The Rory Burns Testimonial Day at Banstead Cricket Club on August 20 saw a great turnout in the marquee and around the ground.
Rory and his team-mates held a training session with more than 30 of the club juniors before a fundraising lunch. Former England star, Ed Giddins, hosted 220 people in the marquee for some “heads and tails” fun, with an auction and raffle.
The marquee crowd was then entertained by a video starring Rory's Dad, Chris, and brother Liam, who talked about how Rory got into cricket, their proudest Rory moments on the field and his various haircuts through the years! After that BBC commentator Mark Church interviewed Rory about some of his career highlights so far.
In the match after lunch Surrey batted first, with Rory scoring 31 at the top of the order. Oval Invincibles star Jordan Clarke was top scorer, with 39, in Surrey's 202 for 8. Banstead were not helped by three of their 1st team regulars playing for Surrey. Banstead’s reply was helped by Rory opening the batting for them as well! His quick 33 got Banstead to 42, but they ultimately fell 12 runs short of the target. Jordan Clarke again proved his star quality, with four wickets for just 24 runs, while England U19 and Banstead player Ralphie Albert picked up two for 10.
A massive thank you to the organisation committee, bar staff, caterers and all the volunteers who helped organise the day. And a special thank you to the Club's events manager, Kate Hammond, who dedicated a huge amount of her time and energy to this successful and very enjoyable day.