It's been around 9 months since we started writing this blog which seems like the right amount of elapsed time to allow us to pause, 'take stock' and reflect on what we've achieved so far and determine the 'next steps' (to borrow an over-used piece of Corporate parlance).
Looking at the number of gaps in blog contributions you could be excused for wondering if we really need yet another pause and you may well be right! But at least this time the pause is being filled!
SUMMARY
Actually, despite the irregular contributions, we've still managed to find out quite a lot about the history of Bowerchalke CC. Here's a list of things we've uncovered...so far:
- Five team photographs, the earliest dating back to 1923
- A photograph of a match in progress at the Cricket Field from the 1960s
- Modern day aerial photographs of the old Cricket Field
- Some local rules of play
- Annual matches with the Trinity College Cambridge touring side Trinity Tom Tits dating back to at least the 1950s
- A racehorse called Bowerchalke
- A white rabbit!
- Fixture cards for fifteen seasons, the earliest from 1936
- A scorebook covering the 1968 and 1969 seasons
- Match by match coverage of the 1969 Knapman Cup winning campaign
- Two professional footballers who played for Bowerchalke CC: Terry Gulliver and Dave Syrett
- A match against Somerset CCC including well known players such as Gimblett, Tremlett, Wellard and Buse
- Village outings to away games by coach
- The Cricket Club dinner
- The Bowerchalke Flower Show held at the Cricket Field
- The Cricket Club Accounts for 1949-1950
- A list of Cricket Club Officers
- Famous Vice Presidents: William Golding, James Lovelock and Cecil Beaton
- Seven seasons of Bowerchalke CC results: 1936, 1937, 1954, 1957, 1961, 1968 and 1969
When you undertake something like this you never really know how it's going to turn out. You have a vague idea and of course you set out with a plan and some goals but actually every now and then you come across something that makes you go 'Wow...now that is interesting!'. We've had a few 'Wow' moments so far and hopefully there will be plenty more to come.
We've also had a few 'going off at a tangent' moments too...but it's those things which add some unexpected richness to the whole thing. Who would have thought that we'd have uncovered a racehorse? Who would have thought that two professional footballers would have played for such a small village and then gone on to have success in the 'Winter game'? Who would have thought that a professional County Cricket Club would have come and played a game in a Wiltshire village like Bowerchalke?
What's clear to us is that we're finding out about a lot more than just cricket. There is an element of social history here too and so we've become conscious that we're uncovering and recording some important things that may otherwise be lost with time and that others may be able to make use of in the future. For many years, the Cricket Club clearly played an important role in village life during the summer months; villagers played, watched, recorded the results of, talked about and celebrated their team, whatever the result! It was a matter of great pride and we suspect this is something that was played out in other villages too across Wiltshire, Dorset and Hampshire...
If you didn't play cricket you could get involved in other ways, such as becoming a Vice-President. Over the years Bowerchalke Cricket Club had connections with high-ranking people from military backgrounds, a Nobel prize winner and famous author, a world leading scientist and a knighted Royal photographer who lived in the village or nearby. Away games were 'family days out'; who could possibly miss-up the chance of a trip out to Poole Park or The New Forest? It didn't matter who you were the Cricket Club gave you a common purpose...and an opportunity to socialise, especially afterwards in the village pub The Bell Inn.
Of course we mustn't lose sight of the fact that Bowerchalke CC was pretty good at playing cricket too!
In a rural environment you cannot underestimate the importance of stories, sory telling and sharing snippets through word-of-mouth. Every little piece of information has been eagerly snapped up and although we're sure there has been some embellishment and some things forgotten over the years you never throw anything away. Each bit of information shared is like a jigsaw piece that adds to the richness of the picture we are putting together of Bowerchalke CC. For those snippets we are indebted to those who have shared things with us so far, family, friends and those who have contacted us out-of-the-blue - it's been fantastic really. Thank-you.
WHAT NEXT?
Well, it's clear that the 'finds' have dried-up recently and we'll need to put some more effort into that side of things. The ones we have discovered have been excellent, fixture cards in particular have been brilliant, especially when someone has taken the time to annotate on them the results or scores. Scorebooks is another area that needs further investigation. The fact that our Dad had a 1968-69 scorebook tucked away cannot be a coincidence as he was the Vice-Captain in 1969-70...so maybe other former officers of the Club have some things 'tucked away' somewhere?
One source of information that hasn't yet been followed-up is the Salisbury Journal. Although we've made contact with Salisbury Library to determine the facilities available living remote from the area has made it difficult to pin-down some time to physically make the trip and start the search. We do know that our Uncle David does have some newspaper clippings that we hope to borrow at some point.
We think there's probably a lot more to explore about the local characters, those who played cricket either for or against Bowerchalke CC and of course those who watched.
It would be good to actually visit the old Cricket Field to see what it's like today after its return to agricultural use in the mid 1970s.
Finally, there are some 'stories' that definitely need following up: the match against Somerset CCC, the regular matches against Trinity College Cambridge, the white rabbit - yes really! - and even the racehorse! We're sure that there will be many others emerge in the next nine months! Let's hope so anyway!
Keith and Stuart Gulliver
EMail: bowerccmem@btinternet.com
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