Neil Robert Pook was an English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 cricket

Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

er. He was born in Rainham

Rainham, London

Rainham is a suburban town in northeast London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. Located east of Charing Cross, it is one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan and is surrounded by a residential area, which has grown from the historic village,...

, Essex

Essex

Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...

. He was a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-pace bowler. Pook's first-class career spanned two games for two different teams, making his debut in 1988 for Essex

Essex County Cricket Club

Essex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Essex. Its limited overs team is called the Essex Eagles, their team colours this season are blue.The club plays most of its home games...

 and his second appearance, two years later, for Glamorgan

Glamorgan County Cricket Club

Glamorgan County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County...

, playing against Cambridge and Oxford University respectively.

Pook was on the Essex side which was defeated in the final of the 1986 Bain Dawes Trophy. His Second XI debut came at the age of just eighteen for Essex against Surrey

Surrey County Cricket Club

Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...

following 3 seasons with the M.C.C. Young Cricketers where he was proud to field as 12th man during an England vs India Test Match. Pook remained in the Essex Second XI team until 1990 and played very well and is both proud and honoured to have earned his living with so many fine young cricketers. Robert now lives in Australia with his Aussie wife Kay. His sons Liam (16)and Aaron (13)both enjoy their club cricket on the Gold Coast and exhibit the same aggressive talents shown for the game by their Dad the Mudgeeraba under 12's coach.And both play Rugby union for the Currumbin Allygators.

External links

• Robert Pook at Cricket Archive