John Caudle 1951-2025

Peter Boughton writes:

09/06/25: John Caudle, who has died aged 73 after a short illness with pancreatic cancer, was a much loved and respected member of the fives community.

Learning the game at Ipswich School in the late 1960s he quickly became a regular member of the small core of Old Ipswichians who played for the Club in its first thirty years. From his first match in November 1975 through to his last, in February 2019, he amassed a record of 345 wins from 641 matches, putting him in third place in the Club’s playing history. John forged two long-lasting and notable partnerships, playing 150 matches for the OIs with Simon Woolfries and just over 100 with Peter Boughton, as well as causing headaches for many an opposition in a multitude of tournaments over the years.

Not the most natural of athletes, John was mercilessly ribbed for his weak right hand, which was really much more solid and reliable than his fellow OIs would ever credit. He won the London Tournament in 1989, the only OI to have won one of the big three tournaments, cleverly working with Brian Matthews to overcome two of the foremost players of the time, Mark Williams and Malcolm Keeling. So his right hand can’t have been too bad. Three times he was a semi-finalist in the Northern Tournament, in 1991, 1993 and 2001 and reached the quarter-finals of the Kinnaird in 1991. On four occasions between 1989 and 1996 he won the Kinnard Pepper Pot Plate trophy and might have had two more but for injury, once in the semi-final and once in the final. In the Veterans he was finalist in 1993 and winner the following year and was four times winner of the Ipswich Tournament.

The Ipswich Tournament, which became the Graves Cup, was John’s brainchild. A handicap-based tournament, mixing OIs, School staff, pupils and guests from other clubs, it has come to be regarded by many as the apotheosis of fives played in the best spirit of the game and with sociability at its core, especially including port. Scores of Ipswich pupils have had the chance to play with top players thanks to John’s idea.

The son of a Royal Navy Lieutenant Commander, John was born in Hong Kong and was pleased as a result to be able to represent the Rest of the World side in the international matches organised by Old Edwardian Tony Hughes in the 1980s.

He was both charming and charismatic, with a mischievous nature and great sense of humour. John could be disarmingly direct, to a degree that would have been rude in others but the charm, the blonde hair and blue eyes, the sparkle in the eyes, enabled him to get away with it. He believed rules were there to be challenged (and sometimes broken) and loved pushing the limits, especially if it made others uncomfortable, knowing that he could usually talk his way out of any awkward situation.

After a year post-school doing voluntary service in Lesotho, during which he confirmed his propensity to break rules by leaving a hotel without paying (dropping the suitcases out of the window from the fourth floor did alert security and lead to a short car chase) he came back to the UK and took to studying law, being called to the Bar in 1976. He spent his entire career in Chambers and was, according to his colleagues, not only a fearless prosecutor and defender and a fine advocate, but also great fun to be in a case with. Although hard working and dedicated, he always found time for fun and mischief and was the life and soul of any robing room. John also served as a Recorder since 2000 and will be remembered by those appearing before him as a scrupulously fair and sensible judge.

John served on the EFA Committee and chaired the EFA Appeals Committee as well as helping to rewrite the laws of the game. He was long-time Treasurer of the OI Eton Fives Club and has certainly kept the Club’s finances under tight rein – we have no idea how much money the Club has, as we have never had a report. We shall certainly miss him dreadfully and offer our sincere condolences to his family and friends.