Otago Country stalwarts Geoff Blakely and Dave Cummings were made life members at the association's annual meeting late last month.
Both men have been involved with the association since the early 1970s and collectively have more than 80 years' involvement.
Blakely, who played nine first-class games and two one-day matches for Otago from 1980 to 1985, started out with Otago Country, or Central Otago as it was known then, with the primary team in 1972.
He played for the Gimmerburn Cricket Club from 1972 to 2013 and played Hawke Cup cricket for Central Otago from 1980 to 2000, scoring 3392 runs at an average of 31.4 with a high score of 155 not out.
He was a dogged opening batsman and athletic fielder who was brilliant in close under the helmet.
Blakely kept busy off the field as well. He was president of the Maniototo Association from 1997 to 2011 and was made a life member in 2011.
He has been president of Otago Country since 2000 and has also been heavily involved in coaching teams.
Cummings (74) moved into the area in 1970 and was instrumental in helping Alexandra lure first-class cricket to the region in the mid 1970s. He would pitch in everywhere, even assisting in the preparation of the wicket at Molyneux Park.
Cummings was the secretary and treasurer of the association from 1972 to 1979 and shared the chief executive role for a season in the late 1990s.
He has also been actively involved with the umpires association from the late 1980s and holds the unusual distinction of both umpiring and scoring at first-class level.
Cummings started scoring for the Otago Country Hawke Cup team in the late 1990s and took on the role full-time in 2003. Before he scored for Otago Country, he drove the bus for the Hawke Cup team.
