16 February 1982

Posted on February 16, 2012 by

Tues Feb XVI

1st Day of Match. 5b 29-5 (Davidson 15no) 3a2 yet to bat. I did not bat. Went swimming

When I think back on this particular entry I wonder about a lot of things. For example, the score. Schoolboy cricket matches tended to be dour affairs, with not many runs being scored for each wicket, but wickets being easy to come by. I once played in a game where we won by four runs despite being bowled out for 32. Which leads me to wonder whether this low score and the fact that the game was nowhere near finished means that, for some reason, we began playing later in the day than we normally would have done. After all, we sometimes had hours to kill after school.

Then I begin wondering about Jamie Davidson, who clearly had a good game here. He was a tallish lad and I spent a lot of time in the same teams as him, but I can remember almost nothing about him. Strangely, I do recall that he batted in this game wearing a pink box. (The school kit bag contained one or two for communal use, there was none of the fuss about everyone having their own that there is today.) I am sure that Jamie would not want my lasting memory of him to be a flesh covered abdominal protector, but that is how it is.

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15 February 1982

Posted on February 15, 2012 by

Mon Feb VX

Nets again (see friday). Did Badly ‘First Test’ match tomorrow (as Grant Stubbings calls them) after School. Swimming only ‘cos got out early because of a staff meeting. Ran to the top of Mt Albert and back in 26:23.0.

The ‘Test Match’ concept came about because my year, unusually, had two teams. It is true to say that there was a fair degree of schoolboy talent in the school at that time and Mr Bean recognised it. We therefore had the second team, or 5b, who played at the correct level for our age. And then there was the first team, or 3A2, who played a year or two above our age group. Even more extraordinarily, that side was captained by Robbie Jessop, who was in the year below us.

None of these talented youngsters made it as cricketers, but Jessop was already an age group orienteering champion – which makes it all the more remarkable that he doesn’t get a mention any time that I mention either that sport or cricket within the diary!

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14 February 1982

Posted on February 14, 2012 by

Sun Feb XIV

Valentines Cards all round! Went to Pt Chev with some friends of Dads. I found a carton full of milk dated ‘use by Jan 4′ in the sea. When I threw it back in it split and lumps of milk went everywhere. Watered the garden.

Sad, isn’t it? My parents became keen to ensure that none of us missed out on Valentine’s Day, so each of us would get a card from them. They became even keener on this once we – or at least Karen and I – were at an age to actually have ‘real’ boyfriends and girlfriends who might send us a card.

The ironic thing is that, in adult life, everyone I have ever dated has foresworn Valentine’s Day for the commercial nastiness that it has sadly become. My parents obviously had a keen sense of what the day meant – unlike all of those who have since sought to make themselves wealthy on the back of it, and spolit it for everyone in the process.

Even sadder, the milk carton thing is one of my most vivid memories of the trip. Seeing the carton explode and the white, lumpy, liquid disperse in the water clearly made an impression upon me at the time, but why I still recall it thirty years on is beyond me.

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13 February 1982

Posted on February 13, 2012 by

Sat Feb XIII

Went to the 1 day International. NZ beat Australia. NZ 240-6 (50 overs) (Edgar 79, Coney 45, Howarth 34, Reid 20, Cairns 18no, Wright 18, Hadlee 11, Pascoe 1-36, Alderman 1-40), Australia 195 (46.5 overs) (G Chapell 108, Dyson 32, Hughes 16, Laird 11, Troup 4-44, Crowe 2-9). Chapell was man of the match. The players wore coloured kit A- Yellow/Green N.Z Beige/Brown and used a white ball with black sight-screens.

You can see that I enjoyed myself! It was the first game that Dad and I went to – and, I think, the last. We have been to many sporting events since, but I think this was the only cricket match. I am not sure why we have never been to another one, especially as this was quite a good game.

I was clearly keeping score quite assiduously. A quick check of the official record shows that I was out by a run here or there, but even so I’d say I didn’t do badly for someone attending only their second ever cricket match (even if I did spell Greg Chappell’s name incorrectly when it came to entering the day into the diary).

The game was played at Eden Park in Auckland. Even more so than now it was a rugby ground which hosted cricket matches, very low tech with masses of concrete and wooden benches to sit on. It has improved a lot since then, thank goodness. Fortunately, I was crazy enough about sport not to be put off by this comparative lack of comfort. I wonder if the same would be true for today’s children?

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12 February 1982

Posted on February 12, 2012 by

Fri Feb XII

Trials. Got bowled 7 or 8 times by Andrew Bunter. Alistair thinks I play back too much. Bowled Badly. Bought a sunhat. Swimming.

Trains = 34

Not a lot more that you can say about this, really. I actually remember Alistair Peak, the second team captain, saying this to me and it is a comment which I find worming its way back to me every now and then when I am playing the game.

Andrew Bunter was a good player, mind. Being bowled by him was no disgrace. Being bowled by him practically every ball was, though. It looks like he’s a hotel manager now.

The sunhat, incidentally, makes a couple more appearances as the diary goes on. It looked a bit like this one, in case you are wondering.

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11 February 1982

Posted on February 11, 2012 by

Thur Feb XI

P.E. with Dl (Don’t Care) agony. Left kit in Bc befor Interval, but Richard Hetherington found it and carried it through Inter, Pd3, Lunch, Pd4 before he could give it back! Tea with Parkes’ and swimming.

Trains = 33

This is something that I remember as if it was yesterday. Remember that none of my classmates had known me for a fortnight by this time and I was astonished that someone would go to all of the trouble of looking after my things for half of the school day.

Piecing together the school day from this shows that, on a Thursday, I had PE, followed by Science, the morning break (known as ‘interval’) then my two option subjects of German and Tech Drawing, broken by lunch, before form 4Bc got back together again for the final period of the day.

Richard Hetherington was one of the quieter members of the class, with dark brooding eyebrows and bad skin. He was one of those pupils who never seemed to be particularly close to anyone else in the class but who everyone got on with.

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10 February 1982

Posted on February 10, 2012 by

Wed Feb X

Not a lot happening except no T/D because Mr Pw was away. No luck with pace at cricket practice so switch to spinners and Pow Get Francis Wynne Middle Stump! Went swimming with Tony. Did Kz + Gs H/W.

Trains = 33

Technical Drawing was taught by Mr Parr-Whalley (Pw), a young teacher with fair hair and beard. He was very tolerant, especially of the fact that in his entire class I was the only one who had no idea what I was doing. He taught me how to do ‘exploded’ drawings and third angle elevation drawings, which were the only respect in which I was ahead of the class when I began my Design Technology course on returning to the UK.

In these classes – which were one of the two optional classes and which were therefore not ones in which we were taught in our form groups – I was sat next to a tall boy with wild blond hair named Craig Tremeer. I have no idea why they picked him to inflict me upon and. although we never became close, we got on well enough and he was also a great help to me in this alien subject.

 

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