THE father of former cricketer Tom Allin said he and his wife were ‘overwhelmed’ by the turn-out for the charity memorial day for their late son.
More than £3,000 was raised for the Devon Air Ambulance appeal fund from the Tom Allin Memorial Day hosted by North Devon CC.
Allin, who died in 2016, was a former professional cricketer with Warwickshire who had played for Bideford, North Devon and Devon CCC on his way through to the professional ranks.
Three teams took part in a limited-overs tournament: North Devon who won it, Bideford and a Tom Allin team made up of former team-mates from Warwickshire, Devon and elsewhere.
Tony Allin, Tom’s father, said although the day was bitter-sweet at times he and wife Bev were ‘bowled over’ by the day’s events and the amount of money raised for the air ambulance appeal.
“The love for Tom from his friends was very evident and was fantastic for us to see and feel,” said Tony, whose own cricket career took him from Bideford to Glamorgan CCC and back again.
“Bev and I want to say a big thank-you to North Devon CC for staging it and all the people like Craig and Jamie Overton who put up big raffle prizes.
“And special thanks must go to Jack Hockin and his sister Daisy, Josh King, Jonny Green for all the work they put in as organisers.
“It all added up to one hell of a day.”
The first Tom Allin Memorial Day was held back in 2016 – it raised around £6,000 – and despite its success there have been no plans to make it an annual event.
“The next one will be in 2026 as that way we keep it special and stop it becoming an annual event people may lose interest in,” said joint organiser Green.
Tom Allin was a fast-bowling all-rounder who played for Bideford from his early teens and was soon playing for Devon in age-group cricket.
He moved to North Devon CC to play league cricket at a higher level, which led to appearances in the full Devon county side and interest from Warwickshire.
Tom made his Warwickshire 2ndXI debut in 2008 and was contracted as a player the following summer. He was a regular in 2ndXI cricket for five seasons but could not make a permanent breakthrough into in the 1stXI and was released at the end of the 2013 season.
Tom Allin died following a fall from the A39 Torridge Road Bridge in January 2016. The corner recorded a verdict of suicide.
