South Yorkshire Times – Saturday 1 March 1952
Conisbro’s Cricket Aims in the New Season
Conisbrough Cricket Club’s dinner and prize night on Saturday were very much the pleasantly informal family party. The toast list was short and the speeches delightfully in keeping.
Mr. L. J. Bashforth proposed “Cricket,” and embraced the several leagues which had also in the past been included among the toasts, and he paid special compliment to the Doncaster League, of which they were members, and its remarkable progress from eight to over 100 clubs.
In the new zoning for season 1952 Conisbrough had, geographically, gone west. They would be meeting new opponents and seeing new grounds. He believed some of the club’s officials were a little disappointed; his reply was that they should make such progress in the new season that 1953 would find them worthy of inclusion in the premier division. They had the material; it remained to achieve that ambition by hard work.
Mr. Bashforth said personally he had been feeling a little disappointed about the ground. With the support of Conisbrough people and the grant and fillip lent by Mr. W. P. Turner, who formally opened the new enclosure, they had made a most enthusiastic and optimistic start. Towards the end of the season, however, it had become apparent that all that was necessary could not be done. There was such atrocious weather towards the end of the season that they could not keep up their good work. But they were not downhearted.
“I appeal to you all for work on that ground and I feel sure that towards the end of the season it will improve and we shall be where we want to be.”
Conisbrough had become cricket-conscious with the advent of the new ground, and he felt that spirit would return. The main thing in cricket was the spirit of cricket and that message was so ably set forward by the Doncaster League handbook, published last year (Festival year).
“I am sure,” he said, “the best spirit prevails in this district.”
Cricket—and Cricket!
The response was by Mr. J. H. Rawding, deputising for Mr. W. P. Turner.
Mr. Rawding amused his audience by telling them he had been looking up “Cricket” in an encyclopaedia. He had found it was:
“a kind of grasshopper which moved by leaps and the male of which made chirping noises by rubbing his legs together.”
If that had been written of the other kind of cricket it would also have been true, particularly of the “chirping” when the last pair made the winning hit between them.
He had also found there were “home crickets” and “field crickets”—and that, too, might be applied to the older hands and to the youngsters.
Mr. Rawding said in his cricketing days they were “mediocre” perhaps—but what did it matter? They were enthusiastic. They could sit now at Bank Hall Lane and tell Hutton and Washbrook how to go on. He thought his was the backbone of cricket and his message to Conisbrough Cricket Club was—enthusiasm.
Mr. Rawding read a letter from Mr. Turner, enclosing a cheque, his deepest regrets at being unable to be with them at this function, and an offer to assist in every possible way to county trial any young clubman who showed real promise.
Mr. Turner said he hoped the trophy he had given to the club (awarded to the young player showing greatest promise each season and won this year by M. Blackburn) had afforded encouragement to the younger players “of your fine old club to which I have had so many happy associations.”
A toast to “The Visitors” was proposed by Mr. J. Gillett and the response was by Mr. J. Holmes, chairman of the Mexborough Evening League, deputising for Mr. F. C. Bagshaw.
There were two surprises during the evening. Mr. Rawding was able to announce that it had been made possible to repay five sums of £5 each to good friends who had loaned the club money to buy the ground. The names were drawn by Mrs. Hepworth.
A Silver Tankard
Then Mr. G. K. Bateson, on behalf of the club, presented a silver tankard to Mr. W. “Bill” Thompson, to mark years’ grand service as cricket secretary.
Mr. Bateson said Mr. Thompson, personally, did not feel he had earned anything, but the committee felt otherwise. He had taken the club through its most difficult period ever. He had captained the team, he had stood down to let others play; he had gone away with the second team; he had done everything possible to hold the interest of cricket.
“If ever a man did more for cricket than Bill Thompson I should like to meet him.” (Applause.)
He threatened to resign twice a season (laughter), but we know he could never leave cricket or the world of it.
When the club called “Speech,” Mr. Thompson brought an immediate laugh. Looking at the tankard he said:
“The first thing I want to do is to criticise the committee for spending money.”
He said it had been suggested at the annual meeting that some recognition should be made, but he had suggested that instead they should repay their loans.
To suggest that one man had run a cricket club was an exaggeration. One man could not do it without grand co-operation, and he had always had that.