YP Comment: Their final innings
Not only were Herbert Sutcliffe and Sir Leonard Hutton two of the all-time greats of Yorkshire and England cricket, but it was a quirk of geography that they both began their illustrious careers with the famed Pudsey St Lawrence Cricket Club, where a blue plaque has been unveiled to celebrate their prowess.
Theirs was a special relationship – Hutton even received coaching clinics in the garden of his near neighbour Sutcliffe – and it is entirely fitting that Leeds Civic Trust’s expert historians have deemed the feats of both men to be worthy of wider public recognition. There is no doubt that blue plaques do prompt people, young and old alike, to become more inquisitive about notable individuals, especially if the local connection is so tangible. And, as the current England team endure a trial by spin on the Indian sub-continent, it’s another reminder that club cricket is the sport’s lifeblood and the nursery ground for prospective county and international players.