Optimists Cricket Club

It is with great sadness that we have to announce that our good friend and fellow cricketer, Piers Hampton, has finally lost his battle with cancer. He passed away at close to 14h00 yesterday at the Centre Hospitalier.

A Hawaiian by birth, a Luxembourger by his cricketing exploits and a Yorkshire man in his heart, Piers Hampton was a pugnacious opening batsman and an enthusiastic cricketer. As member of the first Luxembourg team to participate an ECC International Tournament and consistently unwilling to give up his wicket, arguably Piers’ finest hour came in the 2005 International against a marauding Greek bowling attack; chasing an impossible 300 plus in 35 overs, Piers carried his bat for 35 overs for a miserly 13 runs, in the process earning equal measures of respect and frustration from the incredulous Greeks.

Piers had a lesser known attacking game that he brought to a 2007 fixture for the Black Stuff against Chiddingly.  Once again, in his preferred opening spot, and batting against a bleary-eyed Chiddingly team that had spent most of the previous night drinking on the outfield, Piers straight drove the star fast bowler for an effortless six over long on. He continued to baffle the fielders with clean hitting drives and a brace of boundaries that brought up a rapid fire half century and led the Black Stuff batting that day.

As a fielder, Piers had a natural athleticism and a good arm that made him a useful occasional wicket keeper and a competitive in-fielder; he threw himself at every ball and never left the field without grass stains on his knees. Piers’ fielding, as much as any facet of his game, belied a boyish enthusiasm and well as a fierce competitiveness for both cricket and life in general; he gave no quarter on the field and no quarter over a post-match beer. Piers Hampton animated every match and every discussion; he left us far too early and will be sorely missed by those who knew him.