'There was this six foot six bloke in a Fiat Punto with his knees up to his chin'

SAM MORSHEAD: Morne Morkel’s impending international retirement will not go unnoticed in Endon - a village of little more than 3,000 people located halfway between Leek and Stoke-on-Trent on the A53

^{Morne Morkel is to retire from international cricket}

Morne Morkel’s impending international retirement will not go unnoticed in one particular corner of Staffordshire.

The South African seamer has announced he is to bow out of Test, ODI and T20I cricket at the end of the Test series against Australia, and glasses are likely to be raised in recognition of his 500-plus wickets for his country at the quiet club where he first experienced English April seamers.

In 2003 and 2004, as a wide-eyed, gangly-limbed teenager, Morkel spent a pair of seasons playing for Endon - a village of little more than 3,000 people located halfway between Leek and Stoke-on-Trent on the A53.

There, after a difficult acclimatization process, he was well-liked and prominent with both bat and ball.

Neil Sellers was tasked with keeping wicket to the paceman and fondly remembers Morkel’s time at the club.

“He was quite the opposite of your usual South African,” Sellers tells The Cricketer.

^{Morkel spent time at Endon CC as a teenager}

“He was quiet, generous with his time, polite and unassuming. If he had to step it up a gear he could on the pitch.”

Morkel paid for his own flights to the UK after being signed by Endon based on a recommendation from nearby Leek, for whom his older brother Albie played in 2002 and 2003, and collected a modest fee of around £50 per week.

“He wasn’t here for the money, he was here for the experience,” says Sellers.

“When we were back in the bar having a drink he’d be out playing with the kids, who were five or six years of age. That was what Morne was about… he loved playing cricket.”

Sellers used to give Morkel lifts to training and practice - “there was this six foot six bloke in a Fiat Punto with his knees up to his chin” - and remembers a young man who was preparing himself for a career at the top of the game very early in life.

“Most of the time before a game we’d throw the ball around and have a quick practice. He’d come along an hour before and do all things that you’d associate with those in a professional career. That was new to us and he got us involved in that,” says Sellers.

"Suddenly he just bowled this bouncer that was a few miles per hour quicker and it hit him smack in the forehead. Everybody thought ‘oh, that’ll hurt’"

“He had a lot of drive about him, he didn’t drink like a lot of cricketers, he tried to live the lifestyle of a professional because that’s what he wanted to do.”

Morkel would rarely get wound up but after being nicked to the boundary once too often in one particular match, Sellers saw just how fast the South African could be.

“This guy came in at No. 6 without a helmet,” he says. “Their professional walked up to him and said ‘it’s a quick bowler, you’ll need a helmet’ to which the guy said ‘no, no I’ll be fine’.

“He had a slash at a few, got a few thick edges and scored quick, flukey runs.

“It was the first time I saw Morne get slightly angry. A few words were said, the batsman said a few words back to Morne and he carried on playing the same way.

“Suddenly he just bowled this bouncer that was a few miles per hour quicker and it hit him smack in the forehead. Everybody thought ‘oh, that’ll hurt’.

^{Morkel has claimed 294 Test wickets}

“He had a cut right across his forehead, staggered off and went to hospital.”

Still, Endon did find one of Morkel’s flaws.

“He was probably one of the worst footballers I’ve ever seen at our club,” says Sellers.

Endon’s first overseas pro found English conditions to be quite heavy going in the early weeks of the season; April seamers were hardly conducive to his style of bowling, after all.

However, as temperatures rose the teenage Morkel’s contributions improved.

“It didn’t help him that when he came over, he stayed in a small flat above a shop and he was probably too big for the bed,” says Sellers.

MORNE MORKEL INTERNATIONAL STATS

Tests: 83 matches, 294 wickets, ave 28.08

ODIs: 117 matches, 188 wickets, ave 25.32

T20Is: 44 matches, 47 wickets, eco 7.50, ave 25.34

“It took him the best part of four weeks and then scored a century.

“He moved from the small flat into one of the players’ parents’ B&Bs, started to blossom, the sun started to shine and he started improving.”

Morkel was the club’s batsman of the year in 2003 and bowler of the year 12 months later, playing in the North Staffs District League.

Sellers remembers a young man dedicated to his craft who would take any opportunity to pick up a bat or ball.

“When we were back in the bar having a drink he’d be out playing with the kids,” he says.

“My son was about five and after the game he’d pick up one of the Kwik Cricket bats and have a little bat and my son would bowl at him.

“You can imagine this six-foot six giant with a Kwik Cricket bat… it looked kind of silly.

“He didn’t boast about his performances or try to impress us with his background, he just wanted to play cricket and he enjoyed doing it.

“I hope he remembers his time with us fondly.”