Bolton’s Kaye family celebrate unbroken century in cricket

By a combination of playing and administration, four successive generations have given a century of service to Bolton’s incomparable cricket scene - one of the world’s top cricketing hotbeds - while making significant contributions to the story of the town’s summer sporting scene, on and off the field.

The story began in 1924, when 19-year-old Wallace Kaye began playing for his church team, Holy Trinity, in the Horwich Sunday School League, then in embryonic format, having been established 18 months earlier.

Later, Wallace transferred his allegiance to St Elizabeth’s, and as player and official he served the Horwich league for more than a quarter of a century.

Also a supporter of Horwich RMI CC, Wallace was ultimately to render long service as second XI scorer at The Recreation Ground, in the process seeing elder son Alan progress through the juniors to become opening batsman for the first XI, then its captain, and ultimately club chairman.

Replicating his father’s service to Sunday School Cricket, Alan served RMI in several capacities for more than 25 years, recently recording many recollections of his cricketing days in a memoir.

Wallace’s younger son, David, developed his love of the game via, successively, back-street cricket, growing up ‘on the Rec.’ - where his cricketing ‘apprenticeship’ included stints as ‘tin-lad’, and as first XI bag carrier - then playing in the Rivington Grammar School XI on the delightful tree-ringed ground fronting the school.

After playing spells with St Elizabeth’s and RMI juniors, during his apprenticeship at De Havilland’s Lostock factory, David joined the company team, and thus began a story now spanning 61 years.

With the club subsequently changing names, initially to Hawker Siddeley, then British Aerospace, and latterly Lostock, David has had continuous membership throughout, serving as president since 2001.

Long known for his passion for all aspects of the sport, David is particularly interested in cricket’s local history, and has done much research, chronicling of the fascinating story which began in the 1830s.

As a member of England’s ‘Barmy Army’, David has participated in 26 overseas winter tours to all the Test playing countries, taking the opportunity to ‘fly the local flag’, literally and metaphorically, on behalf of Bolton cricket, and, bringing a little balance to a cricket-obsessed existence, Bolton Wanderers, as a long-time season-ticket holder.

The third generation is represented by David’s sons, Paul and Stephen, who grew up watching cricket from the boundary line at Lostock.

Paul’s playing contribution was limited to the club’s junior teams, but he served as club scorer for several seasons, winning the Bolton Association ‘Neatest Scorebook Award’ at both first XI and second XI levels.

By contrast, Stephen began playing aged just 13, and now, 40 years on, is still an enthusiastic member of the second XI, and one of the directors of Lostock Sports Club Ltd, the cricket club’s parent body.

It’s difficult to imagine a more rewarding climax to the family’s ‘centenary’ than Stephen’s recent achievements, when he became the second member of an exclusive group - ‘The Lostock 10,000 Club’ - reaching an aggregate of 10,000 runs, after earlier in 2024 topping the list of ‘most half-centuries’, with his total of 56 surpassing a long-standing record.

Representing the fourth generation is Stephen’s son James, who opted for Westhoughton CC rather than Lostock, as he was raised just a six-hit from St. George’s Oval, and hence keen to play there with his pals.

However, he has also contributed to the Lostock cause, serving a term as club scorer, and having pulled quite a few pints in the clubhouse!

Although it’s too early to say whether a fifth generation of the family will come along, imbued with cricket in the DNA, David and Stephen remain committed to Lostock cricket, and helping to write more chapters in the club’s story.

Reflecting on the family’s cricketing journey, David said: “One of the exciting aspects of league cricket is the opportunity for amateurs to play both with and against some of the finest players in the world - a phenomenon totally unique to cricket, due to the historic ‘club professional’ tradition.

“Alan had the privilege of playing with and against Sir Garfield Sobers, arguably the greatest all-rounder ever, and Stephen and I have done likewise with other international players.

“But the greatest surprise in our story came when recently researching my father’s seemingly modest career. He was a modest man, who talked little about his playing achievements, so how astonishing it was to discover that he, too, had experienced the thrill of playing with Test cricketers when, in 1938, in a charity match at Horwich, he opened batting with a current West Indian Test player, while facing the bowling of another, the two in question being Dick Fuller and ‘Mannie’ Martindale, respectively.

“And he did pretty well, too, scoring 32 against the fearsome Martindale. What a gem that is for the family album!”