Frank Keating used to be a regular in the Guardian but in recent years he was only an occasional contributor - more's the pity. From my earliest acquaintance with the paper, almost 50 years ago, my first thought was to hunt down his article and read it. He would write on almost any sport, but I remember with particular affection his articles about the Welsh rugby team of the 1970s.
In many ways he was a direct descendant of Neville Cardus, who was surely the greatest of all cricket writers. It's a style that has disappeared from almost all sports, which now depend hugely on professionalism rather than fun. I don't suppose that there will ever be anyone else to carry on the tradition.
