DECADES OLD TRADITION KEPT ALIVE IN BRIGG

A Brigg tradition  stretching back to the 1920s was kept alive on Friday night, July 7.
The Old Boys' (Briggensians' Association) X1 played a team from Sir John Nelthorpe School  in the annual cricket friendly match at SJN,  on the artificial pitch.
Originally, this historic game was played on the pristine grass square at Brigg Grammar School, the fixture lasting until comprehensive education arrived in 1976 and then being continued by SJN and the Briggensians, to to their credit.
Friday's match proved to be one of the highest scoring of all time with the Briggensians only 13 runs short of chasing down the daunting 175 total set by the free-scoring SJN XI in their 16 overs.
Tony Beel , Dave Willey and yours truly were the only ex-grammar pupils to take part this year. We are all 60+.
Thanks go to SJN teacher Jon Taylor who combined umpiring with scoring as well as organising the game with Nick Beacock, captain of the Briggensians.
Following the fixture the Old Boys enjoyed a chat about old times at Wetherspoon's White Horse pub. And a few drinks.
Thanks to Emily, whose dad Stan Mosey was one of Brigg Town's all-time top batsmen, for taking the pre-match team picture.
It was heartening to see that SJN continues to produce talented  young cricketers.
We hope many of them will go on to enjoy lengthy careers in club cricket as we did.
Paul Neal, who took a fine boundary catch, went on to star with the bat, together with Captain Beaky.
A year is a long time in sport when you get past 60 but all the vets will be hoping to make the 2018 match, and this time  finish on the winning team!
By then it is hoped that SJN will have been successful in its bid for funding to install a new artificial pitch.
This will be money well spent. And only a few thousand pounds will do the trick.
The Vale Academy has just got a new one so we think it only right that Brigg's other secondary school follows suit.
It's good that they continue to encourage the traditional sound of willow on ball.