It all began in Folkestone

posted by John Winn

As I mentioned in my previous posting this week my trip to Chelmsford on Monday means that I have now seen Essex play against all the other counties in championship cricket. A journey that began at Cheriton Road Folkestone in 1986 has taken me to 15 different grounds, several of which no longer host first class cricket.

The Folkestone game was played over the August Bank Holiday weekend and I missed the start on the first day after struggling through holiday traffic on the A259 which took me along the coast from my then home in East Sussex. The day was dominated by an innings from Graham Gooch who with Fletcher and Pringle mounted a recovery against an attack led by Dilley and Alderman backed up by Derek Underwood but the main destroyer was Christopher Cowdrey who took 4 for 24. On the subsequent days Kent were bowled out twice on a difficult wicket with Childs taking ten wickets. This match was part of the Folkestone Festival for on the Sunday the two sides played a forty over game and then Warwickshire visited for another three day game the following Wednesday.

The other 'lost'  grounds I have visited in watching Essex are Ilford, Southend (Southchurch Park), Gloucester (King's School), Portsmouth, Southgate and Weston Super Mare, the last of which would be my favourite but not the players if you have read Chris Arnot's latest book 'Britain's Lost Cricket Festivals' which contains some splendid photographs of places like Folkestone, Portsmouth and Clarence Park, Weston. In Arnot's book he quotes Simon Hughes who describes the pavilion at Weston as  'an enlarged park-keeper's hut barely adequate to keep chickens in.'

As I type this the sun is shining but tomorrow looks like being another very difficult day for the pcw with thunder, lightening and hail all mentioned in the forecast. Let's hope these clear away for the championship games beginning on Sunday.

 

The roller pictured above has nothing to do with grounds I have visited watching Essex but is still in use at my local club, Ouseburn CC. Regrettably there is no manufacturer's name or date to be seen but the groundsman Edward Pearson  has made it clear that it is not ready for the roller museum.