An enviable life

posted by John Winn

A little over twelve months ago I made a posting prompted by reading the memoirs of Clive van Ryneveld, South African cricketer, England rugby international and a politician who  took a stand against apartheid. By coincidence my latest reading has been of a book written by another man from the veld, Louis  Duffus.

The book 'Cricketers of the Veld' is an account of the author's travels reporting on South African cricket in the late twenties and thirties. It is not an easy book to categorise for if you are looking for detailed accounts of South Africa's test series during the period you will be disappointed for this is not that kind of book.Few matches are described in any detail: one exception to this is Duffus' account of the unfinished timeless test at Durban in 1939 which had to be abandoned to allow the England players to catch a train to Cape Town and from whence the boat back home. The last chapter of the book is devoted to this match together with the scorecard showing England's last innings closed on the second Tuesday ( it had begun on a Friday)  at 654 for 5. still short of their target of almost 700 to win.

My edition of the book, which I acquired for a few pounds, was published in 1946 and 'is  in complete conformity with the authorised economy standards' and a consequence of this is that it contains no photographs. The  book begins with Duffus' account of how he came to England in 1929 on a very modest budget and followed that tour in an Austin 7. It vividly describes the contrasts between life on the veld with that of inter war Britain. The author was born in Australia but educated in Johannesburg and a good enough cricketer to have played five first class matches for Transvaal over an eleven year period. On the 1935 tour  Duffus actually put aside his reporter's pad to act as substitute for the tourists against Glamorgan at Swansea and fielding at slip took a catch which turned the course of the match against the home team.


After the 1929 tour Duffus barely missed  a South African test match until they were excluded from international cricket as a result of their government's apartheid policies. This book is but a small part of his output for in addition to cricket he also wrote on rugby union and tennis and acted as a war correspondent.

Some of his books are still available at relatively modest prices but one exception is listed in the 40th anniversary catalogue of the  antiquarian cricket book seller, J. W. McKenzie. This is a book that covers two tours; the Springboks' visit to England in 1935 and the 35-36 Australian tour of South Africa. Price £250.00, still time to have a word with Santa.!

Duffus died in 1984, aged 80 and despite suffering from haemophilia lived a full life. What wouldn't many of us give to have had the talent to play first class cricket and to be an accomplished writer who saw close to 100 test matches. An enviable life indeed.

Unless Brian has other ideas this may be the last posting before Christmas so it is appropriate that I should wish our readers season's greetings and thank them for the continuing interest in the blog, still as many as forty hits a day as we approach the mid point of  the winter. Thank you.