We registered all of them and you will stood throughout the longest queue, to possess Greig’s signature. If this are eventually my personal turn, I summoned upwards bravery and you will advised him, with a slight quaver, that it was a good “helluva connect”. An alternate idol minted here and. For another a decade, as he went to the broad movement, Greig ended up an advisable but difficult champion – a gold doubloon, never ever totally losing their essential lustre but frequently searching for therapeutic polishing. Along side next couple of 12 months, I noticed your down during the Hove for the majority domestic games. Save your self for five wickets and you can a brisk 93 facing Hampshire during the July 1969, I really don’t contemplate your and work out people significant contribution. But he constantly performed something. A flourishing safety drive otherwise a pull shot bouncing off the scoreboard to possess half dozen.
Sussex thrashed all of them, and you can Greig is People of your Matches: 54 in the first innings, out-of 199, then four wickets
Or a bouncer injudiciously geared towards Mike Procter’s lead, exactly who next hit your for 4, cuatro, six, 4 as he are clobbered for over 130 of 20 strange overs. And he usually signed autographs. I’d him eight minutes in 2 season. After, he actually told you, “Ach, it’s your again. We never noticed him reject individuals. We sat according to the distributed boughs of your own greatest lime forest. Robbo regaled you from day to night that have stories off enjoying Les Ames, Godfrey Evans and you may Doug Wright because the an excellent boy. The middle lamb is a mind field that has build a keen encyclopaedic knowledge of Kent cricket, and also to their own father’s noticeable fulfillment, not just admonished your as he nudged Kazakh femmes personnelles myself and you may talked about an attractive “popsy” on the audience however, corrected him when he had particular reality otherwise figure incorrect.
That has been will. Robbo was never ever you to to own analytical detail; it actually was the storyline one mattered. Kent’s illustrious records – if fact otherwise misconception – failed to help much thereon scorching July day. By the end of the day, both middle mutton and you can Robbo himself was in fact obviously smitten. I know one to to be real while the, even after his daughter from earshot, my personal sibling not talked of the newest enough time streak off piss, but of “Greigy”.
Greig starred simply a services character one go out; an instant-flames thirty-six throughout the Sussex innings as well as 2 wickets, also that Kent’s best scorer, Graham Johnson, caught because of the Tony Buss out of a long-hop
And you may Sussex made it happen once again three years afterwards. Gillette Cup quarter-finally, August step 1, 1973, on Hove. From this big date Greig is actually a recently mainly based The united kingdomt pro and you may Sussex master. Once more, I opted for Robbo, therefore we nearly skipped it. My personal uncle had organized the day however when i pitched up ticketless in the Tate Doors, we were firmly became away. An excellent sellout. This new stewards (“bloody little Hitlers”) had no vehicle with Robbo’s “Come on, this is the boy’s birthday now.” (It was not.) But, he wasn’t letting go of that with ease of course, if told a little warily on how I’d with the floor free of charge with my mates, the next thing We realized I became offering my portly uncle a base-up-over the garden wall surface of a single of one’s larger properties one to backed on the water prevent of one’s ground. Into the, buoyed by the our very own triumph, Robbo’s attraction hit overdrive in which he in some way nice-spoke the fresh reduced draconian when you look at the-crushed ushers very efficiently, we wound-up regarding gangway of the members’ pavilion, right next to the players’ balcony. Within the very first innings I spotted as the Greig has worked their ways using nearly a complete package of Benson and you will Hedges, and you can Robbo, truly the only Kent recommend in our midst, cheered all the focus on because their lads chased 264 about next. Today a teen, I was a small ashamed by this, but thank goodness indeed there just weren’t many. Operates, which is. Kent were bowled aside for 135. However, one didn’t number. While the users stood towards the outfield and you may basked from the thanks of ten,000-good audience, Sussex got acquired. We saw because the brief boys in-line to get the skipper’s autograph – I was first and foremost one now – and you will indexed one Robbo got entered all of them. The guy and you will Greig was basically soon engaged in move conversation. One another had been laughing, heads tossed back, just like the waiting line from small boys extended, moving on desperately off legs so you can feet. After exactly what searched forever, it shook hand passionately and you will Robbo patted their the brand new friend familiarly on the back. He showed up bounding back up the brand new pavilion steps, clutching their signed scorecard – “It’s towards the center lamb,” the guy lied – and you will beaming out of ear-to-ear. “He could be a soft great bloke.” The sense it actually was Greig’s Sussex you to definitely claimed the overall game was palpable. John Spencer, the newest Sussex bowler, explained has just whenever Greig took over, the entire surroundings at a pub “dogged of the backbiting, cynicism and you will negativity” changed almost immediately. Greig is a breathing away from bracing ocean sky.
