Wednesday 24 January 2024

My favourite eleven

At the end of last season, I was asked if over the winter I could turn my thoughts to an eleven, over the time I have spent watching Derbyshire, who I really enjoyed watching. Not necessarily the best players, but personal favourites. 

It has taken me a while, for reasons you know and if I thought about it for too long I would probably change that eleven on a regular basis! But my favourite side (and choosing only two overseas players was a challenge!) is as follows:

1 Kim Barnett

Needs no explanation. Simply the greatest bat the club has ever had, as well as being one of the most entertaining. Skippered the best side I have seen in our colours and always a joy to watch. Handy bowler too and fine fielder.

2 Alan Hill

I have always enjoyed a batter who grafts solidly away at 30-40 a session, presenting a bat as wide as a door. 'Bud' was a definitive example of this. He had the shots, mind, but batted for the team.

3 John Morris

Classy, stylish, powerful and eminently watchable. Didn't stay long enough but he was such a fine bat. If he was in for an hour it was one of the best hours you could wish for.

4 Eddie Barlow

One of my overseas. Also my skipper. Oh, and first change bowler too, as well as opener if we needed one through injury. Magnificent man and cricketer. As a kid I wanted to be him, still idolise the bloke

5 Wayne Madsen

Second best bat I have seen, after Barnett. But it is the way he makes his runs, as well as the sheer volume. Brilliant catcher, one of the nicest guys you could wish to meet and one I will miss considerably, when he eventually calls time on playing

6 Anuj Dal

Love watching him bat and bowl, while he is brilliant in the field. But he always seems to enjoy himself and just edges out Luis Reece in this team. Busy cricketer and another lovely bloke.

7 Fred Swarbrook

Solid, in every sense of the word. Dependable and gritty with the bat, a terrific spinner until he got the 'yips'.  Good pair of hands too. Geoff Miller was a better player, but I loved watching Fred and his commitment to the cause.

8 Michael Holding

Underrated bat, wonderfully quick bowler with all the skills. A safe counsel for Barnett and Eddie Barlow would love such a weapon in his attack. A genuine great of the game

9 Bob Taylor

Worth the admission money, just to watch him take the ball. I feel sorry for very good keepers since, because the standard he set, day in, day out, was astonishing. Another lovely man, but what a player!

10 Alan Ward

When he was on song, was fit and full of confidence, he was a joy to behold. That long back, high action and follow through. There were a few didn't fancy getting in line against him and he was an awesome sight in full flow.

11 Mike Hendrick

Not especially quick, but wonderfully accurate. On his day he could be unplayable and I saw him tie Geoff Boycott in knots at Chesterfield before dismissing him, one evening. Not many could do that. Excellent fielder too, when not all seamers were..

Others bubble under. I liked Bruce Roberts, Ashley Harvey-Walker, Matt Critchley, Chris Wilkins, Mohammad Azharuddin, Dean Jones, Ian Bishop, Tony Borrington... There are many more, but that eleven above gave me great pleasure over the years.

I would give good money to see them walk on a pitch and play together!

And if anyone else fancies a go, by all means let me know...

19 comments:

  1. Chesterfield blue24 January 2024 at 19:48

    Fine team that Steve, for entertainment value and not necessarily top quality I'd add Ole Mortensen as a near starter. Used to love watching him run down to bowl in his unusual action, with a little rendition of Ole,Ole,Ole,Ole coming from the Derbyshire faithful

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  2. 1. Barnett ( c)
    2. Wright
    3. Kirsten
    4. Morris
    5. Madsen
    6. Miller
    7. Cork
    8. Defreitas
    9. Malcolm
    10. Hendrick
    11. Mortenson

    Not many runs from the last three but the top 5 should knock up a few.
    Bit of a fight for the new ball 😂
    Paul

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  3. Aaagh no wicket keeper!! Taylor at 8 for Daffy. Enough wicket takers anyway

    Paul

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  4. This is difficult, Cork and Adams must be close though. Surprised by Dal (although I do like him as a cricketer)

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    Replies
    1. I like watching his sheer enjoyment of the game. Reece and Guest also, in the current side, visibly show their enjoyment of what they do. It is a relatively short career and they are getting the most from it

      Just to stress - not my GREATEST side, but players I have enjoyed watching for various reasons

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  5. Thank you Peakfan for this post ... You have carried your bat wonderfully all these years despite some very personal challenges during recent seasons.

    I ventured the idea of 'favourite' [as opposed to 'greatest'] and must declare my following started around the mid to late 70s so reflects this a little...

    Barnett [c]
    Wright
    Morris
    Masden
    Kirsten
    G. Miller
    Cork
    Bob Taylor [wk]
    DeFreitas
    Holding
    Hendrick

    I like the idea of introducing a couple of the current lads... I am hoping this season produces results that will mean I can not possibly leave out Reece from my first XI.

    PJS

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  6. Some wonderful names there, Peakfan. My faves aren't very different from yours:
    Barnett
    Hill
    Kirsten
    Morris
    Madsen
    Barlow (c)
    Cork
    Swarbrook
    Taylor (wk)
    Ward
    Mortensen

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  7. Love to see Palladino in one of these sides

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    Replies
    1. Yep, loved TP. Just so much competition. Pop Welch was another

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  8. where's Charl Langevedt?

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    Replies
    1. Top player, in my best T20 side, but hard to fit in against very strong opposition!

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  9. Barnett
    Madsen
    Morris
    Kirsten
    Harvey-Walker
    Barlow (c)
    Miller
    Cork
    Taylor
    Mortensen
    Hendrick

    Would loved to have squeezed Holding, Adams, Ward or Malcolm in there....

    All very subjective, but the only given is Eddie Barlow, and always as captain. Anything else is just wrong!!

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  10. Chesterfield blue25 January 2024 at 21:11

    Rogers and Guptill worth a shout as well

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  11. You'd have Barlow ahead of either Ward or Hendrick as first change, PF? Surely he's second change in that team...

    And I hope the top five get some runs if they're batting on some of the Chesterfield wickets of the last few years--maybe a team full of lovely men but it's got a tail like a Diplodocus...:-)

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    Replies
    1. Eddie could do what he fancied, new ball, old ball! And I am assuming all at the top of their games. Not the BEST team, as I said. But those whose game I really enjoyed.

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  12. Some great choices here. As a pre-60s fan, my first choice would be Les Jackson. Watching him coming in from the Lake End ( and hitting a few in there when his eye was in! ) was one of the pleasures of getting to the ground and hoping Derbyshire would be bowling. Harold Rhodes was also wonderful to watch. He and Les must have been terrifying to face on some of the smaller grounds' dodgy wickets, as Hampshire discovered at Burton-on-Trent in 1958 when they were dismissed for 23 and 55.

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    Replies
    1. I would have loved to see Les, Cliff and Harold in their pomp. So too George Pope. One of the benefits of increased age is having seen these greats.

      Only saw Les once in a match against the Cavaliers, when he bowled his nine overs for only 19 and 2 wickets. He took 2 wickets, including Boycott, at the age of 47...

      Not sure Sir Geoffrey was a true Cavalier!

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  13. Barnet,Bowler Morris,Adams,Jones(C), Miller,Cork,DeFreitas,Krikken,Dean, Malcolm, that team would win the league Dean Jones would drive them on the field with everyone having the utmost respect for each other off the field would probably be different altogether the only slight issue I would have with that team would be the lack of a left-hander,I was lucky to watch them all play for Derbyshire in that golden period between 1988-1997

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  14. My favourite but not best eleven in my time watching Derbyshire would be : Kim Barnett{c}, Chris Rogers, Peter Kirsten, Mike Page, Ashley Harvey-Walker, Graeme Welch, Jamie Pipe {wk}, Colin Tunnicliffe, Edwin Smith, Steffan Jones, Ole Motensen. Twelth man: Bill Fowler.

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