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Derek Pringle: a beer-assisted rare win against a County

Wins by Cambridge over County sides are vanishingly rare after the Second World War so this one against Lancashire in 1982 was something of a collector’s item especially as it was done the right way with the University bowling them out twice.

Missing their Guyanese duo, Clive Lloyd and Colin Croft (rested presumably), and their young opening batsman, Graeme Fowler (injured), Lancashire arrived at Fenners under acting captain David Lloyd.

Winning the toss they decided to bat first making 304, a total to which David Hughes (106) and Lloyd (54) contributed over half the runs. Cambridge responded with 274 before having Lancashire 70 for six by close of play on the second day. 

Our sudden potency with the ball was helped by a pitch which had begun to dust on a seamers’ length around middle stump, too straight for right-arm bowlers to right-hand batsmen, but an ideal spot to trouble left-handers of which Lancashire had four in their top six. Every time I or anyone else hit the spot bowling from the Pavilion End, which was maybe once every 20 balls, a wicket seemed to occur. 

If those bits of good fortune, the dusting of the pitch and their plethora of left-handers, helped us so too did Lancashire’s discovery of Grolsch lager. Whether it was the taste or just the intriguing bottles with their rubber-stoppers, they seemed intent on drinking Cambridge dry of the stuff. With us a hospitable team, we took them to the one pub that we knew stocked it, the Anchor on Silver Street. 

With Lancashire's players led by the enthusiastic imbiber, Frank Hayes, we merely showed them the promised land and then sat back drinking the local real ale (much weaker), happy to count their hangovers as they traipsed in to Fenners the next morning. 

Unrepentant that their over-indulgence might have had something to do with their scrappy batting second time round, they returned to the Anchor the following evening to try to do a number on us. It didn’t work and after a pint or two we pleaded revision and made our excuses. 

Before I departed, Hayes, who’d once been a student himself, got me in a headlock and said: “If you don’t bloody well beat us tomorrow you’ll have me to answer to, alright.” It was, I was later told, a sign of affection. Fortunately we managed to hold our nerve on the final day and chase the 159 runs needed to notch a famous victory by seven wickets.

It didn’t end there for Lloyd, the acting captain, who was hauled before the Lancashire committee to explain himself. 

“Nobody died and we didn’t lose any Championship points,” he told the committee, which didn’t wash all that well. Indeed, he led the team just once more that season before being relieved of his post as the club’s vice-captain at the end of the season.

As for Cambridge, any benefits gleaned from such a win were short-lived with normal service resumed - 99 all out - the very next game.  

Memory added on February 11, 2021

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