Norman Gannaway obituary

Norman Gannaway – a Spectator for all seasons

If anyone deserved the title of a true 'Lymingtonian' it would arguably be Norman Gannaway. The Lymington Cricket Club life member and former club historian passed away shortly before Christmas at the age of 92, leaving a huge legacy with both the cricket club and the town as a whole.

Norman had been born in Lymington in 1930 and, apart from a spell in the RAF and a few years living in Ringwood, spent virtually his entire life in the town. His association with the cricket club spanned more than eight decades, beginning as a scorer at the age of 11 way back in 1942. He went on to serve the club as an umpire, secretary and president. In 1982 he wrote a comprehensive history of the club and followed that up four years later with another book celebrating 150 years of cricket at the Sports Ground.

Between 1985 and 2000 Norman wrote articles for the club's matchday programmes. Under the pseudonym 'Spectator' his columns were a mixture of nostalgic reminisces of the olden days and canny observations on the current state of the club and the game in general. Such was Norman's vast knowledge of the club that in 2000 he was invited to select his Lymington CC 'Team of the Millennium', a task he undertook with typical enthusiasm and wisdom.

Although Norman would always readily admit that his contributions to cricket were probably better served via the pen than with bat and ball, his 49 appearances for The Elite evening XI gleaned a creditable 38 wickets including a career best of 4-11. Norman, well into his sixties by then, was in his element in a team containing an eclectic assortment of golden oldies and young whippersnappers, particularly when it came to the aftermatch fines and end-of-season gatherings. Norman, pint glass in hand, was always great value in the bar after a game, never short of a joke or an amusing story to tell. He particularly revelled in the company of old cricketing greats such as Johnny Arnold, Arthur Holt and Arthur McIntyre, all of whom always had time for a chat with Norman. The former England wicketkeeper McIntyre also provided expert coaching and advice to the club’s youngsters. On one occasion at the Sports Ground a young wicketkeeper turned up a few minutes early for a coaching session with the highly qualified Arthur. Ever willing to help, the distinctly under qualified Norman dutifully provided a warm-up with throw-downs and the like for the aspiring keeper. This went on for a good quarter of an hour until Arthur eventually arrived and introduced himself to the lad. The youngster, who didn’t have a clue who Arthur McIntyre was, responded with, “thanks, but I’m ok with Norman helping me”. Norman and Arthur both kept straight faces, but probably joked about it later.

Football also played a huge part in Norman's life. He had been a player for Boldre Lads and Bisterne Reserves, and even appeared for the Lymington Town veterans team well into his seventies. Norman penned regular articles for Lymington Town's matchday programme, and on most Saturday afternoons during the football season he would usually be found perched in the corner of the grandstand, scribbling down notes in his little notepad to use in his match reports. He watched and commented on the first team and reserves with equal enthusiasm and served as a committee member for many years. The warmth of the tributes upon the news of Norman's death showed just how loved and respected he was by all within that club.

Aside from his beloved Lymington Town, Norman was also a lifelong Southampton FC follower. He saw his first match at The Dell in 1944 and grew up watching the likes of Ted Bates, Charlie Wayman and a certain Billy Wrigglesworth, an enigmatic crowd-pleaser of the late 1940s whose name Norman would often shoehorn into his programme articles. Norman was a founding member of 'Hagiology', a small group of Saints supporting historians who wrote and published books on the history of the club. A tribute to Norman appeared in the recent Saints versus Nottingham Forest programme. During the 1990s when supporters' magazines were all the rage Norman was even persuaded to pen a few articles for the Southampton fanzine Red Stripe, bringing the name of Billy Wriggleswirth to a whole new generation.

In his younger days Norman was a decent boxer and later became the head of Lawrence Boys Club. He was a familiar sight jogging around town (long before it was fashionable), bouncing his rubber ball as he went. Away from sport, Norman was involved with many organisations and societies including the Lymington Players and the United Nations Association. He was a magistrate for nearly 30 years, and also a regular churchgoer at St Marks Church, Pennington, and more latterly at St Thomas', Lymington. Norman worked for Hampshire Library Service for 43 years and met wife Evelyn while assistant librarian at Lymington Library in Cannon Street. Norman wrote more than 20 books and biographies, including a history of cricket in Hampshire, and club histories for Lymington Football Club, Pennington St Mark's FC, Lawrence Boys Club, Pylewell Park Cricket Club and many others. He also wrote short stories by all accounts, although whether Billy Wrigglesworth appeared in any is unclear.

Another name that often appeared in Norman's cricket programme articles was that of Leonard Hoare. Leonard was Norman's schoolmaster at Lymington Church of England School, and a man he admired greatly and talked about with great respect and fondness. It was Leonard, the then secretary of the cricket club, who first invited Norman to 'do the scorebook' in 1942, and it was also Leonard who took Norman to see his very first County match at Northlands Road when Hampshire took on a Kent side which included Godfrey Evans and Les Ames. Perhaps most important of all it was Leonard Hoare who inspired Norman to achieve a place at Brockenhurst High School despite suffering with illness during his entrance exams. Who knows what career and sporting paths the young Norman would have taken without the encouragement and influence of Mr Hoare.

Norman would often end his programme articles with a song lyric or a joke from another of his great heroes, the comedian Jimmy Durante. Therefore, it seems fitting to conclude this short summary of Norman's life by paraphrasing Durante's best known catchphrase. "Good night, Mr. Spectator, wherever you are!".

A Service of Thanksgiving for Norman will be held at 3pm on Friday, January 20th 2023 at St.Thomas’ Church, Lymington, with a wake to follow at the Sports Ground from 4pm.

In lieu of flowers, the family have requested donations to benefit the New Forest Basics Bank. Any donations, made payable to the charity, may be sent to F.W. House & Sons, Lymington. S041 9NE or made online at www.basicsbank.org.uk. There will also be a retiring collection at the service.