How Andrew Flintoff is taking control of his sons' early careers - and the key role they played in bringing him back into cricket

Of each nan shots, it is nan signature propulsion changeable that astir demands nan double take: caput dipping arsenic nan muscular framework swivels, weight transferring onto nan backmost ft arsenic nan beforehand 1 lifts somewhat awkwardly from nan turf.

It is an image from that iconic summertime of 2005 projected done a caller lens. Ball being belted done nan Birmingham breeze and into nan stands. Not connected nan tv screens of a federation infatuated pinch the Ashes, but connected nan societal media pop-ups of funny region cricket aficionados.

Andrew Flintoff has attempted to shut up nan sound astir his 2 cricketing sons, but nan actions of Rocky, 16, astatine Edgbaston past week screamed for attention.

Playing alongside Corey for Lancashire’s Second XI, he marked conscionable his 3rd quality pinch a maiden elder 100 against Warwickshire.

The candles connected his astir caller day barroom had only been blown retired a matter of hours erstwhile he deed an unbeaten 50 disconnected Durham’s onslaught nan erstwhile week.

Such unique movements brought backmost memories for Mail Sport’s David Lloyd among others.

‘All nan mannerisms were precisely nan same. He conscionable looked nan absolute spit of him. The measurement he walks, nan measurement he runs betwixt nan wickets, you could spot he was a Flintoff straightaway,’ Lloyd says.

As Lancashire caput coach, Lloyd watched Flintoff elder intently astatine nan aforesaid property successful nan mid-1990s and ventured to nan family location successful Preston to reason, complete beverage and biscuits, that early ambitions would beryllium champion met down nan roadworthy astatine Old Trafford alternatively than pinch Northamptonshire, whose connection to uproot included a backstage schoolhouse education.

‘Bumble’ later manus him a County Championship debut astatine 17 and, aft a harrowing maiden first-class quality involving almost arsenic galore dropped catches arsenic runs, Flintoff would opportunity that he missed his first coach’s knowledgable power arsenic their paths headed successful different directions.

‘Freddie’ is now nan 1 providing wise counsel, taking power of his sons’ early careers. So far, that has progressive keeping nan media astatine arm’s length, instructing Lancashire to rebuff requests for interviews and photographs to let them to attraction connected their performances.

It feels inevitable, however, that he will soon beryllium scanning nan position of a mates of rookie master contracts.

At Emirates Old Trafford, elder players admit that nan talent Flintoff displayed successful transcending nan athletics pinch his exploits against Australia 19 years agone has passed done nan genes.

‘They’re bully kids. Rocky is nan 1 that’s sewage nan headlines and rightly so, because he’s put a mates of scores together and he’s a coagulated player,’ said England accelerated bowler Saqib Mahmood, who has been captaining Lancashire’s 2nd XI while managing his return from semipermanent injury.

‘In immoderate ways, for batters it tin beryllium easier to make nan measurement up successful 2nd squad cricket, because you spell from batting connected nine wickets to immoderate beautiful level ones astatine main region grounds and if you’ve sewage a bully technique, arsenic Rocky has, you tin put together an innings.

‘Corey bats a spot arsenic well, though, and they’re going to beryllium due cricketers.’

Indisputably, since nan siblings debuted together successful a Roses title astatine Headingley earlier this month, successful opposition to Rocky’s six-slamming successful innings of 50 disconnected 68 versus Durham and 116 disconnected 168 against Warwickshire, Corey, 2 years his senior, has made much humble statements.

That, successful part, is down to nan truth that nan accent fracture of nan backmost he suffered past twelvemonth presently restricts him to 4 overs per innings connected his return to bowling programme.

But some are still coming to position pinch their physicality and location are echoes of their begetter here: Flintoff played arsenic a master batter for a play successful his precocious teens to debar irrevocably damaging his backmost arsenic boy became man.

‘Rocky’s hands make excavation look for illustration a child’s hands. I couldn’t judge it erstwhile I first saw them,’ Mahmood observes.

They are besides fuelled by an undiluted emotion of nan sport. ‘Last week, we played astatine Old Trafford and erstwhile a crippled gets rainfall affected, I for illustration to person a nap. So we had nan full squad playing 1 hand, 1 bounce successful nan dressing room and me, nan grandad of nan group astatine nan property of 27, lying connected nan physio furniture accelerated asleep. I virtually couldn’t judge really overmuch power they had,’ Mahmood continues.

The generational spread was felt much wide successful Birmingham erstwhile nan elder pro, taxi-ing a posse of nan academy players including Rocky, stopped astatine a cafe and offered to outcry coffee: ‘I’m utilized to group asking for level whites aliases a cappuccino, but they were like, ‘nah.’ They ordered cocoa milkshakes.’

The Flintoffs’ exploits connected nan cricket section pinch Manchester Grammar - alma mater of Michael Atherton, John Crawley and Mark Chilton, and wherever different ex-England subordinate Mike Watkinson is caput of athletics - agelong backmost 7 years to erstwhile Corey captained nan Under-11s to 3 trophies, including nan Lancashire Cup, wrong a fortnight.

And it was done their journeys that Flintoff, 46, re-engaged pinch cricket. Firstly, moving them from nan section nine of Alderley Edge to St Anne’s, wherever he himself played arsenic a youngster, past connected to Southport successful nan Liverpool competition, now wide recognised arsenic nan champion successful nan north-west.

Deeper engagement came successful nan astir distressing of circumstances past year, during betterment from nan shocking Top Gear mishap successful December 2022 that saw him hospitalised for 5 weeks, erstwhile watching his boys successful location tournaments led to immoderate informal scouting activity for nan ECB.

By nan extremity of nan summer, he was interacting pinch England players, having been invited to watch nan Ashes alongside Rob Key, 1 of his closest friends during a profession trim short astatine 31 owed to a chronic knee injury.

At nan commencement of this one, he is afloat immersed successful nan crippled erstwhile much - a deficiency of coaching qualifications conveniently overlooked to manus him positions arsenic an adjunct to Matthew Mott successful England’s attempts to clasp nan Twenty20 World title this June, and nan main man pinch Northern Superchargers successful nan Hundred.

The sanction mightiness unfastened doors, but surviving pinch it tin beryllium a seismic struggle, and arsenic Liam Botham recovered retired successful nan 1990s, being nan boy of a superstar slayer of Australians is arsenic overmuch curse arsenic blessing.

When he took 5 wickets connected debut for Hampshire against Middlesex, including that of ex-England skipper Mike Gatting, he appeared to person seconded his dada Ian’s book writer.

But aft conscionable 2 further appearances, he switched to nan rugby codes, concluding: ‘I tin ne'er triumph astatine cricket having this name. If I do good group will opportunity I should do. If I do severely they would opportunity I was only successful nan broadside because of whose boy I am. I wish I could beryllium called plain Liam Bloggs.’

Given nan characteristic of their celebrated father, immoderate happens from here, nan Flintoffs are improbable to do plain.