Lives in Cricket No 15 - Michael Falcon

kind enough to offer me unlimited board and lodging. Roger Mann, Phil Scott and Philip Yaxley have all contributed illustrations from their collections. Philip Scott took a number of photographs specially for this book and Philip Yaxley was kind enough to permit me to cherry-pick from his unique archive of photographs on Norfolk cricket. Help has also been forthcoming from individuals who share my interest in Norfolk cricket. Reading David Armstrong’s history of the county club has given me an invaluable framework around which I could base the structure my life of Falcon: he also pointed me in the direction of Falcon’s son and has also provided some important pictures. Mike Davage kindly read a few draft chapters and has since been invaluable in providing first names for many cricketers where once I only had initials; he also managed to obtain Alf Mace’s address and some details of Falcon’s family. Andy Archer and Frank Devaney have been kind enough to supply some ‘colour’ on David Walker and Harold Watson respectively. Various members of the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians have been extremely helpful in the production of this ‘life’ of Michael Falcon. David Jeater has been an excellent, well-informed editor, suggesting many amendations which invariably improved my narrative and correcting my grammar where necessary. David Kelly and David Pracy must be thanked for proof-reading the manuscript. Philip Bailey has speedily answered statistical questions. Zahra Ridge has designed the cover and Pete Griffiths has attended to the time-consuming detail of typesetting and managed the production process. My thanks too, to the Association itself, for assisting with some of the expense of researching Michael Falcon’s remarkable life. Norwich February, 2010 132 Acknowledgements