The Beamer

Rhidian Harries.  As cricket experiences go, Pembrokeshire latest cricket development officer has packed a lot into his lifetime. He’s taken guard against Shane Warne, done battle against Marcus Trescothick and had trials for England U19 and he’s only 25 years-old! It’s fair to say then that he’s experienced far more than most which put him in a great position to help develop and shape the game further among the youth of the county. Having been in the post a couple of months, Rhidian Harries is starting to find his feet and says that promoting and developing the game among Pembrokeshire’s girls will be one of his main priorities in the role as well as maintaining the good work already being done with boys. It sounds like a demanding task and it’s certainly going to be a challenge but when it comes to coaching, girls are better to coach than boys according to the former Crymych and Whitland player. “Girls cricket is a big avenue to tap into,” says Harries. “In a way

Standing at 6ft 7in, Jack Murphy inevitably has big feet yet the 18-year- old from Tenby has some big shoes to fill as he spends a winter in New Zealand honing his craft for next year’s cricket season at home. Jack Murphy pictured with Haverfordwest's Simon Holliday Playing for Whangerai Boys High School in the Northland district competition, this year’s Glamorgan Academy player of the year is following in the footsteps of Alun Evans in playing for the club and he is out there under Evans’ recommendation after the Kiwi club called in search of a replacement. Evans had a stellar time in New Zealand and ended up playing for the Northern District first class team yet he had no hesitation in suggesting Murphy when the club came calling after seeing the all-rounder in close quarters whilst playing for Ammanford in the South Wales Premier League. Capable of bowling at pace and good enough to open the batting for the East Carmarthenshire club, Murphy is certainly a

Outrageous cricket shots like this enthral crowds. Will a change in our format see them played in Pembrokeshire ‘The older I get the better I was’, so said a T-shirt being sold in County Sports, Haverfordwest this summer. While it’s true that memories of past glories stay fresher in the mind than failures, there could be a degree of truth in this witty idiom, especially if you pay attention to cricketers that have retired or are in the process if doing so as nearly all of them proclaim that the game in Pembrokeshire cricket is not as good as it once was. They’ve been saying it for years which suggests that cricket in the shire is so bad that any fool could play it; or that it’s non-existent at all if indeed it has declined year or year. The fact remains that playing from the sidelines no matter what standard is always easier than when out in the middle. But have standards really dropped or are these the words of ageing players bitter that father time has caught u

An orange ball similar to the ones used by us in Pembs  not the exact one I hasten to add. Apologies for the delay in posting blog number two, I just haven’t summoned the energy to get up and write it which is probably a combination of being shattered from looking after a poorly two year old, rendering the nights long and restless; and the blues setting in knowing that I won’t be donning the whites again in 2013. The end of a cricket season can bring relief if you’ve had a tortuous few months but anguish and despair if it’s been relatively decent. I’m somewhat torn between the two with decent performances interspersed with those ranging from indifferent to embarrassing. Anyway, enough of my travails at Lamphey let’s talk about something topical, like orange cricket balls. The announcement that a decision had been made to trial orange cricket balls in the much tinkered with Duggie Morris cup brought a degree of excitement to the County AGM two years ago. ‘At last,’ one thou

Now that the dust has settled, the days become shorter and thoughts of cricket turn to rugby or football it’s time to reflect on the season that’s just passed, one where the sun shone more often than not and the batsmen made hay while the bowlers toiled. Some men stood out, others didn’t yet one team rose above the rest to confirm themselves as the best in the county, one that swept all before them and one that commands the respect of players past and present throughout the Shire. That team is Neyland. Idioms and clichés are well used in sport with the majority being derided by even those that use them yet the one that states ‘There is no I in team’ rings true of a side that refuses to lay down even when the going gets tough. A quick look down the teamsheet reveals no star names. There is no Simon Holliday, no Danny Caine or no Johnny Pawlett. There are no dynamic cricketers (although Paul Murray could have something to say about that when he gets going) yet each playe