Happy Retirement, Dave!

Who has scored the most runs at the Uptonsteel County Ground since the turn of the century?

You might have a guess at Brad Hodge, or HD Ackerman; maybe Mark Cosgrove or Paul Nixon.

However you’d be wrong - the honour surely goes to David Goodacre.

Leicestershire CCC would like to pay tribute to Dave, who has pulled the strings in the scorebox at the Uptonsteel County Ground for the best part of two decades.

It is rare to have a manual scoreboard in the modern era but the Running Foxes has kept the tradition. Not only is the box a key feature on the ground, it also helps in the event of any unexpected hitch with the electronic screen, like a power cut - or even a lightning strike as experienced in 2005.

Dave enjoyed a revamp of facilities on this return to duties this year thanks to the generosity of the Friends of Grace Road, whose donation allowed for an overhaul both inside and on the outside of the box.

Dave, who has also dedicated vast amount of hours to the local umpiring scene, decided to retire at the end of the 2021 season.

One of Dave’s claims to fame was wearing the white coat in a first-class game against Glamorgan at Cardiff. Dave famously answered the call over the public address system at Sophia Gardens; originally there as a supporter, Dave stood in for Graham Burgess in a game where Ackerman posted the record Leicestershire CCC individual score, only the second triple century in the Club’s history.

He is also an avid collector of autographs, coming to the ground ahead of duty to get them for friends and colleagues across the circuit too.

Dave sadly took ill recently and the Club wishes him well. A retirement dinner on Monday, which would have involved Leicestershire CCC presenting a special gift for his dedicated service, has sadly been postponed for the time being.

Leicestershire CCC Chief Executive Sean Jarvis said: “Dave has been brilliant for Leicestershire County Cricket Club over the years in operating the manual scoreboard. His dedication and service has been much appreciated.

“It’s been a different type of year with all the COVID-19 restrictions but I’ve seen Dave a couple of times on matchdays and he has so much passion and enthusiasm for the Club.

“We were sad to hear he decided to retire and were looking forward to the dinner and to recognise his service to the Club.

“We are thinking of Dave, and his family and friends, at this difficult time.”

Cricket Operations Manager Dan Nice added: “Dave has worked so hard at the ground for a number of years, he was so keen to come back to score during the 2021 season once restrictions eased and continued to do a great job for us.

“I’ve been privileged to see him at work and in many ways it’s a challenging task because when you pull one string and move to another part of the board, you invariably get a ball or two behind, especially in T20. It can be a bit like trying to watch a movie when you’re two minutes behind the plot!

“Dave’s lunchtime stories were legendary - he loved to speak about the game at Cardiff because he made it into Wisden as well! He also had a fact around the table through research and statistical work over the winters. He was also generous with his time in the manual scorebox when working inside, showing people how it worked.

“For years he worked out a system as various parts of the box started to stick, and his eyes lit up when he saw the facelift. I was so sad to hear what has happened and Dave and his family and friends are in my thoughts.”