Cricket

Another of those team building work days. I would love to know who picked a Monday but looking at my diary, it seems it had been planned for the previous Thursday.

It was held at the Maidenhead & Bray Cricket Club alongside the River Thames. From memory it was my team of auditors against my bosses invitation XI, mainly finance people. The Blip shows amongst others the Division's MD David Mitchell at the wicket. He was allowed to not be in full whites - he picked up the tab when we went to dinner at the nearby Waterside Inn restaurant, the Michelin 3*  establishment then owned by Michel Roux and now by his son. Looking at the menu now in 2016, I see a main course costs £50-60. Actually I suspect my boss Kevin B paid as we had recently had new guidelines on signing off expenses. David could then sign off Kevin's. The dinner though was not for all the cricket players, just my team, Kevin and David. We didn't stay overnight in the Inn - I see a room costs £250 upwards.

Good day. I still have the match ball and even the reserve unused ball. I had been charged with buying a ball and worried about some of the sloggers in my team and the close proximity of the Thames, thought it was a wise precaution. David went on to become MD of Thornton's Chocolate as they pushed out in to the retail world. I don't know how it worked out but a quick bit of web research shows he left in 1995. Kevin B moved to Geest the banana people as CFO. In 1991 he employed me for a few weeks to do a consultancy project on wholesale fruit businesses in Germany. I think he is still in bananas connected with Ecuador but I can't quite get a full picture.

Top left: the players and a few guests. I am the one with the white hat and designer grass stains on both knees. At the other end of my row is Bliper Nogbad, At the far right back row (behind Sue L in blue top and the only one having a drink), is bearded Paul M. I suspect Phil R took the photo as he is missing. Nogbad, Paul and Phil do an annual cricket week - one of the venues was Munich in 2015.


Top right:  Boss Kevin B has just helped David M put on his pads before going to the crease.

Bottom left: David about to give it a whack, Phil extremely relaxed at second slip.

Bottom right: "The Earl" returning to the club house. He always claimed it was a bad decision - no TV replays back then. St Michael's Church, Bray in the background.