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Paul
Brimble is the sea bass man.
That
doesn't mean he has gills and spooky lidless eyes, but rather that
he is the keeper of the Gloucestershire County Cricket Club's latest
mascot, a fish which (allegedly) returned from the dead to devour
their previous animal idol, a frozen chicken.
"I
went fishing with the boys, and that day we caught a lot of sea
bass," said Paul. "One particular fish had a lot more
fight in it than the others."
Heroically
wrestling the beast ashore, he promptly clobbered it and stashed
it in his freezer alongside the 'mystical chicken', the team's former
lucky mascot which had been out of favour since Gloucestershire
lost to Surrey in the 2001 Benson and Hedges cup.
"When
I looked the next morning, the mystical chicken was gone,"
claimed Paul. "I called an immediate meeting of the chicken
men, and it was decided that the fish would be our new mascot."
Going
swimmingly
Thus
far, the aquatic icon seems to be doing an admirable job.
"We
took it to the semi-finals (of the Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy),
thrashed our opponents and have moved on to Lord's yet again,"
said Paul.
He
intends to get it out and wave it around at this weekend's final.
"It'll
be coming out at Gloucestershire's first four or wicket," he
said. "But you've got to be careful of the dorsal fin - it's
very sharp."
The
sea bass - proper name Centropristis striata - can grow to around
24 inches in length and lives for up to 20 years, by which time
it would probably taste somewhat stringy.
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| All
hail the mystical container |
Fowl
play
The
fish has a lot to live up to.
Such
was the reputation of the mystical chicken that it was accorded
the honour of being held aloft by Gloucestershire captain Mark Alleyne
while he ran the length of the Grace Pavillion at the County Ground
singing the bird's anthem, "He's got the whole chicken in his
hands."
There
are a number of popular theories relating to the origin of the chicken,
whose inception as a mascot is shrouded in urban myth.
Chickening
out
Paul
Brimble claims that the fortuitous fowl was taken live to Lords
in 1977.
 You've got to be careful of the dorsal
fin - it's very sharp.
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| Paul
Brimble |
"It
escaped and caused quite a lot of chaos during the game.
"Being
young I was quite sharp and managed to catch it and break its neck
and put paid to that chicken," he said.
"We
won that cup, so from there we plucked it and froze it and took
it to all the big one day games.
"Gloucestershire
went on to rewrite the history books of one day cricket, and a lot
of it was down to the mystical chicken."
Back
to bassics
The
'Sea Bass Coach' is booked for this weekend's C & G Trophy final,
and will be transporting the fish (in its 'mystical container'),
Paul and around forty other devotees to the aid of their sporting
heroes at Lord's.
Let's
hope Gloucestershire don't get 'battered', or their finned friend's
next appearance may be alongside a portion of chips and some tartare
sauce.
If
you would like to comment on this story get in touch at gloucestershire@bbc.co.uk
or have your say on our
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Gloucestershire
County Cricket Club has a new mascot: a sea bass. Keeper of the fish
Paul Brimble explained the reasoning behind this eccentric choice.
