Strokers Ditty
A clever chap once said to me
“It’s not about proficiency
It’s not about the runs you’ve run,
The catches you’ve caught or the matches you’ve won.
What matters more are the men in your crew,
What matters more is the man next to you,
Does he tell a good tale, can he sing a good song?
Will he stand at the bar with you all summer long?
Is he there for selection, will he turn up to play?
Will he bat down the order, so the gimps have their day.
Will he quietly accept, will he fall on his sword
To field at deep fine-leg and never be bored.
But choose your crew wisely,
For not all are made well
There are plenty of cricket dullards
To bore you to hell”
So I says to him “where shall I seek
this exceptional crew of whom you speak,
And how shall I dodge the dull mediocre?”
He said to me ‘’Son, become a Stroker’’.
