Andrew Radd's 'love letter' to Northants is nominated for prestigious cricket book award

And there are few, if any, people who love Northamptonshire CCC more than Andrew Radd.

The BBC Northampton radio commentator, journalist, author and club archivist will be well known to anybody who follows the fortunes of 'the County'.

He is the voice that 1,000s of cricket lovers rely on throughout the summer to guide them through Championship, One Day Cup and T20 matches, whether it be via the old wireless, online or alongside live pictures via streaming services.

Radd, who has been a Northants fan since the age of eight and spent many, many years living a David Willey big hit away from County Ground, has also been a prolific writer of books on the ups and downs of the club over the years.

And his latest cricket offering, his seventh, is in the running for a prestigious award.

'Faces On A Wall - An English County's Curious Collections Of Captains' has made the 12-strong longlist for the Derek Hodgson Cricket Book Of The Year, with the winner being announced next month at the Cricket Writers' Club annual lunch.

The book 'turns the spotlight on Northamptonshire's captains since 1878, whose portraits appear together in the pavilion at Wantage Road. An astonishingly diverse bunch encompassing cricket no-hopers, solid professionals and top internationals’.

Every first team and first-class skipper is featured, from Jim Kingston, club’s the very first captain, to the current man at the red ball helm, Luke Procter.

Along the way, there are intriguing and fascinating tales of struggles, successes, cricketing politics, the highs of trophy wins and the lows of years without a single victory, and much much more.

Aside from the cricket, the book also something of a run through the history of Northampton and the county as a whole. There is a lot to be learned, even for an ageing Northamptonian like myself!

Radd, who has covered the club professionally for more than 40 years, says the book 'reflects the changing face of society as well as the changing face of cricket', and that is an excellent description.

As well as being a huge fan of cricket and the club in general, Radd is also a man whose family has close connections with Northants, and he admits: "I suppose in a sense the book is my personal love letter to Northamptonshire cricket.

"My grandfather was born in Wantage Road, his father, my great grandfather, worked at Manfield down the road.

"My great grandmother was a Reynolds, as in (former Northants cricketer) Brian, so we are related to them.

"On my grandmother's side, she was related to Wilfred Timms, who also played for the County as is mentioned quite a lot in the book, so you have that personal connection."

It means his ties to 'his' club are strong, as they are for many others, and he believes that is one of the most special things about following a county cricket club, and Northants in particular.

"For all the talk of franchises and the rest of it, you cannot replace that personal connection," said Radd.

"Whether it's the County, the Saints, Cobblers, Poppies or whatever, it is your team.

"You don't get that with made up teams, with made up names."

Of course, Radd is referring to The Hundred and the massive growth of franchise cricket in general across the globe.

It is something that many fear could be the death-knell of the county game as we know it, but Radd is still optimistic the likes of Northants, Leicestershire, and Derbyshire can survive alongside the bigger 'Test' counties.

"Players have to come from somewhere...," he says, and with the current England set-up including the likes of Ben Duckett and Olly Stone, both players who came through the ranks at the County Ground he has a very valid point.

But let’s leave that subject for another day.

'Faces On A Wall' is all about celebrating the history of Northants, the club's leaders, and the club's reach across the whole of the county over the years.

That was something that was once a given, as the first team played home games all over Northamptonshire and even beyond.

But in recent times, mainly due to finances, the focus has switched to the County Ground, with all home games being staged at the club's headquarters.

It is something Radd understands, but he admits it is something he wished could be changed, as he has a great love for the old 'out grounds'.

"If I have a pet hate at the County Ground, it does sometimes seem very Northampton-centric," admitted Radd.

"I was born in Northampton and lived there until I was 40-something, so I am a Northamptonian, but it is a county club and I do think sometimes that gets lost in translation somewhere.

"We don't go to Kettering any more, we don't go to Wellingborough, we don't go to Brackley, Finedon, Wellingborough School, whatever.

"It all does become a little Northampton-centric and I think it's very important not to overlook other bits of our own county.

"The book, hopefully, tells a bit of the story of the importance of other parts of the county, and people from the other parts of the county.

"If it does anything, apart from send people to sleep, I will be very pleased if it just highlighted that."

So what about the chances of Radd actually walking away with that Derek Hodgson Award?

He is certainly up against some big-hitters, including 'Bazball', written by fellow Northamptonshire fanatics Lawrence Booth and Nick Hoult, and Azeem Rafiq's 'It's Not Banter, It's Racism'.

You never know though... perhaps it will be the history of the long list of captains of Northants and their fascinating back-stories will be the one that grabs the judges' attention?

But even if the book does not secure that top prize, Radd is very proud to 'fly for the flag' for county cricket.

"I am assuming they are going to cut the longlist down, and it's not going to win, but I won't pretend it isn't nice to make the initial list," he said, modestly.

"To get into the top 12 for the year is very pleasing.

"There are some wonderful books, and wonderful writers that are represented there, but there aren't too many of the other titles that are to do with county cricket.

"So it is nice in that respect to slightly fly the flag for it."

So what is the story behind Radd’s latest book?

Here is a Q&A that explains a bit more how it all came about, delves deeper into what is covered, and also asks ‘Radders’ who, out of all the Northants captains, is his personal favourite?…

JC: What was the inspiration for the book? Is it something you have been considering doing for a while?

AR: “One of my favourite cricket books - I had a copy for my 18th birthday - is 'The Cricket Captains of England' by Alan Gibson, focusing on the very different individuals who have led the Test side down the years.

"It occurred to me some time ago that there was a similar book to be written about Northamptonshire's captains because - as with the England skippers - they are an incredibly varied bunch.

"Several of the amateurs were clearly not worth their place in the side as a player, but got the job as a result of the still rather feudal nature of the county game up to (and indeed just after) the Second World War.

"Others were world-class cricketers with international reputations. And how did a peer of the realm, who subsequently gambled away the family fortune and ended up acting on the stage, become Northamptonshire's captain? So many stories to be told, hence the book.

JC: A lot of effort must have gone into researching each and every captain, and the events surrounding their time in charge.. hard work or a labour of love?

AR: “A bit of both! I've been researching the history of the Northamptonshire CCC for several decades now, but there's always something new to discover - which keeps you coming back for more.

"I had a lot of information to hand already, but once Pitch Publishing had backed the project I worked flat-out to find out more about some of the earlier captains - and put down thoughts and memories about the more recent ones, most of whom I've known personally.

"Reporting on a club for 40 years gives you (hopefully!) a decent insight into what's gone on, and it was nice to be able to incorporate plenty of personal observations on the captains of my time.

"I've written a lot about Northamptonshire cricket in the past, but there was an awful lot of new research and information that I wanted to share.

JC: As well as a cricket book, it is also something of a journey through county and town history, what were the most fascinating things away from the cricket pitch that you uncovered?

AR: “As a born-and-bred Northamptonian, the history of the town and county has always been a source of fascination. Sport doesn't exist in a vacuum - it reflects the attitudes and personalities of the people who play and run it.

"As the county of 'squires and spires' there were plenty of wealthy and aristocratic individuals in Northamptonshire, some of whom helped to bring the club as we know it into existence in 1878.

"For years, Northamptonshire cricket loved a toff! But there were also the traditional industries - boots and shoes in particular, of course - who supplied other important figures in NCCC history, not forgetting the legal profession.

"So many of our captains had extraordinary family backgrounds - most obviously the Kingstons, with eight brothers all playing for Northamptonshire.

"The Kingston family were hugely helpful in supplying new information.

"Also the Beasleys, with Joe captaining the side in 1919 and his sister Mary one of the pioneers of music education in Northamptonshire.

"They were all rooted in our soil, and so it's inevitable that social, political and industrial history is there alongside the cricket.

"And - this is very important to me - it's a county story, not just a Northampton one.

JC: I know you will have respect and admiration for all the captains featured in the book, indeed 'a soft spot for each and every one', but if pushed, and this may be an unfair and impossible question, who would come out as your personal favourite as the best leader Northants has had in its long history? If that is too difficult to answer, how about a top three?

AR: “I ducked that question in the book, for reasons I explain in the Introduction!

"Freddie Brown was arguably the most important of our captains, when it came to making Northamptonshire a real force in the post-war game.

"'Tubby' Vials nearly led us to the Championship in 1912 and remained involved for decades - as did Dennis Brookes, who taught me so much about cricket in general and the county club in particular.

"Jim Watts was captain when I first started watching Northamptonshire, Geoff Cook was hugely patient with an enthusiastic newcomer to the Wantage Road press box in the early-1980s, and of course Allan Lamb gave us so many memorable moments - both as batsman and leader.

"But to try and answer the question - I wouldn't pretend that Robert Nelson was on a par, as player or captain, with the great names I've already mentioned, but I've always had a very soft spot for him and visited his grave in Deal cemetery (he was killed in action in the Second World War) a few years ago.

"He was in charge when Northamptonshire started winning again after the four-year drought in the 1930s and I wish I'd been there to hear his speech on the balcony after the victory over Leicestershire at Wantage Road in May,1939.

"But there's also Arthur Childs-Clarke, who I discovered had been a budding actor in his youth and one of his ancestors helped to guard Napoleon on St Helena...

JC: Finally, I have seen you state that the book is going to be your 'seventh and final' one on cricket, which will be a great shame... so what are the plans for future works??

AR: As I mentioned earlier, I've written a lot about Northamptonshire cricket. I'm still researching - rarely a day goes by without something going in the notebook for future reference - but I've now produced three books in three years (a biography of the great George Thompson, a book on Northamptonshire grounds and the present offering) and I think the reading public deserves a break!

"There are lots of Northamptonshire books that still need to be written, but I'm not convinced there's another one in me - at least not for a while.

"I would love to produce something about my late father's life and acting career, and that would be a very different challenge.”

‘Faces On A Wall - An English County's Curious Collections Of Captains’ is published by Pitch Publishing and is available from all good stockists now