Cricket: Bradburn calls it quits after 17 years

By TERRY MADDAFORD

Grant Bradburn's retirement from all cricket has ended one of the longer first-class careers in New Zealand sport.

With the growing demands of his retail business and young family, it was no real surprise when 32-year-old Bradburn said yesterday that it was time to step down.

In a career stretching back to the 1985-86 season, he played a record 115 first-class matches for Northern Districts, edging past the 104 matches played by the late Andy Roberts.

Bradburn, Roberts and Brian Dunning all played 17 seasons for the association.

Bradburn's 4614 runs from 188 innings were surpassed only by Roberts (5533) and David White (4656). Bradburn's last runs last season took him into third place on Northern's all-time list - three ahead of John Parker.

With the ball, Bradburn ends his ND career in second place with 231 wickets at an average of 31.42, trailing only Cliff Dickeson's 282 (at 29.22).

In seven tests, Bradburn, who made his national debut in 1990-91 and had a 10-year gap before playing his last two - home tests against Pakistan in 2001 - scored 105 runs and took six wickets.

His offspinning deeds in the 2000-01 domestic season earned him a welcome recall and the chance for another two tests and another four one-day internationals - two each in Sharjah and Sri Lanka.

In 121 one-day outings for Northern, Bradburn scored more than 2000 runs, bagged 89 wickets and held 57 catches.

Regarded as one of the better slip fieldsmen, he was a typical no-frills, what-you-see-is-what-you-get cricketer.

His bowling rarely attacked, his middle-order batting was resolute and his fielding always tidy.

Bradburn followed his father, Wynne, into the Northern Districts and New Zealand teams. His father played 55 times for ND and two tests.

His parents have remained his greatest supporters, with his mother, Olwyn, often behind the counter of his WestpacTrust Stadium-based business while Bradburn has been out in the middle.

With Bradburn, Mark Bailey and Simon Doull - all ND stalwarts - missing when Northern's State Championship season begins in Gisborne on November 29, coach Bruce Blair is certain to have new faces in the team to play Auckland.

With eight internationals to call on, he and fellow selector Pat Malcon have a wealth of available talent to launch what should be a better season than the last, sometimes disappointing effort.

Northern will have a week-long stint at New Zealand Cricket's high-performance centre at Lincoln, during which they will play two two-day and two one-day matches.

With Scott Styris, Joseph Yovich, James Marshall and Bruce Martin playing club cricket in Sydney, Blair will take newcomers Nick Horsley, David Kelly and Gareth West to Christchurch.

The selectors will name their team for the Max competition after two rounds of two-day district cricket in early November.

The team for Gisborne will be named at their season launch, on November 25.