There is a bunch of moaning old farts, perched on a line of green plastic seats most Saturdays every summer, who were the inspiration for my first book.
Sadly, Critics’ Corner as we know it, a unique and incomparable part of local league cricket for decades, now has a spare seat and it will be impossible to fill.
T E Brown – Browny – was a member of BVCC for over 50 years, 28 of these as a player, taking over 1100 wickets and still telling us he was a top four batter up to his retirement.
He was at varying times Captain, Groundsman, Chairman, President and Chief Pundit. On retiring from playing he stepped over to the other side of the white line and spent decades telling us how it should be done.
Browny had an opinion on most things cricket and was never wrong…at least according to Browny. We sat and listened, sometimes nodding, often shaking our heads, but always with respect.
He captained the First X1 to their first Bradford Central League trophy winning the Waddilove Trophy in 1980 and beginning a decade where the Villas enjoyed a remarkable period as cup specialists even if we were often the bridesmaids.
Although I certainly did not see him in his prime, I heard enough since he retired to write a book. Even towards the end of his career he had a control of swing and seam movement that was bettered by few.
In those final few years, with the last few strands of hair flowing in the wind, braces holding up the whites and painted boots from a bygone era, he still commanded enormous respect.
As kids we all knew him as the Grumpy Groundsman – a mantle taken on with great zest and pride by several since – and as we virtually lived on the field, summer or winter, rain or shine, we had to be alert for his regular arrivals.
He drove an old black Triumph Spitfire, though he loved his motorbikes too, distinguished by a hand-painted silver ‘V’ on the bonnet.
It made such a racket though that we could hear his approach easily and, whatever mischief we were up to, he seemed glad to see us playing on his beloved turf.
It was left to Uncle Ernest – skipper to a young Brown – to tick us off if we did get out of hand but these were very good men in better times than portrayed of late.
His best mate and lifelong pal – Haighy – is left behind to sit in Critics’ Corner, not alone far from it, but without his sidekick. Bickering constantly for the last sixty years they were a local version of The Odd Couple.
Off the field , Browny was a mad visionary with so many crackpot ideas it is a wonder he was never sectioned. When we built the first clubhouse in 1983 he campaigned zealously for underground squash courts.
In later life, he was the architect of the idea to purchase one hundred fast growing conifers to plant around the ground and used us kids as slave labour to plant them; there are three standing today and fast growing they were not.
I asked around for some memories of Browny for a fitting send-off and here are but a few. The overriding theme was that he was a true gentleman; not many of us achieve such a fitting tribute in our lives but, quite simply, he was.
Nick Gibson – “His leg side theory will go down as a masterpiece….load 8 men on the leg-side and bowl a wide half volley outside off-stump….made me chuckle…..”
Phil Smith – “Tom was always pig headed a case in point when he went for a straight-forward easy catch off my bowling. The ball hit the end of his finger and bounced out of his hands. Unfortunately it mangled his finger leaving the tip of it at an angle.
In the changing room he listened to everyone’s suggestion of going to the hospital to have it re-set, then stood up and announced he was off to take care of it.
About 2 hours later he turned up at the club with his finger sandwiched between 2 lollipop sticks wrapped in sellotape. He had his own way of doing things that’s why we loved him and he will be sorely missed”
Paul Jarvis – “Browny gave me my first pair of cricket boots, a very old pair of boots that went up and over my ankles, they must have been 30 years old in 1990 and they’d been painted with white emulsion at least 10 times too!!”
Nigel Bailey (Bingley Congs CC) – “My thoughts already to many great battles between our two sides and Tom’s smile/grimace as he went past the outside edge again. Great competitor, great man will be missed by many.”
Steve Hobbin – “He looked like the snowman turning up on his old motorbike to follow his devotion of looking after the square every practise night back in the day. He never had a bad word to say about anyone. An absolute legend and a great example to everyone on how to conduct yourself.”
Allan “Duck” Stockdale – “Tom sets up the under 14’s and we get our first chance to compete against the Bradford League clubs…tough but I believe we won our first match against Farsley and that gave Tom great satisfaction.
Tom suggested a bit of fitness training…at certain points, everyone had to do high knees as we ran. Tom was joining in but unfortunately I experienced a bout of bad wind ! As each knee came up, so did a massive fart. This went on for several steps until the entire team collapsed on the floor in a fit of giggles, with Tom looking on shaking his head with a massive grin on his face.
Somewhere towards the end of the eighties Tom announced that he was to retire at the end of the season. I was tasked to carry out a collection and buy Tom a memento.
At the final game of the season, out came the tankard to be presented together with a few words of how we had all enjoyed playing with Tom and what a great player he had been.
Tom accepted the tankard gratefully and thanked everyone and seemed visibly moved…and then went on to tell everyone that he had decided to give it one more season! Ten jaws dropped open, you couldn’t help but love Tom.”
John “JB” Brennan – “…a Tuesday evening in the Lane ends…Tom with others of his generation, but…happily talking to us youngsters, in a manner that I recall showed genuine interest…a lift home…(no doubt Tom having had 5 or 6 pints)…then talking (or me listening) to Tom for another 30 mins or so…not Tom preaching…genuine advice.
…rain stopped play and Tom’s omni-present “positive attitude”…“it’s clearing, we will be back on in 15 mins” – which usually meant the game would be cancelled.
The only time I think I really saw Tom properly down was in the period after Brenda’s death. In time that went…but no doubt those thoughts never went especially when he went home at night.
…true he could be critical…he saw the past in rose tinted spectacles…but I believe his heart was always in the right place, with the best interests of the club and the people and players of the club.
He always came along (to parties at the club) even when none of his peers were likely to be there. I suspect, in part, as there was an empty house at home…but…something inside of him wanted to ‘stay down with the kids’…even if the kids were now 50+”
Finally, as a young lad desperate to make his way in the 1st X1, most things I would have done without hesitation but standing five yards off the bat as “bait” in an attempt to snare the legendary Buttershaw St Pauls batsmen, Bob Cull, was not top of the list.
Browny had a theory about most he bowled at and Bob was probably the most prized scalp of the time. Back in the 1980s he could destroy most attacks with shots fashioned from forearms modelled on Popeye.
Believing that a batsman’s strength could also be his weakness, Browny decided to bowl half-volleys to Bob, placing an expendable kid – me – in his eyeline, hoping to induce a bad shot.
As balls flew past my head it was tempting to think the Somme would have been a safer place. Browny though was a very stubborn man and would not be defeated, at least until Bob had scored his ton.
I have never been so scared on a cricket pitch since but you had to admire the old boy’s conviction and he finally got his man.
Villas without T E Brown is very hard to imagine but life goes on and Browny would be the first to urge us to get out there this weekend and stuff the opposition.
Take your sweater old boy…well bowled!
Pat says
Hi Steve – so sorry to hear the news of Tom – please accept my condolences –
Bowled out at last – but a great innings !!
(The rose tinted past was for real!!)
Regards – Pat x
Bill Craven says
Sorry to hear about Tom, played with him at Tong Park in the 1960s (I think). In those days he had a Sunbeam Talbot 90 and just as proud of that.
Regards Bill