RIP Robin Smith

[whelk]

Not very old at all, passing at 62. Tremendous batsman for Hampshire. RIP

[The Kraken]

Very sad news. 

He previously publicly admitted to having alcohol and depression problems, and talked about suicide. His family have said he died unexpectedly and cause of death is as yet unknown.

As a younger man I had many a happy pint in Judge’s pub in Romsey.

RIP. Cracking batsman.

 

Edited yesterday at 11:17 by The Kraken

[31cc]

Fucking hell.

He was a major part of my favourite Hampshire team, led by Mark Nicholas. Had no idea about his other issues, which seem to be a big problem in cricket at the moment. 

RIP fella.

[CheshireSaint]

He should have been recognised by England earlier than he was and was probably dismissed too early too. As a young Hampshire Cricket fan I couldn't wait to see him play for England and loved seeing him do well. My favourite cricket player. Seemed a nice guy too, though never met him. Only last week I googled what he was up to nowadays. Very sad indeed. RIP. 

[Lighthouse]

Very sad news, proper Hampshire legend. RIP.

[Turkish]

Sad news. the judge, a great batsman. 
 

got his autograph when I was about 10 at the old country ground. 
 

 

[Gloucester Saint]

4 hours ago, Turkish said:

Sad news. the judge, a great batsman. 
 

got his autograph when I was about 10 at the old country ground. 
 

 

Ditto, it’s on a bat from Nigel Cowley’s testimonial.

My old man played golf with him a few times for societies, apparently Judgey was a great guy and great cricketer. Pretty good golfer too, his driving off the tee was as almost as crisp as his square cut in the cricket pitch. 

[rallyboy]

His brother Chris once said to me, "I wish I had half the natural talent that Robin has, everything is hard work for me, but he's got it all".

And he did have - great all-round sportsmen, sometimes too generous for his own good, a brutally-powerful batsmen who never took a backward step, he still has many friends in Hampshire and won't be forgotten. 

[egg]

Very sad news. Splendid batsman and a thoroughly nice bloke. He and a few other players once randomly tagged onto a stag group I was out with. Great fun. I hadn't appreciated the issues he had, and may he RIP. 

[Sergei Gotsmanov]

Michael Atherton wrote a very nice piece in the Times yesterday. He was a Hampshire icon and I did get to meet him once in the Taj Hotel bar in Columba Sri Lanka back in 1993. It seems amazing that International sportsman in those days could be found in the hotel bar in the middle of a test match. Anyway it was a brief encounter as he borrowed my matches to light his cigar and conversation was limited.  He was very pleasant though and he went onto score a century in that test. 

[Gloucester Saint]

2 minutes ago, Sergei Gotsmanov said:

Michael Atherton wrote a very nice piece in the Times yesterday. He was a Hampshire icon and I did get to meet him once in the Taj Hotel bar in Columba Sri Lanka back in 1993. It seems amazing that International sportsman in those days could be found in the hotel bar in the middle of a test match. Anyway it was a brief encounter as he borrowed my matches to light his cigar and conversation was limited.  He was very pleasant though and he went onto score a century in that test. 

Against Murali as well. Does challenge the idea he couldn’t play spin. If he’d had Duncan Fletcher as a coach five years before he got the gig I reckon he’d have sorted that out with the forward press method. Instead, England in the mid-90s had dinosaurs like Keith Fletcher, and Ray Illingworth (appreciating Illy was a fab England captain late 60s/early 70s but was well into his 30s even then).