A Tribute to John Heaton
Lancashire Schools Cricket Association Secretary - 1984 to 2013
John’s passion for cricket began aged 11 when he saw Alec Bedser take 7 for 44 against Australia at Trent Bridge and was cemented five years later when Sir Garfield Sobers signed for Radcliffe CC. John often referred to playing in the same team as the great man as a major influence on his work in cricket.
John pursued a teaching career and in 1964, when at Radcliffe County Secondary School, entered the world of Schools and Junior cricket as Manager of the U15 Town Team of Prestwich, Radcliffe and Whitefield, known as PRW. Two years later he joined the Executive Committee of the Lancashire Schools Cricket Association (LSCA) . A subsequent move to Hayward School saw John managing Bolton Schools Cricket before becoming Secretary of the LSCA in 1984.
As Secretary of the Association, John had three areas of activity and responsibility within the County, all under his careful and excellent stewardship.
The core business was organising competitive cricket for Secondary Schools throughout Lancashire at all age groups to U15, giving access for teams to National Competitions. Around 100 schools regularly took part ( 90% from state schools) This responsibility has now passed to the Lancashire Cricket Foundation, who are doing a great job.
Secondly, management of Town Team Cricket, which in the 90s became District Cricket based on Local Authority Boroughs. Universally regarded as the first step on the Lancashire Pathway this now operates as the current Interleague programme at six age groups, well delivered and managed by the Lancashire Cricket Foundation.
Finally, the selection and management of the Boys County Age Groups, initially at U11, 13 and 15, and extended during John’s time to include U12 and U14. The workload involved in establishing fixture programmes, trialling arrangements, practice sessions and the matches themselves was immense. John, helped by a legion of voluntary managers and coaches, ensured this was effectively and successfully delivered.
Mike Watkinson ( Lancashire England and Non-Executive Board Member of Lancashire Cricket Club) remembers this period well, saying “ For much of the 20th Century the Lancashire Cricket Pathway was run extremely well by a group of hardworking volunteers who were instrumental in developing talented players for the County, During the 80s 90s and early 2000s John Heaton was a man who cared very much for Junior
Cricket and he was at the heart of a process which produced robust, resilient and successful players. He knew what he wanted to do – and did it”.
* International players produced by Lancashire during John’s tenure; James Anderson, Michael Atherton, Glen Chapple, John Crawley, Andrew Flintoff, Haseeb Hameed, Warren Hegg, Ronnie Irani, Graham Lloyd, Saqib Mahmood, Matthew Parkinson, Stephen Parry, Chris Schofield.
Towards the end of this time the Lancashire Cricket Board gradually assumed responsibility for Age group Cricket, with the Pathway from age10 onwards now under the management of the County Club.
John’s efforts were recognised by the County Club when he was made a Vice President.
Above all however, John was never more pleased and prouder to see his son Philip and grandchildren Tom and Sophie all playing the game he loved. Philip was an ever-present in the County age groups and has had a successful League Cricket career ; Tom after a similar stint in the age groups is currently playing at Greenmount CC and Sophie progressed through the Lancashire Girls age groups to play for the Cheshire Womens County 1st XI.
Finally a personal tribute to John from Steve Titchard, (Former Lancashire, Derbyshire and current Lancashire Player Development Manager)
“John was a wonderful man and someone who made a huge contribution to the Lancashire cricket pathway over many years. He supported the Lancashire Schools programme as an administrator and was instrumental in developing the Levels of Excellence programme. At the time, this was a pioneering approach, allowing players to access different levels of support and training according to their ability and stage of development. This was many years before academies became established, and John was very much a leading figure in player development during that period.
What also stood out about John was the support he gave to coaches and managers. He was always approachable, knowledgeable and willing to help. When the Lancashire Schools programme transitioned across to the Lancashire Cricket Board, John played an important role in making that change feel as smooth as possible. If you wanted to find something out, or simply needed to know who to speak to, John was the man you went to. He was the go-to man — the gaffer — and someone I trusted enormously for many years.
More importantly, John was a true gentleman and a true friend. His contribution to Lancashire cricket was immense, but for those of us who knew him, it was the person he was that mattered most. He will be greatly missed and fondly remembered.”
Titch
John Williams
12.08.26