Gets in your eyes

By Sussex Seaxe
November 19 2021

Sussex Seaxe reports on a memorable Gillette Cup 1/4 final at a sunny Worcester. We hear about some blasts from the past and an unlikely hero.  

Memories were poked into action recently by Adelaide’s evocative account of his jaunt to Edgbaston in 1975, where we won a game that took us to our first one day final. I was there too and remember the day with great joy. This was in part because, having not long passed my driving test, I made it to Birmingham and back without incident.

Thus inspired, I decided on a reprise later that summer. Booking a day off work, I gathered a couple of friends who were happy to do the same and persuaded them to accompany me on a high summer day at Worcester. It was there, on August 6 th , that we were drawn to play in the quarter final of the Gillette Cup, en route to our second final (and second final defeat) of the season. Thus it was that we set off from Finchley in the early morning, to head to the county that my dad had supported before becoming a Middlesex member, mainly because Tom Graveney played for them. They also used to play the summer’s touring side in their opening game and the BBC always showed parts of the game on tv. Thus, everybody knew there was a cathedral there, as it appeared in every opening sequence.

I can remember little about the journey, other than that we somehow found the city of Worcester without getting lost. We must also have managed to park somewhere, but it must have been not long before the start of play, as having paid at the gate, it began the only day that I have stood throughout a cricket match. There just didn’t seem to be a seat available anywhere, let alone the four together that we wanted. As it was a hot, sunny, day the four of us slowly barbecued in the warmth, while gazing across the ground to the cathedral, which was indeed an impressive sight.Worcester got away to what was then regarded as a flyer and it was the spin twins – if twins can be separated by 19 years – of Titmus and Edmonds who applied a brake. Nonetheless, the home side raced along, in 1975 terms, to a fine total, the last wicket falling in the 60 th over. There were some memorable names in the Worcester side; Glenn Turner, Vanburn Holder (nickname Hosepipe, according to David Lloyd – I’ve no idea why), Norman Gifford and a chap called Imran Khan, who later made a name for himself elsewhere. It was John Parker, the New Zealand batsman, who top scored with 107 out of 257. Amazing that Worcester had four overseas players in their side. At that time, a total of that size had never been overhauled in the Gillette Cup.

Legs beginning to get a bit tired, we watched the Middlesex response. Captain Brearley was out early, but Mike Smith, Enfield’s finest, and Clive Radley set about compiling a base from which we could attack the target. Smith was out for 70 and Radley, the man of the match, was to complete a marvellous 105 not out. It was Norman ‘Smokey’ Featherstone though, who lingers in the distant memory on that sun drenched evening. To my young eye, this glamorous figure stroked the ball all around the ground, to both pavilion and cathedral side without, memory tells me, slogging a single ball. It was a masterclass in elegance and would have deserved a standing ovation, had we not been standing already.

The target was knocked off in 54 overs, thus sparing our feet an extra 6 overs, and young Imran was the most expensive bowler. Derbyshire at Chesterfield were beaten in the semis – I couldn’t get the day off – but Lancashire proved too much in the Final, where our 180 wasn’t anywhere near enough, even in 1975.

But that day at Worcester lives long in the memory; 46 years so far. Smokey’s innings, the cathedral looming over the ground and the gratitude of being able to sit down and drive for 4 hours at the end, mark a benchmark in my youth that can never be extinguished.