15.10.1945-26.5.2021
It was with great sadness that we heard of the sudden death of Peter Thompson in May 2021.
Peter was a committed member of the ‘hockey family’ at Brigg, a small market town in North Lincolnshire, for 50 years. He was proud of the growth of Brigg Hockey Club since he started playing in the early 1970s. Then, the men’s section had two teams comprising mostly teachers, farmers, and a vicar from time to time. The ladies’ section merged and today the Club has four men’s teams, three ladies’ teams and junior teams.
What typified Peter was that he gave back to the game more than he took from it. When the time came, he transitioned from player to coach to umpire and on to administrator seamlessly and often combined them at the same time. He led the Club for several years as Chairman. Peter did all this because of his enthusiasm for the game and the satisfaction he got when others enjoyed it. Not that he would say so!
In the late 1960s Peter played at Brigg Grammar School, at College in Chester and during his first teaching post in Lancashire he played at Warrington. On returning to Brigg in 1972 he taught at the Vale of Ancholme school, coaching and encouraging boys with no knowledge or experience of hockey. One or two became Lincolnshire junior and senior players; others played in Brigg lower teams. On to Caistor Grammar School he developed hockey for boys who followed similar paths to Brigg Hockey Club and Lincolnshire.
By the 1990s artificial pitches were appearing, though not many in Lincolnshire, and not in Brigg. Junior County teams were developing, and Peter was the Secretary of Lincolnshire School and Youth Hockey from 1990 to 1992. Indoor hockey was also late on the scene but for a period it flourished in the north of the county at Cleethorpes Leisure Centre with teams such as Brigg, Grimsby, Caistor, Hull and Hall Cross (Doncaster). Peter was the driving force in all this. (Those present had the chance to see Barry Middleton in the early part of his career).
League hockey replaced friendly fixtures when the Lincolnshire League was set in the 1977-1978 season. By this time Peter was captaining the 1st XI. As time moved on, he captained the 2nd team and then with the 3rds and 4ths to encourage his and his friends’ offspring to play and move in the opposite direction. Ahead of the 1989-90 season, Lincolnshire was split: north Lincolnshire to the Yorkshire League and the south Lincolnshire to the East League.
A career change around this time saw Peter move into photography and journalism. Through this he was able to promote local clubs by providing scores and brief match reports. He also developed a fine reputation as an after-dinner speaker, able to embellish tales of his numerous exploits on the pitch to entertain his audiences.
By this time, he was an umpire. He joined the Yorkshire League Pool around 2000 umpiring at all levels as far as the East Pennine Division. Other roles followed as umpire appointments, Umpire Disciplinary Panel and President of the Yorkshire Umpires. On the pitch he could be described as firmly in charge with a good rapport with players. In time Peter felt he could not keep up with the pace of higher standard hockey but couldn’t resist volunteering to cover lower league home matches and sometimes at Hull University on Wednesdays.
Peter is missed by all who knew him and those who will come realise what an important contribution he made to their enjoyment of hockey over years to come.
Peter’s wife Gwen survives him along with his daughters Lucy and Nichola, son David and granddaughter Eloise.
January 2023
Tony Stamp and Adrian Broome
