Lives in Cricket No 46 - George Raikes

118 The Rector of Bergh Apton - The End of a Muscular Christian “his activity is still that of a young man. He was frequently doing brilliant things at the net, where there is such a lot of him that it seemed impossible to keep the ball out of his reach.” By 1925 the press were describing George (who was 52) and Maud as ‘veterans’; despite his age, the Eastern Daily Press remarked that the reverend and his partner, C.Barton, “should make a strong combination in the men’s doubles”. During the tournament, the duo was praised for “skilful work at the net” and they duly advanced to the final. However, rain had put the tournament behind schedule and Raikes and Barton not only had to play their semi-final and final on the same day but also had to play the full three sets in the semi-final – this proved too much for them and, despite some lobs of ‘quality’ from Raikes, they went down in the final 6-4, 6-2 to E.A.Coad-Pryor and J.C.Fisher, a “strong pair from Kent”. By way of consolation, George and Maud won the handicap mixed doubles by a distance. In 1926, Raikes and his spouse were again described as ‘veterans’; George reached the semi-final of the men’s doubles with P.H.Stevens, where they were defeated after “making a brave show”. In 1927 the older family members were joined in the tournament by further younger relatives, but the success was again with their elders; George lost in the semi-final of the men’s doubles whilst Maud was defeated in the final of the women’s doubles. Further relatives made their debut in 1928, when George again partnered Arthur; they reached the final of the men’s doubles – alas, as in 1925, George had had to play three sets in the semi-final and faded in the final. Defeat to the “Norfolk Invincibles” (P.W.Jewson and O.C.Johnson) was no disgrace and the Eastern Daily Press praised George for “some wonderful things at the net”. In 1929, the senior Raikes had mostly turned themselves from the ‘open’ competitions towards the handicap events and, in 1930, ‘K’ Bevir re- appeared under her married name and was conspicuously successful, reaching the semi-finals of both the mixed and the women’s doubles, the latter with Maud. The tournament was not entirely enjoyable, the press reporting that “So intense was the heat … that players, having completed their matches, donned costumes and bathed in the streamwhich surrounds the courts … Conditions were ghastly for [the players] … Iced drinks were rushed for … several people [were] exhausted by the heat.” After the heat-wave of 1930, the tournament of 1931 saw a flood. Heavy rain put the usual courts on the Old Recreation Ground out of use and the event had to take place on 12 private courts around Bungay, the Eastern Daily Press commenting of George that “in the tournament he has played a prominent part in the fixing up of the matches … one of the hardest workers in the arrangements for the town” He also had one last success on the courts, reaching the semi-finals of the men’s doubles with R.J.F.Howgill where they ran into the “Norfolk Invincibles” with the inevitable result. At least, George “got home a number of efforts”. By 1932, both George and Maud appeared to have retired from competitive