2 Aug 2025
By Huw Turbervill
Beddington’s annual cricket week offers a wonderful chance for former players and friends of the club to catch up with each other.
Huw Turbervill interviewed a quartet of former players this summer.
Geoff ‘Nellie’ Knight is a regular viewer at Beddo’s league games. Now 76, the medium-pacer/allrounder joined the club as a player in 1964. “I was refused membership in 1963 – I failed a trial, but a year later I joined as a schoolboy holiday member after another trial in the nets, which were then down by the sightscreen at the Church End. The club needed Sunday players, so I played in the Sunday 3rd XI. It was an honour – Beddington is a wonderful place to play.
“Later on, I captained the 1s, 2s, 3s and 4s. I loved skippering… playing mind games. It was fair gameship, but I never cheated.
“We were reminiscing about one especially memorable match. Esher were going for the 2nd XI Championship, and they needed to beat us here to clinch the title. We had them nine down, and they were looking comfortable against our seamers.
“Joe Ramsey, our fast bowler (“one of the fastest bowlers the club has had,” I’ve been told) was about to start his run-up. Suddenly I said, “Hang on!” And I brought Ian Walters on to bowl his leg-breaks. One of my team, Ron Dolby, who had taught me geography (not a man to be messed with), was muttering away, saying I must be mad. But Walt took the wicket and we won. I’m a big risk-taker and it paid off. I was never afraid of losing. So many skippers take the safe option.
“I also remember Mike Selvey playing for us. He wore a bandana. Middlesex eventually picked him up – I don’t know why Surrey didn’t. I sent him a telegram from the club when he was picked for England for the first of his three Test caps). Famous rock musician Jeff Beck’s dad Arnold was also the club press secretary – they lived in Demesne Road.”
Martin Ball was a leg-spinning allrounder who started in the 4s and worked his way up to the 1s. “I joined Beddington when I was 15, in about 1987, and played until about 2005. It was a great period… the 1st XI had elite players. Tony Cummins was one of the best club players I’ve ever seen – he should have played county cricket. We also had the ex-Surrey wicketkeeper, Pete James, Malcolm Sales (uncle of Northants batsman David), Simon Austin, and my colts manager, Tom Allcroft, was also a great allrounder.
“The league was more local back then. I will never forget a match here against Camberley, about 30 years ago. Shaun Udal (Hampshire and England offspinner) was playing for them. They scored 300-odd. We thought, ‘How are we going to get that?’ But then the two Browns, Graham and Steve, scored 70 each, nice and quickly, and our Aussie player called Paul Allison made 96 not out. He kept hitting Udal straight for six, to the point where he started bowling bouncers. The keeper couldn’t cope with it.
Paul Baker is also a familiar face at the club; an allrounder, he played for Beddo between 1975–2018. “I was always a bit inconsistent,” he said. “TC said I could get a 50 for the 1s one week, then a duck for the 4s the next. He was exactly right.
“I was a steady 3rd XI skipper, but occasionally I did a job in the 1s when required. I was a decent enough bat in my day, and I bowled a bit of off-spin. (“Paul made 50s in the 1s, 2s, 3s and 4s all in one year,” adds Knight.)
“That’s right,” says the genial Baker. “The first one was a century in the park, the council pitch over the road that leads to the café.”
Making up the friendly quartet ahead of the Simon Hughes talk was Ian Holleyman, on the eve of his 70th birthday. He joined in the mid-90s.
“I was an opening bowler, reasonably quick,” he said. “I enjoyed it down here, especially the social scene. I wasn’t that keen on playing league cricket on Saturdays, but I did skipper the 3rd XI when we won the league in 2001. We had a strong side, and won it reasonably easily. Reflecting back, I should have contributed more to the league sides.
“I preferred Sunday cricket, though, playing with the likes of Geoff, and Tommy Knight. We travelled around to various places. Sunday sides were strong back then – sometimes stronger than Saturday teams. They were all-day games at places like The Mote (Maidstone), Haywards Heath (Sussex), Brentham (Ealing) and Bromley. It is sad the way that Sunday cricket has gone.”
We look forward to seeing all past Beddington players here again next summer – winter well.