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17
THE YEAR OF THE SWANN
Most beneficiaries would struggle to keep
an audience of Nottinghamshire members,
teammates and invited guests captivated
and entertained throughout an impromptu
monologue after two hours of formalities
at a dinner in the Derek Randall Suite.
Fortunately, Graeme Swann isn’t like
most beneficiaries.
His early-showings as an after-dinner
speaker, like his abilities as an international
cricketer, are unsurpassed in many
ways. Dotted around the room, three of
Nottinghamshire’s Championship winners
are preparing for a round table discussion to
be transcribed for Swann’s benefit magazine
(available in all good Trent Bridge based
retail outlets, suggested donation £10).
When the time finally comes to head for the
sanctuary of the Nottinghamshire dressing
room, one of his guests can wait no longer
for Jonny Dennis to complete his tales from
the theatre and shoots off to pick the kids up.
Another has no record of being asked to
stay behind to get involved until a jab in the
ribs from his wife jogs his memory. Swann
himself confesses that he too had forgotten
the engagement and disappears somewhere
between dinner table and dressing room.
Paul Franks though is fully primed and
ready to go.
“I have to give Swanny massive credit for
staying true to who he is because a lot of
international sportsmen become what they
think they should be, but he hasn’t changed
at all,” confirms Franks, in defence of
Swann’s at ease nature.
Fifteen minutes later, Swann strolls in,
unhurried and on-form.
Whilst clearly endearedtohis off-fieldpersona,
former Nottinghamshire batsman and 2005
Championship winner Darren Bicknell thinks
that anyone considering labelling Swann
as anything other than fiercely competitive
should misfield off his bowling.
“I’ve seen you tear into people for that,
you’ve got to be one of the worst for that,”
says Bicknell.
“He’s certainly up there with Franks and
Sidebottom,” confesses Franks.
Swann recalls an England team meeting
where the nation’s most talented and battle-
hardened cricketers expressed the fear they
felt in the field as a result of outbursts from
senior bowlers.
As he puts it: “The names being mentioned
were Swann, Broad and Sidebottom and I
remember thinking that if Franksie was here
we’d have nobody willing to field.”
Whilst at Northamptonshire, Swann had
been subdued by totalitarian leadership
and after missing the bus during Duncan
Fletcher’s England reign, it didn’t look like
he’d ever get on another one.
“I was so lucky that Mick Newell found me
because my career could have gone badly
wrong. I had to leave Northamptonshire,
and it was the knowledge that people like
Franksie and Chris Read would let me be
myself that I knew I would be happy at
Notts,” says Swann, in blissful reflection
of the county switch that he pinpoints
as the starting point for his renaissance.
Franks credits Swann’s friendship with
Stephen Fleming as the foundation of his
international elevation.
“Flem made him realise what was
potentially in front of him and he didn’t
look back after that.”
Swann concurs: “I loved Flem from the
second he got here. The first thing he said
to me was that he hated it when English
batsmen glove-punched after a boundary
and he banned it from the changing room.
“The problem was that when I batted with
him, we hadn’t arranged an acceptable
alternative so I walked down to him and
looked at him, not quite sure what to do.
He just pulled me in and hugged me.
Flem was brilliant. He knew how to get
the best out of everyone and I’ve never
worked well under a regime that tries to
quash what you do.”
Graeme Swann Benefit
graeme swann’s benefit brochure is on
sale now in the trent bridge shop