Going Bats in Norfolk - Keith Skipper

As a proud chronicler of things that really matter in Norfolk it was inevitable that Keith Skipper's thoughts should turn to `a balmy evening of reflection' on the wonderful world of local cricket.
The self-styled `Boy at Cowpat Corner' (that hazardous territory lined with strange bumps, rabbit holes and cattle calling-cards) here provides a charming reverie based on a lifelong passion for the game nurtured through a long family association with a village club in the middle of the county.

Beginning as a Saturday scorer "the pen has always been mightier than the sward in my case" and often a last-minute recruit when one of the regulars had to cry off through work on the farm, Keith writes about his `highly-extinguished' playing career which after years of under-achieving out in the middle gave way, to his life as journalist, broadcaster and raconteur.

Now, with a little help from countless old friends on and off the pitch, he recalls charismatic characters, memorable matches, delectable settings and amusing yarns collected over the golden seasons. Special matches and colourful characters pour out of the pavilion to declare this a perfectly-paced addition to the Skipper series.