Sadly and inevitably during the past decade, the club has lost stalwarts like Les Norris, Ken Verney, Ian Bishop, Roy Ingham, Alfie Heywood and Keith Bolton, who were elected as Life Members for their many years of voluntary services to the Club. At the April Meeting of the Management Committee, four nominees were elected as Life Members.
Dave Saddington: Dave joined the club in 1993 and has made a significant contribution over 25 years, mainly with the ball but occasionally with the bat, as well as being 1st XI Captain from 1998 – 2010. The records show that he is the club’s longest serving 1st XI cricketer with over 25 seasons to date and counting. In more recent times, he has served on the Management Committee for 16 years and as Cricket Chair for the past 4 years. ‘Saddo’ is also a regular member of the Cheshire County C.C. Over 50’s team.
Richard Fretwell: Richard became a playing member in 2005 and almost immediately made an impact with his contribution to both Junior & Senior cricket, acting as Junior Manager and Vice Chair of the Junior Committee, while not forgetting his enthusiasm as 3rd XI Vice Captain and regular team member. Since then, he has acted as Club Chair and was instrumental in the successful Pavilion Development project of 2014 -15. These achievements both on and off the field have moved the club to a position of prominence in Cheshire Cricket Circles.
John Pope: John arrived at the club as a playing member in 2005, establishing himself as a regular member of the 3rd XI and acting as Captain in 2006 & 2007. John has always played the role of “The Voice of Reason” when disputes have arisen during matches, although more significant is John’s tenure as Honorary Treasurer for over 10 years, as well as Acting Secretary during a time that expenditure has threatened to overtake income as the club has looked to the future with development of the pavilion and playing facilities.
Barbara Strong: We all know that behind every Strong man there is a Strong woman and Barbara is no exception. She joined as a social member in the 1970s and acted as scorer on a regular basis for the 1st & 2nd XI teams over many years. Barbara has supported social and other events with Roger, who was himself made a Life Member in 1996 and served as President from 2005 – 2008. Despite attempting to retire, Barbara has never let the club down and come to the rescue on many occasions including the time when the groundsman resigned two days before the final match of the season and a small team including Roger & Barbara helped to prepare a pitch at short notice. Marvellous.
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These honours are the first part of a scheme to recognise those members who have contributed to the success of the club in cricket or administrative or social terms whose efforts have perhaps been overlooked in past years. HBCC will therefore be looking at nominating Vice Presidents and introducing a new award of Honorary Primary Membership in order to denote its “special” status for members who have given a particular level of voluntary service to the club.