Sunday Service with Church and Vickers
The weekly cricket podcast that shines a light on the many roles on offer in the world of cricket. Join Mark Church and Hector Vickers every Sunday at 11 am to hear them interview a new guest each episode, from various cricketing professions. Find out exactly what each job entails, how it is developing, and how best to get into it.
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Sunday Service with Church and Vickers
Episode 31 - Company Secretary at Surrey CCC, Callum Doyle
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Welcome back to the Sunday Service with Church and Vickers - we hope you’ve all had a peaceful cricketing week.
This week, Mark and Hector are joined by someone who has made some brilliant things happen at the Kia Oval in recent years.
He began his cricketing journey with Opta Sports - working across scoring, analytics, and data collection - before heading to Australia for a few years, where he worked in a number of roles from Tasmania to Melbourne, aka 'the greatest city in the world'.
On his return to England in 2017, he joined Surrey County Cricket Club, and has been there ever since.
As a trustee of the ACE programme, and the secretary of the Charlotte Edwards Foundation - he has always found the time to help give back to the beautiful game.
Callum Doyle, the Company Secretary of Surrey County Cricket Club, joins the show this week to chat all about his fascinating career and what advice he would give to anyone wanting to go down a similar path.
Also on the episode, Church and Vickers continue their new, hard-hitting, segment; "What cricket sound is this?" - and Church delivers a sermon which looks ahead to the Parish’s bank holiday game against “the cheating vicars”.
A huge thank you to Callum Doyle for coming on this week's show and taking us through his amazing career. We look forward to catching up with him throughout the season.
Another big thank you goes to our friends at Newbery Cricket, who are offering up their award-winning SPS bat for this month's competition giveaway. You can read all about it via the following link: https://www.wisden.com/cricket-features/the-bat-test-2026
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Hello everyone, and thank you for joining us again on the Sunday service with Church and Vickers. The T20 has arrived, and with it, the Rasmataz and the rock and roll. And here is a man who embodies that Rasmatazz. How are you, Churchy?
SPEAKER_02Oh, I'm very well, thank you, young Hector. I love a bit of Raz and a bit of Matazz. I just still wish we had a live concert on Finals Day from Atomic Kitten or Liberty X, because they were marvellous.
SPEAKER_01Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Sunday service with church and ficers. Oh yes, we are back, and the first block of the championship cricket is over, and we are all now rampaging into the T20 with all its colour, fireworks, and very, very loud music. Churchy, how has your week been?
SPEAKER_02It's been busy again, young Hector. Monday I caught an early train back to the parish after watching Yorkshire defeat Surrey Bioninions. It was a tremendous performance from Yorkshire, with Surrey, I have to say, way off their best. Tuesday and Wednesday, domestic chores took hold, and Thursday was all about stats for the stars of the T20 blast. And then the local derby to start with on Friday, Surrey against Lancashire. How that's a local derby is beyond my comprehension, but apparently that's a local derby. And today I speak to you from Lords for another local derby, which is actually local because it's Middlesex and Surrey. And can it really be 23 years since the first T20 comp when it was all just fun and an unknown quantity? Surrey's first game was against Middlesex. 10,000 turned up at the Kear Oval Hector. They ran out of beer after an hour. And Paul Weeks let the first ball of the game, the first ever T20 game at the Kear Oval. Rather excitingly, he let it go outside his off stump from Martin Bickner. Oh, how times have changed, young Hector. So what's on today's show, please?
SPEAKER_01Well, church has a cricketing sermon which looks ahead to the parish's first bank holiday game against the cheating vicars.
SPEAKER_02We have the latest edition of our hard-hitting feature. What cricket sound is this?
SPEAKER_01And our guest today is a man who has made some brilliant things happen at the Kia Oval in recent years.
SPEAKER_02And thanks to our friends at Newbury Cricket, we have our competition where you can win one of their magnificent SPS cricket bats. And as I always say, it is a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful piece of willow. And don't forget, you can get in touch with us. Just email sundayservice.pod at yahoo.com or tweet at Sundayservice22.
SPEAKER_01Lots to get through, so let's get cracking with the Sunday service.
SPEAKER_04This is Cameron Steele, and you are listening to the Sunday service with church and vicars.
SPEAKER_02Good morning. I trust your cricketing week has had a peaceful start and has now switched into T20 mode with chaos, pyrotechnics, and balls being launched left, right, and centre. It's been another busy week in the parish. On Monday, I returned from Headinglesshire after seeing Surreyshire comprehensively beaten by Yorkshire. An early finish meant an earlier train and enabled me to pop in and see a former member of the parish, namely Mr. Timothy Lindley. He used to bowl with great success for Surryshire and now runs his own coffee shop with equal success. It was lovely to see him, and I returned to the parish in good spirits and had a salad supper at Boycott Vicarage. Tuesday was parish visit and paperwork and catching up with young Mr. Vickers, who told me all about his first evening of painting in the Badgers Googly. All went very well by all accounts, and Mrs. Watts' live modelling went down a storm. The only moment of controversy was when she tried to remove her dressing gown, but her arthritis struck and she got stuck in a very awkward position. I must say, some of the paintings are very interesting depictions of Mrs. Watts, and some have a slightly gothic feel to them. So I've suggested to Mr. Vickers landscape rather than portrait for his next evening. But the grand total of £15 was raised after payment for paints and brushes, which will all go towards the purchase of a new bird bath for the parish. Wednesday was a meeting in the Badgers Googly ahead of the Spring Bank holiday on Monday. The centrepiece will be the Parish Eleven's game against the cheating vicars. There are our opponents every bank holiday, and they live up to their name by being made up of 11 Vickers, all of whom cheat. Last year, they brought over a vicar from South Australia for the game who gave a lovely sermon before the match on the importance of community and then proceeded to smash a double hundred and bowl rockets as we were heavily defeated. So this year, we have brought in a gardener and a posty from our neighbourhood parish of Stiffly on the Knoll. The postie Alan bowls leg breaks to a very high standard, and Stu the Gardener had trials with Hampshire Shire in his youth and is a gun opening batter. I shouldn't say this about my fellow men of the cloth, but let's see how the cheating vicars deal with that. It will be a lovely day, and the WI Cake stall and their teetime depiction of the musical Starlight Express will be a highlight. The ladies have been practising their roller skating, and the sneak preview we saw in the Badgers Googly car park was a triumph, apart from Mrs. Bartholomew rolling out of the car park down the parish hill and ending up headfirst in the parish pond without her dignity intact. We are just hoping for good weather. Thursday stats were dumb because Friday I was at the Oval Shire for the start of the T20 blast. Surreyshire men and women opened up with their local derby against Lancashire. As local derbies go, there was quite a bit of mileage involved, and it was dubbed the M61, M612, M6, M1 Derby. I think you could call this weekend Derby Weekend, because after a day of nets and final preparations for the cheating vicars on Monday, today you find me in the Shire of St Johnswood for Middlesex Shire against Surreyshire. To me, this feels more of a derby than Friday, is it certainly less of a journey? Although with weekend engineering works, it may have been quicker to go to Old Trafford. So, my cricketing friends, the first block of championship games is over and it has been a triumph. The cricket, the crowds, the individual performances have been excellent across both divisions, and it's been lovely to see England players involved. It has also been nice to see some of those individual performances being recognised by the country's selectors, whoever they are. As is the nature of the schedule, just as it all got very interesting, we now stop for T20, and if you are Surryshire, you have a random championship game at the start of June, whilst everyone else gets going again at the end of June. But T20 is still apparently the must see, and I am sure it will be marvellous. It was wonderful when it first started back in 2003. Huge fun with big crowds, but then it all got very complicated and serious, and now our T20 is fighting for its space. This year it's shorter, and a very good thing is once the group stage is done, we won't have to wait months and months for the quarterfinals when you used to forget who played for who and how each team had actually got to the knockout stages. Sixes will rain, the slower balls will be king, fireworks will go off, and players' pictures will have a moody and dramatic look to them. And the excellent news is a hot snap from the Azores is arriving, allowing headlines such as, Phew, what a scorcher! So, enjoy your cricketing week and enjoy your T20. I will be shouting loudly upon the wireless because that's what you have to do when somebody hits a four or takes a wicket. And enjoy the razor and the matazz. And most importantly, Batwell everyone.
SPEAKER_01What cricket sound is this? In a moment, you will hear a sound, and all you have to do is tell us what cricket sound that was. Now, last week you heard this sound, and the question is as always, what cricket sound is this? Well, that was of course sorry walking out to field after tea on the opening day against Yorkshire. Maybe a sense of foreboding in there as well.
SPEAKER_02Of course it was. Of course it's so obvious.
SPEAKER_01It's just spike on ground, rings of Rory Burns to me. That was the first thing I thought. Well, now it is time for this week's sound, and the question is, as always, what cricket sound is this? Well, if you think you know, email sundayservice.pod at yahoo.com or tweet at Sundayservice22.
SPEAKER_00Hi, Matt Fisher, Surrey and England. Um, you're listening to the Sunday service with church and vicars.
SPEAKER_01And now it's time for our cricketing guest. This man has made some brilliant things happen at the Kia Oval in recent years. He began his cricketing journey with Opta Sports, working across scoring, analytics, and data collection before heading to Australia for a few years, working for Opta, setting up the scoring of all cricket Australia matches across the country. On his return to England in 2017, he joined Surrey County Cricket Club and has been there ever since, working across a number of roles. A trustee of the Ace programme and the secretary of the Charlotte Edwards Foundation, he has always found time to help give back to the beautiful game. Callum Doyle, the company secretary of Surrey County Cricket Club, joins the show this week to chat about his fascinating career. And I started by asking him how he was and how his start to the season had been.
SPEAKER_03I'm very happy, thank you, Hector. I'm uh delighted, first of all, to be invited onto this onto this podcast with you and Churchy. Um so thank you for having me. Uh I'm good. I'm busy. We're all busy. It's T20 Blast just around the corner, and uh the weather's turning good. Um so get some nice big crowds in at the oval and um and let's get going. Let's um let's win the blast. Come on.
SPEAKER_02The good thing is, Cal, there's a hot front from the Azores arriving on Friday. So uh I've looked to the week to come, the block, and it's gonna be beautiful weather, my friend. Beautiful, beautiful weather, which we need for T20 cricket. Um, let's have a little look at your career, my friend. You've been at Surrey for nine years. We'll talk about your various roles you've had and what you've been involved with. But but how did cricket become a part of your life, my friend?
SPEAKER_03It was two things. It was my dad, and he used to play club cricket for Skidbee, which is a village side in East Yorkshire. And he used to come back on a Saturday, I think, with with bruises all over his body. He used to open the batting and miss the ball more than he hit it. Um he was very proud of the amount of balls he faced, not so much the runs he would score, but um he used to have these sort of long baths where he'd have all these bruises. And I never wanted to be a part of cricket, but I I did find it fascinating. And my my grandfather was the other one, he used to listen on TMS and then follow on C FAX page 341 or whatever it was. Oh yes, and uh and that it was actually that C FAX that was the the one that hooked me, actually, in terms of you know the numbers side of things, and obviously I ended up in an analysis role down the line, but um yeah, it it there was something about cricket and the the sort of uniqueness of it and the slow pace of it, and and it used to have this game on a floppy disk. Um I can't it might have been like Graham Gooch's test cricket or something, but it was all just little like green blocks on a DOS screen, and and it was like the oldest video game you could find, but it I used to play that when I was very young. Um so yeah, I got into it through my through my gramps and through my dad, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Just for the younger generation, Hector in particular, yeah. C Fax Hector was the only way we could all keep up with cricket, yeah, it was by C Fax, and that was page 340 was cricket, and then all the different scorecards would be so page 341 would have been Surrey versus Yorkshire, and the only way you could see what was happening was by sitting in front of the telly and watching it change. So if someone got a four, they were gonna they go from four to eight, and I used to actually spend whole days like Cal just watching scorecards, and also so you know a floppy disk was something you put in a computer, Hector. Yes, yeah, yeah. None of this fangled internet stuff. Oh god. Just just sorry, Cal. We we uh just for young Hector in that generation, thank you for that. They might not be aware of C FAX and floppy discs.
SPEAKER_01A great bit of colour. Um, so if we can go back to 2018, you were actually team manager for Surrey Stars when they won the Kia Super League. Can you just talk us through, I guess, during that season, but also you know, you've you've done more than that as a team manager. What does that entail? Because I imagine they've just been non-stop during the season travel logistics. What does that look like?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, brilliant. Um, team manager was everything behind the scenes that you need to play a game of cricket. So that could be um heat pressing names and numbers on the back of shirts. And and I'll never forget doing Sophia Dunkley's number on the back of her shirt so low that every time she wore it, I I just cringed because it was just it was a horrible piece of heat pressing. Um the other one that that I remember doing was we had some of the players, the overseas players, staying in Guildford at these sort of rented accommodation. And myself and the head coach Richard Bedbrook had to go down there and set the house up because it was a it was part of a university, it wasn't like an Airbnb. We had to go to sort of cash and carry and buy everything you'd need in a house, like a TV and kettles and toasters and things, and and and the bedding, and it was a 30-degree day, and we had to put duvets and sheets and pillowcases and everything on during this heat wave. And I'll just never forget it. Sort of running around um sweating profusely, trying to sort out these things before Marazan Cap and Danae van Niekerg flew in the next day. Um, and being a team manager, yeah, it's really special. You being part of a team and being in the dugout, um, there's nothing quite like it. You you you're part of the group, you're part of the atmosphere, you're living it as the players are living it and the coaches are living it. Um and and it was hard work and it was stressful, and you were traveling every day. And if you weren't traveling, you were preparing for the travelling and the coaches and the car parking and the hotels and everything, but it it was really rewarding. Um, and it was nice to feel like what you were doing contributed to playing that that game of cricket in front of the crowds here at the Oval. Um, yeah, very special time, very, very good memories, uh fun memories.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. And and and and at that time as well, Cal, you were sort of learning it on the hoof, weren't you? Because it was all very, very new. Um, and it all happened pretty quickly. Uh and so, as you say, you were having to learn with dealing with overseas players, accommodation, kit, um, getting people to grounds at the right time, uh, silly little things like food, uh, coaches arriving at the right time. And you we all know what players are like, we all love players, but at times they do ask very silly questions like where do I find the coach? and things like that. Uh how how tough was that? Just as I say, sort of learning on the hoof, but how much fun was that as well?
SPEAKER_03It was it was a lot of fun, and obviously the Surrey team at that time was not a sort of fully professional setup, so I suppose you could you could get away with making it up on the hoof. Um, but some of the things you ended up having to do were were one, and I won't name names obviously, but um one was having to run some emodium out to the pitch um for a player who who was having some troubles. Um I mean yeah, I remember just thinking to myself, this this is crazy. Um but but yeah, I I did have to make it up as I went along, and it helped sort of having a background in cricket, and obviously worked in worked uh in cricket before that, but um when it was just names on a scorecard on all you just watch them on TV, it was very surreal, then having to deal with them in real life. Um and I I'll never forget a day in a visa centre in Croydon, Luna House it was called, or Looney House as how it used to call it. Um and I had to spend an entire day in there with Marizanne Cap getting her overseas visa from South Africa sorted. And it it's like when when these players are people that you've seen on TV and and sort of you put on a pedestal and then you sat in a room with them for eight hours, and you're trying not to be sort of starstruck and um quite difficult actually. Um but you you soon get used to it, they're all just people like like you and I, and um and they all share a love of cricket, so you just end up talking cricket for hours, but uh yeah, yeah, good good times.
SPEAKER_01Your wife Nat also used to work at sorry, she was a big part of the a few of the championship winning sides as an analyst. How was that working with her? And did you have a cross pass at the club?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, Nat had the really fun job. She was the professional analyst, and she'd you know, set up the cameras, film the games, code them, analyze them, feed that back to the coaches, you know, pre-game, post-game, you know, she'd be up up till uh midnight and plus often in in the season, trying to help the team and support the team any way she could. Um so she had the fun job, and then I I had the sort of behind the desk business side of the job. So so our paths didn't really cross. Um although she did use to rope me into leveling the cameras. So when you've got and we still have to do this today, where you've got a camera directly behind the wicket, you've got to get your camera to the nearest centimetre in line with the stumps, so that the stumps at the bottom and the stumps at the top line up. And it sounds like a really sort of basic thing, but she didn't used to trust anyone but me to help level. So she'd be at the other end of the ground moving a camera, and then I've got her on speakerphone going two inches to the left, two inches to the right, a little higher, a little lower, uh, level it left to right, and and uh so we we used to do that together. Um, but thankfully, sort of you know, business and personal life didn't used to collide, um, which was which was good. Um so yeah.
SPEAKER_02You must have been and you must be and you still are very proud of that because you was a huge part of championship winning sides as well, which is a a massive thing, isn't it?
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Um I think the role of analysts is something that's obviously evolved. And changing, but it's it's also part of being a supporting voice to the players and the coaches. Um, and I really yeah, really proud of what she did, especially you know, coming in 2017, and we didn't know anyone, and Surrey was was new to us both, um, and and working for the great Alex Stewart as well. Um, high expectations from from our director of cricket there. But no, she uh she is brilliant, and you know, to to put she did Durham 2013, Surrey 1822, 2023, 24. Um, and you know, I know how proud she was of being part of those campaigns. Um and I think for the rest of our lives we'll always look back and think fondly of those trophies and those winning seasons. Um, and I and obviously I know from the Surrey Stars days how how fondly I think of the the Kia Super League days. So um I can only imagine what memories she's got from A Team, especially and the others. So yeah, very proud.
SPEAKER_01And there's so much to dive into with your career personally. If we just go through some of the highlights quickly, I know you're a trustee at the ACE programme, and I believe you also helped set it up. What sort of can you just take us through the work you do with Ace? I I think I saw you had a big fundraiser coming up as well.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah. So ACE was set up as a surreal campaign back sort of back end of 2019, early 2020, just before COVID. And essentially, sort of ebony Rainford Brent came into Richard Gould, who's CEO at the time, and sort of said, I want to do this. Um, this is a this is something I I really believe in. Um, and Richard Gould sort of went, Off you go, then come on. And uh within a few weeks we were running ACE courses and setting it up as a charity, and and as company secretary, that was my role was in the early days setting it up with the charity commission and ensuring that we had all of the policies and guidelines and and processes in place that Sport England expected. So, because of the funding ACE gets from Sport England, you have to comply with something called the Code for Sport Governance. So that was my role in the early days, and I would take minutes at meetings and sort of help set up with the board meetings as well. Um and since then I I've kept going with it and um worked with Chevy on all sorts of things, um, insurance and risk, and um really happy that I was appointed a trustee in in 2024. And um, you know, where Ace has gone is is is something I'm incredibly proud of. You think we've got players moving on to professional contracts like Amy Wheeler, um Troy Henry, and we've got more coming, and I think you know the aim is to get 10 by 2030. So we're all on this mission, um, and and it's great to see the the work Ace has been doing as has been translating into real success and real impact. And um so that's sort of my my experience with Ace, and and yeah, I I love the charity.
SPEAKER_02And I didn't I didn't realise this. And you've got so many different bits and pieces that you do in cricket, my friend, but also secretary of the Charlotte Edwards Foundation. Um just explain a bit more about that that foundation and and what that's that's aiming to achieve.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, sure. The the Charlotte Edwards Foundation, I'm very new. Um, so I was appointed the secretary in February. So my experience with it has only been a few months, but it's it's getting its feet off the ground. We've got a launch event on the 17th of July in Chelmsford. Um so we're getting that we'll be getting that out on the socials and LinkedIn soon. And it's all about promoting women and girls' cricket both in the USA and in the UK. So it's actually a US-based charity. Um and Charlotte set it up a few weeks before she was appointed the England women's head coach role. So um we're still sort of building that charity, but I think for me, having and I saw this with Ace as well, having a figurehead who's so inspiring and really well respected within sport as well as cricket, um, you can make real impact off the back of that. And um, I'm very excited to see where that leads with the foundation. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Your current role at Surrey Company Secretary kind of looks like you're doing everything all at once, organising events, working with members, committees, uh, and the boards. What does a typical day look like for you? I can't imagine no two days are the same.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I suppose variety is a big part of what I do, and I think when you work at a club, any club, uh, it doesn't have to be Surrey, it could be it could be any sports club. You just sort of muck in. And over the years, you know, I've had many different roles here, and you pick up bits and pieces, but but my role has sort of enveloped a lot of those alongside the traditional company sex stuff, which is your filing and your your governance and um the sort of board stuff. Um but as a members club, you've got a general committee of 16 elected members and a lot of club rules around how that general committee works, and you've got sort of AGMs and elections, and so that that's probably the biggest part of my role is managing that side of the club. And that's all sort of been sort of March, April, May time. So you sort of go in cycles in cricket, you've got in-season, you've got off-season. For me, you've got AGM season, and then you've got end of season. So the other things I'm doing at the moment, I'm involved with the the former players association, which is sort of two or three years old, and we're building that network of X three players. Um, and as Churchy knows, I've roped him into doing some QA's at the club, um, working with those former players. Um, I'm also in sort of run the insurance for the club, so that could be anything from your property damage, your business interruption, your fine art. You know, we've got a lot of old paintings that need insuring, um, but also you know, your rain cancellation. So if if the weather gets the better of us, we need to be fully insured. So that's another part of my role. Um, and there's lots of other stuff. Um, end of season celebration events, I've got uh the risk register and a lot of compliance things. One of the jobs I'm doing today is looking at our terms and conditions, sort of annual review of those, uh, make sure they're all good. Um, so yeah, yeah, lots of lots of things, and never no two days are the same. Um, but I I love it. And um having been here sort of I think maybe 10 years now, it's it's it's just such a cool job. And and to be involved with with a club of Surrey's history is a is a real privilege.
SPEAKER_02Right, let's hit rewind because okay, you went to the University of Leeds, which I I just spent five happy days wandering past all the lovely buildings of the University of Leeds. Gorgeous, gorgeous university, and got a BA in international history and politics. And then done a couple of other courses in governance, but but you also went to Australia for a few years. Just tell us what you did out in Oz and and sort of what skills you picked up from your time in Australia and living out there as well.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, sure. So I was at Leeds uh doing history and politics, and when I was in my second year, we were watching the Champions League on ITV, and a friend of mine said something like those stats on the screen, like who actually does those? Like, where do they come from? And he said, Oh, that's a complete call opta. And I looked it up online and an opter sports, have a look at the vacancies, and it said part-time cricket analyst. And so I applied for this job with my very limited cricket knowledge at this point, age 20, um, other than my CFACs and my um sort of Yorkshire cricket knowledge, and and I went in and they asked me a few questions, and yeah, okay, yeah, your history degree, your sort of four hours a week, contact time, you know, and they're all sort of nodding. And and the the office was about 15 minutes from where I lived in Heady Meat. And so I used to I apply for this job, I got it, and honestly don't think I would I would be anywhere near getting a job like that. Should that have happened today, I'm sure there would have been a much more rigorous recruitment programme. But I got this job, and it was analyzing cricket from around the world, ball by ball, live as it happened, yeah everything from shot type, wagon wheel, where the ball's pitched, all of that stuff that the analysts would do. But it would be strange hours, you know, games in Southeast Asia at starting at 3 a.m. and you've got to be at the office doing it. And so that was a really cool job for a student. Um, and that got me into cricket in terms of my career. Uh so I was an opta for uh I think three years, and I stayed in Leeds after my degree, and then um Nat got a job with cricket Tasmania and the Hobart Hurricanes, and so we'd been we'd been together about a year, and it was like, right, okay, we're we're flying to us then, let's do it. So we took a punt, flew out to Australia. I had I think six jobs in six months. I I did everything at what was known as the Blunston Arena at the time. I was in the kitchen cooking croquettes, I was behind the bar in the members area. I was what else was I doing? I was a receptionist at a physio because the physio was the cricket has physio, had his own private surgery. So I was the physio at his private surgery. I was a door-to-door salesman for about three hours and then I resigned. Um what were you what were you selling? Double glazing? Oh, I was selling Red Cross direct debits. And it was walking around every house in Hobart, door to door, and often getting the door slammed in my face or sworn. And it was it was 30 degrees, and I just it just killed me. And I'll never work in sales, and it was a good lesson to learn. Um but but I did all these jobs, and obviously we got we got friendly with all the the cricket has people, and what a lovely, what a lovely city. Um but the Opta had got the deal with Cricket Australia to supply all of their scorecards on the CA website and the CA app. Um, and they needed someone to set it up. And the office for Opta was in Melbourne. So I moved to Melbourne and we did a bit of the long distance relationship stuff, and from absolutely nothing, I had to set up a team of scorers across Australia to go to all Sheffield Shield and the One Day Cup and the Big Bash and the Women's Big Bash. And I had about six weeks to set up an entire operation, and it was crazy. And I was working 12-hour days and buying laptops and training people, flying across Australia doing interviews, and it was crazy. But we got there, and for two two, three years, that was my role the scorecards across Australia for Opta. And um, the the amount of experience I got from that from an operational point of view, from a management point of view, from a learning things on the hoof point of view was was brilliant. Um, and Melbourne, of course, best city in the world, um, best coffee in the world. And uh what a what a great experience. Um, but we did miss, we did miss home, and we did miss England, and we did miss family, and we decided to start looking for jobs back here in the UK. And and Surrey came up and and Nat got the job with Stewie and the team as the analyst, and I got a job with the cricket operations department and and the rest is history, yeah.
SPEAKER_01So that must have been you say Melbourne's the greatest city in the world. What are the main differences? Just obviously, we've had the ashes. Is it a lot more intense in in cricket Australia than than cricket and just the whole culture is in England?
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I the weather was the biggest difference. And you know, even just walking to work in the morning, I'd have to have a shower when I got into the office. Um the cricket side of things, I think the biggest thing I took from Australia was actually the women's big bash. They'd they'd set it up, I think 2015 or 2014, and immediately everyone was getting behind it. The crowds were really good. Um, you know, I remember being at the first ever game at Junction Oval, and there was about 2,000 people there, you know, supporting Meg Lanning, and it it was so well done, and um, and I think they they have been ahead of English cricket from the start in that respect. Um, and a lot of what we've tried to do here is has sort of been trying to play catch up with Australia and and their women's women's cricket. Um and I'm trying to think the the the other differences really. Um what what have I learned? Yeah, Melbourne, fantastic city. I lived on the South Bank and used to walk past the Rodlaver Arena and the MCG and the statues of the legendary cricket victoria players uh just on my way to work in the morning. And absolutely love the city, the cafe culture, how into sport everyone was. Um, you know, it I yeah, loved Australia and loved my time there.
SPEAKER_02It's the weather, isn't it? That's the that's the the key difference is the weather. You always know you're gonna play unless there's a strange storm somewhere. Uh, and preparation, you can just get down to your prep and you know you're gonna have a game. Whereas, well, we've got our hot snap coming, which is excellent news, and it's arriving just in time for 2020, but you're never quite sure here. Cal, final question for you, my friend, and we always ask them so there's somebody listening to you and your fantastic career, and what I loved was the story about age 20 seeing an ad-in opter and going for the job. If you if you were to give them any advice to sort of follow a career path in cricket or in governance or with a sports club, what advice would you give them?
SPEAKER_03I think the number one uh piece of advice I would give anyone is be passionate, and that could be from the board members to the first job. If you can take that passion for your role and what you do for your work, then you'll be authentic, then you'll make friends, then you'll get noticed. And I think with a sports club, obviously, jobs are super oversubscribed. You'll put a job ad out and you'll get hundreds of applicants, and it's very difficult. But if you get that foot in the door, the the world is your oyster. Um, and that there was somebody who I spoke to a few years ago, and they ended up getting a job um on the phones in the ticket office, and but they were so excited about working for Surrey, and they put their heart and soul into it. Every day you'd see them with a smile on their face, and they were you know being being super engaged with what they were doing. And and when a job came up in a different department, brilliant, and and now they're off working in a an operational role, and just so cool to see somebody having that journey. Um, but it was all about getting your foot in the door and then and then flying from there. Um so that I think I think it's the passion piece, and like I said, it it goes up to the very top. Um, you can have, you know, I've been on a lot of boards and seen a lot of trustees and directors and things, but it's the ones who are are really putting the effort in and passionate about what what the club's mission is and the strategy, they're the ones that I really respect because their passion can really deliver um for for the organization. Um, and you do get some that are a bit more passive and just you know don't read the papers and things. So uh probably best we don't say that on that.
SPEAKER_02That's that's the same with everything, my friend. And and uh yeah, I get exactly what you mean. That passion can take you to some amazing places, it really can. Listen, thank you. I know how busy you are, and it's been a great honour, especially as you're sat in the boardroom at the Kear Oval as well, which is a magnificent view of the ground as well out the window. Used to be the press room. Did you know that? I didn't know that. Used to be the written press room, the boardroom, many years ago at the Keir Oval, when the press were at your end of the ground before the JM Fin stand was built. That used to be the press room where you're sat, my friend. But thank you so much, Cal, for your time. I know how bad you are. It's been an absolute pleasure, my friend.
SPEAKER_03Thank you, guys. Thank you, Hector. Cheers.
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SPEAKER_01So there are our friends at Newbery Cricket, and now it is competition time, and thanks to our friends at Newberry Cricket, we have an SPS bat to give away. Churchy, we know you think it is pretty beautiful.
SPEAKER_02Yes, it is a beautiful piece of widow. I've dreamt about it, as you know. I think what needs to happen now, and I don't know whether Newberry can make this happen for me, is that I get to actually use an SPS. I don't know how we do that, but I would like to actually physically hit a ball with an SPS Newbury bat. Now that I've dreamt about it, I want to hold one in my hands, Hector.
SPEAKER_01That would be great content.
SPEAKER_02Even if I can just have a twiddle with it. If we can make that happen with Newbury, I would be a very happy old man. All I need to do is stand there and twiddle it. Make your dreams come true. Make my dreams come true. Now, if your dreams were to come true, then you can win an actual SPS cricket bat from Newbury. All you have to do is get our hard-hitting cricketing question right. Your name then goes in the hat if you get the answer right, and then that name or a name will be pulled out of the hat. And if it's your name, you win the Newbury SPS bat. So last week's question was so forth. Liam Dawson called time on his first class career at the start of last week. The question was how many first-class wickets did he take? The answer, Hector?
SPEAKER_01380 first class wickets.
SPEAKER_02Correct. Well done to you, and well done to anybody who emailed in the answer 380 because your name has now gone in the hat. So this week's question. Surrey won the first ever T20 competition back in 2003. Which Surrey bowler took four for 11 in the final against Warwickshire? That is this week's question. If you think you know the answer, email sundayservice.pod at yahoo.com or tweet at Sundayservice22. And our friends at Newbury have released an official Sunday service discount code. You can now use the discount code Sundayservice15 and get 15% off goods at www.newbury.co.uk, excluding bespoke bats. So why not treat yourself to some premium gear and quality willow?
SPEAKER_01Right, that is stumps for this episode of the Sunday service with Church and Vickers. We will be back together next Sunday, the 31st of May. So get that date in your download diaries. Don't forget, you can send us your answers to the quiz and to what cricket sound is this. And you can still get anything you want to off your chest cricket wise by emailing sundayservice.pod at yahoo.com or tweeting at Sundayservice22.
SPEAKER_02So thank you very much for listening. If you've liked what you've heard, please rate and review us as it really helps others find the podcast because we want us all to join together and be one big happy cricketing family. And thank you to Callum Doyle for joining us today. And of course, thank you to our friends at Newbury Cricket for all their support and their magnificent competition prize, the SPS bat that I want to have a twiddle with, because it is a beautiful. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful piece of willow.
SPEAKER_01Until next Sunday from London and London, this has been the Hector Vickers and Mark Church production. Have a magnificent cricketing week, everybody. And remember, hit the pockets and run like the wind.
SPEAKER_02Goodbye!