Cricket Witness No 3 - The Daffodil Blooms

88 New faces roots level. There was still rationing during these immediate post- war years, so with paper in short supply, the local newspapers ran only the briefest of reports about events on and off the field. Their sundry wartime experiences had shown the Glamorgan administrators the importance of propaganda so, in order to get the right messages out to the general public and the world of business, a plan was hatched to create the South Wales Cricketers’ Magazine. Wilf found a great ally in Hal Jarrett, the former Warwickshire leg- spinner who had played with much success for Newport CC before the War, besides having made one appearance for Glamorgan in 1938 and turned out in some of their wartime friendlies. Jarrett was now combining his duties as the groundsman at Rodney Parade with work for Henry Giles whose sports goods emporium was based in Skinner Street in Newport. Gilesports, as the sole agents of Warsop-Hendren cricket bats and stockists for equipment from national suppliers such as Stuart Surridge, Gray Nicholls, Gradidge, Sykes and Sugg, were also looking for innovative means to promote and advertise playing kit and other equipment, so the idea of creating a magazine promoting cricket greatly appealed. It was therefore a meeting of like minds with Gilesports helping to subsidise the magazine by paying for lavish adverts of their own, besides persuading others in the cricket industry to take out promotional space. Jarrett also agreed to act as the magazine’s editor with the quarterly issues containing plenty of news about the Welsh county, their 2 nd XI, the coaching opportunities plus an extensive round-up from club cricket. It contained details from the South Wales and Monmouthshire Cricket Association, the Swansea Central League, the Newport and District Amateur League, as well as the leagues in the Aberdare and Rhymney Valley, plus updates on youth and schools cricket, including the Welsh Secondary Schools Association. The magazine became a mouthpiece which united the efforts of Glamorgan officials and other key figures in recreational cricket, allowing the Club to also showcase how they were wisely spending the money from the Nursery and Development Fund. Better facilities and good coaching were also the key aims of George Lavis who, as a Glamorgan man through and through, took little persuasion to accept the post of county coach. Lavis worked tirelessly in this capacity during 1947 and left no stone unturned in seeking out talent to be invited to the nets at the Arms Park, besides running his eye over those who could appear in the Colts