Geoff Issott
We were deeply saddened to hear that Geoff Issott passed away in the early hours of the morning of 18th May 2023. Geoff, “the proud Yorkshire soul” as described by his wife Pam, was a long-time member of the Berne Cricket Club. A permanent figure in the playing eleven, he was elected to the committee shortly after the founding of the club in 1977, serving as Secretary and/or Treasurer and later as the Auditor. He will be fondly remembered as not only contributing to cricket in Berne, but also as a “true Yorkshire lad with a great northern sense of humour” (a quote by Geoff des Ligneris, a founder member of the BCC).
Geoff, the Freddie Trueman of the BCC, was not as menacing as Trueman but his medium pacers often baffled and bowled out many a batsman. Unlike Trueman, who missed many matches because of various disciplinary breaches, Geoff was never seen or heard of as being unsporting or unruly. The silver-haired Geoff was always cool and calm with a pleasing smile on his face. A perfect gentleman.
In Remembrance (10.09.1937 - 18.05.2023)
Geoff toured with the BCC to fixtures in Porlezza (Italy), Heidelberg (Germany) and Kent and Surrey in England. Those were memorable days with not only good competitive cricket but also wonderful socialising in the evenings. Italian food and wine in Porlezza, good German and Greek food in Heidelberg, and pub lunches, Indian Tandoori and Chinese dinners in England. It was always a delight to have Geoff and Pam with us.
Geoff, together with Pam, had a huge network of friends. He was fond of a drink and had a wonderful collection of single-malt whiskies, special beers from Germany and Belgium, not to mention his Italian and French wines. Practice sessions ended up in a fairly run-down restaurant (today the IN restaurant Marzilibrücke) where beers were drunk galore, with greats like Peter MacLaverty, Jimmy Khan, Geoff des Ligners, Eugene Edmondson, Abraham Koshy, Geoff and sometimes Lou Adhihetty.
As Geoff des Ligneris put it „In the modern day and age of automobiles Geoff loved his very basic Döschwo (in French Deux chevaux) which for three years even sported CD plates. If you saw the blue Döschwo driving over the Monbijou bridge, it was Pam and Geoff going to or coming home from work or later Geoff alone in the car going to pick Pam up from work. Once the pioneers of the club aged like a good wine, Geoff took up playing golf with Peter Mac, Geoff des Ligneris, Brian Finch, Chandroo Lalvani and a few others not belonging to the BCC. The golf rounds ended up in Moospinte, an exclusive restaurant close to the golf course and referred fondly by golfers as the “19th hole”.
Geoff will be dearly missed. He is survived by his wife Pam, his daughters Maria and Anna and his grandchildren. Sven, his grandson, and his wife are expecting a babyboy in June, which would’ve made Geoff a great-grandfather. Rest in peace, Geoff.
The President, the Committee and Members of the Berne Cricket Club