It has been announced today that Mick Hunt - the former MCC Head Groundsman of 49 years - has passed away.
Middlesex and England legend Angus Fraser has penned the following tribute.
The legend of Lord’s Cricket Ground is built on the great cricketers that have and continue to perform on this famous piece of North London turf. It is they who are rightly lauded on the walls of The Pavilion.
That these players have and continue to perform on a beautiful, pristine, loved and cared for surface is often taken for granted, or even overlooked. In the long and rich history of this wonderful ground it is hard to believe that anybody has done more to maintain its beauty than Mick Hunt, the former Head Groundsman, who died last night.
To say that Mick was a character would be an understatement. He was an absolute legend. It would also be fair to say that he wasn’t the easiest person to manage. He had his views on what needed to be done and stuck to them. But he cared deeply for the turf he looked after for 49 years, and did his upmost to ensure it looked and played immaculately, no matter the importance of the game that was taking place.
There are many areas in cricket where observers know better than those whose actual job it is, and preparing a pitch is one of them. Preparing a pitch for a multi-day game is a work of art. In a five day Test a ball could hit the surface over 1,200 times. It also has people with spikes in their shoes continually running and walking over it. Yet. If one ball dares to misbehave, commentators, pundits and keyboard warriors forensically look over it and offer their opinions.
Having worked closely with Mick for 15 years I shared much of his anguish and frustrations. For the reasons stated above Test matches bring huge pressure, as the Head Curator at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, found it during last winters Ashes, and Mick was, understandably, at his most stressed during these weeks of the year.
Yet, it is not those conversations that I remember most, even though his summary of those that had been critical was often very amusing, it was the more relaxed moments we spent together and the non-repeatable jokes he would text me.
Lord’s contains many devoted workers so naming the person that has spent the most time at the ground is a difficult task. It is hard to believe, however, anyone has spent more time on and cared more deeply for the turf that us cricketers have played on. In time it would be nice to think that his hours of love and care for the place are recognised in the same way as others.
