Next up ‘In the Spotlight’ is the one and only, Alan Moore. As well as our 3rd Team Captain, Alan is also our Club Website Administrator and all round communications expert. Through our social media channels, Alan keeps us up-to-date with exciting news, both on and off the field. To say we couldn’t do without him is an understatement!
Do you have a nickname and if so, can you explain its significance?
Erm… you’d have to ask other people what they call me behind my back, but the nearest I’ve come to is “senior”, coined by our scorer & umpire to differentiate between me and my son Arthur in the scorebook and to ram home the age difference.
What sparked your interest in cricket?
My family were big cricket fans and my grandad and uncle were Lancashire members. I can remember many a summer day sat in their front room watching cricket on one of the three ABSOLUTELY FREE TV channels we had back then. It was probably inevitable that I’d end up being a fan, but then came the ’81 Ashes, Ian Botham, Bob Willis and bashing the Aussies. By that stage I’d managed to, erm, acquire a bat from a bag my Dad had brought home from work. The rest, as they say…is another story.
Do you have a cricketing superstition, if so, what is it?
Never, ever, drink the night before a game.
Oh, did you mean one I actually follow? I haven’t got one then.
Who is your club cricketing hero?
I came to club cricket too late for hero worship really and for me the real plaudits should go to the people who keep things ticking over and keep the club’s head above water. For every first team pro, there’s a young lad who’ll turn out 5 times a week and do whatever is asked of them, and behind them there’s a volunteer who does all the things that barely anyone who plays or watches cricket will think about.
The worst thing is, a lot of the time, these people won’t even know how important or how appreciated they are. Whilst I’d normally not want to single anyone out, the amount of work John Lawrence has put into this club over my time here would have broken most people.
Who is your favourite professional player?
Erm, this is one of those answers that changes depending on what mood you catch me in. Today, I’m going to go with James Anderson, a shining example of how an ageing, miserable northerner can stay on top of his game.
Who is the funniest at the club?
The thing with all sports people is that they’re all hilarious and I wouldn’t want to upset any of them by telling them otherwise. In an effort to save the tears, I’ll say our Bar Manager, Dean. He’s an acquired taste, but always good value for a laugh.
Which team-mate is the tidiest in the changing room?
You’re joking aren’t you? Most of the players I’ve played with spend more time going round the changing room collecting their gear at the end of the game than they spend batting. Cricketers are awful at staying tidy and having played in sides with more than their fair share of teenagers in them, I can confirm that they are even worse.
I used to think Dave Naylor was fairly tidy, until I realised he’s just left all his rank keeping stuff on the wall outside drying! 🤢
Who is the most humble player you’ve played with?
Being humble is another thing that most cricketers are awful at.
If I was going to hold someone up as an example though, it would be Mark Crumpton. He’s one of those players who will do whatever is asked of them. He never makes any sort of fuss or lets his ego get the better of him and always puts 100% into whatever he’s trying to achieve.
It doesn’t matter how good a player someone is, they can make themselves better with that sort of attitude and it’s a real positive step that Mark will be captaining one of the Sunday teams this year and, hopefully, instilling that attitude into our younger senior pros.
And if you see him, can you tell him to send the £20 he owes me for the plaudits by PayPal, friends and family please?!
Who has been the biggest influence on you?
It’s corny, but I really do try to take little bits of influence from everywhere and see if it works for me. I’m a firm believer that I can take things that I learn from playing cricket, into work situations and vice versa. I also believe you learn more from people’s mistakes and as far as the biggest influences on me go, they’ve definitely fallen into the “what not to do category”, so I’ll plead the fifth on this question too, if that’s ok?
What one tip or piece of advice would you pass on to our juniors?
The best piece of advice I ever heard around club cricket is to remember that, at the end of the day, whether you’re knocking 100s in the first team, or making up the numbers in the fifths, we’re all crap cricketers. There are extremely few exceptions to that, otherwise we’d be touring the world playing test cricket or sat on lucrative T20 contracts.
Remember that, don’t take things too seriously and enjoy yourself, and you won’t go far wrong.
What is your favourite post-match drink?
I’m a big fan of craft ale and love a nice Sour Beer or a fruity IPA. Unfortunately, my tastes are a bit obscure for most cricket grounds.
However, there’s only one real answer to this question and if, after 7 hours of playing cricket anyone answers differently, they’re lying.
My favourite post-match drink is…the first one!
What is your favourite food?
I’m not sure whether I’m too laid back or just indecisive, but this is another question where I don’t really have an answer. I could give you a long list of things I don’t particularly like, but I can enjoy anything if it’s been cooked well.
What’s that? You really need an answer this time? Ok then, pies!
What is your favourite football team?
Wigan Athletic.
As I’ve aged, I’ve come to the conclusion that I like football less and less with every passing season, but the same doesn’t apply to Latics. I cannot wait to get back to watching them properly especially with everything we’ve been through over the last 12 months.
What is your favourite away ground?
Ah, I’ve actually got an answer to this one. Southport and Birkdale, it was the first county ground I played on, I’ve always done (relatively) well there and they do a good, cooked tea.
Or maybe it’s Aigburth or Lytham (for the same reasons), I really am that indecisive.
What is your favourite band/singer?
You know what’s coming here, don’t you?
I’ve got very eclectic music tastes and whoever I answered this with is very unlikely to a) give you a good idea of what kind of music I like and b) be the same answer I’d give you next week. A couple of months ago I was listening to a lot of The Smiths and Joy Division (I did say I was a miserable northerner), but more recently I’ve been listening to new stuff from bands that I’m probably too old to be listening to.
You should have asked me my favourite song. I know that one, but only because I decided about 20 years ago to always answer that question with Therese by The Bodines, to stop me giving waffle answers about how I don’t have one. 😂
What would be your T20 theme tune song and why?
Wave Hello, Say Goodbye – Soft Cell.
Well, that’s how I’d expect my innings to go anyway.
What is your funniest or most memorable moment at ORTCC?
Funniest – Pretty much every run out I’ve ever seen, but not the one where my bat got jammed between the ground and my groin, catapulting me through the air, meaning I was behind the crease at the point the bails came off, but no part of me was touching the ground. Definitely not that one!
Memorable – Probably the opening day against Ormskirk a couple of years ago. The Club’s first Premier League game against one of the real big hitters that ended in a really tense but deserved victory.
What is your proudest cricketing achievement?
I don’t really do pride and haven’t achieved anything in cricket (other than playing it). But I really enjoyed taking to the field on a freezing cold April in 2019, opening the batting for the first time with my son, Arthur, and captaining a team through the feast of that season that featured him and 2 or 3 others from his age group that I’d seen play together through junior cricket, some of them since their first games together as 6- or 7-year-olds.
Sorry, has the room got a bit dusty? No? Maybe I’m getting a cold.