By Blake Bint
WHEN Matthew Maynard flies to the Middle East in a few days’ time, it will likely be a journey of emotional reflection.
The former Glamorgan and England batter is about to embark on a fresh career challenge as part of the coaching team for the Sharjah Warriors franchise in the inaugural International League T20, which begins on January 13 in Dubai.
But as one door opens for 56-year-old Maynard, he feels it’s time another one closed.
Last summer marked the 10th anniversary of the death of his son Tom, who died on a London railway line in June 2012 while a Surrey player.
While his legacy will live on, while Maynard says his boy remains constantly on his mind and the devastation persists, he has decided to close the Tom Maynard Trust which he set up in the aftermath of the tragedy.
Over the course of a decade the trust raised funds for the development of aspiring disadvantaged cricketers and other athletes via bursaries, training education, financial support and kit.
But Maynard feels it has run its course, achieved its aims and that it is time to draw the trust’s work to a close.
“I think it was important for us as a family to keep Tom’s name alive and we’ve done that,” Maynard told Expo Sport.
“With the Professional Cricketers’ Association we did three big bike rides and the three peaks challenge.
“Then I came up with the Wellyman Walk from Cardiff, where Tom was born, to Colwyn Bay where he made his debut for Glamorgan.
“The money raised was for his legacy and we’re closing the trust down after 10 years this year.
“We have Tom’s nets here at Glamorgan, which I’m very proud of and also Tom’s hut which is a small pavilion at St. Fagans Cricket Club.
“They will help keep Tom’s name going now.
“It’s time to say thank you to everyone who has supported us, the support we’ve had from local communities in Wales has been immense.
“But now is the right time to finish. We won’t be asking for any more of your money!”
While Maynard has secured his son’s legacy, his own is also secure in the eyes of the cricketing world, and especially in Wales where his exploits for Glamorgan in the 80s and 90s made him a household name.
Maynard is progressing towards becoming one of the most revered elder statesman in cricket.
He remains in charge of Glamorgan’s red-ball operation having given so much in various capacities to the county since hanging up his spikes.
There is also the England experience in his locker – most notably his part in Duncan Fletcher’s coaching team that oversaw the unforgettable 2005 Ashes series win.
Maynard will tackle his upcoming role with the Warriors with his customary zeal, but, understandably, is changed forever by the loss of his son.
You sense talking to him that time has, to some extent, been a healer. Yet he knows the healing never ends for those who lose a child.
The same tragedy befell his former Glamorgan team-mate Steve James, whose daughter Bethan, a former University of South Wales journalism student, died from illness aged just 21 in February 2020.
Maynard emphasised how tough it has been see James struck by such tragedy.
“I suppose we share something…. you don’t know how bad it is until you have gone through it,” he said.
“I know that Steve and Jane are still finding it very tough, as you will do, as Sue and I do too.
“You have your various anniversaries come up…..there’s not a day goes by we don’t miss Tom, but anniversaries hurt a bit more.
“My daughter has just got engaged and she was in tears because she would’ve loved Tom to have seen that.
“There’s moments in all our lives going forward that we wish Tom was there to celebrate them with us and enjoy them with the family and we know that’s not going to be the case.
“Steve is in exactly the same boat and that’s a very tough thing to take as a family. It is very tough watching a close friend go through that.”
Maynard’s Sharjah Warriors play their first match of the International League T20 on Saturday January 14 in Abu Dhabi against MI Emirates.
It will be the start of a fresh chapter, a new focus for one of cricket’s legends.
His son will, as always, never be far from his mind. But the legacy Maynard has helped instal for Tom will hopefully bring him more peace.