Last Days
After being relieved of the Lancashire captaincy, Statham announced that the 1968 season would be his last – indeed he announced early on he would not play after the August Bank Holiday match with Yorkshire. With Lancashire no longer dependent on him due to Higgs' great form, Statham still went off on a high note with a first innings return of 6 for 31. In 1968, he took 69 wickets at an average of 17.08. Statham had given such service to Lancashire that the county gave him a second benefit in 1969, but it raised only £1,850 compared to over £13,800 for his 1961 benefit.
Statham was also awarded a CBE in 1968 in recognition of his services to cricket.
Statham became a member of the Lancashire committee in 1970, and was a member of it until 1995. He was appointed as president of the club from 1997 to 1998. In his later years, despite his earnings as a cricketer, Statham was consistently troubled financially; in fact, he always lived in quite poor conditions off the cricket field. When Fred Trueman learned of Statham's financial difficulties in 1989, he organised two testimonial dinners to raise money for Statham. He died of leukemia a week before his 70th birthday.
The section of Warwick Road which runs past Lancashire County Cricket Club's Old Trafford Cricket Ground was renamed "Brian Statham Way" in Statham's honour. Incidentally, the other end of Warwick Road was previously renamed Sir Matt Busby Way after the former Manchester United manager, as the road runs past their stadium's Scoreboard End.
Read more about this topic: Brian Statham
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