Derek Soakell

Who is Derek Soakell?

Derek William Soakell is a former English cricketer. Soakell was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm medium pace. He was born in Haswell, County Durham.

Soakell made his debut for Durham against the Warwickshire Second XI in the 1966 Minor Counties Championship. He played Minor counties cricket for Durham from 1966 to 1968, making 4 Minor Counties Championship appearances, before joining Northumberland in 1970. He played Minor counties cricket for Northumberland from 1970 to 1972, making 14 Minor Counties Championship appearances for Northumberland. He rejoined Durham in 1973, making 4 appearances that season in the Minor Counties Championship. 1973 saw him make his List A debut against Yorkshire in the Gillette Cup. In this match, he scored 10 unbeaten runs to guide Durham to a famous 5 wicket win. He made a further List A appearance against Essex in the following round of the same competition. He was dismissed for 36 runs in this match by Keith Pont, with Essex winning by 7 wickets.