So sorry to hear the news of an old and trusted friend. To Sarah,Tamsyn, Suzelie, Kirsty and Eliza my thoughts are with you and I know how proud you were of him. I will miss seeing a good friend each and every year but will remember his good humour, his time for me when needing a chat and his loyalty to old cricket bats long after their use by date had past!!
He will always be remembered fondly and as a good friend. My love to you all at a difficult time, I am thinking of you.
Charles Allan
I'm sure I will not be alone in feeling shocked as well as saddened to hear the news of David's passing away earlier this morning. No doubt, those of you who were at the President's match on Sunday will have appreciated spending one last characteristically OLCC day with him: a day which he will have enjoyed with relish. My last memory of him will be of the Good Doctor in fine form and in fine spirits at the OLCC Dinner last November. It is hard to believe that his health can have deteriorated so quickly.
The OLCC will never forget the Good Doctor. His immense contribution both on and off the field will live on through the stats, the chronicles and through the Carter Tapes. I am so glad to hear that we were able to honour him with a Vice Presidency on Sunday. He always gave his all to the club, on the field, on tour and in the many meetings and dinners that he attended. Well done David!
To Sarah, Tamsyn, Suzelie, Kirsty and Eliza my thoughts are with you at this horribly difficult time. Thank you for all the support you have given the OLCC over the years. I know David appreciated you being an integral part of the OLCC family. He was certainly very proud of you all. I hope we will continue to see you from time to time at LP and in Kingsclere in the years to come.
Paul Newell Price
I cannot pretend to imagine how Sarah and the girls must be feeling, and my thoughts are, as they have been for the last few months, with you. I was immensely glad to have been able to meet David last Sunday and the few moments that those present were able to share will stay with me. I do not think that I could have contained my emotion as Shack managed.
As I think of David one thing keeps ringing in my ears, and that is David's speech (as retained on the Carter tapes) at the 10th Anniversary dinner Each time I watch Arthur of the City bat I wonder when his stance and bat angle will go full circle and end up facing the right way again!
A gentleman and a friend who will be much missed.
Phil Samuels
Over the past few days the sad loss of David from our lives has made me think and reflect more and more. This was particularly the case during our two periods of silence in David's memory before our most recent games against the School on 25 June and Old Brutonians on 27 June. ( I expect this will be repeated on 7 July against Kingsclere as David of course introduced this fixture to us)
For me personally I have lost a friend whom I had known for over 50 years and of course my doctor for the past 15 years. The club has lost one of its longest serving members from the first season in 1977, when David's words to me (after his years away in Scotland and we had not met for 13 years) were "Long time, no see". This took place outside the White Horse in East Bergholt, Suffolk at the start of the club's first ever tour on Friday 1 July 1977.
One of David's funniest scenes in the early days took place at Tisbury in a game against Marnhull in 1983 on the West Country Tour when Charles "Joker" Allan was scoring 89 and blasting 6's and 4's to the boundary. One of these shots disappeared into the undergrowth and the search party was heavily involved. There was a log/plank which Mickey Moss was trying to move to look under for the ball and he said "This log is jolly heavy". To which David replied "Yes that's because I'm standing on it !"
During the same game at Tisbury when we were fielding we encountered a verbose unpleasant opposition batsman who was making rude remarks to us during his innings. When we finally took his wicket and as he was walking back to the pavilion, David said "I'm pleased to see the back of him" (literally) at which point the chap heard what David had said and turned around and glared at him. (much chuckling followed by OLCC members)
David made a very large contribution to the club during his 27 seasons, not only his 209 games, but the two dinners he organised in 1978 and 1996, the car treasure hunt on 28 September 1980 when our fixture that day was cancelled, the annual "Brunch" gatherings at his home before the Kingsclere fixture each year. He has been an invaluable club member together with all the support from his family.
I shall miss him greatly and am so pleased he came to see us on Sunday 20 June at L.P. during the President's Match. It meant an awful lot to our members and it transpired that it was a final "Good Bye" but what courage and a lasting memory for all of us to treasure.
I send all my best wishes and heart thought feelings to Sarah, Tamsyn, Kirsty, Suzelie and Eliza and of course to Beatrice, David's mother whom I also first met over 50 years ago and to David's sister Bridget and all the family.
Graham Carter
The one thing that's been stuck in my mind in the past 10 days is the immense courage David showed in coming to Leighton Park on June 20 to watch our President's XI match. It was clear just how much both that visit and the club as a whole meant to David, and to see him for what would be the last time was an immensely moving occasion for all of us in attendance.
What I will surely remember as time passes will be David's great generosity, his equable disposition amidst all manner of OLCC mayhem and most of all his kind friendship. His passing is a terrible loss, both to each of us personally and to the club - one glance through past statistics and chronicles confirm what a stalwart David has been over the years.
Yet we do not need to look through records to remember David - I will always be thankful for his welcoming nature that reassured me in my first couple of years with the OLCC that the club wasn't all about trying to keep up with the latest Arthur & Arthur banter and terminology.
David it was who invited me to speak at the 1996 Annual Dinner - something I approached with trepidation and a hastily-prepared speech written on the 12.15 down from Leeds - and awarded me a slightly dubious first place in the contest of four speakers that followed (though I'm sure Messrs Stein, Carter and Moss would not have been too put out).
I'll also remember his genial tolerance of a couple of cocky juniors named Jack and Judith who on one tour awarded him the Tour Joker Runner-up on the basis that he hadn't come remotely close to winning the top prize, and on the next offered astronomical odds of 500/1 on him to land it. But I can safely say now that David's calm influence was one to be cherished, both on the cricket field as well as off it.
My heartfelt sympathies remain with Sarah and the girls, of whom David was immensely proud and who will hopefully remain a valued part of our club.
Chris Straw
I will miss the chance to banter the silver fox as he cunningly patrolled the cover areas. David was always a man of integrity and dignity. The way he carried himself after a particularly difficult moment in his life in 1987 and the strength he showed at LP not two weeks ago are are very real examples.
On the field I will remember his customary dab to third man and not walking in Axminster in 2002, 'I did not drive 200 miles to be out for a duck' he replied. David was always a very realistic OL living in the real world. He was particularly practical and appropriately sympathetic when I was not particularly well.
David you'll be greatly missed and equally remembered in equal measure. Sorry I cannot be there on the 6th July, my thoughts will be with Sarah and the rest of the family on the day.
Jon Shingles
David is someone I will really miss. I remember his customary brunch before the Kingsclere away fixture where we were plied with a superb selection, he was a great host.
I can remember how tough and brave David was, and would always seem to battle through some unpleasant knocks at the crease and in the field for the club like it was no big deal, when most people would be with an ice pack in the pavilion.
My thoughts and love are with David's family, to which he seemed so close and outwardly caring. He is someone I will always remember.
Paul Chalmers