The first I heard of the legend that was Peter Hall was in 1988 when Kilgetty U15s were about to take on Carew in the play-offs for the U15s final.

As the day of the game drew closer, Johnny Lewis, who was my opening partner back in the day, kept on about a young gun we were going to come up against called Brian Hall, who apparently ‘was going to be better than his father.’

I enquired as to who his father was and the question was met with derision; as if to say ‘if you don’t know who Peter Hall is, you don’t know about cricket.’

As the years went by I became more familiar with his name as I listened in on my elders talking about local cricket stars and I finally got the chance to play against him in a Harrison-Allen cup game at Kilgetty in the early to mid 90s

His stance at the crease didn’t portray a legend of the game (he was crouched down low with his feet close together and in all honesty it looked ungainly), but the execution of his shots did.

No matter what you bowled at him, and Kilgetty had some good bowlers back then, the majority of shots were sweetly struck, played into gaps or hit with such power they raced to the boundary.

As he often did, he virtually won Carew the game.

He was well into his 40s back then, but he was still one of the best around and it made you realise just how good he must have been when in his prime.

The players of his generation speak in reverent tones of how he smashed bowling attacks apart, how no local bowler was good enough for him when he was in the mood and how his batting stood out among his peers.

He was known as a destructive batsman, what some may call a slogger, but he was much better than that. No player scores the amount of runs he did through luck, each run was scored through judgement and skill and it was no surprise that he represented Wales.

He’d never give his wicket away and if he was dismissed early in his innings, it was wise to give him a wide berth to let the disappointment of the day disappear so the fun-loving, wise-cracking, great story-telling Peter Hall could return.

I got to know him better when he joined Lamphey. The dashing Peter Hall was no more, but it was still a pleasure to watch him bat, especially when he and David Lovell were together at the crease.

One was the modern day master, the other the master of the past. The two best batsmen ever seen in the county? Possibly so, but people will have their own views about that.

He was a fierce competitor and would never give up. If a game was slipping away, he’d be the first to raise heads, saying ‘if we’re going to go down, then let’s go down fighting.’ He truly was an inspiration.

There are plenty in Pembrokeshire and beyond who knew him better than me, who could regale tales of his exploits both on and off the pitch and give better examples of his brilliance.

This summer he paid a surprise visit to Lamphey to watch us. It was a pleasure to see him and as he sat down to take in the game, on asking how he was, his reply was typical Peter.

“There’s still runs in me,” he replied with a smile. There probably was too had his health allowed.

He mentioned how he’d like one last game at his beloved Carew before retiring.

Sadly the chance never came.

He will be missed.

Hywel Gibbs