None of these players managed to capture as many as 50 wickets in a season though Robert Joseph did come close with 41 in 1998 and 43 the following year; he might well have had more in 2000 and 2001 had he not been selected for representative teams in the County. Ferley, too, was required for duty in the county and but for that he might have scored more runs and taken more wickets, but his average of 126 in 2000 remains a school record. He has recently returned to the senior Kent squad after a spell with Nottinghamshire whither he went having begun his county career with Kent. JF Barr’s all-round seasons of 1988,’89 and ’90 are particularly noteworthy and are reminiscent of the better years of MT Russell-Vick ten years earlier, and his total number of runs scored for the school is close to the record of MR Benson.. In 1999 came the first of the fixtures against Lashings. Old Suttonian David Folb had collaborated with others to establish these, now famous, “wandering elevens” of both present and former testmatch players from around the world. He and they have done much to raise money for charity and to entertain the general public in a way that had not been possible before they started out on their venture. The strong Caribbean influence ensures a happy-go-lucky atmosphere and guarantees incidents galore during any afternoon, not least for the lucky boys selected to play in the School fixture – Brian Lara caught Brandreth, bowled Joseph! 2003 was a particularly good year. Three batsmen recorded hundreds and Chapman had three in total, together with another five scores between 50 and 100. Orlando Peters is particularly impressive in the period 2002-2006, in the four seasons he scored 1330 runs. The bowling of Sam Knott, in 2004, shows a remarkably good strike rate – one wicket every 2.75 overs. This is the best since Robin Hearn’s efforts of 1945 (17 wickets at 1 wicket every 2.47 overs) and also comparable with the efforts of the famous “occasional” bowler, Davies, who, in 1920 took 16 wickets at 1 per 1.63 overs and the successful “change” bowler, Palmer, who in 1919 took 16 wickets, but at a strike rate of 1 per 2.19 overs. Sam was at least a regular bowler and his wickets were obtained at a time when the quality of the wickets favoured batting rather than bowling. Some of the successes of the first five years of the new millennium have come out of the School’s developing Scholarship system. Robbie Joseph was the first of the Richie Richardson Scholars. In this scheme exciting young West Indians are identified and invited to come to the school. As each one completes his education another takes over. To date the school has benefited not only from Robert Joseph and Orlando Peters and Ari Richardson but also from young Hayden Walsh who is making such a strong impression in 2007 and 2008 and who promises so much for 2009. This latter young man had first come to the attention of the school when he performed (aged 9) very well indeed against a Sutton Valence U15 side that toured in the West Indies in 2003. He was a bigger boy but just as impressive in a later tour in 2006. Orlando Peters is playing now for Antigua in the West Indies and was involved in the Allan Stanford effort to bring Twenty20 and pots of cash to the Islands. Unfortunately, this latter initiative seems to have foundered…and the recent downfall in the millionaire’s affairs may well put the stop to this venture. Robert Joseph is, of course linked with Kent and is making his way into higher things, having recently been on tour with the England ‘development’ squad - the ‘A’ team - to new Zealand but it is unfortunate (for cricket) that Ari Richardson is on a Basketball scholarship in the U.S.A and looking to develop another career. Since the early 1980s the School has increased its Sports Scholars and the lads among them have made a significant contribution to cricket. Ashley Jackson is considered by the present coaching staff to have been the most talented and they see no reason why he ought not to be good enough to play not only for Kent but also for England – except that he was selected to represent England in the 2008 Olympics for Hockey! (They have a sneaking suspicion, however, that his first love remains cricket and may well drop the phrase ‘Twenty/20’ into his ears once his other distraction is complete – unfortunately this includes playing hockey professionally in Holland!) Robert Ferley did play for his country as a schoolboy, and it is good to se him back in the ranks of Kent. One of the
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