Statistician Of The Year 2005 - Tim McCann

The Association chose Timothy J.McCann as its Statistician of the Year 2005. Mr.McCann is the Assistant County Archivist at the West Sussex Record Office basind in Chichester. The specific reason why he gained the award was the publication 2004 of his book 'Sussex Cricket in the Eighteenth Century'.

The book, in the opinion of the Association ranks with the published works of G.B.Buckley and H.T.Waghorn. Like them it will stand as an invaluable reference book to early cricket.

Mr.McCann over many years researched the papers of the Dukes of Richmond through the 18th century and over twenty years ago had published in the Cricket Society Journal a number of previously unknown cricketing notes, which reinforced the major part that the Goodwood household played in the game's development.

Fortunately for the researcher, Mr.McCann includes the 17th century references to the game in Sussex which demonstrates ow common 'cricket' in its crudest form was during that period.

The volume sets out in chronological order every Sussex cricket reference that he could discover and two aspects of his work set him aside from earlier similar books. He gives exact reference to everything he found (unlike Waghorn) and he gives the full text of the reference (unlike both Waghorn and Buckley).

One would hope that this book will inspire other county experts to produce similar volumes - but a deal of hard graft is needed.

PWT