Perfect harmony

Kyle Hogg (centre) celebrates another wicket in his playing days

CRICKET and music continue to provide the pathways to happiness for Kyle Hogg, even though his playing days with his beloved Lancashire are over.

Seam-bowler Hogg (31) was cruelly forced to quit cricket at the end of last summer due to back problems, bringing to an end a career that yielded 280 first-class wickets from 114 matches.

Hogg also enjoyed enviable success with the bat during his 14 years with Lancashire, scoring 2,708 first-class runs.

The former England under-19 international first encountered back trouble at the end of 2011 — which had been his best season ever, with 50 wickets as Lancashire won the County Championship for the first time since 1950.

Greenfield-raised Hogg, a grandson of West Indies legend Sonny Ramadhin, said: “I started cortizone injections in 2011 and initially they did a great job. But over the next couple of years they took their toll. I couldn’t really carry on, so the decision was pretty much made for me at the end of the summer.”

But likeable Kyle has seen two more doors open. One is continued involvement in cricket as a coach with the club he loves.

“Just to still be involved in the game is great for me right now, and it fits in with my music commitments.”

And that’s Hogg’s other career path: keeping potentially stroppy bands happy as a tour/road manager for promotional giants SJM Concerts.

Hogg said: “I’ve been into music from being a kid, and three years ago I got the chance to give my good friend Graham Lambert — guitarist with Oldham legends the Inspiral Carpets — a lift as his regular job is working with SJM.

“I was tagging along with him at first at gigs and shows he was working at, and after learning the ropes in the music business if you like, SJM have now taken me on as a road manager.

“It’s hard work getting things organised and helping to ease the pressure on bands as they concentrate on performing, but I love it and right now I see myself as having the best of both worlds.”