MALVERN College was pleased to receive a visit from former England captain Graham Gooch recently.

It was appropriate, given the cricketing success of the College in recent years, that he should hold a Masterclass with promising cricketers at the school.

Andy Murtagh, the ex-Hampshire cricketer and master in charge of cricket at the College says, "I had forgotten what a large and imposing figure Graham cut, as he emerged from his car and gripped my hand with the same firmness that the held a bat in England's cause on 118 occasions."

The main theme of his Masterclass to the boys was about mental preparation for matches, especially at practice. As one of the most assiduous 'netters' of his day, Gooch is particularly well placed to extol the virtues of disciplined and focussed practice, together with tips on how he sought and maintained the mental edge. Some interesting routines with different coloured balls, intended to sharpen the reflexes, brought his words and his advice neatly together.

At the dinner in the evening, held in a marquee in the College grounds, Gooch developed a nice line in buttoned-down Essex wit as he reminisced on his career as an opening bat for England. He held a large audience in his thrall, testament to his newly-acquired career as a pundit in the media as well as his vast experience as a player and captain of his country.