Pineapple Cricket history recorded
Sports writer launches book about classic tournament’s 120-year history
Experienced sports writer and journalist, Luke Alfred, says it was an “emotional experience” writing the 10,000-word book on 120years of Pineapple Cricket entitled, Pineapple — An Astonishing Cricketing Story.
Alfred, who was a special guest at the ongoing milestone Pineapple Cricket Week that ends on Saturday, launched the book at the prize-giving tent at Port Alfred Country Club on Monday March 4.
“One thing you get in contemporary SA, particularly in the transition from apartheid to democracy, is broken traditions,” he said.
“One of the things that has touched me about Pineapple is that this is not a broken tradition, it has remained intact, coherent and continuous.
“I am moved by the fact that ‘old ballies’ of 40, 50 and even 60 are still playing cricket and still taking it seriously … and still appealing for things that are not out,” Alfred said with a chuckle.
He believes the Pineapple legacy is “probably worthy of academic study because there’s some interesting themes running through it and I am surprised it hasn’t been done as yet”.
Alfred was phoned by former Pineapple Cricket president and former player, Justin Stirk, at the beginning of last year to commission the writing of a brochure that could tie in with the 120th anniversary celebrations.
“I don’t turn away work, being a freelancer, so I said to Justin, ‘certainly I am prepared to do so’. He [Stirk] said why don’t you come down to Pineapple 2023, which I did.
“I did some interviews and by that stage I realised it’s something I wanted to do.
“I returned to Cape Town [after doing some interviews in Port Alfred and surrounds] with numbers in my notebook and subsequent to my interviews at Pineapple 2023, in April and May last year I wrote this brochure.”
Alfred said though the book is not a comprehensive or definitive compilation on everything Pineapple Cricket, it gives a “nice overview”, particularly for the older generation on the characters of Pineapple Week, and their stories, including the unification process to include all demographics.
Alfred agrees that the recording of many SA historical legacies such as Pineapple Week — and especially as it concerns sport — is lacking or short of detail.
“I think there’s a general national problem with historical amnesia in this country post-apartheid, and you see that, for example, if you travel to the rest of the world, you will have a cricket museum in Melbourne or at Lord’s or in the Caribbean or in New Zealand.
“We just don’t seem to have the political will, or the intellectual need or, maybe, the spiritual need to have a cricket museum, that includes the formerly disadvantaged sporting folk of course. The other problem is that writing history takes time, it is a labour of love. It doesn’t pay well so it’s more than just an interest, you have to show love for history.
“You are making an intellectual and political commitment to something.
“I did feel from some part of my creative self that these stories needed to be preserved and they needed to be told. I would have really liked it if the Pineapple organisers would have been maybe a bit more ambitious and had a little museum or a series of exhibits and maybe even a lecture.”
Alfred points to the difficulties when events are not recorded on paper that writers and authors then have to rely on people relating stories from memory, which can be a problem in itself.
“When you are dealing with memories it can be a problematic [for journalists] way of seeing the past. For example someone may say: ‘In 1940 someone scored a duck at the Hospital fields,’ but when you look it up, you find that the person scored a double hundred.”
Alfred said the game of cricket can only benefit, prosper and develop further in the region as the Pineapple Cricket legacy continues.
“I think just the fact that people honour this tournament on an annual basis, some of them take time off work, others book themselves in to hotels or establishments this is great.
“Cricket is what happens on the field but is also about the social aspect at this level. It’s about the friends you make, it’s about the stories you tell.
“It’s about the culture of a beautiful game, which stands above us and is always bigger than those who play it.”
Alfred said the fact that the Pineapple Week is a 120-year-old legacy is “a most remarkable story”.
“The farmers used to ride ox wagons down to the Kowie and camp there, and they used to be there for 10 days playing cricket. It’s wonderful, it’s the way they expressed [themselves culturally. To think that Pineapple Week has gone on uninterrupted except for two World Wars and the Covid-19 lockdown is a magical thing,” Alfred said.
“An interesting thing about Pineapple Week is you see the old family names recurring time and time again, names like Keeton, Purdon, Timm, Stirk, Amm, Biggs, Wilmot, Bradfield, Long. So it’s tied with history, family history and family identity.”
Speaking about some of the Pineapple stalwarts he made mention of characters such as head of umpires and former Pineapple Cricket legend, Barry Smith.
“Barry is an absolute unsung hero of Pineapple Week. He is an absolute stalwart; he is one of those guys who doesn’t steal the limelight. He’s got lots of stories to tell and he tells them well.
“There should be a statue dedicated to Barry Smith. He is an absolute legend.”
Alfred said he’s attended three editions of Pineapple and he’s never been disappointed.
“It’s always been running on time, the standards of behavioiur are good and there is a strict code of ethics. It’ sa really great tournament and the area is proud of it and so they should be.”
Enquiries about the Pineapple Cricket book can be referred to Justin Stirk on 082-662-5901.