Freddie Trueman the great
Yorkshire cricketer died 01/07/06. He was called 'Fiery Fred' for the speed of his bowling, his will to win, the force of his temper and his intolerance of fools.
Frederick Sewards Trueman was born on 6 February 1931 in the village of Stainton near Rotherham. Now some have contended that he should be considered a Rotherhamite but however carefully I checked my maps Stainton is definitely in the borough of Doncaster. Some twenty–five years ago I made a short pilgrimage to look at the pit house where he was born and there wasn't even a blue plaque. I understand that the house has since been demolished.
Freddie first played cricket for the Roche Abbey team before moving up to Sheffield Cricket Club. He was invited to the winter cricket school at Headingley in 1948. He made his first team debut for Yorkshire in 1949. After National Service in the RAF he was picked for the England Test Side against India in 1952. Renowned as a fast bowler I recall that he played some pretty nifty innings as a batsman.
He played in 459 first class matches for Yorkshire taking 1745 wickets; his best season being in 1960. Freddie played in 67 of England's 117 test matches between 1952 and 1968. He was often overlooked for selection by those 'gentlemen' on the England Test Committee who interpreted his Yorkshire forthrightness and fieriness as something not quite proper to the game of cricket.
Freddie retired from the Yorkshire team in 1968 but played Sunday League for Derbyshire until he finally had to give up the game. He was awarded an OBE in 1989. He leaves a wife, Veronica and family. Some years ago, at the wedding of his daughter Rebecca to the son of Raquel Welch, I think it can be said he was left gobsmacked by the size of Ms Welch's hat and the depth of her cleavage.
Here's to long warm afternoons in that Headingley in the sky.