Robin Walsh was always my go-to man in a crisis, and even today I still seek his wise counsel in troubled times.

"If I were you my good friend, this is what I would do.." Robin would say as I scrambled to write down his solution to the problem I'd called about.

He'd been there before, done it and got the t-shirt. Crisis, what crisis?

Robin Walsh with Roy Torrens

A career which began in local papers as a trainee journalist saw him rise to the stellar heights of BBC 9 o'clock news editor and Controller of BBC Northern Ireland.

You don't survive in those roles without handling pressure, particularly in an era when the Troubles dominated.

Robin was ahead of his time and not afraid to take risks. He didn't always get it right but like all masters of their craft learn and don't make mistakes a second time.

Among those who he gave career breaks to were Jeremy Paxman, Gordon Burns and Kate Adie, who thanked him publicly when in 2018 she received her Bafta Fellowship, the highest accolade the profession bestows.

His cricketing journey began in his home town of Derry/Londonderry - his father winning a senior cup medal with City of Derry.

At the ClubTurf final in 2002 with Ian Callender and Derek Underwood

Robin played schoolboy cricket for Foyle College, and then Royal Belfast Academical Institution and Ulster Schools back in the 1950s. His journalistic profession meant he played cricket where work took him.

He had stints in the NCU at Larne, Ballymena and Instonians where he was responsible for youth cricket in the 1990s.

He became the Irish Cricket Union's Public Relations Officer and formed the Communications Committee in 2000, where under his tutelage were myself and James Fitzgerald.

He masterminded successful coverage of the 2002 European Championships alongside John Elder and myself from the 'control room' of the Europa Hotel.

Our goal/deadline each day was to have the full scorecards, reports, photos, tables and statistics from the six games online and also on the noticeboards at the Europa and Jurys before the teams got back from the matches.

You have to remember this wasn't the wireless, iPhone era, and for coverage at Shaws Bridge, John had to run hundreds of metres of cable from the clubhouse phone to the pitchside bunker.

We worked hard, enjoyed ourselves immensely, and often put the world to right in the residents bar of the Europa into the wee small hours.

He stepped down from the role as PRO at the 2006 AGM, but agreed to handle the media for the high profile clash with England at Stormont - Ireland's first One-Day International. The game was an unqualified success both on and off the field.

He handed over the reins to me, but I was glad of the safety net he offered 'Please, don't hesitate to call should you ever need advice." And true to his word, he was always there when I dialed. It must have been often enough because I can still recall his Crawfordsburn telephone number 9185****.

He was cricket correspondent of 'Sunday Life' and became the inaugural chairman of the Cricket Writers of Ireland, before relinquishing both roles when he became Cricket Ireland President in 2013, a year in which Ireland swept all before them to complete a treble.

He kept a weekly diary of his term in office, and as a 'thank you' gift for all his service, the Writers presented him with a bound book of the diary entries entitled "Mine's a treble."

The Cricket Writers making a special presentation to Robin Walsh

He and his wife Dorothy are still regular supporters of Irish cricket, and were on the "Torrens Tours" trip to the West Indies at the start of the year.

Lockdown has been a challenge, but Robin's willingness to help with articles paying tribute to the legends of Irish cricket off the field, has been a great solace to many, and his superb penmanship has shone through.

I'm looking forward to when life and cricket returns to normality, and the opportunity to be once again in the company of Robin and Roy - Irish cricket's best partnership.