A piece of cricketing history will this week take its place inside New Road, as former England legend Jack Russell’s hand-painted picture of the ground is displayed inside the Graeme Hick Pavilion.
Best known initially for his world-class abilities behind the stumps as a fine wicketkeeper-batter, the former Gloucestershire and England star has enjoyed life as a keen artist since hanging up his gloves.
Having visited the ground some two decades ago to craft the masterpiece, it wasn’t until a recent conversation with Club Chair, Dominic Riley, that the painting was to emerge from Jack’s garage.
The 20-year-old piece of artwork, captured from the bottom of the Ladies Pavilion steps, will take pride of place inside the Graeme Hick Pavilion, a thought that filled Jack with delight after revealing his artistic career started at New Road.
“The painting is coming home, which is just perfect in my mind. It was like music to an artist’s ears when I heard that someone from the Club was keen to have it and display it within the ground, even if it is 20 years after I finished it!
“It is even more special as my artistic career started here, when I was playing with Gloucestershire back in 1987. It was a terribly wet summer, and we had two days off for rain. I got so fed up with losing my money at cards, so I went into town, grabbed some bits, and just started teaching myself.
“Playing here was always special, especially coming back to New Road after they were the first Club to offer me a contract!
“That was back in ‘82 from memory, but as soon as Gloucestershire heard they were after me as an 18-year-old, all hell let loose and the very next day I had a contract in front of me at Bristol and the rest, as they say, is history.”
The painting, which took Jack just under two weeks to complete, provoked plenty of memories from his iconic playing career, which saw the man who made 94 appearances for England across all formats awarded an MBE in 1996 for his services to cricket.
Whilst recounting stories from his visits to New Road, including memories of some gripping contests with Worcestershire legend Graeme Hick, and facing up to “nightmarishly frustrating” spells from Stuart Lampitt and Phil Newport, Jack presented his painting to Club CEO Ashley Giles earlier this month.
Ashley emphasised the importance of the Club recognising significant parts of its history, with the painting set to be unveiled on the opening day of the Division Two clash with Kent, this Friday, 24th April.
“The artwork is a very special piece, the charming story of its provenance and the fact Jack was the man who put it together so many years ago, only made both Dominic and I more intrigued by it.
“It is something that can be admired by the players, the members, the staff, and everyone involved in the Worcestershire County Cricket Club community, across both current and future generations.
“Such an iconic image put together by someone as well-respected as Jack made it a very easy decision to celebrate and support it by displaying it inside the Pavilion.”
