During these challenging times for all, we want to help keep everyone associated with the club and wider community positive and engaged. We’re in this together and Together, We Are All Derbyshire.
Last week we asked you to nominate one batsman and one bowler from Derbyshire’s 150-year history who you’d like to see playing first-class cricket today.
Following an excellent response from Members and supporters spanning a number of generations, we’ve collated some of the most frequent responses below.
In a sign of high-praise for Derbyshire’s overseas stars of the late 1970s and into the 1980s, Andy Eland nominated Peter Kirsten and Michael Holding, as did Paul Lissett and Michael Smout. Gillian Johnson stuck with Holding, but switched out Kirsten for his New Zealand counterpart and now Club President, John Wright. The pair struck 15 first-class centuries between them – Kirsten eight and Wright seven – in 1982 and even earned the backing of former Derbyshire batsman, Chris Adams, in this vote.
Eddie Barlow was also frequently chosen, the all-rounder seen as an inspiration for many supporters who were able to watch him at Derby, and notably his 217 versus Surrey at Ilkeston, across his three years with the club.
Unsurprisingly, the club’s all-time leading run-scorer, Kim Barnett (36,212 runs) was picked by many of you, alongside Derbyshire’s leading wicket-taker, Les Jackson (1,672 wickets).
The talismanic all-rounder Dominic Cork was the bowling choice for many supporters, and with multiple match-winning performances with both bat and ball in hand, who can fault the wily choice to bring in an all-rounder.
Darley Dale-born Mike Hendrick was another popular bowling choice, as was fellow seamer, Devon Malcolm, while the highly-talented John Morris was selected by the likes of Philip Stocks and Nick Ratcliffe.
Tony Palladino, who has taken the most first-class wickets of any Derbyshire bowler in the 21st century (347), chose Michael Di Venuto and Dominic Cork, the former scoring 11,316 runs in his five seasons with the club.
The club’s Heritage Officer, David Griffin, chose two players whose careers briefly overlapped in the early 20th century, Bill Bestwick, who took 1,452 wickets for the county, and Stan Worthington. A prolific all-rounder and member of the 1936 County Championship winning side, Worthington amassed 17,000 runs and claimed 624 wickets during his Derbyshire career.
Get involved!
Our Members, supporters and stakeholders are vitally important to the club and we want to give back where we can – whether that be providing you with new and exclusive interviews, re-living the club’s greatest moments, or hearing about your favourite moments.
Join in on social media, tag friends and contact the club via the form below and we’ll aim to feature as many of the discussion points as possible.
If you would like to remain anonymous, please let us know in the body of the message.
Together, We Are All Derbyshire. Share memories, favourite moments and engage with fellow supporters. Get in touch on social media, at [email protected], or call 01332 388 101.
