Cricket World Cup 1999

 It was a great privilege for England to host the one-day (50 over) World Cup in 1999. Somerset were hosts to the team from Kenya who used the County Ground as its base.

 All the Somerset staff were detailed to assist the running of the two world cup matches we hosted: Kenya versus Zimbabwe and India versus Sri Lanka. We had sell – outs for both games and it was "all hands to the pump". The Zimbabwe fans were there in force – and talk about drink! They literally ran the County Ground dry! There was no beer or lager available at the end of the game! 

 As a thank you to the key staff who had been involved in the World Cup arrangements, Peter Anderson invited us to an amazing evening at the Castle Hotel, where we dined in the Penthouse Suite – another evening to remember!

 The Club Development Plan

All Cricket Development Officers throughout the country were encouraged to produce a club development plan. My plan was in the shape of a Cricket Development Wheel, which proved to be popular, particularly with Peter Anderson, who delighted in producing the "Wheel" when meeting visiting dignitaries arriving at the club. The plan demonstrated the work carried out within Primary Schools, Secondary Schools, Club Cricket, Representative Cricket, Women and Girls, People with Disabilities, etc.

Working with schools

The first stage of cricket development was inevitably promoted in schools where Kwik Cricket was introduced to hundreds of Primary Schools and Inter-Cricket to Secondaries. Our work in establishing a number of Cricket Centres assisted with this work. In 2002 Millfield School became National Under 15 cup winners, with James Hildreth and Max Waller featuring in the Millfield team.

Anya Shrubsole

Bath Ladies won the Somerset 8-a-side competition, where the team mostly comprised school-girls, including a first appearance for a talented young lady by the name of Anya Shrubsole. Anya was a good enough cricketer to be the only girl to represent Somerset, in boys teams, at U11 to U13.

Safeguarding in Cricket – "Safe Hands"

The growth of youth cricket demanded that our sport had to ensure that cricket was delivered to young and vulnerable people in a safe and secure environment. A weighty tome "Safe Hands" was introduced to all clubs and coaches, which insisted on Criminal Record Bureau (CRB) checks to be acquired by all those people working with the young and vulnerable. The work involved in administering this process was considerable – but essential.

Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme

The ECB quite liked the idea of promoting the DofE scheme within cricket. I thought that it could work. The four sections of the DofE scheme were Volunteering, Physical, Skills and Expedition. The only section which could not be accommodated within cricket was the expedition. The DofE students could carry out Volunteering by umpiring, scoring, groundsmanship, etc. They could improve their Physical fitness relative to cricket and could improve their Skills in the various disciplines within cricket – batting bowling or fielding.

We had a good number of students signing up for the DofE and away we went. We were pleased that Somerset became the first cricketing county to undertake the DofE scheme. Somerset was recognised for this achievement and I was invited to attend an event held in Wells, where I was introduced to Prince Edward and the Countess of Wessex and was in conversation with them for some time on how we had arranged the DofE scheme within our county. They were delightful.

The birth of T20 cricket 

All the cricket development officers (CDOs) from every county, attended regular meetings arranged by the ECB. These meetings were usually held either at the National Sports Centre at Lilleshall in Shropshire or Bisham Abbey in Berkshire. At one of these meetings at Lilleshall, held in 2001, the CDO's were shattered to learn that mothers of 11 year-olds would more likely know the name of a famous skateboarder, than a famous cricketer! This was a "wake up call" for those of us involved in the development of cricket.

As we were in Shropshire, the CDOs were tasked with visiting half a dozen schools in the county, where we had large paper charts spread out across a number of tables. We then asked the children to write down their thoughts about cricket. The words on the charts were: boring, not exciting, takes too long, only for old men, no fun, not for families, no colour, etc.

We then regrouped at Lilleshall and discussed the outcome of our schools survey, with various ideas on how things could be done differently.

One of our CDOs from Sussex, Stuart Robertson, came up with the idea of 20/20 cricket (no different in many ways from the 20 over cricket we had all played as youngsters) However, this would be played by county cricketers at weekends or weekday evenings - often under floodlights. It would have massive sixes, brilliant fielding, a white ball, coloured clothing, music, plenty of side attractions and razzmatazz!

The idea was enthusiastically endorsed by the ECB and plans were put in place for the new T20 competition to commence in 2003.

T20 – a great success!

The first T20 match took place on Friday, June 13 2003 against Warwickshire. Peter Anderson, a cricket tradionalist, was convinced it would be a flop! Television cameras were going to be there, so we needed to put on a show. He gave me masses of tickets to give away to schools and clubs, in an effort to ensure that we had some children and families attending.

The match was due to start at 6.30pm, with the gates opening at 4.30pm. The crowds flooded in – Friday evening was ideal – no school for children the following morning and for the older punters, they could watch the match and still go into town for a few beers after.

Because the club was of the opinion, that there would only be a small crowd, we didn't have enough bars available – nor toilets! There were queues all over the place. The queues were so long that by the time you had managed to get a beer, half the match was over!

Somerset knew that T20 cricket had arrived!

Sportsmatch / Clark's Shoes

We also obtained significant sponsorship from Somerset Footwear company C&J Clark Limited, supporting our Cricket in Schools project, with additional grant aid from Sportsmatch.

Sportsmatch was a government initiative which enabled funds from the corporate world, in the form of grant aid, to be matched £ for £ with a similar sum of government money, supporting sports development.

We benefitted greatly from this scheme over a number of years and the additional reward for the recipient of grant aid, was that I was invited to splendid annual events held at Wembley, Twickenham, Wimbledon, Lords and the Etihad Stadium.

Cricket Board Administration  

The ECB encouraged all cricket boards to nominate Focus Clubs, centres for development in all the corners of Somerset. These clubs were all charged with obtaining ClubMark, which was a mark of excellence and good practice.

The year 2005 marked the retirement of Peter Anderson, the Chief Executive who had directed the club with great vision and enthusiasm for 17 years. Vic Marks described Peter Anderson as tireless, utterly committed and the helmsman of Somerset County Cricket Club.

Peter was succeeded by Richard Gould, son of international footballer Bobby Gould. Brian Rose was appointed as Director of Cricket. 

Launch of 'Chance to Shine'

This came as one of my key objective for many years – a national initiative which followed the heralded success of the England team, with the aspiration of regenerating cricket in schools. Chance to Shine funding enabled us to send a number of our coaches into primary and secondary schools in Somerset. The follow-up to working in schools was to provide club / school links, which meant that an increased number of school-children joined local cricket clubs.

With the enthusiastic support of my great friend Roger Snelling, we were able to access funds from the Lord's Taverners towards cricket nets and artificial pitches for clubs and schools. There were only a few companies who provided artificial turf pitches. One was promoted by Tom Graveney and the other by Derek Underwood, former England player, retaining their interest in developing cricket in club and school settings. I arranged a number of meetings with both Tom and Derek, promoting their product. 

Derek Underwood

'Deadly Derek' became a good friend. When Mary and I visited relatives in Kent, Derek and I played golf at Derek's golf club. Similarly, when Derek visited Axminster, he gave a talk on his career at the "ie theatre" and also opened new sports facilities at Cloakham Lawn Sports Centre. This was followed the next day by a round of golf at Lyme Regis Golf Club. We were coming towards the end of our round, when we arrived at the 16th green, overlooking the Cobb at Lyme Regis.

Suddenly, there was an almighty roar, which nearly blew us over the edge of the cliff! It was the Red Arrows giving a display for Lifeboat Week. Derek and I ceased our round of golf and watched the display from probably the best vantage point one could imagine. At the end of our round of golf, Derek Underwood remarked "Andrew – it was so good of you to invite me for a round of golf at Lyme Regis – but I didn't expect you to lay on the Red Arrows!"

Somerset – "The home of women's cricket"

The status of women and girls cricket was growing at a fast pace – and increasingly more international matches were being played. The England team needed a base for their training and matches. We made a pitch for the position and were accepted. I was involved in the liaison between Somerset CCC and the women's administration. 

I had a good relationship with England captain Charlotte Edwards. It transpired that she was taught as a very young student in Peterborough by my good cricketing friend Ronnie Seward.

Elton John

This was the first year that Somerset embarked on the presentation of a major concert on the ground – and it was Elton John. There was a massive amount of management required for this event – but thankfully all went well. Mary, Robert and I were privileged to have seats in the main stand. Most of the punters were seated in rows and rows of seats on the cricket ground.

Ground Development

Under the chairmanship of Giles Clarke, the club embarked on a massive programme of ground development, which would include a huge stand, with flats above on the Brewhouse Theatre side of the ground, the eventual building of the Andy Caddick Pavilion, the creation of Gimblett's Hill and the extension of boundaries around the ground to ICC specification.

Somerset on the field in 2006 

The new First Team Coach was Andy Hurry. He still reminds me that I was the first person to give him a job at Somerset CCC, when I signed him on as a schools coach, when he came out of the marines. Despite the poor results, there were some outstanding performances from James Hildreth (the youngest player to score a double century for Somerset), Cameron White from Australia (scoring 260 not out against Derbyshire) and Justin Langer, who played for six weeks and scored 342 against Surrey (he highest score in Somerset history!). Charl Willoughby, Arul Suppiah and Wes Durston had an encouraging season and we also saw the introduction of Craig Kieswetter, aged 19 from South Africa.

Cricket Board changes

In 2008, Andy Curtis (former Head of Cricket at Millfield School) took over as Vice-Chairman of the Somerset Cricket Board, working closely with myself on all cricket development matters. 

In recognition of the tremendous strides being made with women's cricket, we appointed Jan Godman, a former women's international cricketer, to be our Women's Cricket Development Officer.

Jimmy Cook

The County Cricket Club was pleased to welcome the former South African cricketing legend Jimmy Cook to be involved in the coaching of talented young cricketers in Somerset. Jimmy worked with both the professional young players and emerging talent in Somerset clubs and schools.

I spent many happy hours with Jimmy, travelling around the county, visiting Focus Clubs and schools. He was a delight to work with and devoted hours of his time in improving the standard of youth cricket in Somerset. 

Regional Development Team

Every county had a Cricket Development Manager and we met regularly to have team meetings. Our Regional Development Manager was Edward Leverton a charming and serene man from Cornwall, who tried desperately hard to contain the exuberances of a group of County Development Managers who wanted to get the business of the meetings over has swiftly as possible, to enable us to enjoy each other's company in a range of diverse activities. We had paint-balling, go-cart racing, hot air ballooning, clay pigeon shooting, etc. Each activity culminated in a rather sustained beer drinking fest, enjoyed by all.

These events helped to develop a real team ethic and this was replicated nationally, where ALL the County Development Managers in the country met up at places such as Lilleshall, Loughborough, Bisham Abbey, etc. Likewise, there were pleasurable activities during these meetings, such as Murder Mysteries, etc.

We also had team building events, which followed similar lines. I particularly remember a four-day stay in Snowdonia, climbing mountains, abseiling (not for me!) and treasure hunting. These team building events were run by a partnership called Ridgewood Training. They were great fun, but had a serious side. 

I was often the one who led the singing during the evening beer drinking sessions – and I well remember coming up with a song, "We love Ridgewood Training" to the tune of Delilah by Tom Jones – which was appropriate for Snowdonia. 

The 'OSCAs'

The OSCAs (Outstanding Services to Cricket Award) was introduced, which enabled each county to nominate those individuals from recreational cricket to receive an 'OSCA'. I enjoyed writing to clubs and sifting through their nominations, which culminated in about 20 people being presented with their well-deserved award, in front of the crowd, during the lunch interval, at a County Championship match. 

Some recipients of an OSCA were nominated to receive a national award and John Davey, my long term colleague and great ambassador for cricket in Somerset, was awarded the ICC Centenary Medal in recognition of his Services to Cricket. Through the Devon Cricket Board, my good friend, Phil Spong from Axminster Cricket Club, also received an OSCA for his immense contribution to the club over many years. 

Changes at the top

There were also changes at the top, with Chief Executive Richard Gould moving to Surrey and Guy Lavender taking over the reins. Guy was the son of Kilmington family, Brian and Caroline Lavender and lived in Marsh, near Yarcombe. Guy had an impressive army background and had been managing director of the renewable energy project "Wave Hub".

Andy Nash was Somerset Chairman, Brian Rose was Director of Cricket and Andy Hurry was Head Coach. Andy was a former Royal Marine Fitness Instructor and adopted the nickname "Sarge". 

Moving towards the end of my career with Somerset

As I approached the age of 65 years in 2011, I was very much aware of my home responsibilities to Mary and Robert, and a possible position as Mayor of Axminster, together with future commitments as a councillor with East Devon District Council and Devon County Council. The time seemed right for me to gently retire from my work with the Somerset Cricket Board after 16 years in my office in Taunton.

My successor was to be John Wilford, formerly Sports Development Manager at Bristol University. Unfortunately, John was only in post for a few months – soon to be replaced by the excellent Andy Fairbairn, who had previously been Assistant Cricket Development Manager in Devon. Both John and Andy were taught the ropes by my assistant over many years, Brian Hoyle.

The most important aspect of my role with Somerset was the relationships created with a range of individuals – far too many to name them all! However, I was tremendously fortunate to have the support of three superb Chief Executives at County Cricket Club level – Peter Anderson, Richard Gould and Guy Lavender. Within the Somerset Cricket Board, the two Board chairmen I worked with were the late Tony Davies and Andy Curtis who recently retired from the role.

In terms of coaching staff, I worked with, I have to thank Julian Wyatt and the late Dan Hodges, who I used to name – the "Pied Piper of Cricket". In club cricket, I must point to Roger Snelling, John Davey and Ray Hancock. With "Chance to Shine" I recall Operations Manager, Stuart Priscott and with the Somerset Activity and Sports Partnership (SASP) – my old friend Colin Johnson, with whom I qualified as an Advanced Coach at Lilleshall, many years before anyone dreamt of SASP.

I enjoyed a great friendship with all my counterpart development managers in the country and particularly those in the south western region, which stretched from Cornwall to Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. To mark my retirement all the south western CDM's joined me at the River Cottage Canteen in Axminster, where we had a superb evening, recollecting the past 16 years. 

Thankfully, I have retained my involvement in Somerset youth cricket, as a trustee for the Tony Coles Trust and the Clowance Trust, where I still work with Andy Curtis and Piers McBride. I was also thankful and honoured to be awarded Honorary Life Membership of the County Cricket Club in 2012.