1961-08-11 — Page 9

Page

THE BOY WONDER IS MAKING GOOD

By JOHN REED

London.

Leg-spinner Jan Bedford, who, as a slim 17-year- old schoolboy, made a sensational Middlesex debut in 1947 but dropped out of first-class' cricket for 11 seasons, may yet prove to be county cricket's Captain of the Year.

in

Fer Middlesex are now sezond

"Chubby" Allen, now chair-

the County Championship mun of the England electors, able

have

was happy too. For Allen had and

strong hopes of winning the title which spotted his eblilty when young visited Lord's With York-Jan had they last shared white shire 1049.

Finchley Colis team he conch- Ian's appointment was the log In. 1945. nurprise at thic season. Midlesex snatched him out of the legions of London club cricketers to succeed

After only one season the "bey wonder" was being tip- ped by some crilier for a Trit. As a Certain

He was afled John

Warr, who had lifted them to third place is the lampion- ally last year.

I was a long-shot gamble,

But the Inirds of Lord's could hardly be expected to accept a professiount raptain in their long and distinguished gallery of amateur skippers.

They uns 16 Bedford. And with modesty and goud humour he told me: "Perhaps they had 20 one else. it van hardly be called a long-term policy!"

Skipper Bedford, ex-grumunar schoolboy and very much a Londoner, would only agree that "we have a fair chunee' of winning, the county cham- plonship. and Kives credit to "the boys."

Good googly

the

have been formate enough to take over a good side." he explaini. But good sirkes van quickly disintegrate into a back- biling, spiritless and divided collection of players if the cap fah fails to stamp his personal- ity and integrity immediately.

Ian Bedford's bubbling sense of humour hardly disguises his uwn surprise at his present sur- ce3s.

Fourteen years ago' he was astonishlug the cricket world as a leg-pinner and googly bowler. He was only 17 and stil! Woodhouse Grammar School North Finchley, when Middle- sex pitched him into top-class-

cricket.

And 1:2 his first match. against Essex, he bagged s wic- kets for 134 runs,

and

His graceful action flexible wrisin, his nature cun- trol of length" and flight, his vicious spin and his dimeal- to-spot" Kogly. delighted the 20,000 spectators at Lord's.

England howler of the future.

Then he joined the RAF 10

for the Combined Services and

THE CHINA MAILA FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, 1981,

Profile of a departing star BANNISTER AND CHATAWAY ANNOY ME-SAYS PIRIE

"Their ATTITUDE

is wrong'

he tells IAN WOOLDRIDGE

London.

ORDON PIRIE will NOT be sending Christmas cards this year to Dr Roger Bannister CBE, or

do his National Service, played Mr Christopher Chatawgy, MP. The reason is very Middlesex and returned to elvi-simple. It isn't that he dislikes them. There is some- thing about their attitude to sport which annoys him, Ban life in 1950.

સવ

Soccer in winter

Pirie always was the odd-man-out of this great He drifted back to club ric-trinity of British post-war middle-distance runners.. A psychiatrist might say it is a simple case of incom-

where he stayed for

Why did he fade snel of

11 years.

ramly etleket? "I couldn't bowl patibility of backgrounds.

well enough." he told me. "My length was all bver the place. Perhaps It was all part of my growling up."

Redford eventually became

sales manager with a building

plant Arm and resisted several Middlesex attempts to persunde hia back-until this year.

Has he found it very diffleult

to bridge the gap" "Six-days-4 werk ericket is very tiring. Bul it keeps you #1,"said the sturdy 5ft 8in. 12 stone skipper.

who plays Soccer for Winch more Hillal inside right- in the winter, and squash with

his

Club Cricket Conference team-mates,

Bedford, who bas toured Canada and the Argenting with M.C.C. teams, added: "I don't regret missing my Test chances

youngster.

And I don't

expect any big honours, There are better leg spinners in the country than 1."

He has bowled unly 23 overs and emptured 28 wickets for 699 rus this season, "Bu hope to bowl a bit more soon."

In 22 innings he has hit 405 runs, ingiurling a career-best 70 tui ont freven 6's) and his bat- Ung shows the bright-and- Beezy club cricket touch at No. 10.

No worries

Pirie was at Puricy Grammar School, while Chataway was at Sherborne, and Bannister at the City of Bath..

Pirie was already tulling behind a bank counter while' Bannister and Chataway were strolling beneath the elegant spires of Oxford. Pirie was married in a lounge suit at Caxton ifall. Bannister and Chataway wore tails in church.

PIRIE. He says.. "Crowds? I nover hear them." "An athlete should only marry on athlete.". "I've felt like

quitting all the time."

'I go to the brink'

Today Pirie does not conceal the fact that one of his main pre- occupations is wondering where the next penny is coming from, Bannis- ter and Chataway have no such worries.

Chalsway- Bannister and

middle class clean - limbed, golden buys on whom most am- bious mothers of the mid-50's would dearly love to have modelled their sons--must to Pirte represent the fring world This is of the Establishment.

an Institution no bitterly dis pices,

Fluent

de

Yet he deales that back- ground hus anything to with his feelings. "It was,” lie said, searching for a too- the exact word, mcat for "their... ATTITUDE.

Piric, aware he was being quoted. picked bis phruses London Express Service. slowly and cautiowly whith he

Four D. Jones So. JAMES HAWKEAS

BY MADDOCKS

J4451

FERDINAND

NANCY

YOU SOLD

ME LUMP

SUGAR INSTEAD OF GRANULATED

SUGAR

YOU ARE SEEKING THE

DEVIL, YOU SHALL SEE

HIM. I SHALL MAKE MYSELF VISIBLE

TO HIM

BRICK BRADFORD

WHAT NOW, HELM

OUR WE'VE LOST A SHIP. HOW CAN WE CARRY OUT OUR RISCUS OPERATION HER ON ROJAS

GOOD GRIEF! WHAT

| HIDEOUS CREATURE

IS THIS I SEG 3-

NO---YOU OPENED

TÂM THE DEVIL AND! AM EVIL

I WANT

MY MONEY BACK

GRIND

THE BOX

YOUR

OWN

COFFEE

WE STILL HAVE THRES

"SHIPS) MY FATHER CAN

TAKE THE ILLRZED BACK

TO TITAN IN ONE. WIS CAN USE T

SHIPS!

ACCORDING TO BARVIS, TWO SHES WILL BE ENOUGH"

ANYWAY!

RRRRRR

I WANT TO S OVER THOSE' PLANE OF ATTACK "THAT GARY DEVISEDLAET

spoke of Bannister and Chal- away, Suddenly he was talking Holberg, fost again.. about the New Zealander who has overcome the adversity of a withered arm to smash records round the globe.

"For me," he said, "Halberg Is the must complelé athlete sa the world."

"What about Elliott," } pro- tested.

Pirie's enthusiasm waard. "He hasn't the range of ability of Halberg"

Pirle talks Muently in a flat- 'tish valve. If you argue he tries

to exhaust you into submission, †

He can talk brillently about insitutions he hates well about travel and cars and the tortur-

SO YOU GHASTLY FIGURE, THEN YOU SHALL DIE IN THE DARKNESS TO WHICH YOU ARE ACCUSTOMED

TAKE THAT, YOU SWINE

OH YOU HOTN TEMPERED HUMAN, YOU

By Mik

ทาน

By Ernie Bushmiller

-ERNIS BUSHMILLER

YOU STUDY THEM, BRICKI ILL EM THỊT M FATHER ARTS KITARTÓN POE HOME BASH ON TITAN!

By Paul Norrla

THE IOWA YOU DON'T TRUST NEĮ

DIDN'T I HAVEL

YOUR HES F

ing monotony of training.

N least articulate or perhaps least willing to reveal himself when asked to describe his emotions in moments of triumph (like his five world records and three wins over Zatopek, or at shattering defeat like his caustically criticised failures in Rome),

His most surprising admis- sion was that hữ never hears } the noise vi 27 crowd. "Ail thoughts except the impact of the race on your mlad leave you. That is why I can run myself to the verge of uncoa- sclousness, Then you stagger round in n duze walling for your

10 come back. Samines the concentration Ocensionally a steak of non- ben so demanding that conformist prudishness shows afforwaeds cannot sleep thiợugh, "I know a few thlaws | night" about THAT fellow's mernly,"

yenses

he will say suddenly. Or: "Arc- I asked Pirie if he thought you really going to smoke was difficult to live with. Another cigarette?i

He replied.

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Sacrifice

"If an athlete geis married

it should be to another athlete,

a girl who appreciates his sacri- tomcons

fee. Had I married

who knew nothing about ath- loties 1 might have been “im- possible to live with."

He ended his treatise on running with a statement of staggering modesty. *I've Bever discovered anything myself. Everything. except

the physical and mental

within myself, Dower

AS come from someone else, par. icularly Gerschler."

Woldenur Gerschler is the German coach who has been crit leisd for burning out alh totes by hurd training. Pirie demelehed the charge by say- Ing: "He merely teaches you to beat yesterday's effori--kwa If it was a world record."

As Pirl has spent ten yours beating yesterday's effort, Ger- schler must be right. Plzie has pounded out 40,000 miles in

training but is a breakding records. It's the others whe haven't lasted.

"How many times have you felt like quitting?" I asked." "All the time,” said Pirie.

NEXT WEEK Olympic Games are a farce

A giftful' Canadian

farewell for

Stanley

Matthews

Toronto, Aug. 10. 1 Stanley Matthews, thÿ` British soccer slår, plaaned to leave tonighi to rejola hls borne club at Blackpool following - a three-month engagement with Toronto City of the Eastern Capuda Professional Soccer League.

علان

teami defeated Toronto Kalla 3-1 in his Ital mutch last night.

Afatthewn WAN brought to Canada last May by arrange- mient with Blackpool team ocial.

During the half-time luterval last nicht. Matthew WON honoured with gifts for his

for

contribution to this sunimor”. Canadian Foucar, Fiarold Eillard, president of the Lengue, prosented him with » "substantial" cheque And T'oronto controller Donafa Sunumerville gave him rojā numinis from die olly.

Other cifts osme from the Toronto City team and froin Italia.

д

team

Earlier this month, Blackpool club Dulcials refused Mist- Iowa' request that he play on

Canadiaa All-ter meeting Real Madrid of Spaln In Vancouver on August 23, three days after the start of ike British season,--AP.

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