Though cricket researchers are as stubbornly persistent as Warne on a sticky wicket, Isaac Wales always stumped them. "Details not yet ratified," said the history books, and said it time and time again.

Now, however, the mystery of Ikey Wales has at last been resolved - more than 100 years after he last kept wicket for New South Wales.

His birthplace had routinely been listed as Auckland. In Australia, not unreasonably, they assumed it to be Auckland, New Zealand - and were getting on 12,000 miles adrift.

Ikey Wales, it finally transpires, was one of nine children who lived with their parents - and, incredibly, a maid - in Auckland Park, an unprepossessing pit village near Bishop Auckland.

How the young prince of the Wales family went from overcrowded colliery terrace to first class cricket on the other side of the earth is still unanswered. That his biography may at last be potted is down to an inspired hunch from Wisden Australia editor Warwick Franks and to the diligence of Frances Foote Wood in Bishop Auckland.

Franks wrote to Frances's husband Chris - local councillor and Bishop Auckland Cricket Club press officer - seeking help. Frances, happily, was well accustomed to climbing family trees.

Franks had provided a date of birth which proved almost accurate. At the Family History Centre in London, Frances solved the 100-year-old mystery in a quarter of an hour.

"They're brilliant, incredibly user friendly," says Chris. "If the date of birth had been correct, she'd have probably done it in five minutes."

Isaac Wales, she discovered, was born in William Street, Auckland Park, an undistinguished terrace with long gardens at the front and brick outhouses and unmade alleys at the back.

The Echo's archives have a mud-in-your photograph taken by dear old Bill Oliver in 1967. Though many of the houses have been demolished the remainder are little changed - "as the residents constantly remind me," says Coun Foote Wood.

Ikey was born on December 30 1864 to Charles Wales, a miner, and his wife Mary, formerly Mary Franklin from Evenwood. Mrs Wales couldn't write, so marked the birth certificate with a cross.

The 1881 census shows 12 people - "Family No. 183" - in the house, but doesn't record the street number. There were eight children, a stepson and 17-year-old Hannah Oughton, their "domestic servant."

Joseph, Isaac, William and 14-year-old Thomas were all recorded as coal miners, the other children as "scholars".

"The amazing thing is the maid, but I suppose if they had five wages coming in they could afford it," says Chris.

Ikey played Grade cricket for Warwick and Carlton and for NSW between 1885-86 and 1893-94. By the time of the 1891 census, none of the family remained in Auckland Park.

His deep mined roots were even a surprise to cricket historian and Durham County scorer Brian Hunt, born barely a mile away. Gordon Nicholson, another local lad made near-enough omniscient, was equally astounded.

"Wales was a fairly common name in those parts, mind," says Brian and the Darlington area telephone book still lists five families of that red dragon name within a 20 minute walk of William Street.

Perhaps they can help complete the story of the lad from Auckland Park colliery who kept wicket in a brave new world.

Brooks Mileson - former four minute miler, would-be saviour of Carlisle United and magnificent principal sponsor of the Albany Northern League - is calling his first born Amos, after the Northern League chairman. "She reminds me of you every time I look at her," he says. The new arrival - "only a week old and already on six boiled eggs a day" - is, unfortunately, an ostrich.

Ray Wood, the Busby Babe who died this week, almost became a Sunderland player instead. Then as now, however, the Wearside club had a reputation for being careful with the pennies - and with the halfpennies, too.

Ray, Hebburn lad and Reyrolles apprentice, was invited for a Roker Park trial by team manager Bill Murray. Impressed, Murray offered him professional terms and asked his bus fare.

"It was Hebburn to Tyne Dock and Tyne Dock to Sunderland, one and tenpence ha'penny," he told Backtrack in 1997.

"Bill Murray gave me two shillings and asked for three ha'pence change. That's why I didn't sign for Sunderland."

We'd met on Darlington railway station, Ray en route to a reunion in Hartlepool of the Pools team which memorably lost 4-3 to Manchester United in the 1957 FA Cup.

"A few times I've had this dream and it's still so vivid," said the Munich survivor. "You're sitting there with the lads, then a big bang and you wake up."

Lovely man, he'd also nipped back down to Feethams - where finally his Football League career began - for a photograph. "Probably the best player Darlington ever had," says Alan Cooper, who rings to point out an affectionate obituary in The Times.

Ray, long in Brighton, had already had a heart attack and a coronary bypass when we met. "I've learned to live for today," he said. He died on Sunday, aged 71.

Tuesday's note on how the Church Times caught up with the Rev John Thorneycroft Hartley - the Vicar of Burneston, near Bedale, who twice in the late nineteenth century won the Wimbledon singles title - reproduced their cartoon of a defeated opponent acknowledging the parson's omnipotence but, inexplicably, failed to use the caption. "Lovely service, Vicar," it said.

Problems mount for Spennymoor United, locked in argument with the town council over a new lease on the Brewery Field. Now, we hear, the UniBond League has threatened to suspend the club's fixtures unless assurances on tenure and football debts and received by the end of the month.

Talk of the Brewery Field prompts a little reverie from former Vaux managing director Frank Nicholson, now in Chester-le-Street.

It was the Tower Brewery, he recalls, owned by Mr P B Junor who was also a prime mover in the successful Tudhoe Rugby (League) Club and introduced curling to Spennymoor.

Tower later became part of North Eastern Breweries which in turn merged with C Vaux and Son in 1927.

Tower closed in the early 20th century, its horses and men moved to a depot near Spennymoor station where they received beer by rail from Sunderland.

Frank believes it "inconceivable" that Junor would have sold the field to the council without a covenant restricting it to sports use only. "Maybe the football club should spend some time among the archives at County Hall before conceding defeat," he says.

Barrie Hindmarch, United's long serving (and long suffering) chairman hasn't been available - but he won't be conceding defeat just yet.

Our dear old friends at Whitby Town also have potential problems with the UniBond League, which partly explains plans for a major redevelopment at the Turnbull Ground.

"An appeal to prevent our club being relegated," begins a press release from Seasiders' chairman Graham Manser.

The scheme embraces both cricket and football clubs, either side of the car park. The cricketers, too, acknowledge that their facilities have become "old and dilapidated" and that the wicket hasn't been relaid in living memory.

To meet the UniBond's new standards by April 1 2003, or face probably demotion, the football club envisages a £275,000 new stand.

With investments and grants they can raise £230,000. An appeal is being launched - sponsor a seat for £100 - to find the remainder.

"The existing stand is too small for the league and is falling down. It's a wonder it hasn't been condemned," says Graham.

He'd welcome "bright ideas" and - of course - cheques on seats. Graham's on 01947 893382.

Durham FA's disciplinary committee minutes reveal that Campbell Paul Dempsey, aged 17, has been fined £30 and banned for ten weeks after spitting at an opponent and attempting to head butt him. Mr Dempsey plays for Heworth Christian Fellowship in the North East Christian Fellowship League. The young man may not have heard of the scripture about turning the other cheek.

Weather notwithstanding, it was a Somers' day at Blaydon on Saturday, Ian Somerfield recording his 20,000th first team run.

It came at 4 30pm, short ball outside off. "He picked the length quickly and the experience of a thousand innings leapt like a viper piercing prey," writes Durham cricket historian Jack Chapman, our man with the floribundant phrase.

Somers, as invariably he is known, made his first team debut in 1981, topped 1,000 runs in every season between 1988-96, amassed 1,662 in 1993 and has 11 centuries.

Particularly he is remembered for the opening partnership with Paul Veitch - "strangely it was an illegitimate conception," adds Jack, "a Revenue man born of two pirates."

On the road to Blaydon, they probably talk of nothing else.

...and finally

The Percival other than the streaker who is in cricket's record books (Backtrack, July 9) is - of course - Shildon lad Robert Percival, whose record for throwing the cricket ball was set 130 years ago on Durham Sands and has still not been surpassed.

Willington FC chairman John Phelan today seeks the identity of the footballer who scored a hat trick on his debut against Manchester United in 1954-55 - Ray Wood was the goalie, memory suggests - and 12 years later was still playing as an amateur in the Northern League.

United won 6-5, but their opponents won the first division, More of that on Tuesday.

Published: 12/07/2002