Lives in Cricket No 52 - Schooled in Cricket (2nd edition)

136 attractively in the first innings and helped Lincolnshire post a dominant score. He had dived athletically to catch off his own bowling his tutee John (J.W) Crowhurst among his seven first innings wickets. He had wreaked even more havoc in the second innings. But Yorkshire were never short of quality players coming into their second team and one player making his debut, Barry Wood, another who had practised at Johnny’s school, who went on to Test honours when he moved across the Pennines to Lancashire, scored 60 not out in a key second innings contribution. Johnny’s 86 against Cambridgeshire at Wisbech included two gigantic sixes and he took seven for 76 but the match faded into a draw. Finally on June 19 and 20 a win came – at Bridgnorth, Shropshire as Johnny contributed 78, four for 16 and three for 45. Lincolnshire had some mixed fortunes in the 1963 season but their enterprising spirit again left them just short of an exciting win in the return match with Yorkshire at the Lindum, Lincoln. Martin Maslin, the young Lincolnshire star batsman of the period, remembers: “He influenced me greatly. He had a lovely manner about him – he was a perfect gentleman. Strangely enough he improved my batting by my fielding at first slip to his bowling and he taught me how to watch the hand. Not for a year or so was I able to pick him. I always think that bowlers make better batting coaches anyway and when I batted with him he was always very encouraging. “There was always something a little bit extra if we played against Yorkshire especially if someone from their first team was playing, like Boycott or Hampshire. “He also had quite an influence on me about how to conduct oneself on the field. He didn’t preach but he encouraged a good standard of behaviour. “He wasn’t technical – certainly not on the field. He never made his position as pro’ in any way overbearing. He was very much a team man. We did look on him with a great deal of awe as he had been a star player at Somerset. He was just lovely and accepted everybody as they were. The Lincolnshire link – a further decade in a different form of county cricket