Lives in Cricet No 33 - Jack Robertson and Syd Brown

120 Chapter Twenty-Two Coach Jack wasn’t new to coaching. Back in 1947, in conjunction with the Middlesex Grammar Schools’ Cricket Association, Middlesex became involved in a scheme to bring promising boys from schools in the county for coaching at the Chiswick Indoor Cricket School, and he was one of the Middlesex side involved in this project. 167 He also captained the Middlesex Second Eleven and Club and Ground Eleven between 1961 and 1965, before relinquishing the former responsibility in order to allow him to devote more time to his duties as county coach. He was an obvious choice for these posts: The Cricketer for example had commented that the younger players always seemed to play better when he partnered them. Many future first-eleven players would be grateful for his guidance. Clive Radley remembers him as a very kind and gentle man, highly regarded on the second-eleven and club-and-ground circuits. He batted down the order but his class was still obvious. Radley also remembered that a great strength of his coaching style was that he didn’t coach the natural flair out of players. Jack was a stylish player; Radley wasn’t and Jack didn’t try to make drastic changes in the way he played. The success of this approach was obvious. Jack didn’t just look after the professionals. Through his work on the County’s Junior Cricket Committee and the Young Amateurs Subcommittee he helped cricket, and cricketers, develop at all levels in the county. Together with Jim Sims in particular (whose ‘capacious vehicle’ was apparently of great value in providing transport for the Young Amateurs), he watched many matches at this level as well as assessing players sent to Lord’s for trials and for coaching. He was clearly an outstanding coach: the 1963 Middlesex Annual Report, for example, expressed the Club’s appreciation ‘of the excellent manner in which he performed his duties as County Coach’. Five years later, however, it was announced that he was to be replaced by Don Bennett. The 1968 Annual Report explained that the Committee had decided that the time had come in the best interests of the Club to introduce a younger coach (Jack was 51, Bennett 35). The report expressed the Club’s sincere thanks for his ‘very distinguished and loyal service’ and recognised in particular that many of all ages had benefited from his experience and patience during nine years as Head Coach at the County Cricket School at Finchley. Why was Jack replaced? Middlesex’s recent performances had been disappointing: thirteenth in the Championship in 1966, followed by 167 Syd Brown had been another, among other things giving periodic lectures and demonstrations at local schools in the county.