LOOKING BACK: 'I couldn’t bear to watch any more, so I went down to the Abington for a pint'

Chron sports editor Jeremy Casey has been watching Northampton sport for 45 years now, the first 13 as a fan and for the past 32 years as a journalist.

With live sport shut down for the foreseeable future thanks to the coronavirus crisis, Jeremy has taken the opportunity to delve into his memory banks and the Chron’s archive to relive and revisit some of the great town sporting moments he has been lucky enough to witness...

Number one is the day Northants took on Lancashire in the 1981 NatWest Trophy semi-final at the County Ground...

First up are Jeremy's recollections of the day, followed by the reaction of the key players of the day, as recorded in the Chronicle & Echo at the time.

A big thank you goes to John Atkinson for access to the back copies of the paper.

THE BIG DAY...

Growing up a little more than a mile down the road, and being mad on sport from a very young age, it is little surprise that the County Ground played a major part in my childhood.

And the beauty of the old place was that it was an all-year round thing... none of that close season nonsense!

In the winter, I stood on the Hotel End and watched the Cobblers, then in the summer, I swapped the quilted bomber jacket, bar scarf and woolly hat for a tee-shirt, shorts and a sun-hat, and went back down there to watch Northants.

It was a great place to while away the summer holidays, and in 1981 me and my pal, Kurt Smith, went there whenever we could.

The thought of 11 or 12-year-olds just disappearing for the entire day unchecked would send parents into a panic or cold sweat nowadays, but back then it was the norm, and the County Ground was a great place to spend a summer’s day.

And one of the best things about it was the fact there was usually so much space!

For Championship games you could just wander around the ground and pick your vantage point, and there was usually plenty of grass at the football ground end, in between the parked cars, for a quick game of cricket.

The term ‘crowd’ wasn’t really applicable - apart from the glamorous tourist matches, when Australia, West Indies or India would wheel out their big guns, and of course the one day stuff.

And the one-day match and occasion that sticks in my mind, and got me hooked on cricket for life, was the 1981 NatWest Trophy semi-final.

Northants took on the mighty Lancashire at the County Ground, and that was an occasion when space at Wantage Road was at an absolute premium - the place was packed!

Tickets were like gold dust, as you have to remember that this was something of a golden year for English cricket.

It was the year of ‘Botham’s Ashes’, and that incredible series win over Australia.

Indeed, in the the second round earlier in the summer, the great man had graced the County Ground turf himself, a matter of days after those famous batting heroics at Headingley.

Botham walked to the crease to a standing ovation from everybody, and although he scored 45, it wasn’t enough as a Wayne Larkins and Geoff Cook inspired Northants cruised to a seven-wicket win.

My overriding memory of that day though was the Somerset fans who were packed into temporary stands at the football ground end.

They never stopped singing all day - no doubt helped along by the five gallon jugs of cider they all seemed to be lugging around! I seem to remember Wurzels songs getting plenty of airing...

Anyway, after Leicestershire had been seen off in the quarter-final at Grace Road, the semi-final saw a star-studded Lancashire team head to Northampton.

Their line-up included West Indies greats Clive Lloyd and Michael Holding, as well as the likes of Paul Allott, David Lloyd and Graeme Fowler.

It was a dull and cloudy day, but the ground was jam-packed, so much so that Kurt and I struggled to find a spot to actually see the action.

With it being 60 overs per innings, it was a long old day - they even had tea and lunch intervals! - and by mid-afternoon I ended up on my own.

I think Kurt bailed out to go home and get his tea! That would prove to be a monumental mistake.

I somehow managed to find myself a nice little spot to watch the action though as I blagged my way into the area reserved for the press photographers just in front of the main scoreboard, square of the wicket.

I was sat next to the snapper from the Daily Mirror and for the next three or four hours I didn’t move as Northants set about chasing down the Lancashire total.

In these days of bish-bash-bosh cricket, it’s hard to believe that Lancashire set Northants 187 to win after their 60 overs, with future England man Fowler’s 57 their top score in 186 for nine.

The visitors actually collapsed from 110 for one, with the ever-reliable and under-rated seam bowler Tim Lamb taking three for 28 - including a spell of three for four to rip the heart out of the Lancashire innings.

A few lusty late blows from Holding and wily old campaigner Jack Simmonds saw the visitors get their score up to what was to prove a testing 186, the pair adding 25 for the final wicket.

You look at that total now, and it would be a par score for 20 overs, but Northants were going to need virtually every ball of the 60 overs to get home!

The County set about reaching their target, but from early on it was clear it was going to be a close run thing, especially as the team’s big guns Larkins and Allan Lamb both fell cheaply.

Allott, fresh from making his England Test debut the previous week, claimed two wickets.

The game ebbed and flowed, with advantage going to both sides at different times, with innings of 31 from Cook, 41 from Richard Williams and 31 from Jim Yardley edging Northants ever closer.

But they were losing wickets at regular intervals, and when last man Griffiths came to the crease to join Tim Lamb the County still needed an unlikely 14 runs to win - but there were eight overs remaining.

I say unlikely, because bowling in those closing overs, in the ever-darkening gloom, was Holding, one of the world’s great fast bowlers, old ‘Whispering Death’ himself.

And facing him at the other end, was the man dubbed ‘the worst batsman in the world’ in Jim Griffiths, and ‘Tiger’ Tim Lamb, who knew how to hold a bat, but was hardly Don Bradman.

In these days of betting apps and in-play markets, you would have got very generous odds on Northants getting over the line, but with Lamb taking charge of the situation, the pair managed to edge the County ever closer.

Griffiths was proving to be a stubborn last man, and he and Lamb managed to see off Holding with their wickets intact, ticking off the singles to inch towards the finishing line.

The sold-out crowd of 7,000 were caught up in the tension, with every dot ball and single greeted with a huge roar.

The tension was increased even further ahead of the final over, which was to be bowled by spinner David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd, and with the scores totally level - 186 for nine apiece.

As per the rules at the time, Lamb asked the umpires to check on the two teams’ scoring rates after 30 overs, as the team with the better rate would win if the scores were level - and it was confirmed Northants had edged that... just.

That meant Griffiths, with just a single to his name, had to bat out the final over to win the match and send the County to Lord’s. The first three deliveries were comfortable, but there was a huge appeal on the fourth - but Griffiths survived!

With two balls remaining and Griffiths at the crease, Northants just had to survive to win it, with the home fans biting their finger nails to the bone!

The crowd held its collective breath as Lloyd rolled in for the fifth ball of the over.

The delivery was sent down and it spun sharply.

Griffiths half played and half kicked the ball on its way, and wicket-keeper Fowler missed the ball!

The cherry beat the fielders and headed off towards the boundary at the football ground end.

Batting partner Lamb called for the single, and Griffiths was off with his arms already in the air!

He raced down the other end to secure the win by one wicket, with one ball to spare. The man with a first-class career batting average of 3.33 was the hero!

Griiffiths was chaired from the field by the celebrating Northants fans, along with Lamb, who would later be named man of match.

This was sporting drama and theatre at its very best, and I raced on to the field to join in and hail the County heroes as they came out on the balcony to celebrate.

Unfortunately, Northants would go on to lose the final at a sun-drenched Lord’s in arquably even more dramatic circumstances - a game I had to miss as I was travelling to Dawlish Warren for a family holiday! That’s what happens when you’re only 12!

On that occasion, skipper Cook’s brilliant innings of 111 was to no avail as, with the scores tied, the County lost the game due to having lost more wickets than Derbyshire. But despite that, nobody can take away the feeling of elation for every Northants fan who was there for the semi-final.]

And nobody can take away big Jim Griffiths’ moment of batting glory!!

MATCH STATS

Lancashire: 186-9 - 60 overs (Graeme Fowler 57, David Lloyd 52, Jack Simmons 28no; Tim Lamb 3-28, Sarfraz Nawaz 2-35, Jim Griffiths 2-46, Richard Williams 2-40)

Northants: 187-9 - 59.5 overs (Richard Williams 41, Geoff Cook 31, Jim Yardley 31, Tim Lamb 10no, Jim Griffiths 1no, Bernard Reidy 3-22, Jack Simmons 2-17, Paul Allott 2-32)

Northants won by one wicket

THE REACTION

Jim Griffiths - interviewed while sipping Champagne

“That was my greatest moment without a doubt. I never for a minute thought I would be chaired off the field with a bat in my hand.

“I was determined they weren’t going to get me out.

“I kept talking to myself and forcing myself to concentrate while Tim Lamb kept coming up the pitch and saying, ‘concentrate, Griff, concentrate’.

“To start with we were only going to take twos, but I told Tim I was seeing the ball okay and we started on the singles.”

‘Tiger’ Tim Lamb - named man of the match

On batting partner Griffiths

“Jim was brilliant - how can he possibly be the world’s worst batsman?

“I’m expected to get a couple of runs, but he even faced more balls that I did.

“I just kept telling him to concentrate, and he was simply tremendous.

“Winning the man of the match was tremendous, but it’s incidental.

“Everyone hugging and mobbing me in the dressing room when we got back in meant more to me, and was a more memorable few seconds than getting the award.”

On the batting tactics...

“The light was deteriorating all the time out there, but somehow you had to get used to it and Holding wasn’t as quick as in the three day game they played down here.

“I was trying to keep Griff away from the bowling, and we turned down quite a few singles.

“But I decided he was doing so well after a while that we thought we’d take them.”

On that final over drama...

“I said to (umpire) Alan Whitehead that there was so much at stake I wasn’t prepared to begin the final over until they had checked the scoring rate after 30 overs.

“We he said we only had to block it out to win the match, I was more worried about Griff than when he was facing Holding. They had all close catchers around the bat and it is so easy to get a nick on to the pad, so I said to him ‘if it’s off the wicket, flick it round the corner’.

“It was the most delicate over of the lot, but when that bye went off the fifth ball!

“I know it’s corny, but I really didn’t know if I was coming or going when we completed that run!”

Geoff Cook - Northants skipper

On Being driven to drink...

“With six wickets down I couldn’t bear to watch any more, so I went out and down to the Abington for a pint.

“As I went in I heard another roar, and it was Sharpy (George Sharp) getting out.

“The manager of the pub had the game on the radio, and I though ‘hell, I can’t escape anywhere!’

“I hate not being in control, not being able to do anything - I would rather be fielding at moments like that, because at least you are doing something.

“The only time I have ever known tension remotely like that was Hampshire in the 1976 semi-final.”

On his two unlikely batting heroes...

“Griff and Tiger did a super job. You always hope there’s a chance, but when a game is like that just one good ball decides it.

“They took several singles I felt were very risky as Griff was then sometimes exposed to five balls, but what can I say after something like that? They were incredible.

“The world’s fastest bowler against Griff and Tiger hardly bears thinking about, but in cricket nothing is ever certain.”