History of Bucks CCC

personality. “He was his own man,” says Paul Atkins, back in the fold after a seven year absence, “He did seek advice, but he liked to do it his own way. He was hardworking and thorough. And the determination that he put into everything he did rubbed off on the rest of the team.” For the round robin stage of the re-vamped one-day competition Bucks assigned players special roles. In batting Harrison was to be the anchor man while the more expansive left-handers, Lane, Burns and Sawyer, were to play their shots, allowing Atkins’ experience to be applied as necessary, while Mark Sullivan of Beaconsfield, an experienced off-spinner though rarely a championship player, was brought in to open the bowling and deny the early batsmen pace. After a comfortable win against Berkshire, it was Sullivan who saved the day with the bat as he dispatched the final ball over third man to earn a one wicket win against Hampshire Board Eleven. Rain then conspired to make life difficult for the bowlers at Ashford as Kent CBmanaged to overhaul a challenging Bucks total of 259 for 8, to which Burns had contributed 109. This spelt the end of the road for Bucks, a win against Sussex CB being academic, though it was always likely to be remembered by the Wycombe seamer Adam Cole, whose six overs brought him figures of six for 2. A promising cricketer who had made a useful contribution in championship matches, Cole was to be another youngster lost to Bucks when his career took him to a job at Lord’s. Despite the disappointing outcome for Bucks, the new competition had ensured that the team received useful practice ahead of their NatWest match with Surrey at The Oval, the fourth Test ground to entertain a Bucks side, where their opponents lined up with seven Test players. The captain soon had to adjust his tactics as 31 came from the bats of Alec Stewart and Jason Ratcliffe in the first three overs. Harrison’s own off-spinners restored some order, but Surrey closed on 315 for 9, a total which Bucks never threatened despite a top-scoring 46 from the special import, South African Mike Rindel. 106 Changing structures Paul Sawyer and Jason Harrison