War of the Roses

By Brian Sanderson

The above scorecard is 94 years old and was filled in by somebody

who was there on the Monday 2 August 1926.The Old Trafford 

crowd reveled in the sunshine for once as Lancashire's total of 

509 for nine declared ,scored in the best part of two days , was

the highest Roses total.

In the ninety minutes before lunch on the first day ,Makepeace 

and Hallows took the score to 74 for no wicket.The first wicket

fell ten runs later when Hallows was leg before to Robinson.

Makepeace and Ernest Tyldesley added 169 for the second 

wicket before Makepeace ,attempting a hugh drive ,was 

bowled by Rhodes for 126. Batting for four hours and fifty

minutes.

Tyldesley., photographed above, his career spanned from 1909 to 

1936. In the years between he scored more runs for the 

county at the better average than any other batsman -

34222 at 45.20. In 1926 , in a remarkable sequence he 

scored 1477 runs in 13 innings between 26 June and 6 

August. Frank Watson , a persevering batsman of the true

Lancashire breed ,missed a century by only eight runs.

The only Yorkshire bowler to gain any reward was 

Wilfred Rhodes , who took  seven for 116, his last four

wickets costing just 21 runs.

For the rest of the second day ,Holmes and Sutcliffe played some 

beautiful cricket and at the close of the day were 183 for no wicket.

On the morning of the last day ,the Yorkshire openers were within

one run of a making a 200 partnership when the immaculate

 Sutcliffe was out leg before to Richard Tyldesley.

The next batsman, Oldroyd, had scored 12 when he was hit 

 on the back of the head by a short ball by Mc Donald .

He was carried from the field unconscious

but was even additionally unlucky in that he hit his stumps as he fell.

Holmes was next to go for a magnificent 143 , in five and

 a half hours.

Yorkshire defended stoutly as Green, the Lancashire captain rang 

the bowling changes but were eventually bowled for 352.

The aggregate attendance of the match was 70998. Yorkshire

players  were paid £11 for home matches and £15 for away 

matches. In the winter they were paid £ 2 per week , in the 

playing season £1 for a win.  Footballers were on £8 per week.

Some Rugby League stars were on £17 a match .

Cricket in Doncaster

By Brian Sanderson

I was very lucky in been able to purchase this rare scorecard of

Yorkshire playing a friendly fixture against Doncaster Town

on 17 April 1926. Yorkshire had a full side out captained by 

Major Lupton.

Winning the toss Yorkshire batted on an intermittent showery 

day. Sutcliffe and Holmes against the bowling of Worthington 

and Blount. Sutcliffe  had made five boundaries and at the same

time reached his half century when he returned the next ball

in a surprisingly simple fashion to Walker ,who caught him out.

Holmes was applauded  when he came out for 59 with a 

catch by Gledhill.

Having declared with the score at 135 for four wickets.

Yorkshire set about their task in business like fashion but 

Worthington made a splendid stand to reach the half century.

The match was declared drawn the Town finishing with

123 for six wickets.

Should Cowdrey be Captain part 2

posted by John Winn

In January 1962 The Reverend David Shepherd was visited by that most acerbic of cricket wriers EM Wellings of the Evening News. The purpose of Wellings' visit was to urge Shepherd to go to Australia the following winter as captain of England. Word spread of Wellings' initiative and Shepherd came under pressure to make himself available and in May he announced that he would play for Sussex that summer and be available for the Australian tour. Thus a third candidate joined the mix of those wishing to captain their country, Dexter, Cowdrey and Shepherd and there were those that suggested that the last of these should captain the side against Pakistan side for the last two tests. That there were those who wanted a man who had not played first class cricket for two years and had last appeared in an England sweater five years ago  to be given a shot at the captaincy underlines that in such people's eyes neither Dexter nor Cowdrey were up to the job.

The crunch came in July when Cowdrey was forced to withdraw from captaining The Gentlemen at Lord's and Dexter took over with Shepherd in his side. If batting form was the chief indicator then Shepherd stole the show with a century on the first day, an innings good  enough to convince the popular press that he would be in charge in Australia. Dexter hit 55 and next day it was announced that he had accepted the invitation to be captain. The hare that Wellings had set running had come to rest.

There followed a relatively stable period with Dexter leading the England XI until 1964 when he announced that he would not be available to tour South Africa as Lord Ted fancied a seat in The House of Commons and he stood as the Conservative candidate in Cardiff South East where the Labour Candidate was Jim Callaghan. Over 22000 voted for Dexter but this was almost 8000 fewer than put their X against the future PM's name. He now joined the tour but as vice-captain to MJK Smith. For the second time in three years Cowdrey opted out of an overseas tour and that you might have thought would be the end of his opportunities to skipper England.

Not a bit of it for although MJK was reasonably successful in three overseas tours he was dumped after a heavy defeat at Old Trafford in 1966 by West Indies and almost as night follows day replaced by Cowdrey. Three tests later, one draw two defeats, and he too was sacked and lost his place in the side. Replaced by Brian Close and after another winter's rest, England were without a tour, Cowdrey forced his way back in to the national side for the second and third tests against Pakistan who followed India in a two series summer. When Close fell foul of MCC following allegations of time wasting in a championship match the selectors preference was to recall Mike Smith but that came to nothing and for the fourth time they turned to Cowdrey. His appointment was not universally acclaimed, especially in the north but he came through a difficult tour well both as captain and batsman. 

Australia were the visitors in 1968 and older readers may remember how the series was squared when at The Oval Cowdrey organised a mopping up operation after heavy rain and Underwood bowled England to victory. 9see picture below)

In May 1969  it was confirmed that Cowdrey would be captain of England for that summer's two series against West Indies and New Zealand but on the day of the announcement he snapped an Achilles tendon playing for Kent in a televised match. This time he was replaced by Leicestershire skipper Ray Illingworth who confounded expectations by scoring runs consistently and confirmed what everybody in Yorkshire knew, that he was a shrewd tactician. Cowdrey returned from his injury but was only vice captain when the Ashes were recovered in 70-71 by Illingworth's team. And that was it, 27 tests as captain spread over ten years and only four defeats. It is perhaps this last statistic which, while surprising in its way, highlights one of the most consistent criticisms of Colin Cowdrey's captaincy, namely that he was too defensive. Even when presented with a golden opportunity by Gary Sobers who in 1969 at Bridgetown set England 215 to win in a little over three words it took strong words from Graveney and Barrington before Cowdrey was convinced they should go for victory. 

Throughout Peel's autobiography there are constant references to Cowdrey's good manners and concern for those in his charge but balancing this it is clear that he did not like the nasty side. When players had to be told that they had been dropped they sometimes had to refer to the scorecard to discover the news. Championship cricket also showed his defensive side, when it came to declarations he was no Ingleby Mackenzie.  He did however do much to revive Kent's fortunes and it was under his captaincy that they won the championship in 1970 for the first time since 1913. 

 

The umpire raises his finger to confirm the dismissal of John Inverarity at The Oval in 1968 and skipper Cowdrey at first slip raises his arms in triumph. Just six minutes remained. That evening the selectors met to pick the side to tour South Africa that forthcoming winter. They did not pick Basil D'Oliveira and the rest is history. 

Rare image

By Brian Sanderson

The photograph above I purchased on ebay and is the first image

I have seen of William Edward Blackburn who played for Yorkshire

in 1919 and 1920.

He was born in Sawley which is near Clitheroe on the 24

 November 1888 which was then in West Riding.

.He had played for Bowling Old Lane in 1906

and then Keighley and Skipton before moving to 

Liverpool.

During the War ,he rose to captain in the Royal Artillery and was 

wounded three times .He appeared ten times for Yorkshire first 

team. His most successful match was against Gloucester when 

he took three wickets in the first innings and five for thirty 

nine in the second innings .During the 1919 season the matches were 

limited to two days .On the first day it did not finish until 

7.30 pm . 

He  died on the 3 June 1941 in Heaton Blackburn.

Should Cowdrey be Captain? part 1.

posted by John Winn

During the early part of lockdown I reread MCC, the autobiography of Colin Cowdrey which stirred my interest in this enigmatic cricketer and more recently I bought a copy of The Last Roman, a biography of Cowdrey by Mark Peel. The question that I have used as the title for this posting is a recurring issue in  the second of these two books and in MCC's obituary in the 2001 Wisden the rights and wrongs of Cowdrey's captaincy of England are described as 'the saga that dominated English cricket through the 1960s'

When Len Hutton stepped down from first class cricket in 1955 the selectors, probably with some relief, returned to the template for captaincy that had been the norm before appointing Hutton in 1952 as the first professional captain, namely amateur, public school, Oxbridge. Peter May three years older than Cowdrey and with more tests under his belt, ticked all these boxes and was duly appointed. There were those who, at the time, thought the honour came too soon and had not David Shepherd begun training for the ministry he might have been preferred. But May it was and until illness forced his retirement in 1962 when fit he was the automatic choice.

Cowdrey, amateur, Tonbridge, Oxford, also had the right cv and his opportunity* came in the West Indies in 1959/60 when May, who probably should not have toured had a reoccurrence of his illness and Cowdrey stepped into the breach for ten tests in which England were unbeaten. Despite this successful run there was never any question that if and when fit May would return although by this time another candidate had entered right, Ted Dexter, amateur, Radley, Cambridge.

Having taken 1960 off May returned to cricket in the following summer, ready for an Ashes series. An ankle injury prevented him  from playing in the first test but when he he returned to the side at Lord's, Cowdrey, who had been bailed out by Subba Row and Dexter at Edgbaston continued as captain. Defeat followed and May resumed as skipper for Trueman's match at Headingley where the Yorkshire bowler took 11 wickets in the match and the series was levelled. Defeat at Old Trafford, in circumstances too painful to recount, meant that the Ashes stayed with Benaud's men and three weeks later May played his last test.

At this point Cowdrey, who had had a disappointing series, for 'family reasons' made himself unavailable for the tour of India and Pakistan. The selectors cannot have taken long to appoint 'Lord Ted' as his successor. Peel, writes that 'Dexter's leadership in India and Pakistan had not won universal acclaim' although Wisden says 'Dexter...did well' and this ambivalence seems to have transferred itself to the selectors who used the 1962 series against Pakistan to assess the qualities
of the two men. More next time

Cowdrey, middle row second from the right. aged 13 in the Tonbridge XI,

* Cowdrey had actually captained England in two tests in 1959 when May was ill but the series had already been won and he had initially been left out of the side to allow the selectors to experiment. When May withdrew he was recalled as skipper for the last two tests. The West Indies was a much sterner test. 

Cricketers of the Past - Durham 1992

Posted by Tony Hutton

Durham County cricket club achieved their much anticipated first class status in 1992. Their new ground at Chester-le-Street's Riverside was not ready for two more years, so they had an itinerant existence during that first season travelling around the county from Durham University to Stockton-on-Tees, Darlington, Hartlepool, Chester-le-Street (Ropery Lane) and Gateshead Fell.

Fortunately for me, after the initial shock, I was made redundant on the 1st January that year and was thus able to follow them round the county in addition to my normal pursuit of following Yorkshire. Durham had previously played in the Minor Counties competition with a side made up of local league players. However, for this new venture they had recruited from far and wide to find an experienced base of former county players.

Most of the squad for 1992 appear in this picture, which was taken at Lord's, although there are one or two faces missing such as Phil Bainbridge who came from Gloucester and local lads, batsman Jimmy Daley and reserve wicket keeper Andy Fothergill.

Starting on the left of the back row we have the lady physio with Steve McEwan next to her. McEwan was a pace bowler who had spent six seasons at his home county of Worcester and was good enough to have obtained his county cap. However he spent only one season at Durham, as he was unable to impress at first team level.

Next is one of the local teenagers, of whom there were great hopes, Paul Henderson. He had played in the Minor Counties at the age of 17 but he played only a handful of first team games before leaving by the age of 20. Fourth from the left is John Glendenen, an opening bat who had played a few times for Yorkshire seconds. He too only stayed for two seasons, but played quite a few good innings including both a first class and a one day century. He later played Minor Counties for Cumberland.

Fifth from the left is left arm seam bowler Simon Brown, who came back home to Durham after four years at Northamptonshire, He became very much the mainstay of the county's bowling attack during their first few years of county cricket and was good enough to make one appearance for England in 1996. He took over 500 wickets in all for the county before retiring in 2002 after a few injuries, possibly caused by over bowling.

Next to Brown is another opening batsman Stewart Hutton who stayed around until 1998. He was a dependable left hander and played in sixty six first class games scoring over three thousand runs, with a highest score of 172 not out. He still shares the first wicket partnership record of 334 with Mike Roseberry against Oxford University in 1996.

Phil Berry was an off break bowler who spent four seasons with his native Yorkshire. He spent three years at Durham without ever really becoming a regular, although he did have one famous performance to remember against Middlesex at Lord's in that first season. After taking career best figures of 7-113

including the wickets of Mike Gatting and Desmond Haynes, he top scored with 76.

The last player on the back row is Mark Briers who came from Minor Counties with Bedfordshire. Again very much a fringe player for two seasons he became an outstanding cricket and racquets coach at Cheltenham College. He also played for Cornwall and Herefordshire in the Minor Counties.

End of the line is long serving scorer Brian Hunt, who scored for over 40 years before retiring.

On the front row we have wicket keeper Chris Scott, who came to Durham after ten years as understudy to Bruce French at Notts. He stayed for five seasons before becoming a much respected coach at Cambridge University. Next to him is Simon Hughes who came for two seasons after a long career with Middlesex. He became a cricket writer and media pundit.

The unmistakable figure of Ian Botham, who saw out the last of his phenomenal career with Durham. He started with thirteen years at Somerset, followed by five years at Worcester as well as a remarkable twelve years with England. Until recently was a Sky Sports summariser. He is now the Durham club President.

David Graveney, slow left arm bowler from Gloucestershire, was captain of Durham for the first two seasons. Was for a time chairman of England's selectors. He is the son of Ken Graveney, formerly with Gloucester and nephew of Tom Graveney, Gloucester, Worcester and England.

Paul Parker had played with distinction for Cambridge University and Sussex, where he was captain for four seasons. A fine batsman and outstanding cover fielder he too was nearing the end of his career when he came to Durham for two seasons. Another one cap wonder for England in 1981.

Dean Jones, the Australian Test batsman had a wonderful career record before coming to Durham, where he did well in his one season. Often a controversial character he returned to England to spend two seasons with Derbyshire in 1996-7.

Finally at the end of the front row is yet another veteran, a real character in Wayne 'Ned' Larkins. He came to Durham after a long, successful career with Northants. When in form he always scored his runs quickly and with a smile on his face.

Old Trafford 1953

By Brian Sanderson

1953 was a eventful year with the first climb of Everest and the
Queen's Coronation. Cricket was looking for Len Hutton, the
first professional English captain, to win the Ashes.

The first two tests had been drawn at Nottingham and Lords.

Before the match started there was worry about Hutton;s health.

It was not until 10.00 AM on the first morning he declared himself

fit. Trueman was twelfth man and the bowling attack had only 

three specialist  bowlers Bedser , Wardle and Laker. Whilst the

Australian bowling attack was Miller, Lindwall ,Archer,in his

first test against England  and Davidson.

Lindsey Hassett won the toss again and batted first. and did 

not start until 2.50 pm  due to rain. Soon Laker was injured 

so reducing the bowling attack even more. The end of the 

first day Australia were 151 for 3.

Despite heavy rain in the early hours of the morning ,play 

was possible at 11.55 am  but the weather was so bad that

cricket was limited to ninety minutes in four separate attempts.

Australia continued to 221 for three.

On the third day play started at 12.00 and Hole was soon out

for 66 after being in a stand of 173 with Neil Harvey. Next to 

go was Harvey for 122 batting for four hours and a quarter.

Australia lost their last seven wickets for 97 and finished

on 318.

England finished at the end of the day at 126 for 4 with Hutton

scoring 66 which would turn out to be the top score of the 

innings of 276

There was no play on Monday and play started on Tuesday at 

2.50pm. When the Australians batted they were soon in bother

by losing eight wickets for 35 with Johnny Wardle taking 

4 for 7 in five ovrs. They could not master the turning ball

and so England emerged for the third time with an honourable 

draw.

Headingley match was another draw and then on to the Oval.

A story for another day.