Hawkins confident of getting over scrutiny
New Somerset groundsman Scott Hawkins could find his pitches the most scrutinised in county cricket when the team return to action after the COVID-19 crisis.
At the end of last season the club were handed a 24-point deduction for the County Championship, with 12 suspended for two years, after being found guilty of producing a substandard pitch for the final game against Essex.
It was not the first time in recent years that a Taunton wicket had been criticised for offering excessive turn on days one and two of a Championship fixture.
But Hawkins, 30, appointed by Somerset last autumn when Simon Lee left to join Hampshire, is confident of avoiding further problems while supplying playing surfaces that ensure entertaining cricket.
He said: “I am really looking forward to the challenge of my first job as head groundsman at a county club because it has been my ambition since I first joined Essex on work experience.
“Every county groundsman around the country knows his pitches will come under close scrutiny from the ECB and perhaps that will be slightly more the case with ours for a month or two.
“But it was only one strip that was responsible for the points penalty. Simon Lee twice won grounds craig man of the year for his one-day pitches and I see no cause for concern.
“There are clear guidelines and my aim will be to produce wickets that provide a good contest between bat and ball, as well as ones Somerset can win games on.
“The ideal Championship pitch should offer pace and bounce on the first two days and then start to wear so the spinners come into their own. That is what I shall be working towards.”
In addition to his years with Essex and at Fenners, Hawkins spent a season working in Australian grade cricket and was more recently head groundsman at the renowned football and cricket centre in La Manga, Spain.
He spent two weeks working with Lee as a handover period when joining Somerset last November and since the COVID-19 lockdown has been operating single-handed, the other five members of the groundstaff having been furloughed.
As well as the square at the Cooper Associates County Ground, Hawkins is responsible for overseeing the pitches at Taunton Vale where Somerset second XI play.
“It is a unique situation, not knowing when the season will start,” he said. “All the dry weather would have been great if the matches had started on schedule, but as things stand it means a lot of watering.
“Fortunately, the club have invested heavily in a full irrigation system at the Cooper Associates County Ground and a lesser one at Taunton Vale.
“My first six months in the job have been unusual in that I still have to meet a lot of the staff and learn about the inner workings of the club. It has been more a question of maintenance than pitch preparation so far.
“We will be ready whenever the season starts and once the first ball has been bowled on one of my pitches I will feel more part of things. That is a nervous moment for any groundsman at the start of a season.
“I am confident the experience I have gained in Australia and Spain, as well as England, will help me make a success of the job.
“I know you can’t please everyone all the time, but I will be happy to talk to members, whatever their views, because I am a cricket fan myself.”
■ THE ECB has launched the #raisethebat campaign to pay tribute to key workers who are supporting their local community during COVID-19, with a special emphasis on nominated heroes from the world of cricket.
The campaign is part of the ECB’S ‘Together Through This Test’ initiative which shines a light on key workers who have been nominated by their local cricket club.
The key workers will feature on billboards across England and Wales as well as on social media.