One Test Wonders

In this episode we speak with Ireland wicketkeeper-batsman Niall O’Brien - and it's an episode with a difference. All the other players we’ve spoken with were hopeful of long Test careers when they made their debuts but Niall is a bit different.

A left-hander who played county cricket with Kent, Northamptonshire and Leicestershire for well over a decade, Niall first played for Ireland at under-17 level in 1999 and at that stage the idea of Test cricket for the country was not even a distant dream.

However, a succession of impressive performances in ICC limited-over events and in the ICC Intercontinental Cup, the global first-class competition for international sides below Test status, pressed Ireland’s case, and in 2018 they finally got the chance to play a match in the longest form of the game, against Pakistan at Malahide.

Niall’s professional career was very much in its final throes by then, but the prospect of playing in that match helped drive him on and he finally got his reward, becoming a member of the first playing eleven to take the field for his country in Test cricket.

Niall not only talks extensively about the match in question in this podcast, a match that featured a brilliant hundred by his brother Kevin, but he puts it into the context of his career and Ireland’s journey from nowhere to the very top table of the sport.

This episode sees us speaking with opening batsman Andy Lloyd.

Andy had an excellent first-class career, latterly as Warwickshire captain, and scored more than 17,000 first-class runs, but perhaps he's best known for his one Test appearance, against the mighty West Indies side of 1984, and how it ended prematurely for him because of a horrendous incident after just half an hour's play.

The story of that incident takes up a great deal of this podcast, as you'd expect, but over the course of the episode Andy also puts his Test call-up into context and discusses how he rebuilt his career at first-class level, all the while knowing he could never play for England again. It's a tale that is, at stages, sad, poignant and redemptive - and it's always fascinating!

In this episode we catch up with former Essex and Hampshire all-rounder John Stephenson.

John’s career included over 22,000 runs and more than 600 wickets in professional cricket and he captained Hampshire for two seasons in 1996 and 1997. But here we’re concerned with his Test appearance, which came against the mighty Australia side of 1989, the one under Allan Border’s leadership that steamrolled England that summer.

John, who was opening the batting with some success for Essex alongside Graham Gooch at the time, was called up for the final Test of the six-match series at The Oval with England already 4-0 down in the series and his story reveals just a little of the chaos in the national set-up in the face of that mauling.

Let’s take up the story…

This time we hear from former Gloucestershire, Surrey and Sussex seam bowler Jon Lewis, a player who took more than 1300 wickets in his professional career and someone who enjoyed enormous success in county cricket in limited-overs cricket. 

Jon’s solitary Test match came against Sri Lanka at Trent Bridge in 2006, and it was the culmination of being in and around the England squad for 18 months, time that included matches in both the ODI and T20I formats.

His selection was the end of a frustrating period of near misses when it came to getting his hands on a Test cap, but as with everyone else in this series, it turned out to be an end of another sort too, rather than a beginning.

Let’s get started and hear Jon’s story…

In this episode we speak with fast bowler Tony Pigott.

Tony had a first-class career that spanned three decades, collecting 672 first-class wickets for Sussex, Surrey and New Zealand side Wellington along the way, and he made his Test appearance as a late call-up in what became a notorious innings loss in New Zealand, at Christchurch in February 1984.

The story of that call-up, involving as it did the need to rearrange his wedding, his own fitness worries around that time and the match itself make up one of the most remarkable tales in the history of English cricket.

Let’s let Tony take up that story…

In this episode we chat with opening batsman Alan Butcher.

Alan had a decorated first-class career, with more than 22,000 runs for Surrey and Glamorgan, before going on to a successful coaching career, including with Zimbabwe. He’s also the father of former England batsman Mark and Gary, who, like his dad, played for both Glamorgan and Surrey.

Alan’s opportunity to play for England in Test cricket came at his-then home ground, The Oval, in the final match of four-game series against India in 1979. England were 1-0 up and made changes, looking at new players ahead of a winter tour of Australia and India.

He experienced a week full of remarkable experiences and one which turned out to be an absolute rollercoaster of excitement and disappointment, as he tells us here...

If you think about the 1981 Ashes series, what comes to your mind?

Ian Botham, of course; Bob Willis, almost certainly; Mike Brearley, perhaps. But Paul Parker? Probably not.

All the same, Paul, an attacking batsman and a thrilling fielder for Sussex and latterly Durham, a player good enough to score over 19,000 first-class runs and take part in two winning one-day finals at Lord’s in 1978 and 1986, made his Test debut in the final match of that unforgettable series, at The Oval.

He’d set his heart on playing for England, this was his chance – and, as it turned out, his only chance.

This is Paul Parker’s story of a momentous week in his life, one which had profound repercussions for his career…

Brian Murgatroyd looks ahead to the series, in which he chats with players who played just one Test match.

The players chat about how their Test appearances came about, their recollections of the matches themselves and the aftermath of never getting another chance.

Brian Murgatroyd said: “So much of the game is about high achievement and success and we know all about those high achievers. Players like Shane Warne, Sachin Tendulkar, Don Bradman, and, more recently, the likes of Alastair Cook and James Anderson. These are names that are lauded for their performances, and rightly so.

“But it occurred to me that there is very little that has been written or said about players who have achieved success by earning their call-ups to play Test cricket and then never been afforded a second opportunity.

“I checked and found that, for England alone, there are 33 players since the end of World War Two who have played just one Test. I thought ‘What are their stories? Why didn’t they enjoy longer Test careers?’ And that was the genesis for producing this podcast.

“I started to explore the subject and found that everyone I approached was delighted to talk, and the result is, I think, a series of fascinating listens that will engage all cricket fans.”

In the podcasts, Brian chats with the players to find out their back-stories and gets them to put their call-ups and appearances into the context of the times in which they took place. 

He also gets from the six their detailed recollections of their Test appearances, what it meant to them both then and now, and their reflections on their status as one-cap Test players now they have retired. 

“The stories the players tell of their experiences are absolutely fantastic,” said Brian. “As he was waiting to go out to bat for the first time, one player was told by the Chairman of Selectors ‘Don’t do anything bloody stupid,’ which is hardly going to fill anyone with confidence, is it?

“Another arrived at the ground on the eve of the match only to be mistaken for a net bowler, while another had to play his Test in kit borrowed from a team-mate. And another was so convinced he wasn’t going to play that he told his wife and family not to bother attending. They followed his advice and missed his entire Test career!

“There are so many stories like this throughout the episodes. The players were so open and honest, and it’s been an absolute joy to put the series together.”

Brian Murgatroyd has worked in cricket and journalism for more than 30 years. He currently works as a freelance broadcaster and has filed copy for the Reuters and Agence France Presse news agencies.

Additionally, he has worked as media manager for both the England and Australia men’s cricket teams and was, for three-and-a-half years, the Head of Media and Communications for the International Cricket Council, the sport’s global governing body.

“Having delved into the subject, I have realised it really is a rich seam for fantastic stories about the history of the game of cricket and, given there are so many players to speak with and about, I would love to carry on and explore the subject further,” said Brian. “It has been a labour of love to put together this first series and my plan is to carry on telling these stories that deserve to be heard.”