Sharkbite - Royal London One-Day Cup 2017

ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP PROGRAMME FOR MATCHES VS. SOMERSET, GLAMORGAN AND SURREY APRIL/MAY 2017 | £2

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CONTENTS SPRING/SUMMER 2017

04 LUKE WRIGHT

22

RETURN TO EASTBOURNE

07 ROB ANDREW

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SUSSEX GOLD

08 Ajmal Shahzad

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in numbers

The Sharks captain believes his side can be a force in the 2017 RLODC

Our Chief Executive welcomes you to the 1st Central County Ground

New Dad Ajmal is ready to show his best for Sussex

10 BOB WARREN

Sussex’s new chairman outlines his vision for the county

13 laurie evans

Tales from the Saffrons as Sussex head east again

Ian Gould remembers the 1986 NatWest Trophy triumph

The key stats from Sussex’s history in List A cricket

PRINTED BY: L&S PRINT EDITORIAL: BRUCE TALBOT (mbpsportsmedia.co.uk) CONTRIBUTORS: JOHN BARNETT DESIGN: PLEECE & CO PHOTOGRAPHY: SOUTHERN NEWS AND PICTURES, GETTY IMAGES, SUSSEX CCC ARCHIVE (THANKS, PHIL BARNES)

New arrival desperate for a quick return to Lord’s

14 Team Poster

This year’s Royal London One-Day Cup squad – in their new pink shirts!

16 know your enemy

The run down on our South Group rivals and the fixtures

18 Pink and Yellow

and Blue and Green The history of the coloured kit – Sussex style (right)

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Your Captain Speaking

Hello and welcome to our 2017 Royal London One-Day Cup campaign.

As someone who has played in a Lord’s final for Sussex, back in 2006 and 2009, I can vouch for what a special day that is for everyone associated with the club – players, backroom staff and, of course, supporters. Winning that final against Lancashire in 2006, and in such a dramatic fashion, remains one of the highlights of my Sussex career and I’d love to take us back there this season.

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There is no getting away from the fact that our form in this competition in the last couple of years has been very disappointing. We talked at the start of 2015 and 2016 about improving our white-ball cricket but for various reasons it just didn’t happen. Now is the time to do something about it.

I think there are a couple of big factors in our favour this season. The first is the timing of the 2017 Royal London One-Day Cup. In recent years, when the competition has been played in a block of matches midseason, we have often gone

ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP PROGRAMME 2017

into it a bit fatigued, suffering from more than our fair share of injuries and not carrying a great deal of momentum from other formats.

Well this year it’s once again in a block but at the start of the season where no team can complain about tiredness.

Conditions will be different too. In recent years, we have played 50 over games on quite a few used, slow wickets around the country. Playing games in April and May means there is bound to be a bit of nip and I think we have the bowlers to take advantage of that.

LUKE WRIGHT

LUKE WRIGHT LOOKS FORWARD TO THIS SEASON’S ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP Which brings me onto my second reason to be optimistic about our chances. We have definitely, in my opinion, got a stronger squad which is very well suited to the fluctuations of one-day cricket. Guys like Laurie Evans, who won this competition with Warwickshire last year, Stiaan van Zyl and David Wiese have got massive experience while the two South African lads also help balance the team because they can bat and bowl.

It’s a shame Vernon Philander isn’t going to be with us because of injury but we are well stocked in terms of bowling resources.

No one who saw him take five wickets against Somerset at Taunton last year won’t have been impressed with the potential of Jofra Archer, who has continued where he left off in the early weeks of this season. George Garton played one-day games for England Lions in 2016, Ajmal Shahzad is a proven white-ball bowler and then there are the experienced lads, of whom I count myself, Chris Nash and Ben Brown to add to the mix.

Because it is so early in the season, we’ve also been able to tailor some of our pre-season practice with the RLODC in mind and we are looking forward to making our mark in what will be a very

competitive group.

With four teams going through to the knockout stages there is every incentive for us. We need to trust in our skills and the ability to deliver them on a consistent basis, make sure we win the key moments in the game and, above all, enjoy the challenge!

I look forward to seeing you at our three games at Hove and also the Gloucestershire match on May 14 when we return to Eastbourne for the first time in 17 years.

SOME OF SUSSEX’S NEW FACES HOPING TO MAKE AN IMPRESSION IN THE ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP: DELRAY RAWLINS, ABI SAKANDE, LAURIE EVANS AND STIAAN VAN ZYL

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ROB ANDREW A WARM WELCOME TO THE 1ST CENTRAL COUNTY GROUND FOR OUR OPENING THREE HOME MATCHES IN THE ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP I’d also like to extend our welcome to the players, supporters and officials of Somerset, Glamorgan and Surrey who we entertain here at Hove in a busy period of eight days.

After last year’s tournament was interspersed with NatWest T20 Blast matches, this season the Royal London One-Day Cup takes centre stage for almost the next three weeks as we play eight matches in the South Group.

We also travel to Middlesex, Kent, Essex and Hampshire for our away matches in this stage of the campaign and of course there is a trip to The Saffrons, Eastbourne on 14th May and we are very much looking forward to taking cricket back to the east of

the county, with the match against Gloucestershire.

With the rise of T20 cricket in recent seasons, the 50-over tournament has almost taken a backseat in the calendar but this certainly won’t be the view of the players with a the prize of a Lord’s final in the offing for the two successful teams, and we of course hope that the Sharks can make strides towards the Home of Cricket this summer.

We’ve also allowed juniors in for these three games at Hove with our ‘Kids Go Free’ scheme. We’re really excited about seeing more families in the ground this summer across all three formats and we hope to attract many younger supporters.

Don’t forget, there is a very special 50-over match taking place here on Friday 19th May when South Africa are the visitors. This game is one

not to be missed with South Africa eager to prepare for the ICC Champions Trophy and this looks set to be a fantastic occasion.

I look forward to seeing you around the ground during the season.

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WHO’S THE DADDY? New father Ajmal Shahzad is confident of making a big impression this season

By Bruce Talbot

Much has been made of the emergence of the trio of young fast bowlers at Sussex in the last 12 months.

But while Jofra Archer, Stuart Whittingham and George Garton look to move their respective careers forward this season a teammate with a lot more miles on the clock is planning to make just as big an impression.

Ajmal Shahzad admits Sussex supporters haven’t seen the best of him on a consistent basis since he came to the club from Nottinghamshire two years ago. Injuries haven’t helped.

He had an ankle problem in 2015 and last season was hampered by a pectoral muscle injury which sidelined him for two separate spells.

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Now the 31-year-old is hoping to build on a good start to the domestic season and says becoming a father for the first time has given him a fresh perspective.

“As all Dads will tell you fatherhood is an unbelievable feeling,” he said. “It does mean when my wife calls I have to get home as soon as possible but it’s such a good feeling to go home and see little Zaviyan smiling. It puts everything into perspective.

“He had a few problems when he was born but he’s a tough little soldier and is doing well. Mark Davis and the rest of the staff here were unbelievably supportive because it was quite a tough winter personally and they have done all they can to help me and my family. Now I want to repay them.”

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The only way the 31-yearold knows is wickets. He started the domestic season well with six against Kent in the Specsavers County Championship and he is determined to fight off the claims of the emerging crop of young bowlers in four-day cricket.

In white-ball cricket he has even stronger claims. Shahzad played 11 ODIs and three T20 internationals for England as well as a solitary Test at Old Trafford against Bangladesh in 2010. Injuries have often set him back since then and when he came south in 2015 Sussex were his fourth county in less than two years. After a decade at Yorkshire, where he’d become the first Britishborn Asian to play for the county, he had a spell on loan at Lancashire before heading to Trent Bridge.

Ajmal Shahzad

“I don’t think Sussex have seen the best of me,” he admitted. “It’s been a topsy-turvy two years. I had a bad ankle injury when I came to the club from Nottinghamshire which I had to get over and then the pec injury which went and then came back after four weeks.

“I’m old-school really. I know I can’t achieve anything without hard work but I feel fit and strong and as this is the last year of my contract I want to give everything I can as a senior player to make sure I stay at Sussex. I don’t want to be someone who needs another player to have an injury to get a chance.”

Shahzad has taken 118 wickets in his List A career

and has a respectable economy rate of 5.41 ahead of this season’s Royal London One-Day Cup. With Vernon Philander ruled out of the group stage by injury his experience could be vital to Sussex’s hopes of improving on a poor recent record in the 50 overs format.

“For me white-ball cricket is all about enjoying yourself and showcasing your skills,” he said. “In my case that’s putting the batsmen under pressure, making them think and getting the ball to reverse swing at the end of the innings too.”

“I want to give everything I can as a senior player to make sure I stay at Sussex.”

AJMAL SHAHZAD Ajmal Shahzad celebrates one of his six wickets in the Championship opener against Kent. “Sussex have been unbelievably supportive and I want to repay them,” he said.

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BOB WARREN

Eight years after he was co-opted onto the Sussex Cricket Board for the first time, the 70-year-old took over from Jim May last month and is relishing leading Sussex into a new era.

In the last 18 months a new CEO, Director of Cricket and Head Coach have been appointed and now Warren

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has succeeded May, who was chairman for the past nine years.

He says it wasn’t necessarily a position he coveted, but after more than three decades’ involvement in the game in Sussex, and with a strong business background through his established business Travel Places, he looks a good fit.

“Jim is an interesting guy to follow,” he says. “He was very hands-on which is different to my management style. I believe that if you pay someone to do a job you should let them do it.

It’s important to give people the freedom to manage and develop.

“In terms of the cricket side, I have every confidence in Mark and Keith. The way they have tackled some of the issues they inherited has been first-class and I think the

ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP PROGRAMME 2017

squad is the most exciting we’ve had here for years.”

Bob and Keith go back a long way. When he moved from London to Sussex in 1986 he got involved with the Lamb club in Rustington where his son Matt played.

“The club grew and formed a second XI and they made me captain. I’d played some decent cricket as a youngster including one game for Middlesex Schools – although I wasn’t asked back. I lasted four balls and my middle stump ended up behind the wicketkeeper, who was standing 20 yards back!

Anyway, I hadn’t picked up a bat for years so I came to Hove and had six net sessions with Keith.”

Bob continued to play a big part in local cricket for the next 20 years. After the Lamb became Angmering Manor they joined forces with

BOB WARREN

HE MAY HAVE BEEN BORN IN ESSEX,BUT NEW CHAIRMAN BOB WARREN IS VERY MUCH A SUSSEX MAN Middleton where he has been chairman for 13 years. He only recently stepped down as chairman of the Sussex League too. “My new role at Sussex is very hands on, I need to be available all the time,” he says.

He has inherited a club in good shape. “We are one of very few counties with no external debt which means we have an opportunity over the next 2-3 years to ensure Sussex is around for the next 20 years and beyond.

I am aware that we are only caretakers of Sussex Cricket.

The traditions and values we hold strong will hopefully remain long after I’ve stopped being chairman.”

The 1st Central County Ground has undergone a raft of improvements in recent

years but Warren insists no one is resting on their laurels.

“There are always issues and we have to think what we want the ground to be like in, say, five or six years. Will it be fit for purpose? We want to retain the special charm of the place but there are practical issues which always need looking at.”

He has no intention of doing as long a stint as his predecessor. “We have some fantastic people on our management board now who are dynamic, opinionated and engaging – that’s exciting for me because I can see how much they want Sussex to do well.”

The domestic game faces lots of challenges, not least the City-based T20 planned for 2020. Sussex have

given the ECB’s proposals initial approval, but Warren says they will wait until the governing body reveal more plans in June before offering wholehearted endorsement.

“I think that goes for a lot of other counties,” he says. “But I still think Sussex people will turn up at Hove to watch T20 cricket as they’ve always done.”

So what would he like his legacy to be? “Success on the pitch is the ultimate,” he says.

“I want us to win trophies. If everyone who is part of the club does their best every day that is all that you can ask for.

But if that happens then we will give ourselves the best chance of being successful and growing Sussex Cricket.”

The 1st Central County Ground has improved dramatically in recent years. “We want to retain Hove’s special charm but there are always practical issues to look at,” BOB WARREN SUSSEXCRICKET.CO.UK/TICKETS

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LAURIE EVANS

GOOD EVANS! Laurie’s got fond memories of Lord’s – and would love to go back with Sussex Not many players make their last competitive appearance for a county in a Lord’s final.

Laurie Evans did and now he’s ambitious to make a quick return there by helping Sussex shed their recent tag as one-day underachievers.

Evans’ final game for Warwickshire was last September’s Royal London OneDay Cup final when he helped the Bears to an eight-wicket win over favourites Surrey. Evans was due to bat at No.5 but wasn’t needed as Jonathan Trott guided his side to victory. Instead, the 29-yearold left his mark with a stunning one-handed catch at mid-wicket to remove Surrey danger man Jason Roy Lifting the trophy was a memory to last a lifeline but having left the Bears with a year left on his contract Evans has his sights on creating fresh ones with Sussex. He can remember back a decade or so ago when

Sussex played in two Lord’s finals, winning one, and lifted the one-day league title twice. Having assessed his new team-mates, he sees no reason why the county can’t be competitive again in white-ball formats.

“Speaking to the other lads one thing which can help us in the Royal London One-Day Cup is the games being played in a block at this stage of the season rather than mid-summer,” said Evans, whose highest List A score of 70 was made in last season’s quarter-final against Essex.

“It means we’ve been able to have some good white-ball practice in pre-season and again after we played our first two Championship games rather than going into it cold.”

Sussex start their 2017 campaign from a pretty low base.

They have only won once in the format in the last two years – against Middlesex in a match reduced to 32 overs by rain.

“In many ways, it is a fresh start

By Bruce Talbot

for us because I don’t think there is a great deal of expectation on us,” he added. “We’ve haven’t done very well in 50 overs cricket but when you look around at our squad we’ve got a lot of very good one-day players.

“No one expected Warwickshire to get out of the group last season but we got some momentum and carried it through and there’s no reason why we can’t do that. At some stage, we could have Chris Jordan back from the IPL and the two South African lads, Stiaan van Zyl and David Wiese, have got lots of international experience in 50 overs cricket. If we play to our potential I know we can give anyone a game.”

Holding on: Laurie celebrates his spectacular catch in last year’s Royal London One-Day Cup final

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SUSSEX ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY cup SQUAD 2017 14

ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP PROGRAMME 2017

BACK ROW LEFT TO RIGHT: Laurie Evans, Matt Machan, Will Beer, Harry Finch, Phil Salt, Stuart Whittingham.

SUSSEX Royal london one-day cup SQUAD

MIDDLE ROW LEFT TO RIGHT:

FRONT ROW:

Mike Charman (1st Team Scorer), Jon Marrale (Physiotherapist), Paul Khoury (Head of Science and Medicine), Brent Andrew (Physiotherapist), Ollie Robinson, Stiaan van Zyl, Abi Sakande, Danny Briggs, Jofra Archer, Ajmal Shahzad, Delray Rawlins, George Garton, Connor Browne (Lead Strength and Conditioning Coach), Rob Chave (Strength & Conditioning Coach), Graham Irwin (2nd Team Scorer).

Michael Yardy (Batting Coach), Jason Swift (Team Analyst and Coach), David Wiese, Steve Magoffin, Ben Brown, Keith Greenfield (Director of Cricket), Rob Andrew (Chief Executive), Mark Davis (Head Coach), Luke Wright, Chris Nash, Luke Wells, Carl Hopkinson (Academy Director), Jon Lewis (Assistant Head Coach).

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SOUTH GROUP OPPONENTS ESSEX

GLAMORGAN

Captain: Ryan ten Doeschate Overseas player: Neil Wagner (New Zealand) 2016: quarter-finals RLODC odds: 14/1

Captain: Jacques Rudolph (South Africa) Overseas player: Jacques Rudolph 2016: 7th RLODC odds: 33/1

Essex were serial one-day trophy winners back in the 1980s and 1990s but have won nothing since 2006. They have a nice mix of experience and young talent like Dan Lawrence and Nick Browne but they will miss the wicket-taking expertise of Graham Napier and Jesse Ryder’s runs. May struggle to make the knockout round.

It’s 13 years since Glamorgan last won a one-day trophy and it’s hard to see that record improving, although their decision to promote local talent is a laudable one. Chris Cooke, Colin Ingram and Australian seamer Timm van der Gugten will need to give captain Rudolph good back up if they are to progress.

HAMPSHIRE Captain: James Vince Overseas player: George Bailey (Australia) 2016: 5th RLODC odds: 10/1 Third favourites to win the tournament which is no surprise given their recent one-day pedigree.

The return of Michael Carberry, a potential match-winner, is a boost and they have good spin-bowling options. A team to respect but not necessarily feared.

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ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP PROGRAMME 2017

GLOUCESTERSHIRE Captain: Michael Klinger Overseas players: Michael Klinger, Cameron Bancroft, Andrew Tye (all Australia) 2016: 8th RLODC odds: 20/1 Even at 36, the powers of the prolific Michael Klinger show no signs of waning and he will be key to their hopes of a decent tournament. The 2015 winners endured a dismal title defence, with only Sussex beneath them, and they ought to improve this year.

SOUTH GROUP OPPONENTS

KENT

but maybe less so when you consider the talent they have. They have a strong seam attack and expect Dawid Malan to score heavily. Possible quarter-finalists.

Captain: Sam Northeast Overseas players: Wayne Parnell Position in 2016: quarter-finals RLODC odds: 20/1

SURREY

Those generous odds look quite tempting because Kent are an experienced outfit with plenty of potential match-winners, with both bat and ball, and the likelihood that Sam Billings will return at at some stage from IPL commitments. Should emulate last season by reaching the knockout stages.

MIDDLESEX

Captain: Gareth Batty Overseas player: Kumar Sangakkara 2016: Runners-up RLODC odds: 8/1 Last season’s runners up are tipped to repeat their Lord’s appearance this year and the bookies’ faith looks well placed. They have most of the bases covered and, IPL commitments permitting, might also be able to call upon Jason Roy to give their innings a turbo-charged start.

Captain: James Franklin Overseas player: Adam Voges 2016: 6th RLODC odds: 12/1 Fifth favourites which given their woeful one-day form – their T20 triumph in 2008 is their only limited-overs success since 1992 – is a surprise,

SOUTH GROUP FIXTURES Apr 27 Bristol: Glos v Glam Canterbury: Kent v Hants Lord’s: Middx v Sussex

Apr 28 Taunton: Somerset v Surrey

Apr 30 Taunton: Somerset v Kent Oval: Surrey v Essex Hove: Sussex v Glam

May 2 Taunton: Somerset v Kent Oval: Surrey v Essex Hove: Sussex v Glam

May 3

May 4

Ageas Bowl: Hants v Middx

Chelmsford: Essex v Glos

May 5

May 7

May 10

May 12

May 14

May 17

Cardiff: Glam v Somerset Canterbury: Kent v Sussex Oval: Surrey v Middx

Cardiff: Glam v Essex Ageas Bowl: Hants v Glos Canterbury: Kent v Middx Hove: Sussex v Surrey

Chelmsford: Essex v Sussex Radlett: Middx v Glam Taunton: Somerset v Hants

Chelmsford: Essex v Middx Bristol: Glos v Somerset Ageas Bowl: Hants v Glam Oval: Surrey v Kent

Swansea: Glam v Kent Taunton: Somerset v Essex Oval: Surrey v Hants Eastbourne: Sussex v Glos

Bristol: Glos v Surrey Ageas Bowl: Hants v Sussex Canterbury: Kent v Essex Lord’s: Middx v Somerset

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HISTORY OF THE SUSSEX COLOURED KIT

Carlos Remy, standing in the front row, in Sussex’s first coloured kit at the launch of the Axa Equity and Law League in 1993

Sussex will be wearing pink in this season’s Royal London One-Day Cup and, as John Barnett, explains, it’s a big improvement on some of the garish gear we’ve worn in the past.

Coloured clothing all started with the Axa Equity & Law League in 1993 when the counties had a choice of four different bespoke kits produced by Hogger Sports, in their preferred colours. Sussex opted for a bright yellow kit with sky and navy blue flashes across the stomach.

A change saw a much more conservative design – surely a compromise for the

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traditionalists – the following year when a white shirt with a coloured band across the front bearing the county’s name and a coloured back became the compulsory strip. Sussex chose the yellow band and back, with navy trousers. They did break away from the norm in 1996, however, by sporting green caps sponsored by alcopop Two Dogs, a product of main sponsors Merrydown.

It was still a one-size-fitsall approach for 1997 and 1998, though this time the manufacturer was Pony, whose logo also appeared on the shirts, alongside sponsors and this time the county badge. Again, Sussex opted for yellow. The second of these seasons saw not only a change in sponsor to

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Identilam but also a separate branding of the Sunday League side, who would now be known as the Sussex Sharks.

All the counties followed with their names in 1999 as the competition was revamped with two divisions, together with another innovation – squad numbers.

There was a complete change in the Sharks’ appearance for this season when an all navy-blue strip took over, now sponsored by the Baulch Group and made by Stitchworks. A slight tweak was made the following year, with the kit being provided by Screaming Joe. In 2001 there was a further radical move with a grey shirt and navy trousers, now

SUSSEX COLOURED KIT

manufactured by the Baulch Group themselves. It was all change again for 2002 and 2003 with a black outfit, manufactured by Exito. The introduction of T20 in 2003 meant that this was now worn in two competitions.

A switch back to blue – this time a royal shade – was made for 2004-06 and by 2006 the kit was being made by MKK, the company founded by our former fast bowler James Kirtley. This was worn in both the C&G 50-overs competition and the new Pro40 League, with a further dark blue shirt introduced for T20.

No less than three different

kits were unveiled for 2007, complete with latest sponsor RDF. The navy kit with royal under-arm flash was worn for the next three seasons of Friends Provident Trophy action, and the T20 reverse version of that for two years.

An identically patterned all navy kit for the Pro40 was worn for just one campaign before an even deeper blue uniform with white stripes on the sides – designed by Chris Adams – was used in the victorious Pro40 campaigns in 2008 and 2009.

The T20 triumph in the second of those seasons was a very pale shade of blue, which continued the

By 1994 the shirt worn by skipper Alan Wells at least had the county name on it!

following year, though this time sponsors’ name Farnrise appeared on the front. The 40-over competition kit was again in navy, but a different design. This general combination – albeit with slight tweaks – was the norm for the next three seasons, before a more royal blue shirt with navy trousers was worn for the 2013 (40 overs) and 2014 (50 overs) white-ball tournaments.

In 2015 there was a refresh with the navy blue now being worn for the T20 and a return to yellow shirts for the Royal London One-Day Cup. And so to this summer and the pink shirts. (continues on page 21)

James Kirtley in the 2006 Lord’s final – and wearing a kit manufactured by his company MKK

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SUSSEX COLOURED KIT What will it be next – blue and white stripes? To me, the biggest surprise is surely be that marketing departments have yet to latch onto the concept of away strips…. though it might happen one day!

PRETTY IN PINK In the 24 years since coloured clothing became de rigeur in English one-day cricket, Sussex have worn just about every colour in the spectrum, whether it’s shirts, trousers or caps.

But never pink – until this year. And with a new sponsor too in Parafix it’s very much a new look Sussex which will take to the field in this season’s Royal London OneDay Cup. Skipper Luke Wright has worn a fair few of those different coloured outfits in his 14 years as a Shark – and scored many runs in them as well. He thinks the pink kit is an excellent idea.

Chris Adams lifted two Pro40 titles wearing a blue kit he helped to design

He said: “I like it – and so do the lads,” he said. For a long time we’ve worn a dark oneday kit, either blue or black, and then for the last couple of seasons we had the yellow which was a lot different.

“So is the pink and I think it goes well with the dark trousers. Let’s hope we can put in some good performances in it.”

It is eight years since Sussex last reached a Lord’s final, when they lost to Hampshire, and it was back in 2006 that they last won at headquarters.

Wright is the only survivor on the playing staff from that team, which defeated Lancashire, although Carl Hopkinson and Mike Yardy are both part of the coaching set-up at Hove.

“WE’D LOVE TO GO BACK TO LORD’S, IT’S A FANTASTIC OCCASION AND IS WHAT WE’RE TARGETING.” LUKE WRIGHT SUSSEXCRICKET.CO.UK/TICKETS

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BACK TO EASTBOURNE As the county prepares to return to the Saffrons after a 17-year gap, Bruce Talbot offers some personal memories of Eastbourne I’ve been fortunate to report on Sussex all over the world, including the Caribbean and India and so many grounds in England I’ve lost count.

But in 28 seasons Eastbourne remains the only place where I shared a press box with a loaded rifle.

Back in the 1980s, when the festival was still as popular as it had been since the first County

Championship game was staged there back in 1897, the press facilities were rudimentary at best.

On a Saturday morning, usually in mid-August, we tentatively climbed the wooden staircase next to the groundsman’s shed at the top end and settled in for the week. The groundsman – whose name I forget but whose unforgiving manner towards these intruders was unforgettable – had done his best to clear out the tools of the trade.

We always felt a bit embarrassed taking over what

was effectively a garden shed on stilts. After all, he needed somewhere to keep the brushes and whitewash which he would throw in a wheelbarrow during the intervals and wander out to conduct running repairs on the wicket.

That particular year three or four of us squeezed ourselves in.

It was stiflingly hot and it needed a collective shove to open the window that looked out onto the outfield. It was only once a year when “the bloody press” took over that fresh air allowed to circulate

Brothers Alan and Colin Wells at Eastbourne in 1994. Alan captained Sussex and Colin was 12th man as his new county Derbyshire won the Sunday League match

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ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP PROGRAMME 2017

BACK TO EASTBOURNE

CHAMPIONSHIP CRICKET AT THE SAFFRONS IN THE 1970S

inside the groundsman’s domain.

Cobwebs and dust were removed from the plank of wood that doubled up as our desk. Once spruced up it was perfectly good enough in those pre-laptop days for notebooks and pens. When it was time to phoning copy we formed an orderly queue at the payphone in the clubhouse.

We’d settled in when Dicky Rutnagur, who loved his visits to Eastbourne for the Daily Telegraph, noticed the rifle propped up in the corner. The groundsman assured us it was loaded. “It’s for the pigeons,” he growled. The temptation to lean out and take a pop shot at one or two of the know-alls who would stand in front of the rusting window every morning and criticise what we’d written about the previous day’s play was never far away.

A few years later we moved to the clubhouse, using a room at the front where it was a constant battle to concentrate while bored spectators stood at the back playing the fruit machine. It all got too much for my predecessor as Evening Argus cricket writer John

Vinicombe one year as a deadline approached. “Can’t you see we’re trying to @$%&*£ write here!” he shouted at a couple of lads feeding 10p coins into the onearmed bandit. Vinners didn’t back down when the boys’ mother, who happened to be the club chairman’s wife, appeared.

By the time Sussex pulled the plug on Eastbourne in 2000 we were in a proper press tent at the sea end but visits to the Saffrons no longer held the same appeal.

The wicket had deteriorated and the players had been moaning for years about the dressing rooms. I remember interviewing Toby Pierce inside the home one - an airless, windowless wood-pannelled space with hardly enough room for 11 players, never mind their mountains of gear. Things were so cramped in the away room that half of the Northamptonshire team in 2000 changed in the squash courts. The game itself just about dribbled into a third day and Dave Gilbert, Chief Executive at the time, had seen enough. “It’s not fit for purpose anymore,” he announced and pulled the plug. No one

outside Eastbourne complained.

Seventeen years on the Sussex players will encounter a very different Saffrons and everyone associated with helping to bring back county cricket deserves a pat on the back. The first List A game there, a John Player League match against Essex, was in 1970. Back then the Saffrons still had the reputation of being among the best batting tracks in the country. Fourteen double hundreds have been scored at Eastbourne and many players swore by the restorative powers of seaside cricket when it came to finding some form.

Surprisingly, only two List A centuries – by Peter Graves (1972) and Roger Knight (1976) – have been made at the Saffrons. In this era of big bats and muscular hitting expect that to change, possibly this year.

The groundsman’s shed has long gone and so, I suspect, has the one-armed bandit. But it’s great to see Sussex back at Eastbourne and all those who have worked hard to make it happen will hope it’s not another 17 years before the county return.

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Not putting a spin on it Sussex Gold: The county’s 1986 one-day triumph was built on five brilliant seam bowlers

By Bruce Talbot This may be the era of muscle-bound batsmen peppering tiny boundaries with bats the size of railway sleepers, but there is still room in one-day cricket as well for spin bowlers.

Even in T20, virtually every team will employ at least one-day cricket for spin bowlers who can take pace off the ball. Sussex’s

successful one-day teams a decade ago often included three spinners – two front-liners like Mike Yardy and Will Beer and a part-time operator such as Chris Nash.

It’s unthinkable to imagine these days, but Sussex once played five games to win a Lord’s final using one spinner who bowled a total of 17 overs. And this wasn’t T20 either, but 60 over contests.

The year was 1986 when Ian Gould led Sussex to a triumph in the NatWest Trophy built on the prowess of his fast (Imran Khan,

Garth Le Roux, Adrian Jones) and medium-fast (Dermot Reeve, Colin Wells) attack, just three months after replacing John Barclay as captain.

Part-time off-break bowler David Standing sent down 12 overs in the first-round win over Suffolk and five in the second-round triumph against Glamorgan. “We had such a great seam attack,” remembers Gould, “I didn’t need to bowl anyone else. Immy and Garth were two of the best fast bowlers in the world and throughout the run to the final

Ian Gould lifts the trophy in the gloom at Lord’s

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sussex gold

Sussex players celebrate their NatWest Trophy triumph either they, Jonah – who was as quick as any English fast bowler at the time – Dermot or Colin would get us out of a hole.

In a quarter-final played on a terrible pitch at Headingley, Le Roux and Jones shared eight wickets and at New Road in the semi-final, which went into a third day because of rain, Wells and Reeve conceded just 31 runs in 17 overs by bowling cutters at a crucial stage of a five-wicket victory.

The neutrals wanted Lancashire to win the final. Their 42-year-old captain Clive Lloyd was playing his last major match before retiring. “They had a soppy moment because they picked him instead of Patrick Patterson,” recalls Gould. “We were delighted because Patterson was as quick as they came back then. When we found out Clive was playing it definitely lifted our spirits.”

Gould’s decision that Sussex form a guard of honour when Lloyd walked out to bat had an ulterior motive. “It was the right thing to do but we also thought it might distract him. Everyone in the ground was on their feet and Clive was genuinely moved.”

Clive Lloyd makes his way back to the pavilion after his third-ball duck

Sure enough, Reeve wrapped him on the pad third ball and four minutes after walking out to a standing ovation Lloyd was heading back to the pavilion to another one.

That day Imran produced an outstanding spell with 4-20 from 12 overs. Chasing 243 to win Sussex eased to victory with two overs to spare. Paul Parker made 8 and Allan Green 62 before Wells hoisted off-spinner Mike Watkinson over the rope. “That’s what I mean about not playing a spinner!” laughed Gould.

Back then there was no

stage on the outfield for the presentation, no fireworks and no TV interviews. The trophy was handed to Gould on the Lord’s balcony and the following evening, after nine of the team had played at Hove in a Sunday League game against Yorkshire, the squad retired to the Sussex Cricketer to divide up the prize money, all £19,000 of it. “A magical few days,” said Gould. “I’d always dreamed of leading my team out at Lord’s, where I’d played a lot of cricket for Middlesex, and that dream came true. Wonderful, wonderful times.”

“I’D ALWAYS DREAMED OF LEADING MY TEAM OUT AT LORD’S. WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL TIMES.” IAN GOULD

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In Numbers Sussex List A cricket

384

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Wickets taken by Chris Jordan in the 2016 RLODC, most by a Sussex bowler

2006

6-9

8

158

Number of List A trophies won by Sussex

73

Most runs in a List-A game by a Sussex player Murray Goodwin v. Essex in 2006

Top score by Sussex batsman in their last Eastbourne win in 1998 v. Durham by Chris Adams

Year Sussex last won a Lord’s final when they beat Lancashire in twhe C&G Trophy

Best bowling by a Sussex player in List A cricket

Tony Dodemaide v Ireland in 1990

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Most runs scored by Sussex in a 50 over game v Ireland in 1996

ROYAL LONDON ONE-DAY CUP PROGRAMME 2017

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Number of List A games at Eastbourne, where Sussex return in 2017-04-19

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