Anthony Ainley (1932-2004) The Wisden Almanacks obituaries have changed in recent years, from rather dry, fact-based accounts of a players career (longer if the chap went to the right school, or played in the Varsity Match) to, if at all possible, more rounded reviews of the persons life. Even jokes arent banned anymore. The change really started when Matthew Engel took over as editor in 1993. The whole book became more expressive, more characterful and more fun.I joined the Almanacks obituaries team before I started full-time for the Almanack itself. In 2004 I was still Cricinfos editor, and Matthew asked me to help out when I could. I was lucky that an alphabetical accident meant my first obituary was a memorable one.Anthony Ainley wasnt a first-class cricketer but an actor who won fame as The Master, the evil nemesis of Doctor Who. I knew he was a keen club cricketer, as Id played against him. I knew he batted in what looked like flying goggles, to protect his eyes for screen close-ups. And I knew - because hed done it to me - that if he felt tied down at the crease he would leap out, Trumper-like, with bat behind ear, and try to scythe you through covers. At one of our encounters hed had a tiff with a highly strung thespian team-mate and sloped off to take tea in his car. Gentle probing established that the argument wasnt to blame - he often did this, as he hated cheese, the ever-present staple of club teas, and brought his own food.My club had an enthusiastic chronicler at the time, who would drop off match reports to the local paper on his way home. His words of wisdom on this particular game obviously excited the sports desk, as the headline for our match report exclaimed that Inter-Galactic Terror had been visited upon Surrey.Don Bradman (1908-2001) Probably my most memorable obituary - or appreciation - came in 2001. We were setting up Wisden.com (which later merged with Cricinfo), and were coming to terms with the 24-hour nature of the beast. Late one cold February evening I received a phone call: Have you heard? Don Bradman has died.I hadnt heard. And there wasnt much time to reflect: the news, and an appraisal of the Don, had to go up online pronto. It was pushing midnight, but the words seemed to flow, and about half an hour later I pressed the button. Satisfyingly, my verdict was out there. Not long afterwards, the editor of a sumptuous Bradman tribute volume asked whether he could include it. The piece duly appeared in there, opposite another appreciation by Australias prime minister, John Howard - which, I suspect, impressed the Aussie half of my family more than anything else Ive ever done.Nigel Bennett (1912-2008) At the Almanack we dont often have the pressure of time; with the book out like clockwork every April, theres usually a reasonable period to work on those who passed away the previous year - although the sad demise of Tony Greig on December 29 a couple of years ago ruffled the teams calm a little.But perhaps theres a drawback in not preparing anything beforehand: manys the time Ive fervently wished I had spoken to the player before he took his leave, to discover more about an obviously interesting life. One such was Nigel Bennett, the man who was appointed captain of Surrey by mistake. When he died in 2008 we consulted Alec Bedser, who just nodded and termed it the cock-up.It seems that not long after Surrey decided to appoint a Major Leo Bennett as their first post-war skipper in 1946, Major Nigel Bennett popped in to renew his subscription. Someone in the office totted up two and two and made five, and Major Nigel was duly asked to take over as captain. This peculiar story was neatly embellished when Matthew Engel discovered that the players decided they could put up with Bennett once they clapped eyes on his wife, who was a real cracker.Michael Mence (1944-2014) There arent many advantages to getting older, but I suppose its a help to obituary-writers: youre more likely to have seen the player concerned. One such, who duly appeared in the 2015 Almanack, was Michael Mence, who I met several times when I worked at Lords after leaving school.Mence was an old-fashioned amateur who played hard and partied harder. I remember one morning bumping into my boss, Lieutenant-Colonel John Stephenson, and thinking he looked less dapper than usual following the previous nights committee meeting. I must have raised an eyebrow because he winced: I know. Mence. Never again. Mence had been a precocious schoolboy cricketer but played for Warwickshire and Gloucestershire without a great deal of success. He had more luck in Minor Counties cricket for Berkshire, and was also an MCC regular, especially enjoying their annual matches against Ireland and Scotland. And he was, according to MCCs annual report, probably the last player to appear at Lords sporting a cravat - a titbit I wish Id known before finishing the obituary. Somewhat spookily Mence passed away three days after his father (who also played for Berkshire) died in the same hospice on the Isle of Wight.Don Wilson (1937-2012) Someone else I knew well from my time at Lords was Don Wilson, the Yorkshire and England slow left-armer who later became MCCs head coach. He was interesting (and occasionally infuriating) to work with, a fund of funny stories and far-fetched excuses for why he hadnt quite managed to do what hed been asked.But most of the time he was riotous company, so I was sad when I heard he had succumbed to emphysema in 2012. And, after a week in which very little seemed to have been written about him, I jotted down some memories of Wils, which seemed to go down well. Custom Hockey Jerseys Store . During the athletes parade, the 23-strong Ukrainian team was represented by a lone flagbearer in an apparent protest at the presence of Russian troops in Ukraines Crimean peninsula. 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Calgary scored on the first shift, and Michael Cammalleri scored twice as the Flames cruised to a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem was comfortable with two Asia tournaments in the fall when the HSBC Champions in China became a World Golf Championship in 2009 and the CIMB Classic in Malaysia began a year later.Now that is set to expand.The PGA Tour plans a new tournament in South Korea that will start next year, giving the tour three straight weeks of golf in Asia that offer at least $7 million in prize money. Yonhap News Agency said South Korean conglomerate CJ Group will be the title sponsor. Details, such as the field and the size of the purse, are expected to be announced Monday in Seoul.The event in South Korea would give players an easier option of playing two weeks if they are eligible foor the World Golf Championship in Shanghai.dddddddddddd Instead of an overnight flight from Kuala Lumpur, the flight from Korea is just over two hours across the Yellow Sea.On Tuesday, the PGA Tour Champions announced its first tournament in Japan.The Japan Airlines Open will be Sept. 8-10 at Narita Golf Club. That makes the second Asia trip in the history of the 50-and-older circuit. The PGA Tour Champions had a two-year stint in South Korea (2010 and 2011), and it was supposed to take another event to China last year until a factory explosion moved the event to Canada. ' ' '