Tidying up the blog this week - as well as writing the previous post about Wayne Madsen's longevity with the club almost matching mine - I came across the post I had written when I suggested the club should make a move for his services.
I didn't expect it to happen so quickly and soon afterwards I was reporting on his signing after John Morris moved quickly to secure his services. John could spot a player and while they didn't always play to potential, his time as county coach brought in some good cricketers.
At that time I had no expectation that Wayne would go on to be the heartbeat of the Derbyshire side for the best part of two decades, any more than that I would still be writing this blog and covering his entire career with the club.
He has been a model professional, both on and off the field and while I claim no responsibility for the signing, I am pleased that my suggestion came to fruition. Over the years it has been mutually beneficial, with Wayne and his wife making their homes in the area and very much becoming part of the 'furniture'.
I remain humbled and flattered that he kindly wrote the foreword for my second book, as well as attending the launches of both. He is quite a man, something that would likely be echoed by anyone with who he has been in contact in the intervening period.
Having led Derbyshire to the second division title in his first stint as skipper, in 2012, how nice would it be if he could do the same in 2026?
No one would deserve it more.
Postscript: my season preview will be published tomorrow, together with a look at the county's rivals in red ball cricket.
Wayne is a Derbyshire legend to be sure. And his sportsmanship is second to none. Who can forget when he "walked" having feathered a catch to the Yorkshire keeper at Chesterfield in (I think) 2012 when no-one appealed for a catch? Who else would have done that? Certainly not Stuart Broad if anyone remembers his actions in a Test against the Aussies that same year. In the Chesterfield match, Wayne almost saved the game for us almost single handedly with a masterful 141. Watching him bat was like watching Horatio at the bridge in Roman mythology. Thank you Wayne for your enormous contribution to Derbyshire cricket. Chapel Guy.
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