Andrew Hignell – författare

A geographical history of cricket in England and Wales in a global context.

A geographical history of cricket in England and Wales in a global context.

This book covers a century of the best, most charismatic and most controversial men ever to don the white coat and stand for first-class cricket. From the great Victorian personalities to the stalwarts of the modern era, such as Dicky Bird, David Shepperd and Peter Willey, this book profile the best of those imposing characters, who can make or break a batsman with the simple raising of a finger.

The period from 1993 has been one of the most successful in the history of Glamorgan CCC, with both league and cup victories. This is the story of this wonderful period, told in the players' own words, and supported by superb photographs by Huw John. It will appeal to all Glamorgan CCC supporters.

A history of Gloucestershire County Cricket Club.

A geographical history of cricket in England and Wales in a global context.

A geographical history of cricket in England and Wales in a global context.

Since its establishment in 1866 by prominent businessmen and the gentry of south Wales, the Cardiff and County Club has played a central role in the commercial, political and sporting life of Cardiff, as it developed from a burgeoning Victorian coal metropolis into the dynamic Welsh capital city of today. Led by local solicitor Henry Heard, the Club's founders had moved to Cardiff to work in the rapidly expanding town and, as the trade of the docks, businesses and shops all flourished, the men of influence, high social standing and growing wealth were looking for somewhere to gather, relax, dine and socialise in a convivial atmosphere with their friends and acquaintances. Initially located within, and then alongside, the Royal Hotel on St. Mary Street, the Club's growing popularity, and its close association with the Bute Estate, saw the members decide to construct the current Clubhouse on Westgate Street, which became one of the City's landmarks and still remains Wales' leading private members' club.Extensively researched and lavishly illustrated, Always Amongst Friends not only traces the fascinating 150-year history of the Club through a scholarly study of the social and economic history of Cardiff, but also celebrates the Cardiff and County Club's colourful characters, their mischievous humour and exudes the warmth and camaraderie so treasured by its members.

Written by Andrew Hignell, the Archivist of Glamorgan County Cricket Club and the leading authority on the history of cricket in Wales, this book recalls these Golden Years in the history of Blaina Cricket Club as well as tracing the fascinating history of cricket in this Monmouthshire valley. Drawing on the memories, photographs and personnel recollections of those directly involved with the Blaina club from the times when coal was king, through the years of the decline in the iron and tinplate industry to the modern years of mine closure and de-industrialisation, Andrew Hignell has not only produced a cricketing history of Blaina, but also a social history of the town. Cricket began in Blaina in the 1850s as the ironmasters used the game to fly the flag for their works as well as trying to harmonise industrial relations and promoting healthy lifestyles. The playing of cricket subsequently developed into a unifying force within the tight-knit valley communities and, as the first team-game to evolve in industrial Wales, it helped to bond and give immense pleasure to the people whose livelihood was dominated by the state of the iron and coal industries.There were good times and bad, yet throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries the Blaina cricket club remained strong and vibrant. It was a founding member of the South Wales and Monmouthshire League and the club regularly attracted large crowds, sometimes of up to 4,000.

Jim Pleass is the last surviving member of Glamorgan's County Championship winning team of 1948, the first time the Welsh team won the highest honour in county cricket. The Cardiff-born multi-talented sportsman, who was also an exceptional footballer and offered trial games for Cardiff City as a schoolboy, built a reputation as a solid and reliable team player at a time when Glamorgan was establishing itself on the first class cricket scene after the Second World War. In stark contrast to contemporary sport which is too often dominated by money and celebrity, Jim was a hard-working professional sportsman typical of his era, who simply enjoyed the camaraderie and of the game he loved. Yet the man who was born in Cardiff in 1923 achieved something that only a handful of the five hundred or so people who have proudly worn the daffodil-sweater since the Club's formation in 1888, can claim to have also matched, winning some sixty summers after the Club's creation their first-ever County Championship title. Jim was a very lucky man, as the book explains his narrow escape from certain death when he stormed the Normandy beaches on D day in 1944.If it wasn't for the over-exuberance of a driver on another landing craft, Jim would never have graced the cricket field wearing the daffodil of Glamorgan County Cricket Club.

Front Foot to Front Line commemorates Welsh cricket's contribution to the Great War by chronicling the lives of 55 professional and amateur cricketers who left the friendly rivalry of the crease for the brutality and horror of the trenches, and lost their lives as servicemen on the bloody battlefields of Europe.The distinguished author and the leading authority on Welsh cricket, Andrew Hignell, traces the major themes and battles of the First World War to provide a poignant snapshot of how Wales lost a generation of young men who were united by their love of cricket and their courage to serve their country.Front Foot to Front Line not only pays tribute to the cricketers, drawn from over 35 local clubs across Wales, who lost their lives but also to those who returned home permanently affected by their experiences of warfare. The book also highlights the involvement of many characters involved at the grassroots of Welsh club cricket who served with distinction and will be of great interest to the large Welsh cricketing fraternity as well as to those with an interest in military history.The cricket clubs featured in Front Foot to Front Line include:Blaina, Barry, Brecon, Bridgend Town, Briton Ferry, Cardiff, Cowbridge, Crickhowell, Denbighshire, Ferndale, Garth, Glamorgan, Llancarfan, Llandovery College, Llandudno, Llanelli, Monmouthshire, Neath, Newport, Pontypridd, Radyr, Swansea, Usk Valley, and Ystrad Mynach.

This book is a celebration of bygone times, in the modern history of the domestic game. It is also a tribute to the richly appreciated efforts of the overseas stars in their matches with Glamorgan. The Celtic fervour and uninhibited displays of nationalism, especially in the matches at the St. Helens ground in Swansea, meant that there was an additional dimension to the matches between Glamorgan and the touring teams, in the words of Richie Benaud, the great Australian captain – and later the world-famous broadcaster – who said, "this match with Glamorgan is like an extra Test in our series on tour."The memories and records here also commemorate the end of cricket at St. Helen’s which, ever since its creation in 1875, had seen the game co-exist with rugby. But the summer of 2025 is the last before the pitches where Glamorgan defeated the 1936 Indians, the 1937 New Zealanders, the 1951 South Africans, both the 1964 and 1968 Australians as well as the 1971 Pakistanis, disappear as part of a multi-million-pound redevelopment scheme for regional rugby.For those living in Wales, as well as Welsh folk exiled elsewhere, the disappearance of the St. Helen’s cricket ground at the end of the 2025 season is a moment to reflect on the good times, remembering sunny afternoons sat enraptured as the likes of Wilf Wooller, Tony Lewis, Don Shepherd and Alan Jones locked horns with the Test Match stars whilst wearing the daffodil sweaters of Glamorgan.

Matches against the touring teams from overseas were the undoubted highlight of Glamorgan county's fixture list. The three-day games against the international stars allowed the club's avid supporters, plus those with a more general sporting interest, a chance to watch in the flesh some of the greatest names in world cricket play on Welsh soil.This book is a celebration of bygone times, in the modern history of the domestic game. It is also a tribute to the richly appreciated efforts of the overseas stars in their matches with Glamorgan. The Celtic fervour and uninhibited displays of nationalism, especially in the matches at the St. Helens ground in Swansea, meant that there was an additional dimension to the matches between Glamorgan and the touring teams, in the words of Richie Benaud, the great Australian captain - and later the world-famous broadcaster - who said, "this match with Glamorgan is like an extra Test in our series on tour."The memories and records here also commemorate the end of cricket at St. Helen's which, ever since its creation in 1875, had seen the game co-exist with rugby. But the summer of 2025 is the last before thepitches where Glamorgan defeated the 1936 Indians, the 1937 New Zealanders, the 1951 South Africans,both the 1964 and 1968 Australians as well as the 1971 Pakistanis, disappear as part of a multi-million-pound redevelopment scheme for regional rugby.For those living in Wales, as well as Welsh folk exiled elsewhere, the disappearance of the St. Helen's cricket ground at the end of the 2025 season is a moment to reflect on the good times, remembering sunnyafternoons sat enraptured as the likes of Wilf Wooller, Tony Lewis, Don Shepherd and Alan Jones locked horns with the Test Match stars whilst wearing the daffodil sweaters of Glamorgan.

Glamorgan County Cricket Club

A history of Glamorgan County Cricket Club

This book is part of the 100 Greats series, which collects short biographies and statistics of the 100 greatest players on various sporting teams or clubs throughout their histories.

A photographic and narrative account of one of the best cricket seasons in living history. Worcestershire eventually took the County Championship and Australia narrowly won one of the closest ever Ashes series. Household names like Geoffrey Boycott and Gary Sobers took centre stage. There's a great deal of interest in cricket at the moment: 2004 was an excellent season for the England Test side and a whole new audience has been attracted to the game in recent seasons via the Twenty20 cup.

The Story of Sophia begins, like most things in nineteenth century Cardiff, from the influence of Bute Estate. Thus, this book details the beginnings of cricket at Sophia Gardens, expanding the historical commentary with brief match reports, scorecards and interviews with past and present protaganists of the Welsh county. Perhaps most pertinent is that the current redevelopment of the ground is also featured, as Glamorgan CCC prepare for an Ashes Test match in 2009, one of the highest-profile occasions in British sport. Therefore, the heritage of the arena is explored and augmented by the promise of an exciting new era for Cardiff-based sport.

Since its establishment in 1866 by prominent businessmen and the    gentry of south Wales, the Cardiff and County Club has played a central role in the commercial, political and sporting life of Cardiff, as it developed from a burgeoning Victorian coal metropolis into the dynamic Welsh capital city of today. Led by local solicitor Henry Heard, the Club’s founders had moved to Cardiff to work in the rapidly expanding town and, as the trade of the docks, businesses and shops all flourished, the men of influence, high social standing and growing wealth were looking for somewhere to gather, relax, dine and socialise in a convivial atmosphere with their friends and acquaintances. Initially located within, and then alongside, the Royal Hotel on St. Mary Street, the Club’s growing popularity, and its close association with the Bute Estate, saw the members decide to construct the current Clubhouse on Westgate Street, which became one of the City’s landmarks and still remains Wales’ leading private members’ club.  Extensively researched and lavishly illustrated, Always Amongst Friends not only traces the fascinating 150-year history of the Club through a scholarly study of the social and economic history of Cardiff, but also celebrates the Cardiff and County Club’s colourful characters, their mischievous humour and exudes the warmth and camaraderie so treasured by its members.