News Letter cricket writer David Holmes dies aged 54

The News Letter's cricket correspondent David Holmes has died suddenly.
News Letter cricket correspondent David HolmesNews Letter cricket correspondent David Holmes
News Letter cricket correspondent David Holmes

David, who was 54, passed away on Sunday.

The father-of-two worked for the Londonderry-based Click Energy company which he had been combining with his cricket writing for the News Letter,

David, who started his working life with the Ulster Bank, has also written about cricket extensively for a number of titles on a freelance basis, including Sunday Life, the Belfast Telegraph and the Ulster Star.

Brought up in Carryduff, David was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution.

He was a cricket fanatic, representing his beloved Instonians, and when he hung up his cricket boots, he developed his cricket writing skills by writing match reports on Instonians for the Ulster Star.

He began working for the News Letter on a freelance basis in 2007, before leading the cricket coverage over the last two summers.

News Letter editor Alistair Bushe said: “Words can barely express the shock that will be felt within the cricket fraternity at this dreadful news.

“David has been at the forefront of promoting our sport for many years now and no-one should underestimate how he endeavoured to improve its profile, particularly on social media. He was the first person to promote the game using his Twitter handle, where would we be now had he not started updating scores from around the NCU on a Saturday afternoon? What he started, others followed.

“David was a hugely popular figure around the grounds. He invariably had a smile on his face, spoke to players, spectators and officials alike on the boundary and literally no-one I spoke to had a bad word to say about him. For David, writing about cricket and suppling scores wasn’t about the money, it was about a genuine love for the game and wanting to see it grow.

“He will be hugely missed. Our condolences go to his family circle.”

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