Young guns' breakthrough brings excitement to Bedford School

Hopes current players will follow in Sir Alastair Cook's footsteps

It's always a thrill when you are not sure what kind of season you are going to have, and things turn out better than expected.

Gary Steer is the master in charge of Bedford School's cricket, and he thought that the 1st XI would have a 'transitional year'.

Two young guns burst onto the scene, however, boosting results and promising to be around for a few years to come.

^{Action from Bedford against Tonbridge}

"Danny Chapman is only 16, but he has had a super season in the 1st XI," Steer said. "He bowls leg-spin and is good enough to bat in the top order, although because of his age we batted him a little bit lower last summer, at No.5. 

"We knew he was something special when he scored a century for the school on tour in Cape Town in 2020. He plays for Buckinghamshire and is also under the umbrella of Northamptonshire cricket. We are really excited about him.

"Mustafa Haroon, who is also 16, is another fine prospect – and he also bats in the top order, bowls leggies, and is with Bedfordshire and Northants. They make for quite a dynamic duo.

^{Bedford's successful 2022 T10 team}

"As a school overall, we had a very good summer, winning about 70 per cent of our games. I expected the 1st XI to have a transitional year as we’d lost some very good players, but they exceeded my expectations; they were very well led by Charlie Blythman, who got the best out of his players. There were many fine individual performances, but Danny was our top wicket-taker with almost 40 wickets, and he also scored nearly 400 runs.

"Jamie Dunk scored more than 1,000 runs for the 1st XI and under-17s and shone for Scotland Under-19s in the summer – he will be at the Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka next year – and Max Hunt, a left-arm spinner who played for Northants 2nd XI, bowled a superb line and length all season."

Bedford have had some famous players in their setup in the past. Sir Alastair Cook played for the school, of course, and Derek Randall coached him. Could Chapman and Haroon be following in their footsteps?

They will certainly benefit from Bedford’s excellent facilities. 

"We have eight cricket grounds, 19 outdoor nets, plenty of bowling machines and a really nice pavilion, so we are very lucky with our facilities, there’s no doubt about that," said Steer. "The facilities have hugely improved, particularly the outfields in the last couple of years. Considering rugby is also played on them, the groundstaff do a great job. The school has always had cricket pedigree, and is a strong sporting school overall."