Lives in Cricket No 20 - Maurice Tompkin

After several years of going to Scarborough, his festival cricket this year was at Hastings, and another chance to play against the Pakistanis, but still his form deserted him even in these relaxed surroundings. Despite the benefit anxieties he was, for the second consecutive season, Leicestershire’s leading run-scorer, with 1,592 runs at 35.38. The season ended with two more benefit matches. On Saturday, 11 September he returned to the Enderby ground to play for the South Leicestershire League against the Leicestershire Cricket Association. And on the following day, as if to celebrate the end of the summer, the county team scored over 300, with Gerry Lester 140 not out, assisted by fifties from Maurice and M.J.K.Smith. Throughout the season, his fellow professionals had supported him in almost every match. Most Sundays that coincided with home matches were spent playing, or at least watching the rain from pavilions scattered around Leicestershire. During the August Bank Holiday match at Northampton, the entire team except for Charles Palmer played at Breedon-on-the-Hill in North Leicestershire on the Sunday. Other sportsmen assisted as well. Though the City footballers had two abortive attempts to play a game, several, including City’s Arthur Rowley and the Tigers’ Peter Konig, played in a sportsman’s match at Wigston. Events had come to an end by the middle of October, when Billy Butler was relieved to announce that over £3,000 had been raised, finally handing over a cheque for £3,254 7s 0d (equivalent to £57,000 in 2011 money) in December. At least three slightly different figures were reported at the time, but this one, with the shillings and pence included, has a ring of accuracy. In any event (and despite the weather) it was the highest achieved in the history of the club. He was also guest of honour at Countesthorpe Cricket Club’s annual dinner, all part of the role of a county cricketer being part of the community in which he lived. His benefit was therefore more successful than the two Australians whose benefits followed. Jack Walsh had the advantage of a fine summer, though perhaps by Jackson’s in 1956 there was an element of fatigue setting in by the fund-raising ‘community’. Of the six other county benefits in 1954, Leslie Compton of Middlesex received over £6,000, and the others averaged around £3,500. The committee decided to appoint Maurice as the club’s senior professional at the end of 1954. With it went an extra £50 a year, but first he had to accept the invitation; when he did so the appointment was confirmed on 1 December. Whether this appointment changed his role in the team is hard to say. He replaced his long-standing friend and colleague, Gerry Lester, who continued to play regularly until 1958. Terry Spencer remembers their very different styles: ‘Gerry was very much roll up your sleeves and let’s get on with it. Maurice was much quieter and more relaxed.’ Senior Professional 101