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

206 the long-leg boundary for the ball) the sudden emergence of a glorious square cut when all is consideration and circumspection, all make for a deserved popularity and to be sure Johnny has justly won himself a niche in the hearts of cricket lovers.” His captain in his latter days at Somerset, Ben Brocklehurst wrote in an obituary in the Cricketer , February 1989: “Johnny Lawrence was a friendly, loyal and happy cricketer. He was always laughing and joking, he never said a bad word about anyone and his very presence improved the morale of the team. “Both players and spectators must be sad that so few cricketers these days go in for Johnny’s entertaining type of leg-spin and googly bowling, giving the ball lots of air. His batting too was always fun to watch and he adapted his style so well to the needs of the occasion. He will be sadly missed by his many friends.” Alan Gibson endorses this view, writing: “He was a jolly, kindly man, and perhaps the biggest contribution he made to Somerset cricket was his laughter and comradeship in the dressing room, at a time when things were going generally badly.” Gibson wrote: “He tossed his leg-breaks up into the clouds, causing merriment and consternation. He chatted as he bowled, warning that the googly was coming. But opponents and team-mates alike knew what a practical joker Johnny was. “His conversation, coloured by Yorkshire vowels, bubbled away, whether he was saving the game with the deadliest of bats, relying on an intuitive stumping from Harold ‘m’real partner in crime’ Stephenson, or picking up catches at short-leg …. “His sheer enthusiasm for the game was conveyed ebulliently to the hundreds of young lads who attended his cricket schools in the North.” Johnny was immensely popular with both Yorkshire and Somerset supporters and both cricketing communities Some appreciations of Johnny Lawrence