Ashley Cowan Has Benefit This Year
Ashley Cowan, the splendid cricketer who plays for Essex, has a well justified Benefit this year.
Ashley is a tall fast medium bowler, who is more than capable as a right handed batsman.
Born at Hitchin in 1975, he played Minor Counties cricket for Cambridgeshire in 1993, and made his debut for Essex in 1995, winning his county cap in 1997.
His highest score came in 1998, and is well remembered by many Leicestershire members. It was on the last day of a match at Grace Road, with Leicestershire well on top and pressing for victory.
Ashley scored a magnificent 94, and although the home side still won, he held them up considerably and ruffled quite a few feathers. He came in to bat shortly after play had started for the day, and was out before lunch – so if he had scored the other six runs it would have been a century before lunch.
His best bowling is 6 – 47 against Glamorgan at Cardiff in 1999, and he took a hat trick in 1996.
He has a Gold Award for the old Benson and Hedges. His best one day figures were both against Middlesex in 2001 – a highest score of 45 at Chelmsford in the Benson and Hedges, and a best bowling of 5 – 14 at Southgate in the National League.
Ashley went on tour with England to the West Indies in 1997-98, but was strangely under-used, and not asked again.
He has missed a lot of time through injury, including missing the whole of the 2003 season after knee surgery.
At the age of 31, Ashley Cowan, who was one of the finest bowling prospects in England for years, has been granted a Benefit. May it be very successful.
Posted by colin on Monday 3rd July, 2006 at 6:36am