Freddie’s Field of Dreams a delight
My decade-long junior cricket career never really achieved any great heights. A stolid, limited opening batsman (the ‘‘slasher’’ nickname was most definitely ironic), Gavin Larsen-esque left-arm dibblydobbly style bowler and – latterly – a wicketkeeper, I never looked likely to seriously trouble those established in my school’s 1stXI.
Far more a student of the game than a successful practitioner, I enjoyed the competition and camaraderie a game on a sunny summer Saturday created, even if my co-ed school was often no match for the opposition.
For as well as Dunedin’s top boys’ schools (my sole Gillette Cup game ended in us being bowled out for 35), we were also forced to play seasoned club cricketers who were often more than twice our age and knew how to intimidate young teens.
I was reminded of the good and bad times I had playing ‘‘the gentleman’s game’’ while watching TVNZ+’s latest reality series Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams (which drops on the local streaming service today).
A three-part, 2022 BBC series, it follows the former England allrounder, current Top Gear host and pedalo enthusiast, as he attempts to create a team out of a group of eclectic teens from his Lancashire hometown of Preston.
He knows it won’t be an easy task (cricket is seen as a sport solely for the elite in the UK, reflected in half to two-thirds of recent England squads coming from private school backgrounds), most of the local lads in Broadfield Estates having never even picked up a bat before, or watched a game (football and rugby rule the roost here), but even he is surprised at the initial lack of skill – and interest.
However, after an impromptu hit in the local greenspace (‘‘Into the road is a four, if it doesn’t bounce – it’s a six, mind the windows,’’ is Flintoff’s simple explanation of the rules), he soon wins them over with his down-toearth charms and even-tempered ‘‘encouragement’’.
Even six months though might not be long enough to turn these ‘‘raw talents’’ into a competitive team.
Struggling to get many of them to focus at practice, it isn’t long before their first friendly against the nearby Lake District’s Patterdale Cricket Club looms large. Flintoff’s hoping a picturesque setting, lavish tea spread and an opposition whose average age is 65 might lift his charges, but fast bowler Adnan’s first delivery is one that makes Steve Harmison’s infamous 2005 Ashes opener look like a Jaffa.
Reminiscent of Jamie Oliver’s televised attempts to introduce cooking as a career to disadvantaged youths back in the early noughties, Field of Dreams is an entertaining and absorbing watch, thanks to Flintoff’s easy charisma and self-effacing humour and the young ‘‘characters’’ the producers have unearthed.
There’s 17-year-old Hemi – whose nervousness before their inaugural match sees him scoff 10 bananas – and 15-year-old Ethan, who decides to wear his white beanie over his helmet while batting (a sartorial decision almost as bizarre as one of my teammates’ belief that a box should be worn outside your undies).
An enjoyable series that’s well worth seeking out, especially while we wait for the Black Caps to finally play at home again this summer.