Celebrating 175 years - Melbourne Cricket Club

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Time called for gentleman David His corporate connections were many and his clout in high places considerable, so the club was fortunate indeed to have David Crawford sitting around the committee table for more than 15 years before his mandatory retirement on March 19. Acknowledged by former president David Meiklejohn as especially valuable in our negotiations with stakeholders over a long period as committeeman, treasurer and vice-president, the Crawford years started with a bang as the club’s ground management role came under threat following changes to the MCG Trust in 1998. The Meiklejohn recollection was of a senior businessman (BHP, Foster’s, Lend Lease et al) who had contacts galore among all of our key stakeholders and the government. “His views and advice were respected by everyone,” said David, who particularly admired his common-sense approach to issues. David Crawford would be reluctant to accept such praise, claiming only to have been part of a team that helped to negotiate arrangements with the AFL and the cricket bodies that secured the club’s tenure at the MCG and facilitated redevelopment of the ground. “I was lucky that my professional career allowed me to work with the AFL and the cricket people over the years, and of course that proved useful to the club,” was his modest assessment. This, from a man who authored four comprehensive Crawford Reports into structural reform involving the AFL, cricket, soccer and the future of sport in Australia! MCG TRUST CHIEF LEAVES A LASTING LEGACY John Wylie CLUB NEWS He credited David Meiklejohn with running the 2002-06 redevelopment project from the committee’s perspective and was effusive in his praise of CEO Stephen Gough and his team’s outstanding work on that mammoth project. In later and less hectic years he has chaired the sub-committees responsible for the refurbishment of the Great Southern Stand and the Yarra Park revitalisation project, which has guaranteed an abundant supply of water for the MCG precinct in perpetuity. Both projects had the financial support of the State Government and David sees this The big ground lost a most enthusiastic and influential figurehead with the retirement in March of MCG Trust chairman John Wylie, who had been steering the sporting ship since 1999. His 14-year tenure covered perhaps the most dynamic period in the ground’s history with long-term agreements being forged between the trust, the MCC, the AFL and the cricket bodies to facilitate massive projects such as the redevelopment of the northern side of the MCG. John Wylie was often central and critical to the negotiations surrounding the ground’s relationship with its various stakeholders, most notably the AFL and the State Government where his political savvy and commercial acumen shone through. He chaired the MCG redevelopment steering committee and took particular XXXXX David Crawford and (top) with former Governor of Victoria and MCC committeeman John Landy. involvement in MCC affairs as integral to our management – not ownership – of the MCG on behalf of the Victorian government and its public. With some freeing up of a busy schedule, we wondered what eventual retirement might bring. “Well, I’m ringing from Vail, Colorado, in a party of 18 on a skiing holiday. A group of us have been skiing together for more than 40 years, since university days.” We get the drift, David. Thanks for a mighty contribution to the MCC and to sport generally. interest in the establishment of the National Sports Museum in the new northern stand, leading the chase in securing $25 million from the Federal Government to fund the fit-out. More recently, in 2009 he assisted the club in securing a five-year extension to the ground’s lynchpin contract with the AFL and two years later helped a popular cause in having live gambling odds banned from being broadcast on the MCG screens. Another important initiative was bringing Yarra Park under the wing of the trust with management delegated to the MCC, another demonstration of the trust’s close working relationship with the club. John won’t be lost to sport, however, having accepted the position of chair of the Australian Sports Commission in Canberra. 4 MCC NEWS March 2013
CLUB NEWS Join us in a birthday celebration LEFT: Early days… Our first Pavilion (1853) provides a restful backdrop to this photograph of Tom Wills with members of an aboriginal team that played the MCC in December 1866. Note the curator’s cottage at rear and the middle gable of the Pavilion, which contains a clock (obscured) that still beats truly 150 years after its installation in 1863. You’ll find it mounted above the escalators leading to the Percy Beames Bar on Level 2. History lives. To many cricket fans, it’s a bumper Ashes year. For the MCC, however, 2013 represents the 175th anniversary of the club’s formation, and that’s cause for celebration. From April 1 until the end of this year there will be a number of opportunities for members, waiting list candidates and the public to join us in marking a milestone for one of Victoria’s oldest institutions that has been an integral part of Melbourne life since establishment in 1838. Much of the focus will centre on the weekend of November 15-17, coinciding with the birth of the club, when we plan to hold several events at the MCG. The MCC was founded on November 15, 1838 when five men - Frederick Powlett, Robert Russell, George B. Smyth and brothers Alfred and Charles Mundy - agreed to form a cricket club to be known as the Melbourne Cricket Club. Two days later, after purchasing the necessary cricket equipment, the members of the Melbourne Cricket Club played their first match, among themselves, near the former Royal Mint site in William Street. The MCC was prominent in developing the colony’s cricket and played a major role in guiding the game until after the turn of the 20th century. For example, the club sponsored four Australian teams to England and eight visits to Australia between 1879 and 1905. Alf Batchelder’s estimable book on the history of the club, Pavilions in the Park, outlines the club’s early days: “The first members were pastoralists, government officials, bankers, insurance men and merchants. In the main, their presence in the colony was a direct result of the opportunities generated by the wool industry. For men in their late twenties or their thirties, the club offered a means of recreation and of socialising with one another. The concept of playing matches against any other group was very low on their priorities. Initially, it was not intended to establish a club in perpetuity – until well into 1840s, the MCC and other sporting clubs in Melbourne As readers will have noted on the front cover, the club has struck a new logo for use during our 175th anniversary year. Used in conjunction with the existing MCC logo, rather than replacing it, the new look is based on the idea of a sparkler and the sensory experience of celebration. The fluid and dynamic motion symbolises the continual progression of the MCC as an organisation, always moving forward and improving the club and ground. re-formed annually as the season for their activities approached.” And so 175 years of club sport, evolving into today’s model of stadium manager, heritage preserver, tourism operator and custodian of public parkland, was under way. For more information about the MCC’s 175th anniversary, keep an eye on our website and social media channels in the coming weeks. MCC members and their families are encouraged to participate in the festivities and join us in celebrating this remarkable milestone. MCC ID VALUED HIGHLY We doubt that our electronic membership cards will be keenly sought in 100 years’ time, but the old MCC badges, first introduced in 1901, have certainly become a valuable item going by the results of a recent Charles Leski auction. The first badge, which featured the coat of arms of the city of Melbourne and was undated, sold for 10 times the auctioneer’s estimate and an incomplete set brought more than $14,000, a sure indication that our badges have become a favourite among collectors. A complete set of Full members’ badges is on display in the MCC Museum. An interesting feature of the badges is that the designer’s version of the MCC logo, first seen on the 1902-03 edition, changes almost annually, something that would be heresy under today’s style guide constraints. Before the badges were introduced, a member’s folding card (left), signed by the office bearers of the day, was in vogue. If you happen to come across one, please let us know. March 2013 MCC NEWS 5
Page 1 and 2: March 2013 | No. 153 | ISSN 1322-37
Page 3: CLUB NEWS From the President Paul S
Page 7 and 8: CLUB NEWS It’s au revoir to Frenc
Page 9 and 10: SPORTS HERITAGE Neil Harvey to join
Page 11 and 12: MCC CRICKET “Clubbies” return t
Page 13 and 14: MCC CRICKET FROM LEFT: Peter Hellia
Page 15 and 16: CLUB SPORT Singapore stopover actio
Page 17 and 18: FUNCTION NEWS ABOVE: MCC president
Page 19 and 20: FUNCTION NEWS Fine fare for all in
Page 21 and 22: FUNCTION NEWS A comedy blockbuster
Page 23 and 24: MEMBERS’ NEWS Support the Dees in

Celebrating 175 years - Melbourne Cricket Club

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