Cricket yarn rolls out

By Grace Jones | posted on October 6, 2017

ALBANY author Ian Brayshaw has finished putting pen to paper and is about to launch his latest book Lillee and Thommo: The Deadly Pair’s Reign of Terror.

Mr Brayshaw said that writing a book about cricket legends Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson was a great experience.

“Essentially the book is about the careers of two of the best cricketers in Australian history,” he said.

“They were a formidable pair in test cricket.

“Thommo is considered to be the fastest bowler of all time, and Lillee the best fast bowler.

“I played a lot of games against Jeff and watched him play when I was a radio presenter.

“Writing this book was more than just the impressions of others, but also my memories of the sport as well.”

Lillee and Thommo are best known for their performance in the 1974 Ashes series, and for terrifying the English team.

“Back when I played, no one wore helmets or protective gear like today,” Mr Brayshaw said.

“We wore a cap and this flimsy protective gear that didn’t really do anything to soften the blow.

“When Thommo would bowl it was like a missile coming straight for you.

“It was a formidable job to try and move out of the way quick enough so you wouldn’t get killed.”

Mr Brayshaw will be bringing former WA state cricketer Ross Edwards to the book launch at Centennial Park next Tuesday night.

“Both of us will be talking about the book and telling a few stories about Lillee and Thommo,” he said.

“They’re both such charismatic players to talk about, so the night will be a good one for cricket fans.

“We’ll also have some limited copies of ‘Lillee and Thommo’ for sale signed by Dennis.”

Tickets are available for the October 10 event at Centennial Stadium online or instore at Paperbark Merchants for $5.