England's absorbing Test series in South Africa is being closely followed by Gerry Hill, Hampshire's oldest surviving county cricketer living in this country.

Now 91, Gerry is in retirement at Lyndhurst with his wife, Kathleen. The pair have been married for almost 65 years, tying the knot in 1940 when he was serving in the Army during World War 2.

There's a special interest for Gerry in the current Test series as his old Hampshire team-mate, wicketkeeper Neil McCorkell, emigrated to South Africa more than 50 years ago. The pair last met when McCorkell, who's 92, travelled back to England a few years ago for the annual reunion of Hampshire 'old boys.'

"He's a bit of a South African fan these days and I'm hoping that my team can outdo his and win this series," says Gerry.

"It's been very exciting so far and the win this week in the fourth Test showed how much England have improved recently."

Gerry keeps in touch with play via the newspapers and radio reports, but concedes that today's first class cricket is vastly different from when he finished playing half a century ago.

"It bears no resemblance to the old days with all the different forms of the game and the money involved. "The players now are probably a lot fitter, although they seem to get injured a lot more. We probably played more cricket in total, but you couldn't afford to be injured for long!"

An off-spinner and useful batsman, Gerry scored more than 9,000 runs and captured over 600 wickets in a 22 year Hampshire career interrupted by the War.

He was recommended to the club by novellist Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his first captain was Lionel, Lord Tennyson. l A full Where Are They Now ? feature on Gerry Hill will appear soon.