Them were the days

It had to happen, it was inevitable really given it happens every decade.

The Pembrokeshire team that won the Association's Cup in 1995.
Not all of these make the team of the decade but most do.

In the 80’s they reminisced about the 60’s. In the 90’s it was the 70’s and so forth and so forth until now, some trendsetting hack up in whereversville decides to take us all back to the days when tied dyed clothing were all the rage before Britain became cool, or so the Labour party told us.

The decade kicked in with a bang as the Stone Roses, Inspiral Carpets and Happy Mondays all combined to make Manchester the in-place to be as they sought to banish the New Age Romantics among us and replaced them with baggy clothed wearing, joint smoking, acid taking goons.

Then came the Ravers, with their sun hats, shades and whistles and love for all things lazer related and in-between we had Nirvana’s grunge as an alternative to it all.

It’s easy to look back at life in past decades through rose tinted specks but for me the decade was one of utter misery.

A-levels failed, followed by three years of self loathing and pity in college which preceded years of menial jobs and a virtual permanent state of semi-depression, the 90’s was a retched decade with only the odd highlight to shout about, the majority of which were found on the cricket field.

It wasn’t just me feeling that way either. Margaret Thatcher’s reign came to a sudden halt, the Conservatives fell by the wayside as Labour went the other way while the Welsh rugby team and English cricket team were nothing short of an embarrassment.

The powerhouse that was West Indies cricket started to decline yet the sub-continent started to shine.

India’s bowlers weren’t the best but the 90’s gave rise to Sachin, Rahul, Laxman and Ganguly as batsmen.

Sri Lanka won the world cup thanks to a diminutive batsman that wouldn’t have looked out of place in junior cricket and a rotund skipper that would, while Pakistan were nothing short of brilliant with Wasim Akram  and Waqar Younis leading with the way as one of the most lethal new ball pairings in history.

And as Australia rose to prominence to develop quite possibly the greatest cricket team ever assembled South Africa were re-integrated into world cricket after being banned because of their Apartheid policy and quickly showed the World what they missed by nearly winning their first game back against the West Indies before succeeding at Lord’s against England’s mediocrity.

There was a steady change in Pembrokeshire cricket too. From 1981 to 1995 the only teams to win the first division were Carew, Cresselly and Haverfordwest before Neyland broke the mould with a one off win in 1996 with Narberth winning the year after. Then it was Lamphey’s turn before Carew finished the decade off where it began with yet another league title.

Lamphey brought in Drakes, the Town brought in Springer, and Burton brought in a fearsome left arm pace bowler called Mohammed Ali.

While these players (not to mention a few Aussies) caught the headlines it’s easy to forget the county produced some fine players too, players that were able to compete and sometimes shine against such excellence.

While those days are gone these local players should never be forgotten hence why I asked a well-known cricketer to come up with a team he believed represented the cream of the crop. It was no easy task for him (he wishes to remain anonymous and declined to pick himself even though he could have made one of the teams) so he came up with another just to be on the safe side. No doubt he could have come up with a third too.

So who makes the team of the 90’s and how would they compare with today’s young stars? That’s a debate for another time but with some of these still playing; it proves that class really is permanent.

Team 1 – Not in batting order

Aled Davies (Carew) – Mr Versatile. Cunning bowler who did plenty with it and would bowl all day.  Could bat at whichever tempo the game required.

Mark Wood (Kilgetty) - bowled with good pace with swing and seam movement. Also amazingly clean striker off the ball, great option in the last few overs. Maverick!

Simon Wood (Kilgetty) - obviously inherited his father's effortless batting skills. Also very handy with the ball.

Adrian Griffiths (Kilgetty/Haverfordwest) – Great control and movement with the ball. Would get the best players out. Great tactical awareness.

Steve Jones (Burton) - quality bat who was a more than useful bowler.

Richard Harries (Cresselly) – simply the most reliable bat of the era. He would be the one to bat to save your life.

Richard Evans (Cresselly) - Talented top order bat who had all the shots.

Colin Williams (Haverfordwest) – made himself into a superb pace bowler, the quickest around. Was aggressive and quick but rarely bowled a bad ball.

Stephen Phillips (Haverfordwest) – Remarkable talent and another with a typical “Pembrokeshire” casual approach to the game. Probably the best fielder around at the time.

George Thomas (Llangwm) - possibly the most talented bat of all. Definitely the most laid back.

Ian Poole (Kilgetty) - the best keeper around at the time. Great competitor.

Team 2, who could easily beat team 1 on their day – Not in batting order either!

Phil Sutton (Neyland / Haverfordwest) – probably the closest to selection in team 1

Jamie Phelps (Hook) – sheer volume of runs makes him a candidate

Paul Phillips (Narberth) - as talented as anyone but didn’t play enough

Andrew Milne (Neyland) - Superb keeper especially as he kept on a very unpredictable track in Neyland

Paul Mansbridge (Kilgetty) – Mr cool. Sublime batting skills.

Kevin Jenkins (Pembroke) – Mr reliable. He could bowl all day and keep it tight. Captain’s dream.

Willy Morris (Llangwm) – the wild card. Could take attacks apart, even at county level. How good could he have been?

Clive Tucker (Haverfordwest) – another captains dream. Although he doesn’t turn it much, line and length impeccable. Took plenty of wickets for the county by strangulation.

Nick Scourfield (Carew) - very reliable. Knew what shots he could play and stuck to them ala Cook!

Paul Thomas (Haverfordwest) – if he had not had fitness problems, could have been the best of the lot. Deceptively quick bowler, cleanest straight hitter and never dropped a catch

Lyn Richards (Cresselly) – Another ultra reliable all round player. Could open batting, bowl and field superbly. Great team man.