Matthew Hoggard is an Ashes hero, but he’s swapped bats and balls for the BBQ grill in his post-cricket career.
The former fast bowler was a key part of the 2005 England side that famously beat Australia to claim the urn in one of the greatest Test series.
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Hoggard was a huge character and presence in the dressing room
Across that series, the proud Yorkshireman claimed 16 wickets and was front and centre of the celebrations at the end as well.
He played in several other Ashes series, making 12 appearances against the Aussies across his Test career.
But it was a moment of batting during that series that he is strangely now known for.
And now those days are behind him, Hoggard has switched attention to his other great passion in life – food.
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The Ashes legend now runs Hoggy’s Grill, which is his catering company teaching people about the joys of BBQ and the limitless potential of cooking on a grill.
Hoggard is now working as a leading cricket speaker with Champions Speakers Agency, the UK’s largest keynote speakers bureau.
And in an exclusive interview with talkSPORT.com, he spoke about his new venture.
He said: “After retirement, I tried a little bit of insurance and foreign currency, and I didn’t really enjoy any of it, and my wife said I need to find something I am passionate about, and I like eating and drinking.
“I spent four seasons in South Africa playing club cricket and First-Class cricket, and I fell in love with barbecuing.
“As a general rule, the British don’t do it properly, so I went to cookery school, learned how to light fires and cook on a grill.
“And I am passionate about that, and when you tell people you can make Yorkshire puddings, you can bake cakes, you can make souffles on grills – it’s not just about meat, you can cook anything on the grill.
“You just need the right techniques, and that opens up the doors. We run classes, we do courses, corporate entertainment, and we do team building, and we do catering and anything that is associated with a BBQ.
“I’ve always loved food, and I’ve always been a feeder.
“I like giving people food, but I also love people coming who haven’t chopped a potato, and them making food and saying it is the best thing they’ve eaten.
“And I can say, ‘yeah, but you cooked it’. When we do the classes, I do very little. They do everything.
“So, it’s not me demonstrating. It is all about you preparing, you cooking and you eating it.”
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The 2005 England Ashes team will always be celebrated
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It’s unlikely we’ll ever see a Test series celebrated in the same way
During that sublime 2005 series, the score was tied at 1-1 heading to Trent Bridge.
England found themselves chasing 129 to win, which seemed like it would be straightforward, but the hosts were down to 116-7 when Hoggard joined Ashley Giles at the crease.
Giles was seven not out, and Hoggard scored 12, including a four that all-but sealed the deal.
England would go onto draw the last Test at The Oval to win 2-1 and spark scenes like we’ve never seen before, and that is still a proud moment for Hoggard.
“I still remember that. I only needed 12 when we went out, and I saw it the other day on the TV.
“Richie Benaud was commentating, and I clipped off my toes to fine leg for a couple. I put one through the covers for two, so I was on four.
“Then I got a full toss outside off-stump that just crept to the boundary to score eight, and Richie Benaud was saying, ‘he’s playing with a lot of sense and skill’.
“I heard him. But the pressure going out to bat was horrendous, I wasn’t watching before I went out because of the situation and knowing if I went out to bat, it was going to be a close game.
“But going out meant that everything was in my hands. It was a lot easier in the middle than it was watching.”
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Giles and Hoggard are England heroes these daysCredit: Getty
The series itself proved to be a peak point for cricket in England.
The Tests were shown on free-to-air TV, and the sport took centre-stage all summer.
Hoggard played a huge part in that, and he will always be part of one of the best Test series ever, which makes him proud.
“I think it is one of the great, great series.
“I think the best thing that Ashes series did was inspired a generation to play cricket.
“It was the perfect storm, there was no football, rugby or other big sporting events.
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“We were on terrestrial TV and cricket clubs tell the story of the number of members increasing, and then 30-year-olds always say that we were the reason they started playing cricket.
“And that is why you play sport to leave a legacy, and that 2005 series had such a massive impact on the way that cricket was perceived in England, and it inspired people to pick up a bat and ball.”