Hampshire Cricket History

Nicholas Richard Trail (‘Nick’) GUBBINS (568) born Richmond, Surrey 31.12.1993

Nick Gubbins, a left-handed batter and occasional leg-break bowler joined Hampshire from Middlesex on loan during the 2021 season and has now signed a permanent contract. He played for the Leeds/Bradford MCC University side from 2013-2015 and made his Middlesex debut in 2014. He made a number of tours with England Lions sides from 2016-2019 and played a total of 72 first-class matches for Middlesex scoring 4,573 runs at 36.29 with a highest score of 201* v Lancashire at Lord’s 2016; in that season he scored 1,409 first-class runs at 61.26. In his overall List A career he averages just over 40 per innings although he has had less success in T20 matches with just one half century in 39 games. He joined Hampshire in mid-season 2021. Squad number 31.

His figures for Hampshire:

First-class: 6 matches; 255 runs at 28.33; HS: 137* v Gloucestershire at Cheltenham 2021.

List A: 7 matches; 318 runs at 53.00; HS 131* v Sussex at the Ageas Bowl, 2021. Four wickets at 20.25; BB 4-38 v Sussex at the Ageas Bowl, 2021.

No really, a record, 12″ of vinyl.

I’ve been contacted by Andy from AAA records, Newport (IOW).

In a collection of vinyl recently purchased came an LP with a white centre and sleeve. He played it and realised it was of speeches about Hampshire cricket

I knew what it was because we have a few in the Archive at the Ageas Bowl (and I made a CD copy from one)

They are speeches from the Dinner held early 1962 to celebrate our first Championship title.

They are broadly of historical interest, rather than being hugely entertaining in the style of an album by say Billy Connolly or Adele.

But if you are interested, he’d like to sell it:

https://www.facebook.com/tripleArecords/

Has there ever been a worse winter for English cricket on-an-off the field? I can’t think of one.

James Vince and Liam Dawson both playing for England ‘tonight’ – Liam’s first international for three-and-a-half years. Good luck to them.

A number of you noticed that auction of ‘Shack’s’ memorabilia. Two of the Directors of Hampshire Cricket Heritage Ltd (Richard Griffiths and Stephen Saunders) organised our bids, supported financially by the club, and I’ve learned this morning that we got pretty much everything we hoped for – certainly some very nice items.

Richard hopes to collect them and bring them to the coffee morning on Friday.

Why I’m a life-long reader of the Guardian (although I’m also online with the Daily Telegraph) and one of them is that the newspaper of Cardus, Arlott (then Engel and Selvey) was formative in my younger days. Today they lead their sports section not with Manchester Wednesday or Liverpool United but an interview with Azeem Rafiq; it’s an issue which isn’t going away but in the immediate wake of the publication of the county fixtures there is also an interesting editorial titled “Counties and Franchises can’t co-exist for ever. The game was must choose”. You can find the whole piece here:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/21/the-guardian-view-on-crickets-dilemma-the-long-and-short-of-it

It suggests “the brutal truth is that one of the models has to go for the men’s game to have any coherence”. We are moving towards an English season which marks the county side of Hampshire playing first-class county cricket 250 years after the first game – will there ever be a 300th anniversary?

It is an issue which presents me with something of a quandary. I used to be the Editor of the Hampshire Handbook but my credit there in recent years alongside that of the club’s Media Officer Will Brewster is somewhat flattering. I have continued to contribute and help out generally, while not really making editorial decisions about content in the years when (for example) women’s matches have been reported more extensively.

But Will left during the winter and so I might have a bigger job this year – work has already started. But if it is an annual about Hampshire Cricket should that include Southern Brave in The Hundred – even in brief? I suspect it won’t be my decision but if the answer is yes, how brief? Should it include player profiles like those of the county squad, full scorecards, match reports, photos (etc.)? What is the readership expecting?

(Just that if you’re a Temptations fan – “in Anger” if Oasis is more your thing)

The computer that churns out the Fixtures seems to have little sense of history. You probably know by now that 2022 marks the 250th anniversary of a Hampshire side beating England in what is recognised as the first cricket match of first-class status played anywhere in the world. It took place on Broadhalfpenny Down, Hambledon on 24/25 June 1772 – Hampshire winning on the second day.

There was an opportunity for the 2022 fixtures to make at least a gesture of sorts towards such a major event. Hampshire do have a T20 match on the 24th and a four-day Championship match starting on the 26th but the first is in Bristol and the second Chelmsford, with one day to travel in between. So, any hope that a commemorative match might take place on Broadhalfpenny Down perhaps on Saturday 25 June is unlikely to involve (m)any Hampshire cricketers.

They might appear there at some other point in the season as they last did in 2008 to mark the centenary of the unveiling of the stone playing in the great three-day match – but not this year on the anniversary.

England thrashed by the Aussies down under and no county fixtures to see (yet?)

To see England going well, led by a fine performance from a Hampshire batsman (and captain)

???

OK so it’s only England Under-19s v Canada but it is a World Cup and as I write, they are 114-1 after 23 overs and Tom Prest is 50*

PS Two days ago England beat Bangladesh by seven wickets (25.1 overs) in their first game, although Prest made just four runs (plus 1-5)

If the PM can party like there’s no tomorrow, you can’t blame the cricketers

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/60035895