A Geordie All-Rounder: 37 - Keen As Mustard
"The boys at Queens were as keen as mustard on their cricket. They absorbed everything I said and practised with enthusiasm. It was a privilege and a pleasure to coach them.''
Malcolm Scott tells of his cricket-coaching days in South Africa.
I started my coaching stint with a little apprehension as I realised that over many years, all the previous coaches at Queens had come from Sussex. Players of the calibre of Alan Oakman, Ken Suttle and Les Lenaham. Also Tony Greig who captained England during the 1970s was a former Queen's boy. The lad from the north-east with a different accent had a hard tradition to follow.
I worried unnecessarily. Once the boys knew I had played for Durham against the 1955 Springboks with players like Trevor Goddard and Jack McGlew and I had seen the 1960s team with the fearsome Adcock and Heine, I soon gained their approval.
The boys at Queens were as keen as mustard on their cricket. They absorbed everything I said and practised with enthusiasm. It was a privilege and a pleasure to coach them.
The cricket ground - called The Parry - was excellent with wickets hard and true, good for both batting and bowling. I had a lot of support from mathematics teacher Otto Lananegar who could speak Afrikaans and Bantu. Between us we coached the team who went from October to March without losing a game, and even beat their biggest rivals Sherborne College from East London. I was proud of the Queens College team and particularly of Jose Mariee, a most talented all rounder.
During the Christmas holiday I teamed up with David Steele and John Cotton of Nottinghamshire who were also coaching in the Cape. David hired a Volkswagen Beetle and off we all went down the Garden Route to Cape Town to have a few days sight seeing and watch South Africa play Australia at Newlands.
We were struggling to find accommodation but fortunately ran into Alan Oakman, the Sussex and England batsman, who after some persuasion, kindly offered to put us up for a couple of nights, although I believe bis wife wasn't too impressed.
On the beautiful ground at Newlands we saw the Springboks hammer the Aussies with the help of a terrific 209 from Graham Pollock. What an impressive team South Africa had then.
It was a great pity that in 1970 sanctions were applied because of their policy of apartheid, which meant they would only play against white nations. Great players such as Barry Richards, Alan Lamb, Graham Pollock and many others missed the opportunity to play Test cricket for South Africa. Several came to England, played County cricket and then represented the country.
