Award of "The Bat"

Dear FPCC Members

The Club held its AGM on the eve of the coldest night in January, and reports showed that we are on a firm financial footing which has enabled us to invest in some new equipment, such as a bowling machine and new portable net, and also to invest in making further improvements to the square over the next few years. Minutes have been distributed the minutes to all members.

At the end of the meeting, Club Secretary Mark Mikurenda was awarded FPCC’s top Award – “The Bat”. This is awarded periodically to Club members who have consistently delivered outstanding service to the Club over many years. It is a cricket bat carved on one side by John Bracewell, former Black Caps test player and later coach, and signed by Alastair Cook and Brendan McCullum whilst they were captains of England and New Zealand respectively. Previous recipients are Helen Stret and Jimmy Street..

Mark joined The Pythouse Players in the late 1990’s and played a significant part in the morphing of that Club into Fonthill Park CC between 2007 and 2009. Since then he has played a major part in the running of the Club and has over the years been the Hon. Secretary, Ground Manager and the Publicity Manager (see his regular contributions to Focus magazine), as well as a player and sometime captain. On the pitch, he is also something of an all-rounder with spells as wicketkeeper, looping spin bowler and at times dour and other times flourishing batsman and occasional taker of amazing catches. Few will forget his boundary edge catch to dismiss former England International Ronnie Irani in 2017 or his “whirling dervish” approach to hitting sixes at Chilmark some years earlier. In making the Award, Chairman, Eric Tracey, complemented Mark on his long service on and off the field of play and hoped it would continue for many years yet.

New members are always welcome and winter nets will start at the Nadder Centre, indoors on Wednesday evenings on 27 February from 6.30 to 7.50pm, so if you are thinking of cricket this summer, please come along and join us or at least turn your arm. Our 2019 fixture list will soon be published , and

we are all looking forward to the smell of freshly cut grass.

Eric Tracey

Chairman