Derek
Harwood was the son of Chingford legendary bowler Jock Harwood, but
unlike his father he was an opening batsman, full of talent and
determination, who sold his wicket dearly. He was also an occasional
bowler, moreso in his early years at the Club
Derek was the oldest surviving member not in age but in terms of his debut for the Club. He first appeared for the 3rd
XI in May 1946 in the same game that Buddy Jessop played his first game
for the Club. The two excited youngsters travelled together to
Broxbourne by bus. Although Derek opened his account with a duck, he had
the consolation of picking up a wicket so his senior career was under
way.
Runs were soon flowing from the Harwood willow and from the records we have Derek amassed 7333 runs, which make him the 38th highest run scorer in Club history. His tally included 5 centuries, including a monumental 142 for the 2nd
xi at Highgate in 1951. I remember Derek being delighted to receive The
Young Clubman Award for that year(awarded to him posthumously in 2008
at the Club Supper, we even managed to include a copy of the press
cutting of the match from The Chingford Guardian for him!)
I believe Derek also scored a half century against an Essex XI, which he was extremely proud of.
Derek regularly played up to 1977, but I also remember the last game of the 2nd
xi season at Eton Manor in September 1983 when Derek answered a Jeff
Runciman SOS to come out of retirement and help the Club out. Poor Derek
ended up with a broken hand for his troubles getting stuck in on a
difficult pitch, but such was his bravery.
Once Derek
had hung up his boots he was a regular at the Club, he spent several
years scoring for the Colts as his talented son Steve learned the game.
In more recent times Derek was a fixture around the ground on match days
and he particularly enjoyed events like Cricket Week.
Derek was
also an avid supporter of our sister Club Chingh