EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
When rain stops play the pitch is covered before the players have left the field
question. The logistics were testing to say the least. The contractor we engaged to do this for us, Steve Pask, and the suppliers County Turf got the job done, allowing us to get on with the business of preparing the pitch, and that wasn’t easy alongside such a massive turf operation.”
“I can honestly say that, without Steve’s involvement, there wouldn’t have been a Test match. He and his team were outstanding, having turned a quagmire into a pristine cricket outfield in less than two weeks. It was truly remarkable.” “Hearing remarks from the public like
‘Can’t understand what all the fuss was about’ and ‘Looks all right to me’, was just so
pleasing and a great relief, because it told me that a great job had been done.” “Match Referee for that Test, Jeff Crowe, always fair, but not known for shying away from criticism, marked the pitch and outfield as very good, which was satisfying too, given how bad it had looked a couple of weeks earlier.”
“It had been a terrific achievement by everyone involved. As it happens, England lost by 51 runs, but it was a close and exciting game with batting and bowling to enjoy right up until after 5 o’clock on the fifth day. It was hailed as a magic Test, and certainly one I’ll always remember. I’d like to bottle up my feelings as the game finished.”
PC October/November 2018 47
Mick is a practical man and not one for being in the limelight, but like it or not he is a Lord’s legend. It just hasn’t seemed like forty-nine years there to him. That’s a mark of enjoying what you do if ever there was. He’s been taken aback by all the good wishes he’s been getting since he announced his retirement. As we say goodbye, walking across the edge of the Nursery Ground during the lunch interval, a Middlesex supporter comes up to him, shakes his hand and thanks him for all the great cricket he’d given him over the years. Praise indeed.
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