The Cricketer's Song

11 May 1968

And why, when you pick the paper up,
Do you get those dizzy pains?
Why do you get the sniffles
When it looks like evening rain?

Yes, and why can't you walk so quickly now?
I think the reason's clear -
It's because you've up cricket
For more than thirty years.

And you can't shake off those back-aches -
You drink much less now too.
Not like the bar-room champion
Of nineteen twenty-two.

The baker clips your roses -
You can't, for it appears
You've given away your cricket
For over thirty years.

And why, on Thursday afternoon,
When sitting in your home,
Did you get the familiar, pleasant feel
Of Death in every bone?

And why does everything go black
At noon? Your doctor fears
It's because you've given up cricket
For more than thirty years.