we want to replicate the achievements of last year. As a team, we’ve had success, but we want more than that. We’re on the cusp of a golden era and we want to build a dynasty here at Chelmsford that will be spoken about for years to come.

I hope you all enjoyed an incredible 2019 and from the bottom of my heart, I thank you for all the support you have given me and the team this year. Sharing the trophy celebrations with you at Edgbaston and then again at Taunton just a week later are moments I will never forget and they will stay with me and the boys forever.

When I was writing this exact piece last year, I said that we wanted to bring silverware back to Essex, and I’m so proud that we achieved that. We dreamed, we dared, and we delivered! See you in 2020 for what is hopefully another memorable season!

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SIMON HARMER T20 CAPTAIN

What a season for Essex Cricket, I don’t think you could have scripted that much better…

I want to start by congratulating and thanking everyone at the Club. The players, the coaching staff, the ground staff, the commercial staff, the Members and the fans. Without everybody’s efforts, hard work and support, we wouldn’t have been able to achieve what we did this season. These two trophies are a representation of the success we are enjoying both on and off the field, and this was a collective effort by everyone at the Club.

To win a second Championship title in three years is some accomplishment and our red-ball cricket was outstanding this year. Somerset pushed us right until the very end and I think this campaign was a great advert for red-ball cricket as a whole. There were so many exceptional individual performances this year, too many to laud, but a word must be said about Anthony McGrath and Ryan ten Doeschate.

Their leadership and management was duly rewarded, and they deserve every piece of praise they get for the amazing work they have done this year.

It was an honour to be named the T20 Captain at the start of the season and it was a challenge I really wanted. It was a bit daunting taking over from Tendo, who has done an unbelievable job. If you look at the position Essex were in five years ago and compare it to now, a lot of that rise is down to him and the decisions he has made.

The campaign got off to a tricky start. We had quite a few washed out games which made it hard to put in consistent performances, but towards the end of the group stages, everything just clicked. With the way the standings were, it effectively became knockout cricket for us, win or go home!

Everyone in that side rose to the pressure, our batsmen scored the runs they were capable of whilst our bowlers did the business with the ball, and we all knew once that happened we had a chance of going all the way.

Finals Day is something I will never ever forget. I said when I was asked at the start of the season what my aim as Captain was, and I said it was to reach a Finals Day. The fact we got there at the first time of asking was incredible, but we weren’t there to make up the numbers, we were there to win it.

We had one of those days. You know the type where everything goes your way… we felt invincible! Even going out to bat needing 17 runs from the final 8 balls, we still knew we were going to do it. The celebrations on the pitch were so special too, I’m so glad we got to share that with the fans who travel up and down the country supporting us so vastly. As a team, we knew how desperate the supporters were for some success in T20 cricket, so we couldn’t be happier that we managed to deliver that sought after maiden T20 title… that one was for you Eagles fans!

Our focus has already turned to the 2020 season. We have a dressing room that is full of players that just want to improve and be the best they can be, and we want to continue to win trophies like over the last few years.

We’ve tasted success and we want more of it. I always hear people talk about the golden era of Gooch, Fletcher, Acfield, Lever and East, and hopefully, 25 years from now, they’ll be talking about the golden era of ten Doeschate, Cook, Porter, Westley and Harmer.

I hope you all enjoyed the 2019 campaign and once again, I want to thank you for the fiercely loyal support that you have given me and the Club this year.

I’ve had three special seasons here at Essex and hopefully the future is bright, and we can go on to create many more happy memories together.

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END OF SEASON GALA DINNER AWARDS WINNERS After an unprecedented Blast and Championship double, there was plenty to celebrate at the Club’s End of Season Gala Dinner.

Essex bowler Simon Harmer picked up several of the major honours, whilst Dan Lawrence, Ravi Bopara and Sam Cook were also recognised for their efforts this season.

Simon Harme r

Simon H arme r

e Dan L awre nc

Simon H arme r

WINNERS

Player of the Year: Simon Harmer Players’ Player of the Year: Simon Harmer Batsman of the Year: Dan Lawrence Bowler of the Year: Simon Harmer

R avi Bopara

Eagles Player of the Year: Ravi Bopara

Sam C oo

First XI Young Player of the Year: Sam Cook

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Performance of the Year: Sam Cook vs Kent Second XI Player of the Year: Aron Nijjar Academy Player of the Year: Robin Das Club Person of the Year: Derek Harding Women’s Player of the Year: Kelly Castle Ability Player of the Year: Liam McFall

Sam C oo

Club to County Award: Haydn Davies

R obin Das

D e re k

Harding

Kelly Castle

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Aron Nijjar

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SIMON HARMER:

TAKING WICKETS, BEING T20 CAPTAIN & CREATING HISTORY

It’s not been a bad year for Simon Harmer. He was instrumental all year as Essex reclaimed the Championship, he captained the Eagles to their first-ever T20 title during his first season as skipper, and he won numerous personal awards. The 30-year-old admits that although he is proud of each of those individual accolades, they’re not what drives him.

The spinner said: “Obviously it’s nice to pick up personal awards, but they aren’t something you really aim for at the start at the season. I think Finals Day and the end our Championship season tipped the PCA MVP and other awards my way, but honestly, I’d give up all of that up if it meant winning team trophies.

“When I look back on this season, I’ll look at the two trophies we put in the cabinet with a lot more satisfaction and gratitude than I will those personal awards.”

Unsurprisingly, with 83 wickets Harmer finished the 2019 campaign as the leading wicket-taker in the Championship, and he commented: “I think it would be fair to say that I met my targets with the ball this year.

“At the start of the season, I said to myself that I wanted to be the leading wicket-taker in Division One this year, so it’s nice to reach that goal, but if I’m totally honest with you I’m a bit disappointed with how I ended the season.

“After 10 games I had 65 wickets so I thought I may end up with more than 83, maybe I’m being harsh on myself, but as I said before, the team winning is always the most important thing. I’d always take team trophies over personal accolades and success any day.”

As for aims and goals for the 2020 season, Harmer knows exactly what he wants to work on.

“I think I need to address my batting next year. It’s something that I feel has been weighing me down over the last few seasons, so I’m going to be making a real effort towards that.

“I think my other targets will be based around the T20 format. Obviously, we are Champions and we want to defend our title next year, so as a team we need to look at setting some targets for us to make sure that we get back to Finals Day. “I guess a dream year for me would be appearing at Finals Day again with the Eagles, experiencing some success with Welsh Fire in The Hundred and winning another Division One trophy with Essex.”

Harmer was made T20 Captain at the start of the season, and despite the Eagles going on to secure a first-ever T20 title, it wasn’t all plain sailing.

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“It was extremely frustrating in the beginning,” he said, “it rained a lot and a fair few of our games were washed out, which made it hard for us to implement the new ideas we had been working on in training into a matchday situation.

“He’s more than good enough to be playing international cricket and I think everyone at Essex would love to see him make an England comeback, whether that be red-ball or white-ball.”

“Once we got over that, things started to click. I think we played really well in the last five South Group games once we were in full flow. We rode our luck to make the quarter-finals, but after that, there was no luck about it, we were deserved winners.

Harmer and his teammates created history this year.

They became the first side in history to win the Blast and Championship double in the same season, and Harmer believes that the Club are back where they belong.

“T20 cricket is all about playing your cricket at the right time and I think we did exactly that.”

The Eagles qualified for their first Finals Day since 2013, and Harmy revealed that there were some nerves in the dressing room, saying: “I think as a group, we were quite nervous for the occasion.

“We had been playing a winner takes all style of cricket beforehand, as that’s what the South Group had become for us, win or go home, and I think maybe that helped us at Edgbaston.

“Despite the nervous energy, big games call for big players to stand up and I think that’s exactly what happened. Ravi put in the performance of a lifetime, Tom Westley, Dan Lawrence and Cameron Delport all put on experienced and senior performances, and that was exactly what we needed to bring it home.”

Lawrence is just one player that Harmer is tipping for international recognition sooner rather than later, declaring: “Dan has come on so much over the last few years, especially in 2019 and I would expect 2020 to be a big season for him.

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He said: “I was quite vocal on Finals Day about the small Club mentality, which I think was completely misread.

“What frustrates me is that people have this perception that Essex is a small Club, and therefore we set small targets. They couldn’t be more wrong.

“The way we look at it in the changing room is that with the current group of players we have, we can be a dominant force in county cricket. If we can keep the core together for the next five to eight years then there is no reason we can’t be competing for trophies each and every season.

“For the players, there was a real sense of pride about winning the Championship again this year. It showed that 2017 wasn’t a fluke, it showed that we are a force to be reckoned with and we plan on being so for the foreseeable future.”

Harmer admits that it will be hard for the Club to better what they achieved last time around, but he insists the aim is to carry on improving and carry on winning titles.

“We’ve set out the brand of cricket we want to play, in both the red-ball and white-ball competitions,” he commented, “so the aim for next year will be to carry on implementing and staying true to that.

“I think Jamie Porter has also been knocking on the England door for a long time. I think he’ll have a good winter and I foresee him getting an England call-up next year.

“We’ve found a formula that works, and we need to stick to that and carry on working hard and trying to be better than we were the previous year.

“It goes under the radar at points too, but I think Tom Westley was excellent last season. I think he’s going to have another strong year and I wouldn’t be surprised if he was back playing with England soon.

“We have a really talented squad, full of players who have the potential to play international cricket. If those players have those dreams and goals in mind and want to play for their country, it will only benefit us a team throughout the upcoming campaign.”

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CONTRACT NEWS EXTENSIONS:

BEN ALLISON The 19-year-old bowler signed his first professional contract back in August which runs until the end of the 2020 season.

AARON BEARD Beard took a career-best 4 wickets for 23 runs against Somerset back in June and celebrated by signing a two-year contract extension with the Club. The bowlers new deal will see him stay in Chelmsford until the end of the 2021 season.

NICK BROWNE After another successful year opening the batting, the 28-year-old penned a two-year extension running until the summer of 2021 and said: “Essex is my boyhood Club and very close to my heart, this is golden era for the Club and I feel this squad of players can win a lot more trophies over the next few years.”

WILL BUTTLEMAN After making several First Team appearances this season, the 19-year-old wicket-keeper signed his first professional contract and will stay with the side until the conclusion of the 2020 season.

VARUN CHOPRA Following a loan spell at Sussex, Essex Academy graduate Varun Chopra penned a one-year contract extension and said: “I’m excited to extend my contract and I love playing for the Club.”

FEROZE KHUSHI Khushi had a great year with the bat for the Second XI and the 20-year-old has signed a one-year contract extension with the Club. He’s one to watch and he will be looking to force his way into the First Team in 2020.

DAN LAWRENCE After one of his best campaigns to date in which he claimed the Batsman of the Year Award at the End of Season Gala Dinner, Lawrence committed his future to the Club by signing a contract extension running until the end of the 2021 season.

ARON NIJJAR The Second XI captain penned a one-year contract extension following a manic end to the season, in which he played a big part as the Eagles claimed a maiden T20 title at Edgbaston and a second Championship title in three years.

JAMIE PORTER A fan favourite at Chelmsford, 25-yearold Porter extended his contract until the end of the 2021 season, and said: “I’m really excited to commit my future to this great Club. As a player, all you want to do is win, and the fact I believe this team will be consistently winning and competing for trophies made the decision to sign an extension so much easier.”

MATT QUINN The New Zealander penned a two-year contract extension back in June and will remain in Chelmsford until at least the conclusion of the 2021 season.

SHANE SNATER The Dutch international featured prominently in the successful Vitality Blast campaign and at the end of the 2019 campaign, he signed a one-year contract extension.

RYAN TEN DOESCHATE The Club Captain joined Essex in 2003 and will begin his 18th season in Chelmsford when March 2020 rolls around. After captaining Essex to their second Championship title in three years, the 39-year-old signed a one-year extension that runs until the summer of 2020.

PAUL WALTER After another good year, the all-rounder signed a two-year contract extension and will remain in Chelmsford until the end of the 2021 season.

TOM WESTLEY Academy graduate Westley played a big role in both the Blast and Championship triumphs and penned a three-year contract extension back in July.

The top-order batsman said: “I’m delighted to extend my contract at Essex County Cricket Club. I have been here since I was 13 in the Academy, and have only ever seen my career and future at Essex.”

DEPARTURES: RAVI BOPARA After 18 successful years with the Club, Bopara decided to pursue a new challenge after failing to agree terms on a contract. The 34-year-old played 499 games across all formats for Essex and scored over 19,000 whilst taking more than 500 wickets. Bopara was a fundamental part of the Club’s recent triumphs, including the Pro40 League in 2005 and 2006, NatWest Trophy in 2008, Specsavers County Championship Division Two in 2016, Specsavers County Championship Division One in 2017 and 2019, and most notably the Vitality T20 Blast in 2019. The Club would like to thank Ravi for his fantastic contribution during his time at the Club and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavours.

MATT COLES Coles joined Essex from Kent in 2017 and played 22 matches across all formats for the Club, taking 38 wickets whilst scoring 187 runs. The Club would like to thank Matt for his efforts on the field and wish him the best of luck for the future.

19

20

OVERSEAS HEROES Overseas players often play a huge part in any Club’s success. Peter Siddle, Adam Zampa and Mohammad Amir all played vital roles in our Championship and Blast triumphs this year, so we thought we’d take a look back at the careers of some our very best Overseas signings.

MARK WAUGH (Essex 1988 -2002) When Allan Border had to return to Australia in August 1988 to prepare for his country’s forthcoming international series in Pakistan, he recommended Mark Waugh as his Overseas replacement. Waugh was virtually unknown but following his first appearance for the County, he became an overnight sensation with the Essex faithful.

He produced a stunning performance on debut when he scored 103 in the Sunday League match against Nottinghamshire at Colchester before claiming the wickets of international batsmen Tim Robinson and Derek Randall.

The County wasted no time in recruiting him as their Overseas player for the next three years and he proved a wonderful signing.

A quite brilliant batsman, as his record shows, he was a more than useful medium-pace bowler and wonderfully athletic fielder who also took some brilliant catches in the gully or at slip.

He was a superior force at the crease where his extrovert batting, that boasted clean hitting and superbly timed strokes, contrasted with his somewhat quiet and retiring public persona off the field.

The younger twin of Steve, who went onto skipper Australia with great success, Mark ended his first full season with Essex as the County’s leading run-scorer and then in 1990, aggregated more than 2000 Championship runs that included eight centuries, two of them double hundreds. It was little surprise that he won the first of his 128 Australia caps for his country that year.

Although he was unable to play county cricket in 1991 due to commitments for Australia, he returned to Essex for four months the following season. Playing with trademark pomp and authority, he scored 1,253 Championship runs at an average of 78.31 before leaving at the end of July to link up with Australia for their Test series in Sri Lanka.

To the delight of every Essex cricket fan, he returned in 1995 to resume his county career under new Captain Paul Prichard, and he thrilled the crowds once again amassing a combined 2,000 runs in the Championship and One-Day League matches.

Increasing Test match calls deemed that he would be unavailable for future Essex stints although there was to be a surprise a final swansong at the end of the 2002 season. With Andy Flower on duty with Zimbabwe in the ICC World Cup and Essex on the threshold of promotion back to Division One, Waugh agreed to play the final two Championship matches and two One-Day League fixtures.

He scored 117 against Durham in the first of those Championship matches then revealed immediately afterwards that it was the first time he had played a competitive innings since April. He followed that up with a 49 and a defining 76 against Nottinghamshire at Chelmsford, which helped his adopted County clinch the Division Two title and return to the top-flight.

In his 82 first-class matches for Essex during which he scored 22 centuries, Mark totalled 6,690 runs at an average of 69.73, whilst he also recorded five hundreds amongst his 2,292 runs from 93 List A outings.

Named as one of Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year in 1991, upon retirement, Waugh became a Test selector and is now a cricket commentator.

21

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SECOND XI

SEASON REVIEW

The two finals of 2018 meant that it was always going to be a difficult year to follow, but the Second XI continued to produce highlights, alongside player progression for the First XI. The Championship campaign saw a third-place finish in the South Group, but four of games were severely affected by the weather. Victories were achieved over Gloucestershire and Surrey, with the latter coming inside two days.

Feroze Khushi (567) was the sixth-highest run-scorer in the Championship, but one of only three batsmen to exceed 300 runs this season. Six batsmen scored centuries, with Khushi (156) and Shane Snater (149) recording their personal Championship bests, with Snater’s coming in an Essex Championship record 8th wicket partnership of 233 with Will Buttleman (80*) against Kent at Tunbridge Wells.

Aron Nijjar again topped the competition wicket-takers table with 32, repeating his success of 2018, and Ben Allison made an instant impression with 29 wickets at 15.34 apiece to end up third overall.

The Trophy saw two wins and three defeats alongside one no result. Wins over Kent and Gloucestershire were the highlights. Ben Allison led the way with 9 wickets, but mention must be made of Aron Nijjar’s 8 wickets which came at less than 12 apiece.

The Second XI came within 1 point of a return to T20 Finals Day, and the final match of the season, a defeat by just 3

runs against Hampshire, saw the opposition go to Arundel instead, where they were beaten by Glamorgan in the Final. The team hit three scores of over 200, which means Essex now holds the three highest innings scores in the competition.

Michael Pepper was the second-highest run-scorer overall with 445, a total boosted by two centuries, including a new competition record 132 not out.

Ravi Bopara hit 122 not out at Taunton Vale against Somerset to end with the fourth-highest aggregate to add to his 11 wickets.

Mention should also go to Shenfield’s Jack Potticary, who ended as the leading wicketkeeper, with Essex one of four teams he played for in the competition.

The main highlight though was the progression of the young players into senior cricket with Ben Allison (on loan at Gloucestershire), Aaron Beard, Will Buttleman, Aron Nijjar, Rishi Patel, Michael Pepper, Shane Snater and Paul Walter all making contributions at First XI level.

The friendly games saw some remarkable results and performances, not least a 575-run victory over Kent, in which Varun Chopra (267) and Feroze Khushi (201) hit career-best scores in a 3rd wicket partnership of 347 out of a team score of 608-6 declared. The team also recorded a T20 victory at Garon Park over a Netherlands XI who went on to win T20 games against both Gloucestershire and Glamorgan First XI’s in a short UK tour.

23

ndon

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THE ROAD TO EDGBASTON FINALS DAY

FRIDAY 19TH JULY

y Essex Eagles v Surre EAGLES WIN BY 52 RUNS

SATURDAY 21ST SEP TEMBER

WORCESTERSHIRE RAP IDS V EAGLES WIN BY ESSEX EAGLES 4 wickets

FRIDAY 2ND AUGUST

GLOUCESTERSHIRE V ESSEX EAGLES

EAGLES WIN BY 25 RUNS

GUST THURSDAY 22ND AU

Sussex Sharks v Essex Eagles

EAGLES WIN BY 9 RUNS

THURSDAY 29TH AU GUST

SURREY V ESSEX EAGLES

EAGLES WIN BY 19 RUNS

TEMBER SATURDAY 21ST SEP

X EAGLES E S S E V S N O C L A F E IR H DERBYS

EAGLES WIN BY 34 RUNS

QUARTER-FINAL WEDNESDAY 4TH SE PTEMBER EAGLES WIN BY 6 wickets

L ANCASHIRE LIGHTNING V ESSEX EAGLES

ST FRIDAY 30TH AUGU

KENT SPITFIRES V X EAGLES E S S E N BY

EAGLES WI 10 RUNS

25

SAM COOK:

It’s been quite the year for Sam Cook. The 22-year-old recorded 38 wickets across all formats, his highest tally in a season, with Essex becoming the first side in history to win the T20 and Championship double in the same season, and the Chelmsford-born bowler admits everything still sinking in.

“It’s still taking a bit of time to get my head around what we have achieved this season,” Cook said, “to back up the first title in 2017 with this one is an incredible effort from this group of players and I think it signifies that we are the top red-ball county in the game right now.

“To win the T20 is also a real bonus too. It’s something that you dream of growing up after watching in on television. It was an amazing day and one I will never forget.

“At the start of the season we set out to try and win all three trophies with a genuine belief we could. But still, you need a lot of things to go your way and a lot of big performances to achieve that.

“If someone had said to me three years ago you’d have won two Championships and a Blast, two being part of a double, I’d have laughed in their face. But saying that, at the start of this year I probably wouldn’t have been that surprised simply because of the faith I and the whole team have in our dressing room.”

The heroics at Edgbaston which saw the Eagles claim a maiden T20 title will live long in the memory, but Cook didn’t actually think he would be playing on the day.

He said: “Well where do I start about Finals Day? It was a completely crazy time to be honest. I hadn’t played in the

26

THE 2019 CAMPAIGN, ENGLAND LIONS & THE FUTURE

first game but Harmy mentioned to me briefly after to be ready for the Final, but I didn’t really expect to be playing.

“It wasn’t until about a minute before we went out for the warm up that Mags [Anthony McGrath] grabbed me and said you’re in. I didn’t really have time to process it as we were straight out getting ready to the tune of Mr Motivator!”

It was a tense Final and there were wild celebrations as Simon Harmer scored the winning runs on the last ball, with Cook saying: “I think that the few minutes of footage and in the hours afterwards show just what this Club is all about.

Not just celebrating as a team but the whole squad, support staff, families and all the fans that made the trip.

“This is a huge family Club and it’s a complete team effort, and by team, that’s not just the eleven on the pitch playing.”

The T20 side were led by Simon Harmer this year, and Cook was full of praise for his teammate, saying: “I think his stats speak for themselves, he really is a world-class performer and arguably the best off-spinner in the world right now.

“As a person, he’s equally great too and he always keeps the boys going both on and off the field.”

Harmer picked up several awards at the Club’s End of Season Gala Dinner in September, where Little Chef also claimed the First XI Young Player of the Year for the second successive year.

Cook was naturally pleased and said: “That was also a real highlight for me, to be recognised by the Club for your achievements on the field is always a great boost so I was really delighted.”

There we so many standout moments this season for the Club, and Cook found it impossible to pinpoint just one highpoint, saying: “There were obviously so many, but if I had to pick a few it would be the quarter-final win against Lancashire Lightning at Durham, obviously Finals Day, and then the bus journey back from Taunton…”

The 22-year-old modestly left out his performance against Kent at Canterbury, in which he took an outstanding 12 wickets for just 65 runs with Kent being bowled out for 40 in their second innings.

Cook’s performance helped Essex secure a vital victory towards the end of the season, and he said: “To pick up 5 wickets in the first innings was a massive relief for me after being out injured for a while before that.

“Come the second innings though, I knew with the state of the game we simply had to bowl them out for next to nothing, so it was a case of bowling some really attacking areas with aggressive field settings too.

“It all happened pretty quickly, but in the context of the season I think it was a key point in keeping up on Somerset’s heels.”

Following on from another successful campaign, there have been murmurings of an England Lions call-up for Cook, on which he commented: “I mean, that’s something you’re always striving for as a young player, so to receive a call-up would be nice.

“At the minute though I’m just concentrating on taking wickets for Essex and hopefully with that comes higher honours at some stage.”

The triumphs Essex achieved this year were unprecedented, and Cook is confident that the side can reclaim the trophies in 2020, commenting: “We want to defend our titles and continue with the mindset of trying to win all three.

“As a group, we have said that we really want to dominate the Championship for the foreseeable future, and I think we’re moving on the right track.

I think now we want to try and transfer that into our white-ball cricket and aim for a similar degree of consistency throughout those campaigns.”

On his own goals for next season, Cook keeps it nice and straightforward, saying: “I try to keep it really simple, and just set out to play as many games as I possibly can and in doing that, the wickets should be taking care of themselves.”

After coming through the Essex Academy himself, the seamer is tipping a few more homegrown players to have successful campaigns in 2020.

“We’ve got some really exciting young talent,” he said, “for the young lads coming through, I think Ben Allison has a big future ahead of him and I don’t think it’ll be too long until we see him in the First Team.

“I think Michael Pepper isn’t too far away either, he’s put in some outstanding performances in the Second XI and we’ve seen glimpses of that in the First Team.

But on a whole, we’ve got a squad with youth and depth, so the future is certainly looking bright.”

27

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BOUNDARY CLUB NEWS WHAT A YEAR!

A most unusual sight at Taunton in late September: Essex Boundary Club Members on an away trip sheltering from the rain and for the first time ever, happy not to be seeing any play! They knew that with every drop of rain that fell, the chances of Essex regaining the Championship pennant were increasing by the minute. And so it came to pass, just five days after the Eagles won the Blast competition for the first time in a thrilling final at Edgbaston.

To mark the fantastic 2019 double, the Boundary Club will be having a celebration dinner at The Cloudfm County Ground before the start of the 2020 season - details to be advised as soon as we can with EBC Members having priority. Watch this space.

In our Bonanza raffle, Ken Brazier was paired with Simon Harmer to win £250 plus a further £100 for the best bowling analysis as Simon’s 8 for 98 were the best figures of the season. We also felt that Sam Cook’s 7 for 23 in that memorable game at Kent was a worthy winner and so made a special £50 prize payment to Mr T Sargent who had drawn Little Chef in the raffle. In the batting department, Tom Westley was the top run-scorer across all competitions with Geoff Bendall winning the £250 prize. Michael Oliver drew Nick Browne who scored the highest score in an innings this season, winning Michael the £100 prize.

GRASSROOTS Part of the Boundary Club mission is to help develop young players and support the game at grassroots level. We support our President, Graham Gooch and his Academy, which does so much to help young players develop their game. We are also delighted to sponsor the Essex Under-19 T20 tournament which now has the Final played at Chelmsford. This year, after several appearances at Finals Day (sound familiar?)

Colchester and East Essex won the trophy for the first time in a tight game which went to the last over to beat Saffron Walden. Vice Chairman, Annie Northfield was on hand to present the handsome trophy (pictured).

THANKS TO THE SPONSORS As always, we must thank our sponsors, Len Collins of Purified Air and Anne’s Pantry, purveyors of some of the best street food on the circuit. We would also like to mention the keen fans who have the Orange Tree as their base. They have been incredibly helpful and generous in their fund raising on behalf of the Boundary Club.

INTO THE 2020 SEASON With just one more big event remaining, our annual City Lunch which is a complete sell-out, thoughts turn to 2020.

Besides the special dinner mentioned above we will be having our usual early and late season lunches and will work with our official travel organiser, Klarners, to come up with some attractive away trips. All this is fixture list dependent and we will firm up plans as soon as possible in the New Year. Look out for details in the next issue of this magazine which will also have details of the AGM. Winter well, and see you next season.

29

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NOW AND THEN‌

35 YEARS ON FROM THE DOUBLE Essex wrote a special place in cricket history in 2019 when they became the first club to win the Championship and T20 titles in the same year.

Back in 1984, Keith Fletcher’s side also achieved the double when they won the Championship and John Player Special League. But that was the last time Essex had enjoyed two major successes in the domestic calendar.

With a curious twist of fate, Taunton was the venue those 35 years ago where the Championship was decided. With one game remaining, Essex and Nottinghamshire were scrapping it out for bragging rights to be crowned Champions with the Midlanders four points ahead in the race for the top honour. Victory for Notts against Somerset would guarantee them the title irrespective of the result of the Essex match with Lancashire. As it happened, Essex swept the Red Rose County aside in two days at Old Trafford and all attention was focussed on events down in the West Country for the final day of the season.

A gripping affair at Taunton left Notts requiring 30 runs from the last three overs and when the last over started, they still wanted 14 with their last pair at the crease. Ten runs were collected from the first three deliveries before the next was a dot ball. Then Mike Bore, one of the games genuine rabbits, struck the next ball high and long. Initially, it seemed to be clearing the boundary until losing height and descending into the hands of Richard Ollis stationed just inside the boundary to give Somerset the win and allowing Essex to retain their title by a 14-point margin.

A further similarity between the 1984 title winners and that of the present year is that on every occasion a Championship victory was recorded, the opposition were bowled out twice - no need for declaration games!

Looking back to 1984, Championship cricket was played over three days with the regulations insisting on 117 overs being bowled on days one and two with 110 on the final day.

With the likes of the legendary Graham Gooch and South African Ken McEwan proving key contributors with the bat, Essex were one of the most entertaining and attractive sides to watch. In 1983, the Championship schedule spanned 24 matches with Gooch collecting 2,281 runs at an average of 69.12, whilst Overseas player McEwan scored 1,563 at 47.36. Chris Gladwin and Keith Fletcher offered the most meaningful support with 1,141 and 932 runs respectively.

An outstanding bowling attack was led by John Lever who claimed 106 Championship wickets with new ball partner Neil Foster taking 78 despite missing several matches through injury, whilst Derek Pringle claimed 55 wickets and Gooch 36 victims. With such a plethora of wickets falling to the pacemen, and with Ray East on the cusp of retirement, David Acfield was entrusted to capitalise when skipper Fletcher turned to spin and he responded with 43 wickets.

Fletcher was a master tactician who still boasts one of the finest cricket brains. He led the side with authority and great success yet would seldom shirk from chasing the opportunity of a win backing his charges to prevail often when the odds appeared against them. So effective was his judgement that only three matches of the 24 were lost with eight drawn, although, had not the weather intervened in a number of those stalemates, the success ratio would have been even greater.

Fletcher, a one-time England Captain, was awarded an OBE in 1985. He played for Essex from 1962 until 1988 and was a pivotal figure throughout the dynasty of success that the Club enjoyed from 1979 until 1992. The twin trophies of 1984 took the number of major titles during his tenure to six, and there were more to come in the ensuing years as the juggernaut of achievement rolled on.

Unlike the modern-day set-up, there were no specialist one-day players, generally those that played the three-day game would appear in the limited-overs affairs learning to adapt to the demands that the afternoon game brought. In 1984, the one-day competition spanned 40 overs, with there being no T20 back then.

Again the two protagonists for the limited-overs title that season were Essex and Notts, but the side from Chelmsford clinched the title with two matches remaining after winning 12 of their 16 matches with just three defeats and one tied encounter.

The batting phenomena that were Gooch and McEwan amassed 613 and 535 runs respectively in the Sunday League whilst Derek Pringle struck 387 runs, Gladwin 382 and Fletcher 357 runs. Lever again led the attack with 23 wickets whilst Norbert Phillip claimed 20 and all-rounder Stuart Turner took 17 wickets.

As in 2019, it was a memorable, wonderful summer!

31

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ALASTAIR COOK: TAUNTON, NEXT SEASON & MARCUS TRESCOTHICK Alastair Cook has been there and done it all. He’s scored the most Test runs for England (12,472) and has captained his country to two Ashes victories. Yet when batting down at Taunton with the Championship on the line, he was feeling the heat.

Cook said: “I was nervous all week, there’s always going to be little twists and turns. You don’t bat on a wicket like that and just cruise, you need a little bit of luck on those wickets.”

The 34-year-old used all of his experience to hold firm, and Essex finished 45-1 with the Captains shaking hands just before the close of play. Cook scored a vital 53 in the first innings and followed that up with an unbeaten 30 in the second.

He added: “I have played in sub-continent conditions quite a lot, and I suppose that’s where my experience comes from with a unique method.”

The draw meant that Essex secured a second Championship title in three years, on which Cook said: “This is so special.

All that stuff (knighthood) is great, but it’s about the memories you create with this group of guys. There is a lot of home-grown Essex players and that’s great for our success.”

And on next season, the ex-England Captain was quick to reveal that the Club fully intends to defend their title, saying: “Obviously we don’t want to look too far ahead, but next year is the same group of players and it could be quite special.”

After achieving so much in the game, a lot of people speculated that maybe Cook would bow out with this as his final innings if Essex reclaimed the Championship, but he has assured Essex fans that this won’t be the case.

He revealed: “I have had a few texts saying ‘if you win the league, is that it?’ But I’ve promised Tendo [Essex captain Ryan ten Doeschate] I’ll play for another year at least.

“This keeps you young. You’ve got the 19 and 20-year-olds who put music on the iPod you’ve never heard of and all that kind of stuff.

“I’m not actually that old, but I’ve got a few miles in the legs on a cricket field. I feel like an old man trying to run between the wickets!”

The match down at Taunton will not only be remembered as the game that Essex secured their eighth Championship title, but also as the final match of Marcus Trescothick’s career.

The 43-year-old announced in June that he would retire at the end of the season and bring down the curtain on a first-class career that started in 1993.

The former England man received a huge ovation as he came on to the field as a substitute fielder for the final few minutes, with Cook saying: “He was out there sledging me!

“He said ‘This will be a story if I catch you right at the end’. Luckily Dominic Bess bowled me one on leg-stump, which I could clip and get away.

“But what a career Tres has had. To play for 27 years is extraordinary.”

33

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WOMEN’S XI SEASON REVIEW

The Essex Women’s team enjoyed another successful season, with real progression made in both the County Championship 50-over and T20 competitions.

With the 50-over campaign occurring at the start of the season, Kelly Castle’s side played their first game against Middlesex at The Cloudfm County Ground, the home of Essex Cricket.

Looking to get their season off to a good start, the team put in a solid all-round performance to bowl the visitors out for 160 in 40.1 overs, with Castle taking 3 for 16.

In reply, strong partnerships were built, and a special mention must go to Beth Dodd for her marathon batting performance which put the team in a really strong position. With a loud home crowd, Essex knocked off the runs with 8 overs to spare.

This was just one of the highlights from the 2019 season, with plenty of other standout performers throughout the year, such as Jessica Bird for her consistency with the bat and Anje Lague for her effective and economical off-spin. The team went on to finish third, just 4 points behind second-place and narrowly missing promotion.

The T20 competition couldn’t have got off to a better start, with Essex winning the first three games against Somerset, Yorkshire and Derbyshire.

Mady Villiers was in fine form with the bat from the off, and her scores of 55 runs from 57 balls and 52 runs from 45 balls were key to the blistering start.

Unfortunately, with three important games being cancelled, the team ended up finishing joint fifth with both Yorkshire and Scotland, again narrowly missing out on promotion, this time by just 2 points.

Captain Kelly Castle was proud with her team’s efforts and said: “Although we missed out on promotion in both formats, we were so close to those top spots and the standard of cricket that was played this year was higher than ever.

“This was the highest that we’ve finished in either competitions for a number of years, and I’m so proud of everyone in the team for putting in the hard work and proving their potential.”

Further than Essex, after Mady Villiers’ selection for the England Academy over the winter, her hard work didn’t go unnoticed and she was selected to play in the T20 series of the Ashes. On debut, she made impressive figures of 2 for 20.

The structure of women’s cricket is set to change over the winter, but one thing that is for sure is that the side will continue to improve on their skills and will continue to take on the challenges and opportunities that the 2020 season will bring.

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LAST SEASON IN NUMBERS It was another memorable season for everyone at The Cloudfm County Ground, but which players performed best in each format.

Here, we do some number crunching to find out…

913 725

794

83

34

COOK

HARMER

LAWRENCE

SIDDLE

WESTLEY

PORTER

Runs

421 270

Wickets

12 373

SIDDLE

LAWRENCE

BOPARA

WESTLEY

COLES

Runs

Wickets

409

17 386

12

DELPORT

HARMER

WESTLEY

ZAMPA

LAWRENCE Runs

37

9

8

CHOPRA

363

48

12

BOPARA

Wickets 37

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ARON NIJJAR:

FINALS DAY, TAUNTON & THE FUTURE

Imagine making your first appearance of the season at Finals Day. There is packed out crowd, Sky Sports are broadcasting the games to the entire world and you’re called into the team to replace your Overseas spinner. It’s not your normal scenario, but it is exactly what happened to Aron Nijjar.

The 25-year-old said: “With Zampa going, and the fact we wanted to keep the same sort of formula, it was clear we’d be needing two spinners. I had an inkling I might play after the way the wicket played in the first semi-final [Notts Outlaws v Worcestershire Rapids]. It was a wicket that was conducive to spin.

“I was quite nervous and anxious beforehand, but once I got into the swing of things it was all right. You don’t have too much time to be nervous with everything that’s going on. It was just really nice to get on the board early with a wicket and build my way into that first game and set myself up for the Final.”

Nijjar stunned the 25,000 people in attendance, taking 3 for 26 against Derbyshire Falcons in the semi-final, more than justifying Simon Harmer’s decision to include him in the XI. Before the game, journalists in the press box were scrambling frantically for his statistics, with many not too sure on who he was, but they’ll certainly know now.

In the Final that followed just over an hour later, he didn’t manage to claim a wicket, but bowled tightly enough to help deliver a first T20 title for the Eagles after only being hit for 31 runs from his 4 overs.

Head Coach Anthony McGrath described the scenes at Edgbaston as “unbelievable” and on the celebrations, Nijjar

said: “We’ve got a very tight-knit squad, so everyone is very close in terms of the celebrations, whether you’ve played all the games or not. Everyone gets stuck in.

“Everyone’s truly happy for each other and how well they’ve done. But it was nice to be involved, to have contributed to the wins and been part of the celebrations.”

It’s quite astonishing to think that the 25-year-old had only played in one competitive T20 match before Finals Day, with Nijjar adding: “Yes, it has been a long time coming.

“We’ve signed [Ashar] Zaidi, who’s come and gone since then, and [Simon] Harmer, so it has been tough to get in the side when we’ve been playing with one spinner. But the wicket was conducive to spin, so it was slightly easier to get in.”

Two days later it was a no-brainer for Essex to pick him on the spin-friendly pitch at Taunton, with Nijjar saying: “It was one of those wickets that was going to turn the longer the game went on. And as you could see from how hard we had to battle with the bat, I’m sure it would have been lovely to have bowled on.”

Despite 17 of the 21 wickets falling to spin in the match, Nijjar bowled just 28 balls. However, he did mark his 25th birthday with the key wicket of Roelof van der Merwe, bowled trying to reverse sweep, just when the South African looked set to take the initiative away from Essex.

Essex held their nerve to secure a draw, which was enough to deliver another Championship title, the second for the Club in three years, capping off a truly memorable week for Aron and everybody associated with the Club.

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4

ESSEX ABILITY

COUNTY CHAMPIONS 2019

The Essex Ability D40 team became National Champions for the first time after winning the Final in late September.

The team have had a great campaign in what has been one of the closet league seasons for many years. Having been runners-up in the South Division, Essex headed to their semi-final on 25 August at Kidderminster to take on Lancashire Disability side. Batting first, Essex made 216-7 from their 40 overs, courtesy of a great knock from Matt Edwards. Essex then took regular wickets and with the light fading, Lancashire fell to 165 all out, meaning that Essex had won by 51 runs and had booked their place in the Final against Surrey.

After being runners-up in 2017 and losing in the semi-final in 2018 on a bowl out, Essex were looking to go one further and bring the title home. Surrey would prove to be a tough opposition having already beaten Essex in the group stages.

Despite the forecast looking wet, the game was able to start on time. Essex won the toss and chose to bat first, but lost both openers early to find themselves 25-2 after five overs.

Skipper Lee Walker and Joe Freestone steadied the ship and put on a great reply. Despite two rain delays, one of which threatened to cancel the game completely, they pushed on and shared a 185-run partnership. Freestone fell with one ball remaining on 88 and Walker ended 92 not out to give Essex a total of 210-3 after 32 overs.

Surrey started their reply well and kept up with the run rate.

At the halfway point they were 105-1 and looked on course to chase down the total, but Essex regrouped at the drinks break and took a wicket just three balls after the restart. This allowed Essex to put the squeeze on and slow the run rate down. Walker got his fielding positions spot on and backed it up with some accurate bowling from himself and the other bowlers meaning the next 10 overs only went for just 33 runs.

This ultimately gave Surrey too much to do and they finished off 28 runs short giving Essex the title.

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OVERSEAS HEROES KEITH BOYCE (Essex 1966 -1977) A dynamic right-handed batsman and hostile right-arm bowler, Keith remains one of the most exciting imports to have played for the County. Spotted by Trevor Bailey, who had been playing in the Caribbean, the 21-year-old Barbadian was persuaded to join Essex and spent 12 years with the Club from 1966 to 1977 before continuous knee problems finally ended his career.

He was a fine all-round sportsman and epitomised the Essex philosophy of having fun and playing the game with a smile. He was only allowed to play friendly matches during a 2-year qualifying period but made a stunning debut taking 9 for 61 against Cambridge University at Brentwood and 4 for 47 in the second innings. Whilst waiting to be unleashed for Essex, he spent his time playing Club cricket for Walthamstow.

His maiden Championship century came against Hampshire in June 1969 when he scored 147 in just three hours. In 1975, he scored a century in 58 minutes against Leicestershire facing conventional bowling throughout his innings. It was the fastest domestic hundred for 38 years and included 8 sixes and 7 fours. He also returned 12 for 73 in the same match but finished on the losing side!

Amongst a catalogue of notable other achievements was his innings of 98 from 54 balls in the John Player League against Surrey at The Oval in 1971. Later in the competition that summer, he returned 8 for 26 against Lancashire at Old Trafford and claimed a hat-trick against Somerset at Westcliff. He became the first player to complete the Sunday League double of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets.

Had he played in the modern era, he would have been an automatic inclusion for a T20 side anywhere in the world.

He scored 6,848 runs and took 662 wickets in 211 firstclass matches for Essex plus 2,249 runs and 243 wickets in 149 List A games. He was also a brilliant, athletic fielder as recalled by his Essex Captain Keith Fletcher who said: “He had a wonderful arm and the ball was often returned from the outfield like a cannon. We all backed up when Boycey had the ball.”

He was capped 21 times for West Indies and was named as one of Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year in 1974.

His heavy workload took its toll on his knees and he was forced to retire in 1977, and after an emotional farewell to Chelmsford, he returned to Barbados. He took a position running the Barbados Cricket Association lottery and coaching youngsters, but sadly, on his 53rd birthday, he collapsed and died of a heart attack.

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CLUB NEWS

GROUND IMPROVEMENTS Parts of The Cloudfm County Ground are set to be redeveloped over the winter months. Firstly, the River Gate entrance will undergo five months of work to make entering and exiting the ground a more straightforward process.

“Musco Lighting have devised a new system which will allow the floodlight masts themselves to be lit up in various colours. This is the first time that this technology has been used on any floodlight on the circuit.”

Once completed, the River Gate entrance will have full wheelchair access both within the stadium and upon approach. Lights will also be installed along the entire underpass to provide improved entry and egress to the stadium, particularly on night matches.

Lastly, two SIS grass hybrid wickets are set to be fitted on the square over the winter. The pitches are designed to help ease the pressure on the pitches by improving wear and maintaining quality for longer.

There will also be new toilet facilities installed underneath the scoreboard at the far end of the Hayes Close section.

Four new LED floodlights are set to be installed at The Cloudfm County Ground, with work set to begin in November. The work will take several months to complete, and each pylon will be 40 metres high and 1.8 metres deep into the ground, weighing six tonnes apiece.

Stadium Operations Director Graham Childs said: “These new LED floodlights use state of the art technology and are a lot more efficient than conventional floodlights. They last a lot longer, they light up immediately and they use less electricity meaning they’re much more cost-effective.

The SIS grass hybrid system is a new innovation within cricket, but has been used on both rugby and football pitches for several years.

Synthetic fibres are stitched into the square along the full length of the pitch. These fibres then urge the roots from the grass above to grow down their length, helping to bind the soil, fibres and roots together to ensure that pitches can be used for longer.

Head Groundsman Stuart Kerrison said: “This is a really interesting and exciting development in cricket, and I’m pleased that we’ve chosen to install some hybrid pitches here at Chelmsford.

“The new system encourages natural growth to increase the quality of the pitches through a synthetic fibre reinforcement of the loam within the square.”

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY MEMBERSHIP DATES: Key Membership Dates Early Bird Discount Period Ends: Tuesday 31 December 2019 Members’ Ticket Priority Begins: Saturday 1 February 2020 Members’ Packs Sent: Wednesday 18 March 2020

2020 CRICKET SEASON: Pre-Season Tour: Abu Dhabi: Monday 9 - Sunday 22 March 2020 MCC Champion County Match: Tuesday 24 –Friday 27 March 2020 Vitality Blast Finals Day: Saturday 5 September 2020 One-Day Cup Final: Saturday 19 September 2020

EVENTS: Members’ Christmas Lunch: Thursday 10 December A full list of confirmed dates plus the fixtures will be published in the Spring Edition of The Essex Cricketer in 2020.

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A LOOK AHEAD TO 2020

Following an incredible 2019 season, attention now turns to 2020. It is time to focus on the future and this squad is keen to carry on building a legacy that will be remembered for years to come.

The 2020 campaign will see the introduction of the new Hundred competition, which is set to take place next summer. Its emergence will see our Vitality Blast campaign moved forward, whilst the One-Day Cup competition will be pushed back to the later stages of the season to fall in line with The Hundred.

New teams will head to Chelmsford in the Championship, with three teams promoted from Division Two last year.

Lancashire, Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire all make the step up to Division One in 2020 after excellent campaigns. Lancashire clinched the title after an impressive season, with standout performances from Dane Vilas, Liam Livingstone, Keaton Jennings, Graham Onions, Richard Gleeson and Jimmy Anderson.

Somerset, Hampshire, Kent, Yorkshire, Surrey and Warwickshire will make up Division One with Yorkshire and Surrey looking to improve on disappointing seasons in 2019. Surrey were Champions just a year ago and will be desperate to move back to the top of Division One, whilst Yorkshire were in the hunt for the title for a long time in 2019 before falling off the pace dramatically. Essex, however, will be looking to defend their crown, and with all Club’s likely to strengthen, we are going to see a very competitive Championship season.

The Royal London One-Day Cup was Essex’s only downfall in 2019, with the Eagles failing to make it out of the South

Group. Ryan ten Doeschate’s side started the campaign with a thumping win over Glamorgan, winning by 180 runs in Wales, but fell off the pace towards the end of April.

There’s no doubt that the side will want to improve on their efforts and qualification to the knockout stages will be the target for 2020.

The Vitality Blast will return to The Cloudfm County Ground with the Eagles looking to defend their title in front of sell-out crowds at Chelmsford. Simon Harmer’s side finished their T20 campaign in spectacular fashion last season, winning three of their four final South Group matches to qualify for the knockout stages and then going on to win at Finals Day despite being labelled as the underdogs. Overseas signings Mohammad Amir and Adam Zampa were outstanding with the ball, along with Captain Harmer, who recorded the best ever figures on a Finals Day with 7 for 35. Explosive batsman Cameron Delport will be returning to Chelmsford in 2020, whilst Tom Westley and Dan Lawrence will also be looking for another good year after successful T20 campaigns with the bat.

A perfect blend of youth and experience will look to challenge across all fronts in 2020, with emerging players in Rishi Patel, Feroze Khushi and Ben Allison seeking regular opportunities should they become available. The Academy production line shows no sign of dwindling and all will be looking to get involved in the First Team setup and learn from the likes of Ryan ten Doeschate, Alastair Cook, Simon Harmer and Tom Westley next year.

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