Legendary Essex CCC, Graham Gooch, and Sir Alastair Cook Honored with Stand Namings
In a tribute to their illustrious club cricket careers, Essex County Cricket Club (Essex CCC) has renamed two stands at their home ground, The County Ground in Chelmsford, after former England captains Graham Gooch and Sir Alastair Cook.
The River End is now known as the Sir Alastair Cook End, while the Hayes Close End has been renamed the Graham Gooch End. Both players are revered as Essex CCC legends, having represented the club for over 20 years each.
Graham Gooch, who played for Essex from 1974 to 1997, scored a remarkable 30,701 runs in 391 first-class matches for the county, averaging a stunning 51.77. He held the record for England’s all-time leading Test run-scorer for two decades until it was surpassed by his fellow Essex great, Sir Alastair Cook.
Sir Alastair Cook, who played for Essex CCC from 2003 to 2023, amassed 11,337 runs in 158 first-class matches for the county, with an impressive average of 45.16. Cook, who retired from professional cricket last October at the age of 38, remains England’s all-time leading Test run-scorer with 12,472 runs.
“It’s a real honour to rename the bowling ends at The County Ground after two legends of Essex cricket. We’re a club with a long history, and it’s important that we recognize that. The renaming of our ground ends allows us to pay tribute to two of our finest players of all time.”
— John Stephenson, Chief Executive of Essex Cricket
The decision to rename the stands after Gooch and Cook reflects the immense contributions they have made to Essex CCC and the game of cricket as a whole. This recognition ensures that their legacies will be forever etched in the history of the club and continue to inspire future generations of club cricketers.
🔗 Source
