Heroes and Headlines: St Helen's: A Tribute (Part 2)

CC4 Museum of Welsh Cricket Podcast

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In this week’s episode we return to discuss the history of St Helen’s as a venue for first class cricket. Our guest is Richard Bentley who is the co-author, with Malcolm Nash, of Malcom’s cricketing biography ‘Not Only But Also’, published by St David’s Press in 2018. To purchase a copy of the book you can go here:

https://welsh-academic-press.shopfactory.com/contents/en-uk/p73_Not-Only-But-Also.html

First, Richard tells us about his own early encounters with the ground before starting to tell us about the scores of cricketing records and feats that have been performed at St Helen’s.

He outlines the five world cricketing records that were set there. These were:

The six sixes hit by Gary Sobers. For more on this follow the link below:

https://glamorgancricketarchives.com/nash-and-sobers/

The fastest fifty hit by Don Shepherd

The only time in County Championship history that different bowlers (Don Shepherd and Jim Pressdee) have taken nine wickets in each innings of the game. For more go here:

https://glamorgancricketarchives.com/2021/05/11/the-game-when-two-glamorgan-bowlers-each-took-nine-wickets-in-an-innings/

Clive Lloyd - the fastest double hundred in 1976. For more go here:

https://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/the-clive-lloyd-carnage-at-swansea-that-saw-him-equal-the-then-fastest-double-hundred-in-first-class-cricket-29774

1977 – Glenn Turner carries his bat and scores the highest proportion of his team’s runs in a first class innings. For more go here:
https://wccc.co.uk/glenn-turners-never-to-be-forgotten-one-man-show/

Richard then outlines some of the Championship records held at the ground starting with a game in Glamorgan’s inaugural year in the competition and carrying on with Matthew Maynard’s maiden first class century on debut.

Other players mentioned are Gilbert Parkhouse, Eifion Jones, Peter Walker, Robert Croft and Usman Khawaja.

Richard then talks about a number of interesting games and feats including Glamorgan denying Nottinghamshire their County Championship victory, the Championship winning years of 1948, 1969 and 1997, victories over the South Africans and Australians as well as renowned ex Glamorgan greats Maurice Turnbull, Dai Davies and Johnnie Clay.