Post by hhsussex on Aug 8, 2019 15:13:53 GMT
Many on here will have known of Rob the punk cricketer from previous incarnations of Sussex and Kent messageboards, and from the Cricket 24/7 forum, where he was posting until a few days ago.He posted here up till a couple of years ago as invicta1977 and was knowledgable, very lucid and straightforward in his appreciation and enjoyment of the game. I met him several times but sadly never knew him well enough to call him a friend. The tribute below is from his friend Paul (TheLeopard) and was published on the above forum. I'm sure they will have no objection to its being reproduced here and I'd urge anyone who knew him by name or repute to visit the JustGiving page mentioned there.
Sadly I have to tell you that Rob, aka Summer of 77, passed away yesterday morning after a long battle against incurable prostate cancer.
Rob was a most valued member of this forum, and indeed it was through the old TMS BBC forum that I came to actually meet him at the cricket.
Rob was genuinely one of the good guys. At the cricket, he would often discuss in detail many of the views expressed on this forum about the great game. He had an amazing historical knowledge of the sport.
Rob was a lifelong Kent fan, but also closely followed Essex, with Chelmsford being his closest county ground, and also enjoyed watching Surrey at the Oval. He attended many England matches down the years and I always admired his ability to keep his support in perspective and appreciate the opposition's skills when they triumphed.
As he has written on this forum, since his diagnosis in 2012, he clocked up remarkable levels of attendance, particularly at domestic cricket, and he in particular regarded 2017 and 2018 as golden seasons for watching. While he looked upon some of the changes in the game with annoyance, he clearly maintained that there is always somewhere to go and enjoy a day's cricket if one is prepared to make the effort.
As Rob posted on here in January: 'If I can offer any advice from my own experiences it would be “Don’t put it off, get out there and do it”. With cricket-watching, as with life.'
Rob's sister, Debbie, has raised what I now believe may be as much as £100,000 for cancer research through running marathons and other races. Of course, there is absolutely no expectation to do so, but if anyone wishes to make a donation, I have found the link to her latest London Marathon run here, and I assume it is still open to donations, or you can contact her through the page:
www.justgiving.com/fundraising/deborah-ward21
RIP Rob, you are sorely missed.
Rob was a most valued member of this forum, and indeed it was through the old TMS BBC forum that I came to actually meet him at the cricket.
Rob was genuinely one of the good guys. At the cricket, he would often discuss in detail many of the views expressed on this forum about the great game. He had an amazing historical knowledge of the sport.
Rob was a lifelong Kent fan, but also closely followed Essex, with Chelmsford being his closest county ground, and also enjoyed watching Surrey at the Oval. He attended many England matches down the years and I always admired his ability to keep his support in perspective and appreciate the opposition's skills when they triumphed.
As he has written on this forum, since his diagnosis in 2012, he clocked up remarkable levels of attendance, particularly at domestic cricket, and he in particular regarded 2017 and 2018 as golden seasons for watching. While he looked upon some of the changes in the game with annoyance, he clearly maintained that there is always somewhere to go and enjoy a day's cricket if one is prepared to make the effort.
As Rob posted on here in January: 'If I can offer any advice from my own experiences it would be “Don’t put it off, get out there and do it”. With cricket-watching, as with life.'
Rob's sister, Debbie, has raised what I now believe may be as much as £100,000 for cancer research through running marathons and other races. Of course, there is absolutely no expectation to do so, but if anyone wishes to make a donation, I have found the link to her latest London Marathon run here, and I assume it is still open to donations, or you can contact her through the page:
www.justgiving.com/fundraising/deborah-ward21
RIP Rob, you are sorely missed.
