‘So sad’ Tributes to popular former player and umpire
TRIBUTES have been paid to a former Somerset and Gloucestershire all-rounder who went on to become a leading umpire.
Jeremy Lloyds, who has died at the age of 68, was a well-known face in cricket both in the West Country and further afield.
England Test star Stuart Broad – a man known for his exuberant appeals to umpires around the world – was among those to pay tribute.
Fast bowler Broad said on Twitter: “Oh no! Really enjoyed his company on the field. Really sad news. Best wishes to his loved ones.”
Newly appointed England selector Luke Wright said: “So sad to wake up to the news of the passing of Jeremy Lloyds. One of my favourite umpires, always loved our chats and laughs before and during the games.
“I would often field square leg when I was younger and he would always give me words of encouragement and the odd sweet!”
Somerset and Gloucestershire both said they were saddened by the death of the popular Lloyds.
He spent more than 25 years on the county cricket umpiring circuit and a shorter period between 2003 and 2006 on the international panel.
He was born in Malaysia, and when he made his Somerset debut in 1979 as a left-handed batsman he became the first person born in that country to play in the County Championship.
Once his family returned from the Far East he grew up in Curry Rivel in Somerset and later attended St Dunstan’s in Burnham-on-Sea and Blundell’s in Devon, where fellow Somerset star Vic Marks was a contemporary.
He ended up playing 100 first class games for Somerset alongside the likes of Sir Viv Richards and Sir Ian Botham, plus 62 one-day games, including the Benson and Hedges final in 1983. He was just as popular at Gloucestershire, where he played 162 first class matches between 1985 and 1991 with the likes of Jack Russell and Courtney Walsh.
In total he scored more than 10,000 first class runs, including ten 100s, and his off-spin claimed 333 victims, including 13 five-wicket hauls.
He umpired five Test matches and 18 one-day internationals, and had nearly 25 years on the county circuit.
As well as umpiring, he continued to coach at a number of top public schools, most recently Radley College.
He officiated his final match in September 2020 and fittingly it was between Somerset and Gloucestershire at the Cooper Associates County Ground. He received a guard of honour from both sets of players and coaches as he entered the field of play.