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Freyberg Cricket Club members gathered at club president Dave Fulton's house last night to remember one of their most dedicated players.

Hayden Madsen, 33, was one of three air force men who died in a helicopter crash near Pukerua Bay, about 40 kilometres northeast of Wellington, yesterday.

Madsen debuted for the Freyberg club in the 1997-1998 season, and when his work commitments as a flight lieutenant in the air force didn't get in the way, he carved out a niche as a committed all-rounder.

He would usually bat at No 5 and bowl medium-pace from first or second change.

Tim Hall had played alongside Madsen in the Freyberg first team since 2001 and spoke of his mate's commitment on the park.

"Just a top man; a great all-round cricketer," Hall said. "Very skilful with the ball and he knew how to hold a bat."

Hall said when he heard the news about Madsen, he was reminded of a conversation they shared at the national club championships tournament they attended two weeks ago.

They were talking about Fulton, who at 44 has played for Freyberg since the 1990s, and Madsen mentioned he wanted to follow in his footsteps. "He thought he'd be playing for Freyberg when he was 45," Hall said.

Madsen played more than 100 games for the club during the past 12 seasons, sometimes only playing three games in a summer because of work commitments. He was a member of the Hawke Cup-winning Manawatu team in 2002 and played 10 games for the province.

Madsen had a strong influence on bringing other air force members to the Freyberg club. Up to nine men from Ohakea had played for Freyberg in the past few seasons.

As well as being on the committee for Freyberg, Madsen also captained the New Zealand Defence Force cricket team.