by Mayukh Ghosh
Rob Franks’ love affair with cricket began in the 1960s. The fact that his grandfather was a gatekeeper at Basin Reserve helped. A young Rob watched MCC play New Zealand in 1963.
In those days he enjoyed playing the game and watching whenever he got opportunities. The limitations as a cricketer were visible rather early and by the early 1980s, his cricket playing days were virtually over.
He then concentrated on collecting cricket books and other cricketing memorabilia.
That eventually led him into the field of undertaking research and writing on the subject.
His first book Kiwi Cricket Pages: A Bibliography and Reference Guide to New Zealand Cricket Publications was published in 2006. The book contains details on 1500 items, 500 of which are not in Padwick’s Bibliography.
Since then he has written another four books on cricket, with a fifth (on Ted Badcock) being almost ready for publication.
His last published book was Overshadowed, detailing the deeds of the New Zealand Services Cricket Team in England in 1945.
Rob was candid enough to explain the reasons behind writing this book.
“The game of cricket was forced to take a low-profile on the international stage during the turbulent years of the Second World War. Only a small number of publications cover the events that took place on the field and therefore there is a yawning gap in the world of cricket literature during the six-year period. This particularly relates to Australia and New Zealand, at a time when numerous cricketers joined up to aid the war effort.
“Perhaps the most widely documented team during this era was the popular Australian Services side that participated in the Victory Tests against England. It was during the uncomplicated and carefree months of 1945 post-war England, once the long dark shadow of war had finally lifted. Led by the poker-faced Lindsay Hassett, other team members of note included the charismatic Keith Miller and ‘umbrella field’ inventor Keith Carmody.
“During the peacetime summer of 1945, the New Zealand Services cricketers also played on village greens and tree-lined grounds of England, as well as the more prominent venues such as Edgbaston and Lord’s. The Kiwis encountered various English stars such as Walter Hammond, Bill Edrich and Len Hutton, however little was publicised about the team or its exploits.”
It was an interesting story and not told before. In Rob’s words:
“My interest in New Zealand cricket goes back to when I compiled Kiwi Cricket Pages back in 2006. It became obvious there were many missing aspects of cricket had not been captured in print, so my subsequent writing has tended to focus on the interesting aspects of New Zealand cricket that remain unrecorded.
“After researching about cricket played by the New Zealand soldiers based in Egypt during the Second World War (Kiwi cricketers along the Nile, published in 2014), it seemed a natural extension to delve into the exploits of the 1945 New Zealand Services team, as several of these army men turned out for the side. It was a surprise to find the group of Kiwis mustered together to play for the Services side in the aftermath of war, 23 of the players were (or later became) first-class cricketers. Six men represented New Zealand in Tests at various intervals.
“The story of the tour had not been told, however I considered it was an important part of New Zealand’s missing cricket heritage that warranted greater exposure and wider recognition. After all, both the games and the players helped to play an essential role in the post-war re-establishment of cricket.
“I believed it was a unique story that needed to be told.”
Since all that happened seventy years ago and very little was documented at that time, the research challenges were aplenty.
“With the passage of time, it is a sad fact the majority of Kiwi cricketers from the war era had already passed away, so first-hand accounts of the matches proved a challenge. I was indeed fortunate to track down five former wartime participants and find out about their cricket experiences to ensure I could provide an authentic account of the era.
“Researching the book was like a jigsaw puzzle with a number of missing pieces. The games were under-reported at the time, primarily due to post-war British newspaper print restrictions. Any official scorebook had long disappeared, and few photographs or personal documented reminiscences existed, which necessitated perseverance on my part. Background information was therefore primarily obtained from newspaper articles of the era, online records and official scorecards. By working methodically, the project all came together.
“While Wisden provided a helpful base source for 16 games, it was satisfying to uncover many other unrecorded games and to be able to report on all but two of the 35 known games. Hence, the tour was able to be relived.”
But there were rewards to be reaped as well.
“The most satisfying aspect of the research was the good fortune of being able to interview five nonagenarians who represented New Zealand teams in games during wartime. From discussions, the overriding impression I gained was that cricket during wartime was essentially played for sheer enjoyment. The game was more of an amateur recreational pursuit, the true spirit of sportsmanship existed, and comradeship of wartime experiences bound players together.
“It was also a rewarding experience to compile pen portraits of some 48 players to represent the various New Zealand Services teams in England during wartime. Several players were not household names, so it was a challenge to discover more about their cricket careers and follow the fortune of these men in later years. Club histories from my cricket library and online sources helped enormously.”
Rob was also kind enough to provide a brief account of the tour:
“Overshadowed incorporates a brief survey of wartime cricket played by New Zealand Services teams in England throughout the period 1940 to 1944 and provides an account of the matches played by 1945 New Zealand Services team in England over a lengthy 18-week period.
“The side contained several of New Zealand’s big names from the past such as Stewie Dempster, Roger Blunt, Ted Badcock and Ken James, along with rising stars Martin Donnelly and Tom Pritchard. The entire squad contained a curious mixture of players – veterans from an earlier era; newcomer’s fresh from army service (including several ex-Prisoners of War), airmen and sailors on duty in England at the time. The complex assortment of players became a fascinating angle in telling the story of the tour.”
Subjects like these never produce the best sellers but often generate a deep sense of satisfaction for the researcher/writer. There was no exception in Rob’s case either.
“Instinctively I knew the book would not be an all-time best seller, although it would definitely appeal to cricket diehards with an interest in New Zealand and wartime cricket. It was very much a niche market and took me into the realm of self-publishing, which was another challenge, although not an insurmountable hurdle. Ultimately it was gratifying to receive positive feedback and comments about the book from true cricket lovers and kind words of appreciation from relatives of players involved in the games.
“At the outset I was motivated to record the tour for two main reasons. Firstly, it is an attempt to plug an obvious gap in the history of New Zealand cricket and also to pay tribute to the Kiwi wartime cricketers. Their story had been overlooked in cricket annals and quietly forgotten.
“The story provides an insight into an almost forgotten time when wartime cricket on the fields of England ultimately contributed an interesting chapter in the overall development of New Zealand cricket. On a personal note, the final paragraph says it all: “It is fitting to recall the cricketers who played a part in New Zealand’s military and cricket history – they deserve to be remembered.”
Overshadowed was published two years ago but, as often is the case with good limited-edition books, is scarcely available these days.
The odd copy does appear in the stores of the specialist cricket booksellers in Australia and England.
But it is a book worth hunting down.