Four new names enter Lancashire Cricket's Hall of Fame
Four new names have entered Lancashire Cricket's Hall of Fame as Michael Atherton, Peter Eckersley, Frank Hayes, and Peter Lee were inducted on Thursday evening at Emirates Old Trafford.
The four players have joined the now 22-strong Hall of Fame, which celebrates and honours leading figures from the Club’s much-celebrated history over the last 160 years with the presentation of a commemorative cap.
It was an emotional evening in the Members Lounge, with friends and families of the inductees in attendance, whilst the audience were also treated to stories from host Paul Allott alongside David 'Bumble' Lloyd - a Hall of Fame inductee himself.
The fourth annual Hall of Fame event concluded with a live Q&A on stage featuring inductees Atherton and Hayes on stage to recall their fondest memories of representing the Red Rose.
Atherton received his Lancashire debut in 1987 and made such rapid progress that two years later he was making his Test debut at the age of 21. He played in 115 Tests, scoring 7,728 runs with 16 centuries – captaining England in a then-record 54 Tests. Atherton scored almost 10,000 runs for Lancashire at the top of the order between 1987-2001, including 29 centuries, with a best of 268 not out against Glamorgan at Blackpool in 1999 and was part of the great teams that won eight one-day trophies in the 1990s, include cup ‘doubles’ in both 1990 and 1996.
Hayes made his Lancashire debut in 1970 - scoring 94 and 99 in his first two matches. In a remarkable career between 1970 and 1984 he scored well over 13,000 first-class runs and nearly 5,000 in limited overs cricket. He was a gifted batsman with an easy and graceful style whose natural timing enabled him to reach the boundary with minimum effort. His highest score of 187 came against India in a 1974 tour match at Old Trafford, one of 23 First-Class centuries. Hayes won the Gillette Cup twice, in 1972 and 1975, and captained Lancashire for three years between 1978-80.
One of Lancashire’s most charismatic captains, Peter Eckersley made his debut in 1923 and went on to play 256 times for Lancashire scoring 4,588 runs. His highest score was an unbeaten 102 against Gloucestershire at Bristol in 1927 as Lancashire went on to clinch the second of a hat-trick of Championship titles. A brave batsman and a risk-taker, Eckersley drove the ball hard and used his feet well against the slow bowlers.
Northampton-born, Peter Lee played 44 matches for Northamptonshire between 1967-71 before joining Lancashire in 1972. A fast-medium pace bowler with great pace and accuracy he became one of the Red Rose county’s leading bowlers over the following seasons ten seasons. In total, he took 599 First-Class wickets, claiming five wickets or more in an innings on 29 occasions and a best of 8-34 against Oxford University in 1980. In One-Day cricket, Lee played in four Gillette Cup finals for Lancashire winning the trophy in 1972 and 1975 and taking a further 200 wickets.
The Club would like to thank Official Partner, The Mistoria Group for their ongoing support and sponsorship of the Lancashire Cricket Hall of Fame Celebratory Dinner.
Current Hall of Fame Inductees:
2020: Jack Bond, Farokh Engineer, A N Hornby, Sir Clive Lloyd, Jack Simmons, Brian Statham and Cyril Washbrook
2021: Johnny Briggs, David Hughes, Peter Lever, A C MacLaren, Eddie Paynter, Ken Shuttleworth and J T Tyldesley
2023: George Duckworth, Carole Hodges, Neil Fairbrother, David Lloyd
2024: Michael Atherton, Peter Eckersley, Frank Hayes, Peter Lee