Category: Ticker

An article by Mike Unwin, Museum Volunteer/ Trustee.

We are very grateful to Mr Phil Wrixon from West Dorset for donating this cricket bat to the Museum. Just another cricket bat, I hear you say, but is it ?

Let’s look at some of the stories and memories that lie behind the donation.

Nothing out of the ordinary about the bat, a fairly standard Gray Nicholls Crusader bat from the 1960s, but one that has been autographed by the Somerset and 1960 South African Tourists. What makes it so different for me is that, as a 12 year old, I was at that game, in July 1960.

I remember catching the 10:00 am train from Yeovil, arriving at Taunton at around 10:50 and then the short walk down to the County Ground, with an eager anticipation of seeing the South Africans play against Somerset, on the last day of the three day match. Fancy allowing a child nowadays to travel alone across the county by public transport!

The first two days had not gone well for Somerset. In their first innings South Africa scored 365 all out, the captain Jackie McGlew top scoring with 65 runs before being bowled by Brian Langford. In reply Somerset only made 122 with McKinnon taking 6/22. Somerset were asked to follow on and were 94/4 at the end of the second day’s play. Adding only another 126 to the total, Somerset were all out for 220, the South Africans winning by an innings and 23 runs sometime after lunch.

Now, my return train was not until 5:00 pm so this gave a lovely opportunity for autograph hunting in the afternoon. Waiting with other children outside the players entrance, somewhere near where the Stragglers Coffee Shop is now, slowly the tourists emerged. Firstly Neil Adcock, the fast bowler, carrying only his cricket boots, but he was too busy to give autographs, then the captain Jackie McGlew and vice-captain Trevor Goddard came out laden with blazers, boots, bats etc. When asked for their autographs more in hope than expectation, they immediately put their kit down, signed our books and instructed other team members including Adcock to do the same. Memories that are still with me today – see Autograph Book (although sadly the second page is missing) below.

What about the bat autographed by both teams ? Well it was won by Mr Wrixon in a raffle, at a fund raising event for Bridport Cricket Club in August 1960 – see press cutting below – after a match between a Somerset XI and Bridport – no auto correct in those days. Another example of Somerset supporting clubs within the region.

As a teenager, Mr Wrixon well remembers the Bridport players although sadly many have now passed away. Members of the BCC team that day were Brian Follett, Dave Cox, Mike Gurd, Mike Break, Tony Samways, Derek Callam, Clive Taylor, Derek Gale (capt), Val Tambini, Des Lawes, B. Pearce, ? Courtier and Bill Graves. Brian Follett also recalls playing in the 1962 and 1963 matches.

Andrew Moulding in his articles for the Axminster Nub News (‘Moulding’s Memories’) noted that “The Bridport Cricket Club ground was a stone’s throw away from Palmer’s Brewery and when the wind was in a certain direction, the smell of hops brewing was quite intoxicating” and “Apart from the beery smell wafting across the field, one of the features of the Bridport ground was the lengthy walk for batsmen from the pavilion to the wicket – and back again, particularly if you had managed to get out early in your innings.”.

For whatever reason, Bridport CC now longer exists. According to reports they had to withdraw from League cricket in 2015 due to a lack of players, finally closing in 2018 and passing their score hut / board to Broadwindsor CC.

So what other stories can be found from the bat and the 1960 tour ?

From nearly every point of view the 1960 South African tour of England proved disappointing.

 Firstly, it was a wet summer, and many matches were disrupted by rain. What’s new? 

Secondly, the young fast bowler Geoffrey Griffin, who had suffered an elbow injury as a child, and therefore unable to effectively straighten his arm, was no-balled for throwing on several occasions, thus ending his career. 

He was no-balled for throwing in several matches prior to the Test series, but nevertheless retained his place in the side. In his second Test appearance, at Lord’s in June 1960, he became not only the first South African cricketer to take a hat-trick in a Test match, but also the first cricketer of any nationality to do so at Lord’s. In the same match, however, he was no-balled for throwing eleven times, 

A sad parallel here with the Somerset bowler Eric Bryant who was no balled 5 times during a match v Gloucestershire in 1960, after which Somerset did not re-engage him and his career ended.

Thirdly, anti-apartheid demonstrations were held outside most venues. 

Fourthly, none of the young players showed signs of developing into good Test players. 

Fifthly, South Africa lost the first three Tests and drew the other two. 

Sixthly, the tour showed a financial loss and lastly, apart from Roy McLean (whose autograph can be seen above) the South Africans “found themselves short of enterprising batsmen”.

At face value, just another autographed bat in the Museum’s collection but then look a little further. As we always say, ‘it’s not the objects themselves but the memories and stories that are invoked by them’.

The Somerset Cricket Foundation led by Mustafa Shaikh and Susann Savidge from the SACN had a wonderful time in the Museum, decorated for the occasion, engaging in conversation with visitors and especially chatting to them about their memories about “Sir Viv” and are very grateful to visitors for completing the brief questionnaire of which approaching 20 have been returned, – they will be collating the stories and sharing them at a later date.

There were lovely recollections of  “Sir Viv” the person beyond the elite cricketer that he was. The museum upstairs was just a perfect setting and looked amazing with the flags of Antiqua and Barbuda, Barbados and Jamaica.

Susann Savidge and the Somerset African Caribbean Network will be writing their own report of the Windrush Legacy event – which will shared at a later date.

An article contributed by Museum Trustee Richard Walsh (with additional contributions from Mike Unwin).

Somerset County Cricket Club are mourning the sad loss of Ken Palmer who passed away in Musgrove Park Hospital on Tuesday  23rd July aged 87 and the Trustees and Volunteers at the Somerset Cricket Museum, share and feel the same sadness as do all Somerset supporters on hearing of the passing of the Somerset all rounder Ken Palmer.

After a long and successful playing career with Somerset, during which in 1961 at the age of 24 he became the youngest player to achieve the double of 1000 first class runs and 100 first class wickets, he then served as a first class umpire for 31 years  before retiring in recognition of which he was awarded the MBE for his services to cricket 

Ken was a classy right handed batter and a fast medium bowler, who was born in Winchester  on 22nd April 1937 and grew up in Devizes where he made quite an impression on the local cricketing scene as a result of which he was invited to Hampshire for trials. 

However he wasn’t offered terms and instead signed for Somerset and arrived at the County Ground in the spring of 1954 at the age of 16.

Ken made his first team debut against Middlesex at Bath in June  the following year in which he claimed two wickets in their first innings- Freddie Titmus and Don Bennett and was then dismissed twice himself by Titmus.

After that introduction between 1955 and 1969 he went onto play in 302 matches for the county, scoring 7567 runs at an average of 20.67 which included two centuries and a best of 125 not out against Northamptonshire in 1961, the year in which he topped 1000 runs for the only time.

With the ball Ken took 837 wickets at an average of 21.10 with his best return being nine for 57 against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge in 1963. He took 100 first class wickets in a season four times, his best being in 1963 when he claimed 126.

Ken was 12th man for England in 1963 and two years later when he was coaching out in South Africa in 1965 he got called up to play in the Fifth Test Match against South Africa at Port Elizabeth, which was to be his only appearance for his country.

After retiring from playing Ken became a first class umpire and went onto officiate in 22 Test Matches and 23 One Day Internationals.

In retirement, Ken was a very familiar face at the Cooper Associates County Ground in Taunton and also a great friend of the Museum. He made a surprise visit to the Museum in March 2024, with his son Gary, also a former Somerset Cricketer (photographed below with Museum Volunteer Patrick Draycott) and also a few weeks ago, meeting up with Museum Volunteer, Mark Reeve.

Peter Robinson who played alongside Ken in the Somerset and was a good friend said: “Ken was a gutsy cricketer – what I would call a muck and bullets player, he would always get stuck in with the bat and bowl all day. He was a tough cricketer and was unlucky not to have played more Test matches- he should have played in England really.”

His record for the Club has been fully documented on the Somerset CCC website and his reminiscences recorded by Richard, in Episode 2 of the Former Somerset Players podcast.

The Museum, over the years has held many items of Ken’s, from his cricket bag (pictured below), his testimonial tie, and the story of his Single Wicket Trophy success in 1963.

From a personal perspective, I first started watching Somerset in 1956 and Ken’s autograph sits in my autograph book alongside other childhood heroes such as Bill Alley, Peter Wight and Brian Langford.

Ken was one of the Somerset greats and will be much missed by everyone who knew him.

SOMERSET CRICKET MUSEUM – 124 YEARS ON – OLYMPIC HEROES

An article written by the late Tony Stedall, once Curator of the Museum.

One hundred and twenty four years ago a party of cricket tourists from the West Country and a team of the best players from the handful of cricket clubs then existing in the Paris area met in the French capital for a two-day 12-a-side match grandly billed as ‘France contre Angleterre’. 

It was one of many sporting events arranged in Paris in 1900 as part of the great World Fair.

The match played in the Vincennes arena, attracted very little interest, but the few spectators were rewarded with an exciting finish. ‘England’ beat ‘France by 158 runs after dismissing the home side for only 26 in the second innings with just minutes to spare.

The second Olympic Games of the modern era were also being staged in Paris that summer. They were poorly organised, facilities were inadequate, only 22 countries took part, and in fact the games ended up as nothing more than an adjunct to the World Fair. But when 12 years later, the Olympic authorities finally compiled an official record of the 1900 Games they included the cricket match and a number of other World Fair events, to the surprise, no doubt, of those who had taken part.

Cricket has never figured in the Games before or since, so the West Country amateurs who played in Paris that summer have their own little niche in cricket history.

This curious story becomes even stranger when one looks at their opponents, for only three of the French team have French names. The rest were Englishmen resident in France.

The touring team, moreover, had little claim to represent England. They played as the Devon County Wanderers on this occasion, but retrospectively were renamed the Devon and Somerset Wanderers, for several came from Somerset and two in fact Alf Bowerman and Montague Toller each played a few first class games for the county around the turn of the century.

 The Wanderers owed their existence to W.S. Donne of the Castle Cary Club, who founded and led an annual tour for many years, (see additional notes below). Several of the players were former Blundells boys.

The 1900 tour, however, was not captained by Donne(although he took part), but by C.B.K.Beachcroft of Exeter.

The two who played for Somerset were heroes of the rain-affected match. The scores were; England 117 and 145 for 5 dec., France 78 and 26. Bowerman, who was born at Broomfield in the Quantocks, was top scorer of the game with a brisk 59 in the second innings. Toller, a Barnstaple man, then took 7 quick wickets (all bowled) when the French batted again. He conceded only 9, 10, or 14 runs according to which account one believes.

To sum up, England are the current Olympic Cricket gold medalists and champions.

Additional notes re W. S. Donne (contributed by Barry Philips)

William Stephens Donne was the driving force behind early Castle Cary CC tours. The first took place in 1894 to the Isle of Wight and in  subsequent years the tourists went to the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands and the Lake District. In June 1898, the touring cricketers and family left Harwich bound for Holland where William Donne had organised an ambitious 5th tour which featured seven matches. 

For whatever reason, William probably needed to broaden the representation, the tour to Paris in 1900 was made under the team name of the Devon County Wanderers, which would in later years adopt the broader title of the Devon and Somerset Wanderers. William was involved as secretary and organiser of each subsequent annual tour until his death in March 1934, aged 58.

The first image (below):is taken from the 1904 tour to the Channel Islands. The second image is from the 34th tour to Hampshire in August 1933. By the time of his death, he had already organised the 35th tour (again to Hampshire) which went ahead in August 1934 as a mark of respect. 

William was not much of a cricketer. He wasn’t a bowler and he usually batted in mid to late order. In the ‘Olympics’ match, going in as the 8th batsman, he was run out for 6 in his only innings. His running between wickets may well have been hampered by his ample girth as apparent from the images. He did captain the Castle Cary 1st X1 from 1912-1915, but he was happier playing for the 2nd X1 and it was his outstanding organising ability that counted more than his cricketing contribution. At various stages, he acted as secretary, chairman and president of the club. 

But, what he lacked in ability for cricket he made up for it with his rugby and his penchant for scrummaging. Firstly for Castle Cary RFC and then for Somerset. Elected to the latter’s committee in 1893, aged 18, he served as hon. secretary from 1896 to 1905 and was elected president in 1923, a position he held until his death. He was also president of the Rugby Football Union in 1924/25. Whilst president of the RFU he suffered a significant health scare, to the dismay of the King who sent him a get well message.  

A pupil of King’s School, Bruton, he and his brother Thomas were the directors of a twine and rope company at the Higher Flax Mills in Castle Cary. They were the 6th generation of the family to carry on the business. William was a pillar of the Castle Cary community. He was a Justice of the Peace, a parish, district and county councillor and he was the Chairman of various charities and boards which were the beneficiaries of his organisational and communication skills. The streets of the town were lined with mourners to pay their last respects at his funeral.