The West of Scotland branch of The Cricket Society is holding its Annual Dinner at Titwood, home of Clydesdale Cricket Club, on Monday 18thMarch 2019. The Society is once again extending an open invitation to all cricket-lovers, whether or not they are members of the Society.
The guest speaker is Alan Butcher of Surrey, Glamorgan and England. Alan is the senior member of a remarkable cricketing family; his two younger brothers, Martin and Ian, and both of his sons, Mark (71 Test matches for England) and Gary all played first-class cricket, whilst his daughter Bryony has played for Devon Women and Essex Women.
Alan Butcher played first-class cricket for more than 20 years for Surrey and, laterally, for Glamorgan. He had a distinguished career, principally as a hard-hitting opening batsman, scoring more than 22,000 first-class runs (including 46 centuries) and almost 10,000 runs in List A matches. In 1991 Wisden named him as one of their Five Cricketers of the Year. However, despite consistently strong performances for Surrey (he always scored between 1,300 and 1,700 runs per season), Alan was only picked for 1 Test and 1 ODI for England even though Mike Brearley, England captain at the time, rated him as one of the best players of fast bowling in the county game.
Alan started out in 1972 as a fastish left-arm bowler for Surrey but in 1975 settled into the role of specialist batsman. He was an aggressive left-handed opening bat with a fondness for hitting shots off the back foot. His long-standing partnership with Grahame Clinton at the top of the order resulted in 19 opening stands of more than a hundred. After playing for Surrey for fifteen years Alan moved on to Glamorgan in 1987 where his partnership with Hugh Morris resulted in 18 century first wicket stands for the Welsh county. Alan took over the captaincy of Glamorgan in 1989 and finally hung up his boots at the end of the 1992 season when injury forced his retirement. Following on from his playing days he took up coaching roles at Essex and Surrey but his most challenging assignment came in 2010 when he was appointed head coach of the Zimbabwean national team. He was highly credited for reviving cricket in that country and presided over their return to Test cricket after an absence from the highest form of the game of six and half years. Alan has written of his experiences in Zimbabwe in a book entitled “The Good Murungu? A Cricket Tale of the Unexpected” and has since its publication become a much sought-after speaker on the cricket society/cricket club circuit.
The West of Scotland branch of The Cricket Society would love to have you join us for an evening of good food (three courses and coffee), excellent company and an eminent after dinner speaker.
Reserve your place (early booking appreciated but no later than Monday 11th March), at a cost of £33 per head, by contacting Ewen McConville, Secretary, The Cricket Society of Scotland via email on ejrmcc@gmail.com.
