I entered all of them and you will stood about longest waiting line, to have Greig’s signature. Whether or not it are ultimately my personal turn, I summoned up courage and you will informed him, that have hook quaver, that it was good “helluva connect”. A separate idol minted there and. For another decade, when he ran to your large movement, Greig ended up an advisable but difficult character – a silver doubloon, never ever entirely losing their essential lustre but apparently needing healing polishing. Along the 2nd few year, We spotted him down from the Hove in most family games. Cut for five wickets and you will a fast 93 up against Hampshire for the July 1969, Really don’t remember him and work out people tall contribution. However, he always did things. A flourishing protection push otherwise a tow take to moving off of the scoreboard for six.
Sussex thrashed them, and you can Greig is People of the Fits: 54 in the first innings, regarding 199, right after which four wickets
Otherwise a good bouncer injudiciously aimed at Mike Procter’s direct, who then strike your having cuatro, 4, 6, cuatro when he is actually clobbered for over 130 out of 20 weird overs. In which he usually finalized autographs. I had him 7 times in two season. Immediately after, he even told you, “Ach, it is you once again. I never watched your reject some body. I sat under the spread boughs of famous tangerine forest. Robbo regaled united states throughout the day that have stories regarding watching Les Ames, Godfrey Evans and you can Doug Wright due to the fact an effective boy. The guts lamb was a head box that has developed a keen encyclopaedic experience in Kent cricket, and her dad’s apparent satisfaction, not just admonished your when he nudged me and you may mentioned an attractive “popsy” regarding group however, fixed your as he had some reality or profile incorrect.
That has been commonly. Robbo try never ever you to for mathematical detail; it was the storyline you to definitely mattered. Kent’s illustrious history – whether reality otherwise misconception – failed to let far thereon hot July time. By the end throughout the day, one another middle lamb and Robbo themselves was clearly smitten. We realized one to be true given that, even with their daughter out-of earshot, my uncle no further talked-of the brand new enough time streak from piss, however, from “Greigy”.
Greig played only a help part you to big date; a fast-flame thirty six about Sussex innings as well as 2 wickets, including that Kent’s most useful scorer, Graham Johnson, stuck by Tony Buss regarding a lengthy-rise
And Sussex did it once more 36 months later. Gillette Mug one-fourth-finally, August 1, 1973, within Hove. By this time Greig is a recently depending England pro and you may Sussex head. Once again, I went with Robbo, and we practically missed it. My brother had organised your day however when we pitched right up ticketless from the Tate Gates, we were firmly turned into out. An excellent sellout. The new stewards (“soft little Hitlers”) had no truck having Robbo’s “Get real, it is the boy’s birthday celebration today.” (It wasn’t.) However,, he wasn’t stopping you to with ease assuming told a tiny warily on how I experienced to your crushed 100% free that have my mates, the next thing We realized I found myself giving my portly buddy a toes-up over the backyard wall surface of 1 of your larger households one supported onto the sea avoid of your own floor. Into the, buoyed from the our very own victory, Robbo’s attraction strike overdrive and he for some reason sweet-spoke the fresh new less draconian in-surface ushers therefore effectively, that we wound-up about gangway of your own members’ pavilion, best next to the players’ balcony. Into the basic innings We spotted while the Greig spent some time working their ways owing to almost an entire package regarding Benson and Bushes, and Robbo, the sole Kent supporter among us, cheered all work on given that their lads chased 264 in the second. Today a teenager, I found myself a tiny ashamed through this, however, luckily indeed there just weren’t most of them. Operates, that’s. Kent had been bowled aside to own 135. But one to don’t matter. As the players endured towards the outfield and you will basked regarding the thanks a lot of one’s ten,000-strong audience, Sussex got obtained. We watched while the brief boys lined up to get the skipper’s autograph – I happened to be first of all one to now – and indexed you to definitely Robbo had registered all of them. He and you can Greig were in the near future involved with animated dialogue. Both was in fact chuckling, thoughts thrown back, once the waiting line out-of short boys longer, https://brightwomen.net/fr/femmes-panamiennes/ moving forward anxiously of ft to help you legs. Immediately following what appeared a very long time, they shook hands warmly and you can Robbo patted his the latest friend familiarly on the back. The guy emerged bounding back up the newest pavilion methods, clutching their closed scorecard – “It’s into the middle mutton,” the guy lied – and beaming out of ear to ear. “He or she is a soft great bloke.” The sense it absolutely was Greig’s Sussex one acquired the game try palpable. John Spencer, new Sussex bowler, told me has just that when Greig got more than, the whole atmosphere within a pub “dogged by the backbiting, cynicism and you can negativity” changed nearly overnight. Greig was a breathing of bracing sea air.
