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Search forRare win over Yorkshire was so very satisfying
Wednesday, June 25, 2008, 07:30
I went in to bat towards the end of the first day and was out for one, padding up to Ray Illingworth, but I did take the first three Yorkshire wickets with the ball.
I didn't bat in the second innings because our captain, Donald Carr, declared to set Yorkshire 300 to win in the second innings and they knocked the runs off with quarter of an hour to go.
Little did I know then that I would have to wait until 1970 before I was on the winning side against Yorkshire. Losing in the final of the Gillette Cup at Lord's the season before added to the feeling that we were long overdue a win against them.
This was my first year as captain and the second year of the new 40-over competition. We started the season with a good win against Worcestershire and we were really ready to have a go at Yorkshire in front of a big crowd.
We batted first and made 194-5, which was our highest score in the competition at the time.
Mike Page got 32, David Smith 37 and Ian Hall was 39 not out at the end.
I came in at six when we were 132-4 and scored 35 off 26 balls to push us along to what was a good total.
Yorkshire opened with Geoff Boycott and Barrie Leadbeater and they made a good start by putting on 68 but our overseas player, Chris Wilkins, bowled Boycott for 32 and Leadbeater was run out for 34.
We didn't let Yorkshire get close after that. Wilkins, Alan Ward, Fred Rumsey, Peter Eyre and myself kept the bowling tight and we beat them by 40 runs. It was a very efficient display from us.
Yorkshire were never really gallant losers but it was a hard game played in the right spirit, the way cricket should be.
We were absolutely delighted to have beaten them and we went on to finish third in the John Player League that season
I read later that it was our first victory over Yorkshire in any competition since Les Jackson's benefit match at Chesterfield in 1957.
I'm not sure I was involved in a match where we beat them again before I retired in 1973 but that first win was certainly a very special feeling.
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hard game: Ian Buxton was delighted with the win.
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