28/08/2026
An absolute beaut of a bloke both on and off the field
And once part owner of the best local sports shop the world has ever seen, Top of the South Sports
RIP RE Hayward
You will be hugely missed
Nelson mourns a true legend
It is with heavy hearts that we acknowledge Richard Hayward, a Life Member of Nelson Cricket, who passed away in Nelson on 27 August 2026.
By any measure Richard was one of the greats of Nelson Cricket as a player, captain, coach and administrator.
Richard grew up in England playing for the Ickenham Club before playing for Buckinghamshire in the Minor Counties competition and then playing first class cricket for Hampshire and Somerset.
Richard came out to Nelson to coach and play each season from 1979 returning to England to play their season until settling in Nelson permanently with his wife Sue in the mid-80’s.
He very quickly settled into the Nelson lifestyle, becoming an integral and popular member of both the Wakatu Club and the Nelson team (through the 80’s Hawke Cup era).
As a player Richard was very competitive but also played the game with deep respect for the traditions and spirit of the game.
Richard played for Nelson between 1979 and 1991 (captaining the team between 1982 and 1988) playing 88 games (5th highest all time) scoring 3704 runs (4th highest all time) at an average of 49.39 with 24 fifties and 7 centuries.
Arguably Richard’s greatest innings for Nelson was 91 in the Hawke Cup Challenge against Northland in1984. Batting on a difficult pitch in challenging weather and light conditions against a very strong Northland attack he held the innings together as Nelson eked out 227 runs before bowling Northland out for 187 to win back the Hawke Cup after losing it to them the prior season.
Richard also played first class cricket for Central Districts from 1983 to 1986 playing 27 first class and 16 List A games and captaining the team for 2 seasons. He was the captain of the 1985 Shell Cup winning team.
Through the 90’s Richard worked as Coaching Director for Nelson Cricket before moving to Christchurch in 2002 as Canterbury Cricket’s Director of Coaching and Development, a position he held for 12 years.
In 2014 he returned home to Nelson to take over as General Manager of Nelson Cricket before retiring in 2016. His time at the helm of Nelson Cricket coincided with the development of Saxton Oval as a regular International Cricket venue including hosting 3 games in the 2015 World Cup and Richard played a huge part in the successes of Nelson Cricket during this time.
New Zealand Cricket appointed Richard as a Match Referee in 2017 reflecting the respect that he was held in right across the game in New Zealand, and he continued in this role through until 2025 including refereeing 19 Women’s International games.
At Nelson Cricket’s 2022 AGM Richard was nominated and elected as a Life Member of Nelson Cricket recognising his years of service to Nelson Cricket at all levels.
We are sure that all in the cricket community will join with the Board and staff in acknowledging and celebrating our mate Richard and extending our condolences and best wishes to Sue, Juliette, Melanie, and the wider family.
