Don Shepherd, great but grounded

It was good to hear Don Shepherd still in good voice on Radio Wales this morning in a trailer for the celebration of his 90th birthday. He must be in the top ten of cricketers who should have played test cricket but were not selected. He says on the subject of missing England honours:

It never worried me. I played for MCC against the West Indians at Lord's in 1957, and I played for a Commonwealth team under Australian captain Richie Benaud.

If I'd been an Australian, he told me I would have played quite a lot of times.

But there were so many terrific off-spinners around towards the end - Fred Titmus, David Allen, John Mortimore, Ray Illingworth - and they could bat, while I was a bit of a slogger.

I was happy enough doing what I did and what happened to me through my life.

There is more in his biography, including his growing up and the family business in Gower. I am glad that my move to Swansea coincided with the final years of his career, including the 1969 championship win.