Well it is summer......

As the years pass with ever increasing speed and my memory becomes just a little bit more selective……..cricket, now that’s something I can remember.

Last week The Times newspaper carried a ‘page filler’ under the title, ‘Australians give Collingwood a bash in new-look T20’.

I had a few minutes to spare so I read on.

It was about County Durham born Paul Collingwood MBE securing a contract in Australia’s much re-vamped Twenty20 tournament. The event has been designed to stimulate interest in cricket across the country with eight city-based franchises…..and its full title is…..the KFC T20 Big Bash League.



Colin Milburn, ‘Ollie’ to most of us who didn’t really know him, sadly died in February 1990 aged only 49. He played in just nine Test matches for England before an accident led to the loss of much of his sight and prompted his retirement.

Like Collingwood, Milburn was born in County Durham and in 1959, as a seventeen-year-old school pupil, he made his debut for Durham (then still a Minor County) against the touring Indian team. Playing at Sunderland, Milburn scored a typically belligerent century, which brought him to the attention of the first class counties.

And so in 1960, Milburn signed for Northamptonshire because they offered 10 shillings a week more than Warwickshire.

His Test career was far too short….the highlights included 126 not out in the drawn Test against the West Indies at Lords in June 1966. In an innings that was so typical of the enormous man, Milburn dispatched Wes Hall and Charlie Griffith, who were undoubtedly the most fearsome bowling attack, to all parts of the ground and England finished the match on 197 for 4.

And as a reward…… Milburn was dropped for the final Test - supposedly because his bulk hindered his mobility in the field.

That winter, Milburn travelled to Australia, where he played Sheffield Shield cricket for Western Australia. He played a Test against India and against Pakistan in 1967, and was selected to tour the West Indies in the winter, where he was much more successful off the field than on!

Milburn was picked for the second Test against Australia in 1968, scoring 83….it was an innings set against the backdrop of Boycott’s infuriating prodding - Milburn’s 12 boundaries and two sixes no less than one of the finest innings that I have ever seen at Lords.

The following winter Colin returned to Perth, where he enjoyed a prolific season for Western Australia. The highlight was an innings of 243 against Queensland in Brisbane, where he scored 181 runs between lunch and tea…..

‘’And to receive the Man of the match award of a bucket of KFC and….’’

‘’You can keep the Champers mate…..I’ve got a few tinnies in the dressing room…..’