Devon Cricket Board - Munday off to Lord's for OSCAs ceremony

A lifetime in cricket has earned Devon League chairman Stuart Munday an OSCA’ nomination.
Munday, who was 70 this year, has been playing cricket and administering clubs, organisations or competitions since he was 14 years old.
Tomorrow (Monday) the retired entrepreneur is a guest of the ECB at Lord’s for their annual OSCAs lunch.
OSCAs – outstanding services to cricket awards – are the ECB’s way of thanking volunteer workers at the grass roots of the game all over the country for their efforts.
Few people have expended quite so much effort on cricket than Munday, who shows no signs of letting up as he enters his eighth decade.
Munday is coming up to 50 years with Tavistock, where he has captained the 1st and 2nd XIs, served as chairman and latterly been an active president.
As a member of the Lord’s Taverners for more than 20 years, Munday has helped raise tens of thousands of pounds for charity and cricket-related projects.
Munday has just stepped down as captain of the Devon Over-60s’s 2nd XI, having steered them to six finals and won three of them.
And three years ago – when most pensioners are thinking about taking it easy – Munday took over as chairman of the Francis Clark Devon Cricket League.
Why does he do it? Because he loves the game of cricket and what it stands for.
“It is the greatest game there is and I can’t bear to spend too long away from it,” said Munday, who is pictured tossing up with Plymstock's Stuart Brace.
“I am not ready to stop playing just yet, but if I can be more use as an organiser and administrator that is fine.
“Being nominated for this award came as a real surprise – and I still don’t know who in Devon nominated me.
“It is an honour just to be nominated and it would be nice to win. But I am sure there are plenty of other strong candidates too and, for me, the satisfaction is in getting things done not winning awards.”
As a tearaway fast bowler at Tavistock Grammar School, Munday was encouraged in the game by former Somerset player Bryan Lobb.
“Brian was a school teacher who played as an amateur for Somerset and opened the bowling for them,” said Munday.
“Like a lot of boys I played in the playground at school, but he was the first coach to coach me properly and that was when my interest in cricket took off.”
The teenage quickie learned about adult cricket with village side Whitchurch before he moved to nearby Tavistock in 1965.
“I went there to play at a bit better level and also to bowl with Jack Davey, who has been with me at Tavistock Grammar School,” said Munday.
“We had a great year together, then Jack went off to play for Gloucestershire, where he had a great career.”
Munday has been at the Ring almost ever since, although some years he was working away and played elsewhere.
“I had a job with Mecca in Bristol, which put me back in close touch with Jack Davey and through him I got to know the Gloucestershire lads,” said Munday.
“David Shepherd was at Gloucester then and we renewed a friendship going back to our playing days when he was at North Devon and was with Tavistock.
“Sadiq Mohammad became a friend for life while I was living in Bristol and years later (1984) came down with me to play for St Gluvias the year we won the Cornwall League.
“In those days at lot of Tavistock’s big matches were on Sundays so I would come down from Bristol on my day off and play in them.”
Munday didn’t turn his back on Tavistock during his season with St Gluvias and still tuned out for the Moorlanders on Sundays.
By then he was back working in Devon – he had a sports shop in Plymstock at the time – and playing as much cricket as he could.
“The chance came up to work for Ladbrokes in 1972 as a relief manager in Devon and Cornwall, so I took it,” said Munday. “The sports shop came after that.”
During his time with Ladbrokes the company ran team of the month awards for the Devon League and Munday is pictured (below) presenting one to South Devon captain Joe Oliver in 1976.
Over the next 40 years Munday became more and more involved in cricket, including a stint captaining the Devon Cricket Association XI in the old NCA Championship.
Munday’s enthusiasm for playing remains undimmed, although at 70 he is realistic about what he can and can’t do.
“I played my last 1st XI game for Tavistock in 2012 and had two games for the 2nd XI last year,” said Munday.
“I can still bowl pretty well, but it is the fielding where you get a little shown up at times.
“In the over-60s’ games we are all the same in the field and you don’t notice it how much you have slowed up.”
Munday the administrator shows no signs at all of slowing up. As well as the chairmanship of the Devon League he sits on the Devon CCC committee, is treasurer of the Devon Lions development programme and a long-serving member of the Lord’s Taverners.
Munday was a founder trustee of the David Shepherd Cricket Foundation, recently renamed the David Shepherd Cricket Trust, another organisation dedicated to bringing on young cricketers.
It is his work with youngsters through the Lions and the Taverners that Munday finds most rewarding.
“We need to get more young people playing this great game of ours and anything I can do I will,” said Munday.
“I am involved in primary school coaching around Tavistock at 10-12 schools as that is where the next generation of players come from.
“Lord’s Taverners have been able to provide important facilities at schools and clubs to promote cricket, such as the indoor school at Tavistock Community College.
“Can you believe it? The second largest secondary school in Devon after Exmouth had virtually no facilities for cricket.”
The Devon Cricket Board proposed Munday for an OSCA after receiving a glowing nomination from one of his former team-mates, who wants to keep his identity secret.
The nominator said: “I can actually say I’ve never met anyone who puts in so much effort as a volunteer to so many aspects of the cricket world in Devon.”
Cricket lovers all over Devon will hope the OSCAs judges agree.