OP SPORT
MALCOLM MILNE ‘ THANK YOU ’ DINNER
Seven of the original Pixies L-R : Colin Johnson , Roger Middleditch , Paul Jackson , Roy Flitton , Malcolm Milne , Ian Bird and Tim Hughes .
Members of the Pixies Cricket Club past and present , OPs and friends were out in force on Friday evening , 5 May 2017 , for a dinner in recognition of Malcolm Milne ( OP 55-62 , Former Staff 71-03 ) who has given over 50 years of dedicated service to the Club .
The idea of a ‘ Thank You ’ dinner for Malcolm was the brainchild of several members of the Pixies , including Matt Atkinson ( 85-93 ) and Pixies President , Tim Hughes ( 53-62 ).
Malcolm recently handed over the organisation of the annual Pixies ’ tour to Charlie Lambert ( 01- 08 ), so Malcolm could start to take more of a back seat , although he is still involved and went on the tour in the summer .
Matt commented : “ A few of us thought it would be appropriate to have a dinner to say thank you to Malcolm and show our appreciation for all his work with the Pixies and OPs over the years . Once we had a venue sorted , we contacted the OP office and Rachel and Leanne swung into action to help us organise it .”
It is obvious that Malcolm is held in high regard by so many OPs , Pixies and friends across the generations with 70 guests attending the dinner on the night , including seven of the ‘ remaining ’ players from the original Pixies XI who took the field at Edgbaston in 1969 . Many others who were unable to attend
Marcus Townend and Tim Hughes .
sent goodwill messages and anecdotes to pass on to Malcolm . Another OP who wished to remain anonymous , very generously gifted the dinner in Malcolm ’ s honour .
At the dinner , Tim Hughes welcomed guests and announced Marcus Townend ( 72-82 ) as the new Pixies President . Both Matt Atkinson and David Nuttall ( Former Staff 63-02 ) gave speeches . Matt recalled a number of stories and memories from the many Pixies tours over the years and proposed a toast to absent friends , whilst David spoke about the origins and history of the Pixies and introduced
Malcolm Milne .
us to ‘ Pixi Mal ’. The overall message was clear , that without the dedication and commitment of people like Malcolm , the Pixies and OPs would not be what they are today .
Malcolm also said a few words of thanks to those present ; although overwhelming , he appreciated and enjoyed the evening very much .
OP CRICKET
The OPs struggled to put out a 1st XI team this year , with a number of regulars and recent leavers unavailable or injured . Thanks go to all those who did make it and to Jonny Wheeler , Pocklington School ’ s Lead Strength and Conditioning Coach , and James
L-R ( back row ): Chris Talago ( 81-86 ), Alex Varley ( 09-16 ), Paul Lambert , James Harrison , Jack Bolam ( 96-05 ), Jonny Wheeler , ( front row ): Ben Byas ( 04-15 ), Tom Sowersby ( 05-12 ), Charlie Lambert ( 01-08 ), Will Stephenson ( 05-15 ), Chris Suddaby ( 02-10 ).
Harrison , current sixth former , who stepped into the breach at the last minute .
Malcolm Milne ( 55-62 and former staff 71-03 ) umpired for the OPs until lunchtime . Paul Lambert ( former parent ) took over umpiring duties for the afternoon session . David Byas umpired for the school .
With the weather set fair ( for a change !), a terrific morning and afternoon of cricket ensued .
The OPs were asked to bat first and both openers ( Chris Suddaby 02-10 and Will Stephenson 05-15 ) made good progress against a strong bowling attack . There were short cameos from Alex Varley ( 09-16 ) and Tom Sowersby ( 05- 12 ) which included some lovely boundaries , however runs were hard to come by . Chris Talago ( 81-86 ) made his first appearance in an OP shirt in recent years and fitted nicely into the team . Jack Bolam ( 96-
05 ) as ever scored valuable runs and allowed the current staff pairing of Jonny Wheeler and Charlie Lambert ( 01-08 ) to finish the innings undefeated .
The school bowled and fielded with great energy and discipline restricting the OPs to a challenging 173 ; an outstanding catch in the outfield by young Sam Noble was testament to the energy amongst the school boys .
The OP bowling was strong and allowed 9 of the 11 players to have at least one over . Sowersby bowled with pace and wickets were picked up by numerous people . This spirited reply from the OPs met with little resistance with the school boys getting ‘ starts ’ and not converting into the match-winning innings required . A late rally by Edward Wraith with 27 of 24 balls very nearly saw the school boys over the line in one of the closest finishes in recent years .
SCORES AS FOLLOWS :
OPs : 173 – 8 ( C Suddaby 59 , J Bolam 60 , J Wraith 3 – 22 )
POCKLINGTON SCHOOL : 170 – 9 ( J Wraith 48 , E Wraith 27no , T Sowersby 2 – 28 )
OPs won by 3 runs .
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