Paul Prichard (born 7 January 1965) is an English cricket coach and retired

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er. A former

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

coach, he has joined the

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

coaching staff for the 2022 season. He will also lead the

Southern Vipers The Southern Vipers were a women's cricket team that represented the South of England. The Vipers wore an orange and black kit and primarily played their home matches at the Rose Bowl and the County Ground, Hove. They were coached by former ...

. He played for

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

as a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-pace bowler for seventeen years. He was club captain from 1995 to 1998 before spending the last three years of his playing career at

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

. Prichard first played for Essex Schools at the age of nine, and was nurtured at the Hutton club by his father, a prominent Hutton player, and Doug Pont. He graduated from the Essex Schools sides to England Schools, and moved to the more prominent Orsett and Thurrock club. He played in five Youth Test Matches and 4 Youth One-Day Internationals between 1981 and 1983. His first Test for England Young Cricketers against

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alongside team-mates such as Steve O'Shaughnessy and

Tim Boon Timothy James Boon (born 1 November 1961) is an English former cricketer who was also the coach of Leicestershire County Cricket Club. Born at Balby in Yorkshire, Boon had a successful playing career predominantly with Leicestershire. However h ...

. As a schoolboy he was a decent wicket-keeper, but it was as a batsman that he excelled, although his fielding also won him much praise. On the Essex staff from the age of 16, his first team debut came in 1982, when he played in a 40-over League match, however, he neither batted or bowled during this match, batting lower down the order than was required, and not being called in to bowl at any time. He competed in the Benson and Hedges Cup for the next twelve years, and later in his career in the C&G trophy.

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suggests that he was predicted for full England honours, but an England call never came. His maiden first-class century came in his debut year, 1984, at Old Trafford against Lancashire. This was a momentous occasion since Essex's victory in the match, combined with

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

's very narrow defeat in the simultaneous fixture against

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, clinched the first of four

County Championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...

triumphs (the others coming in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

and

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

) for Essex in which Prichard was involved. He also shared a number of one-day triumphs with Essex, including in the 1998 Benson & Hedges Cup when he was

man of the match In team sport, a player of the match award (also known as man of the match or woman of the match) is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chose ...

and victorious

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in the final. He was also

when Essex won the final of the

1989 Refuge Assurance Cup The 1989 Refuge Assurance Cup was the second competing of the Refuge Assurance Cup, for the most successful teams in the Sunday League. It was an English limited overs county cricket tournament which was held between 6 and 17 September 1989. Th ...

. He won his Essex cap in 1986, was the club captain 1995–98, and was awarded a benefit year in 1996. For some years he played grade cricket in Australia and coached at the Chelmsford Indoor School. He played in the Minor Counties Championship Western Division extensively between 2002 and 2006, for

References

Sources

* David Lemmon, ''The Book of Essex Cricketers'' (1994, Breedon Books)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Prichard, Paul English cricketers Essex cricketers Essex cricket captains 1965 births Living people Berkshire cricketers English cricket coaches 20th-century English sportsmen