James Cumbes (born 4 May 1944) is an English former sportsman. He played
first-class cricket
First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...
for four counties as a right-arm fast-medium bowler and lower-order right-handed batsman, and later served as chief executive of
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
; while he also had a substantial career as a professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
, where he played
in goal. He was born in
East Didsbury
Didsbury is a suburban area of Manchester, England, on the north bank of the River Mersey, south of Manchester city centre. The population at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census was 26,788.
Within the boundaries of the Historic counti ...
, Manchester.
Cricket
Much of Jim Cumbes's early cricket career was limited by his full-time involvement in League football. He made his Lancashire debut against
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
in late August
1963
Events January
* January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cov ...
. In a game ruined by bad weather, only 55 overs were possible, although in this time Cumbes did manage to take his maiden First-Class wicket, that of Worcestershire captain
Don Kenyon
Donald Kenyon (15 May 1924 – 12 November 1996) was an English first-class cricketer, who played in eight Tests for England from 1951 to 1955. He captained Worcestershire between 1959 and 1967.
Cricket writer, Colin Bateman, noted, "A polish ...
. However, it was to be almost three years before he played another First-Class match, and when that came (against
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
) his 4–42 was rather overshadowed by
Derek Underwood's outstanding return of 6–9 for Lancashire's opponents.
Moving to
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
for the
1968 season, Cumbes at last managed a long run in the side, and took 54 wickets
at 17.68 including 6–35 against
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
and 6–47 against
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
. He was rather less successful
the following year, and did not play First-Class cricket at all in
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli intensity of X (''Extrem ...
, although he did appear in two
John Player League games.
For
1971 *
The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6).
The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history.
Events
Ja ...
Cumbes returned to Lancashire, but played only for two months between mid-May and mid-July due to football commitments. Partially due to business interests he moved to Worcestershire. Here he stayed for the best part of a decade with reasonable success, especially in
1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...
when he claimed 51 wickets and produced his best innings bowling of 6–24 against
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
to help his side to an
innings victory. He was
capped by the county the following year, an award heralded by ''Wisden'' 1978, who commented on the player's great popularity.
By now playing a great deal of one-day cricket, Cumbes's final year as a player,
1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
, was spent with his fourth county,
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
, for whom he took 21 wickets, the last of these being
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
and
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
wicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being watchful of the batsman and ready to take a catch, stump the batsman out and run out a batsman when occasion arises. Th ...
Paul Downton
Paul Rupert Downton (born 4 April 1957) is the current Director of Cricket at Kent County Cricket Club. He had previously been the managing director of the England and Wales Cricket Board between February 2014 and April 2015.
He is a former ...
. During the season, he suffered a punctured lung during the Sunday League match at
Grace Road from which he rapidly recovered.
He was a long serving Chief Executive of
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in English cricket. The club has held first-class status since it was founded in 1864. Lancashire's home is Old Trafford Cricket Ground, although the team also play ...
, having held the post from 1998 to 2012. On the pitch, during his tenure the team flattered to deceive until, forced by financial austerity to depend on local players, in 2011 they won the
County Championship
The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...
outright for the first time since 1934. Off the pitch, Old Trafford had become run down and an anachronism in the world of 21st century stadia. Cumbes led the fight against billionaire Albert Gubay and his commercial interests that tried to derail the – now well advanced – redevelopment of the ground.
Cumbes said of his time as Chief Executive: "In terms of achievement and satisfaction, I think sowing the seeds of the redevelopment in 2003, and then seeing it through with everyone else associated at the club, has given me the most satisfaction. At no stage was the process easy, and at times the difficulties almost overwhelmed us. But everyone stuck at it. We had no alternative, no Plan B."
Lancashire chief executive Jim Cumbes retires after 50-year career in professional sport
Retrieved 26 December 2012
Football
Cumbes enjoyed a varied professional football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
career as a goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
with Tranmere Rovers, West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
, Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
and Southport. All in all, he appeared in 376 Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
appearances in a 13-year career. He also played football in the North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to:
*North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league
*North American Soccer League (2011–2017)
The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...
for the Portland Timbers
The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at P ...
, where he played against Pelé
Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; born 23 October 1940), known as Pelé (), is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and labelled "the greatest" by FIFA, ...
. During the 1970s, the eloquent Cumbes cemented his popularity as Aston Villa's goalkeeper by presenting a series of shows on BBC Local Radio in the West Midlands.
References
*Lancashire Spin Magazine, Summer 2006 Edition
External links
*
NASL career stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cumbes, James
English cricketers
Lancashire cricketers
Surrey cricketers
Warwickshire cricketers
Worcestershire cricketers
International Cavaliers cricketers
English cricket administrators
1944 births
Living people
People from Didsbury
English men's footballers
English expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States
Men's association football goalkeepers
Runcorn F.C. Halton players
Tranmere Rovers F.C. players
West Bromwich Albion F.C. players
Aston Villa F.C. players
Portland Timbers (1975–1982) players
Southport F.C. players
Worcester City F.C. players
English Football League players
North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players
English expatriate sportspeople in the United States