And he did a lot.
The 61-year-old was posthumously awarded the Souter Trophy for groundsman of the year at the Christchurch Metro Cricket Association awards.
Heathcote Cricket Club president Ralph Bungard accepted the trophy on his behalf.
“It’s a nice recognition and shows the important impact he has had not just for Heathcote, but Christchurch cricket in general,” said Bungard.
Georgieff’s brother Nigel said he would have appreciated the award but it would not have been what mattered the most to him.
“He was more than happy to see the results of people playing good cricket on a good wicket.”
Bungard said people were “pretty torn up about” Georgieff’s death.
“He’s such an important part (of the club), not just as a character and an individual but an instrumental part of how the club operates.
“Like any club, we’re reliant on volunteers and when you get someone like Roger who’s passionate about the club, they’re hard to come by.”
When Georgieff learnt of his diagnosis, he realised he would not be able to continue his work as a groundsman.
He put together a detailed ground management manual for the club to use after he died.
It included a day-to-day guide on irrigation, rolling, pitch repairs, end of season repairs, even down to marking the pitch and putting the stumps in.
“He demonstrated to us what the standards should be for a ground like ours in a premiership competition,” said Bungard.
He was born and raised in Heathcote Valley and joined the club in 1971 for the school boys team and went on to play for various senior teams.
Georgieff stayed on as head groundsman for the club until the time of his death, a position he held for 42 years.
“In his last few months he was still physically showing people how to do the groundwork. That was incredible on his behalf,” Bungard said.
“He was just so passionate and would always be there if anyone needed advice.
“He absolutely loved the club.”
Georgieff was made a life member of the club in 2005.
His passion for community sport extended beyond cricket as he was a team manager for the Sumner Rugby Club for 12 years and chair of Canterbury United football for five.
Sumner’s opening game of this season was dedicated to Georgieff where a moment of silence was held in his memory.
He also served as chair of the Christchurch Suburban Cricket Association from 2000-2012 and played a major role in combining it with the CMCA.
He was made a life member of the CMCA in 2016.
He worked as head of procurement at MG Marketing for Summerfruit NZ, of which he was made a life member for his 30 years of service.
He was husband to Janine Gemmell and father to Zach, Nicholas and Dan Georgieff.
Said Nigel: “If you are going to do something, you put your heart and soul into it and Roger was never one to sit back and watch, he was always one to get stuck in.”
Fittingly he spent his final day watching the Heathcote premier side play on the pitch he spent more than four decades curating.
Said Bungard: “It was a moving day. I think he liked the fact that he could see his legacy and how strong it was.”
It was his final chance to say goodbye to the people from the club that meant so much to him.
Said Nigel: “He’s made life long friends at the club and that was really important to him.”
The following day he passed away through the assisted dying process.
Just under 600 people attended his funeral, a testament to how many he affected.
Said Bungard: “There’s a massive amount of people in the cross section of communities that he touched.”
