Warriors stalwart Andrew Birch served a calling that always remained true to his character – being a team player both on and off the field, writes Marc Jacobson.
Birch played a career spanning 15 years, since making his debut for Eastern Province in 2005 when he was still a teenager.
A devout Warrior, Birch claimed 330 wickets in 99 matches in first-class cricket and 157 wickets in 109 matches during his List A tenure for the union.
He showed some class above the rest in his T20 career, taking 98 wickets in 81 innings with a superb average of 22.01. In the longer formats of the game, his averages stood at 25.92 and 25.68 in his red ball and white ball games respectively at ‘the close of play’.
The right-arm seamer grew up in the broader Eastern Cape countryside in a small farming community called Dordrecht, a town located just 70km outside of Queenstown.
His family owned a farm where they bred and farmed horses, cattle and sheep. Through this line of work, Birch said his family members were avid horseracing enthusiasts, with cricket not being an original core focus.
However, he began playing cricket with his siblings on their plot in a ‘backyard’ format of the game wherein Birch was the youngest of the lot.
“I basically grew up on the back of a horse, but playing cricket with my siblings, and me being the youngest, they always used to test me,” Birch recalled when speaking to Cricket Fanatics Magazine.
“I developed a lot for the game through them. The rest of my family often watched cricket and made jokes of [me] playing at a high level [one day].”
Those jokes became a reality for Birch as his love for the game evolved when he became a fully-fledged professional – and having been unlucky on numerous occasions to not get a call-up to the national squad.
The East London-born player led the Warriors bowling attack for many years and was the leading wicket-taker for the team in the 2012/13 and 2014/15 Sunfoil Series (first-class cricket) seasons.
He also topped the charts in the 2012/13, 2013/14 and 2015/16 seasons in the Momentum One Day Cup, the first of which he was the highest wicket-taker in the whole competition.
His career highlights, though, stem more into that of team dynamics.
“I had a really long career and I thoroughly enjoyed it all and I experienced some good highs,” Birch said.
“Winning the trophy (Momentum One Day Cup) in 2010 with a really good side – and playing alongside the likes of Jacques Kallis, Mark Boucher, Makhaya Ntini and Johan Botha – at such a young age, and to be involved in that, was a [notable] highlight for me.
“Playing for South African A [in 2017] was the highest level I represented. Unfortunately, I didn’t earn an official cap for South Africa, but I have no regrets. I gave it my all.”
Birch’s tenure playing for the Dhaka Dynamites in the Bangladesh Premier League last year added some sparkle to his illustrious career.
“It was unbelievable to play alongside and be around the likes Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell and Upal Tharanga.
“It was really good to experience change, travel there and get to know the country,” he said, adding that throughout his career he formed some lifelong friendships, both locally and elsewhere in the world.
“I was at the Warriors my whole career and we managed to create a seriously good cricketing environment, which I’m hoping won’t get lost in the near future.
“I played with some really good cricketers along the way, such as Simon Harmer, Colin Ackermann and Colin Ingram, who I’ve played with or against since U13 [level]. They all became really good mates of mine.
“I look back at my Warriors career with really fond memories. I’m happy my career went the way it did.”
He added that as a youngster he was actually more of a batsman than a bowler. Birch was at times a fine lower-order batsman, having often contributed and scored runs during crunch times in matches.
“I loved batting. If there was an optional net at practice you would find me batting, not bowling. Any bowler actually enjoys scoring runs more than taking wickets,” he quipped.
“I always tried to contribute as much as I could with the bat, because I’m an aggressive player and I always wanted to take the bowlers on and take the game forward.
“Whenever we were in a little bit of trouble it worked for me to try and take the game away from the opposition in the space of just a few overs.”
Birch’s upbringing, pertaining to the discipline and workmanship needed in farm life, had perhaps moulded him into becoming a fine servant of the game.
He said he was also able to reap much inspiration from Ntini at the beginning to kickstart his career.
“I learned a hell of a lot from him. Me being able to speak Xhosa fluently, we got on very well and communicated easily.”
Later on in his career, as he became a senior, Birch became that inspiration for other youngsters moving through the system.
“When Rivash Gobind was around [as head coach], he leaned on me quite a lot in the bowling department, because we didn’t have anyone here then. I actually loved that position.
“When I wasn’t playing I would travel with the squad and mentor the players. I thoroughly enjoyed working with the youngsters coming through. We have a really healthy stock of young fast bowlers coming through at the Warriors currently.
“I’m really excited to sit back and watch how their careers develop moving forward,” he said, noting that the likes of Anrich Nortje, Lutho Sipamla, Aya Gqamane and Sisanda Magala were some of the bowlers honed in the process.
Looking ahead, Birch, who was schooled at St. Andrews College in Grahamstown, will continue to give back to the game which had been life-defining to him from a personal perspective.
He is going to relocate to Grahamstown where he will serve as a sports administrator or coordinator – with the main focus on cricket – at Kingswood College, ironically the rivals of his alma mater.
On the side, he plans to run a development cricketing academy in which to uplift and harness players and coaches in the Grahamstown surrounds, an area where he sees much potential in terms of cricket.
“I have a very young family and I’ve got this great opportunity to work at Kingswood College so the timing [to retire] was perfect for moving on to the next chapter.
“I’ve had a really good career and I don’t leave with any regrets. I’m extremely proud of what I’ve achieved and done, both on and off the field.
“I’m at a place where I’m able to walk away from the game with a happy heart.”
Photo: Frikkie Kapp/BackpagePix
