DORSET host Berkshire at Wimborne tomorrow (11am) on what is a poignant occasion for the county side.
Club legends Clive Moore and Tim Hill recently passed away, both making immeasurable contributions to the county setup over many decades.
As a mark of respect, a one-minute silence will take place before the game and Dorset will wear black armbands on day one.
Hill was an under-19 national selector and at one stage helped keep the Dorset Schools Cricket Association afloat almost entirely under his own steam.
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Moore was a former Dorset CCC chairman and an honorary life member at Stalbridge, where current county skipper Luke Webb played much of his formative cricket.
In homage to Hill and Moore, Webb spoke highly of the pair.
He told Echosport: “Two fantastic men who did a lot for Dorset cricket and personally I’ve got amazingly fond memories of both of them.
“Tim, what he did with the schools was awesome. He’s directly had such a positive impact and given such enjoyment to so many Dorset cricketers.
“Clive, with his role with the county side and Dorset in general, I knew him very well from my time at Stalbridge.
“It was really sad news that’s hit Dorset cricket hard. We’ll dedicate Sunday as a full day of respect to them.
“It’s so sad, for it to happen so close, both of them, they need to be celebrated.”
Webb added: “Some of the lads coming in newer probably wouldn’t realise. Me growing up, I was at Gillingham School and Tim coordinated the competitions we used to run in.
“When we got to the finals days, the amount of effort he put in to set all that up and then lads that’ve come through our 17s setup, which is a lot of players, Tim was organising everything and making it such a great team to play in.
“Clive, as well, his previous role with the county you can’t put a price on. It’s two guys that put everything they had into making sure others could enjoy playing in a Dorset environment.
“Our thoughts are with their families, obviously.”
Dorset chairman Nick Eckland paid a glowing tribute to both men.
He told Echosport: “It’s with great sadness that we’ve lost Tim and Clive recently.
“Both men were absolute stalwarts of our county club and in their different ways have ensured that we have been left on a much better place.
“Producing so many fine young Dorset players to compete at the highest level is a testament to their legacy.
“To see a side selected this weekend against Berkshire with eight graduates of the Dorset Pathway System would have made them very proud.”
With Berkshire, who won the NCCA Championship for years consecutively from 2016, Dorset face a huge test.
Webb said: “We’ve done well this season and it’s going to be an extremely tough fixture against Berkshire.
“It’s a challenge we look forward to. The best tribute you can give anyone is to play with a smile on your face, enjoy it and give everything you’ve got.
“I’m going to be honest, we’re struggling with injuries, availabilities and combination of things.
“We’ve played a lot of cricket and got a few injuries in the camp. A few of our under-18s are unavailable through Hampshire commitments and a couple of our lads are playing second XI cricket, including Bradley Currie.
“With that comes opportunity and we’re going to have another two debutants. We’ll have three of the 18s in the side plus another as 12th man.
“It’s going to be a challenge but it’s a really good opportunity and it’s fitting that we’re able to blood even more youngsters this season that have come through the Dorset pathway.”
Dorset have at least 15 players out, meaning debuts are given to Will Tripcony and Matt King, with Netherlands hotshot Lucas del Bianco named 12th man.
Dorset: Webb, Soames, Tripcony, Young, Scott, A Eckland, Woodruff, Pack, King, Fletcher, Huns. 12th man: del Bianco
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