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Hotbed of the Game?

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Jap Stammer said:
Back in the early- to mid-'90s I played for a very successful works team in the Civil Service National competition. Our squad consisted of around 15 lads all picked from one small office in Durham - a mixture of Durham Senior League, Durham Coast League, Durham County League and North-East Durham League players.

Our opposition were, more often than not, picked from much wider catchment areas - National MOD, National Land Registry and so on.

We toured all over the country and when we turned up 'down South' I think they were expecting a bunch of Village hackers - what a shock they got when we took to the field in bespoke, matching sweaters and shirts (paid for by ourselves) and mullered them on the field with a combination of skill, professionalism and aggression that they simply weren't expecting and couldn't handle.

We had a hell of a run - winning the trophy three times and losing in the 1992 final when we were going for 3S.

Sadly, age and changing work commitments/practices meant we had to call it a day after a swansong season in 1995 but I don't think I've ever had a better time on a cricket pitch - especially when we shocked the hell out of the Southern boys with the standard that we played at.

The only team who really hammered us were a London Postal Region team that was like a West Indies 'B' squad but we gained sweet revenge a couple of years later when we butchered them at Bishop Auckland.
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I played in that same Civil Service competition at the same time as yourself. You had Durham cricketers like Paul Burn and David Jackson. We played that same London Post Office team at Norton CC and 2 of us spotted one of their players "knocking up". He was the "pro" at Saltburn that year ! When confronted they admitted it saying that they had only travelled with 10 men and he was a "cousin" of one of the team, and he had agreed to "help". Wonder how many times their teams were supplemented by West Indian visiting "pros" ?
 
Jap Stammer said:
Back in the early- to mid-'90s I played for a very successful works team in the Civil Service National competition. Our squad consisted of around 15 lads all picked from one small office in Durham - a mixture of Durham Senior League, Durham Coast League, Durham County League and North-East Durham League players.

Our opposition were, more often than not, picked from much wider catchment areas - National MOD, National Land Registry and so on.

We toured all over the country and when we turned up 'down South' I think they were expecting a bunch of Village hackers - what a shock they got when we took to the field in bespoke, matching sweaters and shirts (paid for by ourselves) and mullered them on the field with a combination of skill, professionalism and aggression that they simply weren't expecting and couldn't handle.

We had a hell of a run - winning the trophy three times and losing in the 1992 final when we were going for 3S.

Sadly, age and changing work commitments/practices meant we had to call it a day after a swansong season in 1995 but I don't think I've ever had a better time on a cricket pitch - especially when we shocked the hell out of the Southern boys with the standard that we played at.

The only team who really hammered us were a London Postal Region team that was like a West Indies 'B' squad but we gained sweet revenge a couple of years later when we butchered them at Bishop Auckland.
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I played for Longbenton (Newcastle Central Office) from 82-96 and played against your team on a few occasions..... usually beating you 😜
 
Eggman said:
I played for Longbenton (Newcastle Central Office) from 82-96 and played against your team on a few occasions..... usually beating you 😜
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I don't think I ever played against the Longbenton side - mind you, in the years I played we always seemed to avoid home or local away fixtures in favour of ones where we needed to travel long distances. That way we got three days paid Special Leave - one to travel there, one to play the game, one to travel back. Next best thing to being a pro.

Made my 'debut' as a sub fielder against DHSS North-East at Norton. Our skipper asked if Keith Chapman was still quick and I replied 'Yes'. In his wisdom, he decided against wearing a helmet and Keith sconed him in the first or second over of the game, hospitalising him. We still won - lad called Peter Maddison from Ushaw Moor (I think) scored a big hundred for us that day.
 
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Jap Stammer said:
I don't think I ever played against the Longbenton side - mind you, in the years I played we always seemed to avoid home or local away fixtures in favour of ones where we needed to travel long distances. That way we got three days paid Special Leave - one to travel there, one to play the game, one to travel back. Next best thing to being a pro.

Made my 'debut' as a sub fielder against DHSS North-East at Norton. Our skipper asked if Keith Chapman was still quick and I replied 'Yes'. In his wisdom, he decided against wearing a helmet and Keith sconed him in the first or second over of the game, hospitalising him. We still won - lad called Peter Maddison from Ushaw Moor (I think) scored a big hundred for us that day.
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I played in that game. David Jackson was carried off and Paul Burn said "well Jacka you have been knocked out by Michael Holding AND Keith Chapman">
The Longbenton side included Child Benefit centre and they were a cracking side as well. Stephen and Tommy Peel were regulars as well as the old "pro" Joe Mcabe.
 
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Bri said:
I think we can hold our heads up and a good cricketing area.

Didn't Bob Murray do a survey once to identify where SAFC supporters were concentrated and the answer came back (unsurprisingly) that the hot bed were former pit villages of County Durham, which is just the area where cricket has been popular - see Colliery Welfare cricket clubs where the colliery has disappeared but the cricket lives on, even now.

However, we've got to admit we're a long way behind Yorkshire, don't they have as around four times as many cricket clubs However, if you reckon on cricket clubs compared to population we may well be about even-stevens.
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More cricket clubs in yorkshire than in all of Australia.....
 
badger55 said:
I played in that game. David Jackson was carried off and Paul Burn said "well Jacka you have been knocked out by Michael Holding AND Keith Chapman">
The Longbenton side included Child Benefit centre and they were a cracking side as well. Stephen and Tommy Peel were regulars as well as the old "pro" Joe Mcabe.
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The funniest thing was that when Jacka was lying sparked out, Ropper at the other end was calling him through for a quick single.:eek::lol:
 
Jap Stammer said:
The funniest thing was that when Jacka was lying sparked out, Ropper at the other end was calling him through for a quick single.:eek::lol:
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Stuart Wilkinson, Mike Small, Paul Carrick, Graeme Angus, Tony Birbeck all pro’d in the local leagues at one time or another and played for Central Office at various times
Jap Stammer said:
I don't think I ever played against the Longbenton side - mind you, in the years I played we always seemed to avoid home or local away fixtures in favour of ones where we needed to travel long distances. That way we got three days paid Special Leave - one to travel there, one to play the game, one to travel back. Next best thing to being a pro.

Made my 'debut' as a sub fielder against DHSS North-East at Norton. Our skipper asked if Keith Chapman was still quick and I replied 'Yes'. In his wisdom, he decided against wearing a helmet and Keith sconed him in the first or second over of the game, hospitalising him. We still won - lad called Peter Maddison from Ushaw Moor (I think) scored a big hundred for us that day.
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We played a semi final down at Plymouth. We ended up getting 5 days special leave with pay when it was called off at the first time of asking
 
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Marcosplace said:
Keith Chapman. Murton legend :D
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Cracking lad. Loved and hated playing against him equally. Always a hell of a contest.

Hit me on the foot three times in one game - toe went black and I limped badly for about a month.

About two years later I went to a chiropodist to have a verucca removed and he asked when I'd broken my toe :eek: . I never knew and had just let it set itself.:lol:

Thanks Keith.
 
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Jap Stammer said:
Cracking lad. Loved and hated playing against him equally. Always a hell of a contest.

Hit me on the foot three times in one game - toe went black and I limped badly for about a month.

About two years later I went to a chiropodist to have a verucca removed and he asked when I'd broken my toe :eek: . I never knew and had just let it set itself.:lol:

Thanks Keith.
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He was at his fastest through the 90s.

He never ever went onto the pitch to hurt anyone. Lovely lad as you say.
 
Marcosplace said:
He was at his fastest through the 90s.

He never ever went onto the pitch to hurt anyone. Lovely lad as you say.
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That'll be around the time he did the damage to my foot - he bowled a mean yorker.

Also, he was a nightmare if he switched to round the wicket - used to run up directly behind the umpire then step out at the last moment to deliver the ball. Virtually unplayable.
 
GordonMuchallNo1Fan said:
Genuinely believe we're the top dogs in that respect. Yorkshire also.

We've produced a lot of players who have gone on to represent England at senior level and a captain who won a world cup.

Always remember my brother out in Australia saying he felt like he was at home, the amount of north east England fans at the MCG for Australia vs England.
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who is your brother?
Does your user name give me a clue ?
 
Jap Stammer said:
Only faced him at the tail-end of his career - still quick though.

In one of my first ever DSL games as a young whippersnapper, I hit him for four - a lovely back-foot drive through the covers. I never smelled the next three balls he bowled at me.
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Once saw him playing for Phili at Ropery Lane when some foolhardy CLS batsman commented about his hairpiece- what followed made Holding's famous over at Boycott look like Derek Pringle trundling into a stiff breeze.:eek:
 
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