PHIL Godfrey, one of the key figures in the emergence of Woodlands as a dominant force in the Bradford Premier League, has died aged 73.
In an heartfelt obituary published on their website, the Bradford Premier League wrote:
Phil passed away on Tuesday after a long battle with the crippling effects of Rheumatoid Arthritis, but he leaves a wonderful legacy for future generations of cricketers to enjoy at Albert Terrace.
In his 47-year association with Woodlands, he helped transform them from a modest village team meandering along in the Bradford Central League into a club with an insatiable appetite for winning silverware.
Eight Bradford Premier League titles, three Priestley Cups, three Heavy Woollen Cup sand two Black Sheep Yorkshire Champions Trophy wins have been garnered in the last 16 years.
Phil was an all-rounder who started his cricketing career with Wyke Temperance in the Bradford Mutual Sunday School League, where he played alongside his former Carlton Grammar School friend Brian Pearson.
When Wyke Temperance folded, the two joined Woodlands along with Gerald Medcalf and set about raising the cricketing profile of the club.
Phil was an enthusiastic player who tended to pose problems with the ball due to the bounce he could extract, but even his best friends could find little merit in his fielding.
It was off the field where he was to make his biggest impact, alongside Brian Pearson, who described his long-time friend as “the brother I never had.”
Phil joined the club committee in 1979 and as a member of the cricket committee from 1990, played a key role in the recruitment that led to the transformation of the club.
After Woodlands had boosted their finances with the opening of the indoor nets in 1991, their cricketing fortunes started to rise.
Former Yorkshire player Stuart Fletcher was the first key signing and was followed by Tim Orrell, Sarfraz Ahmed, Pieter Swanepoel and Chris Brice, as Woodlands took the Bradford League by storm after joining in 2001.
Phil loved spotting players who could enhance the side, a role he relished along with his responsibilities as the club’s assistant secretary and league representative.
For many years he was the gateman on matchdays at Albert Terrace, greeting visitors as he collected their admission money and handed them a programme.
He was also a keen fundraiser and through his work as a conveyancing solicitor, he also secured several valuable sponsors for the club.
A penchant for writing odes and putting his extensive sports knowledge to the test in quizzes were two more of his talents, before his illness confined him to a wheelchair, which limited his ability to enjoy the game he loved.
Phil was immensely proud when Woodlands joined the Bradford League in 2001 and during that first season saw his son Richard take four wickets in four balls.
Phil always insisted it should have been five in five because he felt the fifth ball was a stonewall lbw.
It was fitting therefore that Richard was at his side the last time he saw Woodlands play at Headingley, in the Yorkshire Premier League Play-Off final against Castleford in September 2021.
Phil was given his own special vantage point outside the Hawke Suite looking down over the bowler’s arm. He reckoned it was the best view he had ever had of a Woodlands game.
Richard, Phil's daughters Joanne and Paula, and his six grandchildren can take great pride and comfort from the warmth and admiration those at Woodlands and in the wider cricket community had for the local stalwart.
The game has lost yet another great servant.
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