Sad to hear of the death today of Mike Denness, the only Scots-born cricketer to captain England. I met him once at the ceremony when he was inducted into the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame, a fascinating and friendly man, and I'm glad to say I voted for him as a member of the selection panel.
While the obituaries will inevitably focus on his cricket career with Kent and England, and his subsequent role as a referee, it should not be forgotten that he learned the game in Scotland and was capped by his native country 19 times between 1959 and 1967. He was a 15-year-old pupil at Ayr Academy when he made his debut for Ayr Cricket Club in 1956, and is pictured here (front row, first left) with the Ayr team that was Western Union champions in 1960. He was only 18 when he made his debut for Scotland in 1959, playing against India, Ireland, Warwickshire and MCC that summer, and his final appearance was at Edgbaston against Warwickshire in August 1967 - two years before his England test debut.
Others will no doubt be much better placed than me to write about his life and achievements, but I hope his contribution to Scottish sport is not forgotten.
While the obituaries will inevitably focus on his cricket career with Kent and England, and his subsequent role as a referee, it should not be forgotten that he learned the game in Scotland and was capped by his native country 19 times between 1959 and 1967. He was a 15-year-old pupil at Ayr Academy when he made his debut for Ayr Cricket Club in 1956, and is pictured here (front row, first left) with the Ayr team that was Western Union champions in 1960. He was only 18 when he made his debut for Scotland in 1959, playing against India, Ireland, Warwickshire and MCC that summer, and his final appearance was at Edgbaston against Warwickshire in August 1967 - two years before his England test debut.
Others will no doubt be much better placed than me to write about his life and achievements, but I hope his contribution to Scottish sport is not forgotten.
RSS Feed