A talented Swindon cricketer who racked up more than 10,000 runs with his unique playing style and was hailed as a local sporting icon has died.
Dave Gardner, known as Lardy, lived in the Blunsdon and Abbey Ridge area and became a popular member of the sporting scene over his decades-long career.
He died at the age of 82 in the early hours of May 17 at Great Western Hospital, after being unwell for a few months. His funeral will be held at Kingsdown Crematorium at 11.15am on June 14, followed by a wake at Swindon Cricket Club.
His career in sports began when he starred for the boys club football team at Sanford Street School and, at 16, represented England Schoolboys in a match against Scotland in front of 10,000 people at Wembley Stadium.
He suffered an injury after playing for West Bromwich Albion's reserves for a few seasons and was not invited back. But football's loss was cricket's gain as he then played for Swindon BR from the mid-1950s until 1970, and represented Wiltshire, before joining Swindon Cricket Club.
Friend Kevin Emery said: "He had a dry sense of humour and would break out in a wry grin when recounting stories of how he had frustrated even the best of bowlers and ultimately came out on top in their one-to-one duels.
“He had a good memory and a quiet confidence in his own ability to get the job done his way.
“Many a time the bowlers would think they had got through his defence, only to discover the ball careering down to the boundary and his batting partner exclaiming ‘Great shot, Lardy!’"
Dave captained his first team at BR for several seasons and was regularly their leading run-scorer, amassing hundreds of runs.
He joined Swindon CC and continued until 1985, amassing more than 1,000 runs in a season several times and often topping the batting average.
He captained the club from 1975 to ’85 and represented Wiltshire again in 1976.
Dave preferred not to use thigh pads and wrapped a trusty towel around himself instead. As an opening batsman, his style did not follow anything in the MCC coaching manual.
Mr Emery added: “It was a true testament to his skill that he scored more than 10,000 runs in his own unique and unflustered style, with his trademark stop-shot late dab down to third man, yielding many a boundary.
"He would often take his time to get in at the start of his innings but would go on to score big, frustrating even the best of bowlers.
"Once he had reached 50 runs, he would unfurl the fetch shot over mid-wicket as he sought to up the run rate."
Lardy also played golf at Ogbourne Downs until his health deteriorated, and always followed the Robins at Swindon Speedway and watched football and cricket at the County Ground.
One theory for his nickname is that his mother made bread and dripping sandwiches to give him strength and hair growth like Samson – or it could be because the bakers Gardner’s produced lardy cakes.
Kevin added: “Lardy was calm at the crease and patient with his strokeplay. He rarely wore a cap, for fear of disrupting his well-coiffured hair, but he was a fierce yet understated competitor.
“He was a canny operator on and off the field.
"He was banned from a few betting shops for being too successful, so he persuaded his former batting partner Alan Thomas to get some late bets on for him.
"Even to the end, he stayed true to his sporting style!
“Dave gave so much of himself to the Swindon sporting scene and played with great distinction and success. He deserves to be remembered as one of this town’s true sporting icons."
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