Like a lot of sport-obsessed males, I tend to punctuate my tenure on the planet in terms of World Cup years. Football World Cup years mainly. Cricket World Cups, Ashes years are a bit awkward, odd numbers involved and all that.
Olympic years and Euros years (the same usually) just don’t cut it but, yes, in 1970 I was 11, 19 in 1978, 22 in 1982 and so on.
I went to Italia 1990, met an old flame in 2002 (married her the year after I wasn’t waiting till 2006) and even some of my worse times are now remembered through the prism of El Copa Mondialito memories - unceremoniously jilted in the Mexican Maradona summer of 1986, resident in the Priory after what they refer to as something of a “shed collapse” for the duration of France 1998.
This year is the first time I can honestly say a football world cup has virtually passed me by. A waning interest, or more correctly, increasing disillusionment with soccer - and don’t tell me that’s an American confection please or you’ll be lectured at length - combined with the all-over-the-place timing of games, not to mention cataracts which make picking the ball out difficult on telly, have combined to the effect that only a half-dozen half-hours have been spent watching it. Brazil v Japan at teatime was good.
It helps, or maybe you consider it doesn’t help, that I’m not the least bit patriotic. Despite club loyalties in my favourite sports it doesn't really bother me that much how well or badly England teams do.
I watch every England football international and Test but the results don’t affect my mood much. This week’s Test Match farrago - I just roll my eyes rather than hang my head.
I’m far more disappointed if Church are knocked out of the Worsley Cup than I am by Stokes and co losing to New Zealand and I’d far rather see Rovers at the new Wembley for a play-off game than welcome “football coming home,” the accursed concept which Skinner and Baddiel inflicted upon us in perpetuity as a wretched metaphor for the unlikely scenario of the national team actually winning something. You can remind me if I prove erroneous there.
I was even shocked this week when my pals who run the largely Anglo-Indian midweek cricket league team Preston Royals acceded to the request of Wednesday’s opponents Chipping to call off their midweek Boddingtons League T20 to allow the lads in the posh Ribble Valley village to watch the Ghana game.
I’ve no idea what the likely schedule is for the later rounds but there’ll be high dudgeon from me and no mistake in these columns if there’s any attempt or representation to mess about with league cricket schedules.
It was always the case that the Lancs League never staged fixtures on FA Cup Final day but that was when it was a shared national experience. I’d sooner be at Ribb Wanderers or Nelson at Saturday teatime these days than watching Man City and Chelsea V150.
I’m a bit disappointed neither of my teams have made it through to latter stages of Friday night T20 whatever the counter-attractions although Accrington’s campaign ended with such a whimper on Friday evening last at Church that I suppose I ought to enjoy a night off and the opportunity to watch that plum Round of 32 (even FIFA terminology irks me) tie Australia v Egypt - although Lancs are at Trent Bridge in the Blast on Friday night so You Tube trumps the footy again there I’m afraid.
Accy were bowled out for 67 by a rampant (is it to early to say resurgent) Church and knocked them off in less than 10 overs,
It was one of those nights when home scorer MIa, resplendent in her Stanley shirt, and I were quite happy with an ‘early dart’ with only around 25 of the available 40 overs played out.
Church followed that with another league win on Sunday and I’m glad that early fears of a catastrophic campaign are easing.
At least I got to chat with my old Church twos skipper Eric Barnes, one of my favourite people in the cricket and football milieu we inhabit but someone whose conversation is never bound by those interests. Top fella.
Coming off, another old friend identified himself anew to me through a beard more salt-and-pepper speckled than when I first encountered him.
Mahboob ‘Mabs’ Hussain captains Church seconds these days. I was sure I’d played with Mabs in my final third XI days at the WECG - brought to a final and undignified end by being carted off into an ambulance with a back injury in 1989 - but he doesn’t think so.
It’s still easy to think of him as a youngster which he would be then but Mahboob is 49 now, with over 120 Church first team games under his belt - and two for Accrington..
He made his debut for Church seconds in the April of 1993. Imagine that - the tail end of the first Football Premier League season - and his last first team appearance in 2010. Another World Cup year. I was scoring at Rammy for Church when he played the afternoon Frank Lampard had that Geoff Hurst type goal ruled out v Germany in South Africa.
I tell you, some measure out their life in coffee spoons. For me it’s World Cups.
His Accy appearances came in 2002. Yeah, I know. Mabs is still good enough to be scoring 100’s in the Seconds, he made 126 v Rawtenstall the other week.
Nothing touched me all weekend more than him telling me he'd waited to say hello and introduce me to his teenage lad Sufyan. Cricket brings you in contact with such lovely people.
Accrington more than made up for Friday’s disappointment - great to see two Hyndburn sides Great Harwood and Enfield progress in the T20 even if they’ve been drawn together on Friday (the draw for that a story in itself, check it out) - by beating Rochdale in a terrific game on Sunday.
I must admit I wasn’t too distraught upon hearing Jurie Snyman had been out for a golden duck subbing for Littleborough against Enfield on Saturday.
Jurie made just 11 on Friday night at Church and I had a feeling he wouldn’t miss out three times in a weekend.
His four wickets (all leg before, the same fate which had befallen Jurie) and from all accounts a staggering catch to remove the Enfield pro helped win the game for Littleborough.
There were no wickets for the South African on Sunday and after having Rochdale 31 for three in truth it was toil for Accrington as Rochdale pro Dale Philips and precocious teenage talent Haroon Kashmiri posted a 114 stand.
Phillips, brother of Kiwi Test ace Glenn could have gone first ball as an edge flew skyward and just evaded catchers but was dropped twice early on as last season’s Achilles heel showed through again.
Happily after cashing in to some extent but not as much as he might, Phillips eventually launched another towering hit off culprit Asad straight down the throat of the one man guaranteed to hang on, Snyman. Costly drops early on but at least Asad got his man in the end.
Rochdale Skipper Mike Harling picked up the impetus however and helped add another 82 with Kashmiri who reached a fine century in the final over.
It was one of those days you somehow thought only a major contribution from the pro or a maverick and less expected 100 from someone else would win it.
Johnny Dack and Graeme Sneddon got us away to a brisk start but two wickets fell in five deliveries with only 35 on the board.
Fortuitously however it was one of those days when bowlers must feel like they are bowling to a bloke with a grand piano lid on the end of a handle. And that was just Sneds! The former captain was far less manic than on occasion and he rattled off eight boundaries in making a composed 44 while Jurie calmly took the situation in hand. When Graeme rather surprisingly played a false stroke Emile took up the cudgel. It was just one of those days when you can’t see Jurie getting out and so it proved. There were few pyrotechnics - no sixes unusually - but his twelfth Accrington century was an inevitability as Emile then Kian Farnworth both shared stands of more than 50 with him.
It all ended rather anti-climatically but joyfully with a wide to Simon Hanson with the scores level and Jurie backing up at the non-striker’s end. Terrific game.
Another home game on Sunday against Rawtenstall as we repeat and reverse the first-half-of-the-season fixtures.
It was my second 200-plus chase of the weekend after Cherry Tree chased down 213 to beat Walkden with two wickets and one delivery to spare! Former chairman Dan Logan snicked the winning boundary. Kurt Smithson captained the side in the absence of holidaying Andreas Sudnik and hurt himself in a collision in the field. Both along with Jon Baldwin should be ok for Saturday’s reunion with Immanuel at New Lane.
Great company at weekend too with Walkden/Rochdale scorers Ian and Steve and Mia in the old stand at Church which I hear might be coming down. That saddens me a little but I’m old enough to know that nothing lasts forever, Even this World Cup.
I was disappointed Ian had no bumper packs of Crisps with him this time.
I asked Steve at one point whether Rochdale preferred the Lancs League or their old home, the now-defunct Central Lancs League?
“Central Lancs League,” he answered succinctly and honestly. For balance my old Rochdale Ob colleague Mike Floyd once told me he and his Rochdale supporting mates take the contrary view.
My weekend ended with a 75-minute delay going home on the M65 on Sunday night due to a motorway bridge incident. My pal Martin Heyes was stuck on the opposite carriageway after umpiring a cup tie on Merseyside. If we’d known we could have had a ‘camp’ by the central reservation.
Another umpiring friend Matt is doing the first ‘test’ event at the new ground at Farington as I write this. Hope he has less trouble getting by there than I had last Sunday!
Quiz - I hold my hand up, error last week. The Accrington player who scored the first competitive T20 runs and took the first wicket in that format for the club was Tamu Canning not as I thought Ryan Canning!
This week. Mabs Hussain played just two games for Accrington. Both featured sub pros for the club.
One was Andre Seymore. The other, a notable and long serving performer in Ribblesdale League cricket is still regularly seen plying his trade on Lancashire League grounds - can you name him?
