It is with huge sadness that the Club has to report the death of Club legend, Alan Whitworth. Alan sadly passed away this Wednesday afternoon, February 28th. The word “legend” is thrown about fairly liberally these days but Alan was a true legend of Reigate Priory Cricket Club. It would be difficult to find anyone in the Club’s history who has given more to the Club than Alan.

He joined the club in 1961, was Club and 1st XI captain from 1967 to1970, Chairman from 1976 to 1981 and President from 1985 to 1998. In addition to those duties he was a Trustee from 1976 to 2021.

Alan was a top all round sportsman, excelling at both cricket and football. For Priory in the 60s and 70s he was a sharp opening bowler who was a very decent bat, who batted far too low in the order. He represented Lincolnshire in Minor Counties cricket and played on every test ground in the UK. He was also a decent golfer and captained Reigate Heath Golf Club, another Club to which he contributed enormously.

He went up to Cambridge to study medicine and whilst there won a blue for Football in 1954, when the light blues defeated Oxford 3-2. He was a hard tackling right back who had little love for training. Alan loved to tell the story of how their coach, Bill Nicholson of Tottenham Hotspur fame, described Alan as possibly the unfittest player ever to appear at Wembley.

If only I could remember more detail from Alan’s lovely story of his interview to study medicine at Cambridge but he was accepted and that road led him to the Wall House surgery in Reigate. He spent some 40 years at the practice and became senior partner. This was in those far off days when doctors were on call 24 hours a day and made house calls and you actually knew the name of your doctor.

In latter years Alan would recognise many Reigate residents whilst walking down the High Street and could tell you their medical history in detail without having a clue what their name was. Many he had brought into the world and no doubt numerous of Reigate Priory’s now middle aged members can claim that distinction. Certainly our wonderful Club Secretary, Kevin Timmons, is in that club as is the equally famous DJ, Norman Cook, more widely known as Fat Boy Slim.

Alan’s lovely wife Pat was a nurse and I think Alan met her whilst they were both at Bart’s Hospital. They were married in 1960 and the photograph above is of Alan and Pat in their garden on the occasion of their 60th wedding anniversary in 2020.

Alan was great company, huge fun to be with, a fantastic supporter of Reigate Priory and to those of us of a certain generation he was possibly the most well known figure in Reigate.

We will all miss Alan but our sympathies go out to his lovely wife, Pat, and his close family.

Andy Packham