I registered all of them and you may stood regarding longest queue, having Greig’s trademark. Whether or not it are finally my personal turn, We summoned up courage and advised your, with a little quaver, it was a “helluva hook”. A separate idol lire ce qu’il a dit minted here and then. For the next several years, as he went on the greater circulation, Greig turned out an advisable however, tricky hero – a gold doubloon, never completely losing its elemental lustre but frequently trying to find restorative polishing. Across the 2nd few season, We saw him off in the Hove in most household games. Save your self for 5 wickets and a brisk 93 against Hampshire from inside the July 1969, Really don’t remember him and make people tall sum. But the guy always did things. A flourishing security drive otherwise a pull test moving off the scoreboard to have half dozen.
Sussex thrashed them, and Greig are Man of your Suits: 54 in the 1st innings, of 199, after which four wickets
Otherwise a good bouncer injudiciously geared towards Mike Procter’s lead, whom then struck your to have 4, cuatro, six, cuatro when he is actually clobbered for more than 130 off 20 weird overs. And he usually signed autographs. I experienced your eight times in 2 12 months. Shortly after, he also said, “Ach, it’s your once again. I never ever saw him reject somebody. We sat under the dispersed boughs of the well-known tangerine tree. Robbo regaled all of us throughout the day having reports away from enjoying Les Ames, Godfrey Evans and Doug Wright because the a great boy. The center mutton are a head box who had install an encyclopaedic experience with Kent cricket, in order to her dad’s noticeable satisfaction, not simply admonished your when he nudged myself and pointed out a nice-looking “popsy” regarding the crowd but corrected your when he got certain reality otherwise figure completely wrong.
That was tend to. Robbo is actually never ever you to definitely to possess statistical outline; it had been the storyline you to definitely mattered. Kent’s illustrious history – whether or not truth otherwise myth – did not help much thereon hot July time. Towards the end throughout the day, both center lamb and Robbo himself was in fact certainly smitten. I knew you to definitely to be true due to the fact, even after their child of earshot, my personal bro no longer talked of this new a lot of time move out-of piss, but off “Greigy”.
Greig starred merely a services part one to time; a fast-flame 36 regarding the Sussex innings and two wickets, and that Kent’s top scorer, Graham Johnson, stuck because of the Tony Buss out-of a lengthy-hop
And you can Sussex did it once again three years afterwards. Gillette Cup one-fourth-latest, August step one, 1973, at the Hove. Through this big date Greig is a recently situated England user and you can Sussex master. Once more, We went with Robbo, and in addition we around skipped it. My sibling had organised your day nevertheless when i pitched up ticketless during the Tate Doorways, we were completely turned out. A beneficial sellout. Brand new stewards (“soft absolutely nothing Hitlers”) didn’t come with vehicle which have Robbo’s “Come on, this is the boy’s birthday celebration now.” (It wasn’t.) But, the guy was not stopping you to definitely easily and when informed a small warily about how exactly I’d on the floor for free having my personal friends, next thing I realized I found myself offering my portly uncle a feet-up over a garden wall surface of a single of your own huge home you to recognized onto the ocean end of ground. To the, buoyed of the our achievement, Robbo’s attraction strike overdrive in which he for some reason nice-talked the fresh new shorter draconian into the-soil ushers thus effortlessly, that individuals wound-up from the gangway of your members’ pavilion, right next to the players’ balcony. Inside earliest innings I watched since Greig has worked their method owing to nearly a complete packet off Benson and you will Hedges, and you will Robbo, the only real Kent advocate in our midst, cheered most of the work on because the his lads chased 264 regarding next. Now an adolescent, I was a little embarrassed by this, but luckily truth be told there were not a lot of them. Runs, that’s. Kent had been bowled out having 135. However, you to definitely don’t count. As members stood to your outfield and you will basked regarding thanks of the ten,000-strong crowd, Sussex had claimed. We saw given that quick boys in line to find the skipper’s autograph – I became most importantly that now – and listed you to Robbo had registered them. The guy and Greig was in fact soon involved with moving dialogue. Each other was indeed laughing, brains thrown straight back, as waiting line away from short boys longer, moving forward desperately out-of feet so you’re able to ft. Once just what checked forever, it shook hand warmly and you may Robbo patted his the newest buddy familiarly on the back. He emerged bounding back up the latest pavilion procedures, clutching their finalized scorecard – “It’s for the center lamb,” he lied – and you can beaming off ear-to-ear. “He’s a soft fantastic bloke.” The sense it actually was Greig’s Sussex you to claimed the online game are palpable. John Spencer, the fresh Sussex bowler, told me recently that in case Greig took more than, the complete atmosphere in the a bar “dogged of the backbiting, cynicism and you will negativity” altered almost quickly. Greig is actually an air regarding bracing ocean sky.
