All Ten: The Ultimate Bowling Feat

166 Frank Smailes Yorkshire v Derbyshire, 1939 County Championship Bramall Lane, Sheffield on 24, 26, 27 June 1939 (3-day match) Toss won by Yorkshire Yorkshire won by 276 runs Umpires: HG Baldwin, H Elliott Yorkshire 83 (GH Pope 6-44) and 310 (W Barber 100); Derbyshire 20 (J Smurthwaite 5-7) and 97 (TF Smailes 10-47) Derbyshire second innings D Smith b Smailes 8 AE Alderman c Smurthwaite b Smailes 0 TS Worthington c Mitchell b Smailes 32 LF Townsend b Smailes 0 GH Pope lbw b Smailes 1 AEG Rhodes b Smailes 18 *TD Hounsfield not out 21 AV Pope b Smailes 4 C Gladwin b Smailes 0 +H Elliott b Smailes 6 TB Mitchell st Fiddling b Smailes 6 Extras (b 1) 1 Total (all out, 34.1 overs) 97 Fall of wickets 1-0, 2-19, 3-19, 4-21, 5-56, 6-61, 7-71, 8-71, 9-79, 10-97 Yorkshire bowling: TF Smailes 17.1-5-47-10, J Smurthwaite 14-5-43-0, NWD Yardley 2-0-5-0, EP Robinson 1-0-1-0 Yorkshire : H Sutcliffe, A Mitchell, W Barber, M Leyland, NWD Yardley, GA Wilson, AB Sellers (capt), TF Smailes, EP Robinson, J Smurthwaite, K Fiddling (wk) Although he played only nine full seasons (following occasional appearances in 1932 and 1933), Frank Smailes, the last man to take an all-ten for Yorkshire, and the only right-arm bowler to do so, appeared in seven Championship-winning sides. Like many colleagues he lost some of his best years to the War. Six feet tall with a high action he swung the ball late at around medium-fast and later developed into a very good off- spinner. He was also a good enough left-hand batsman to be classified as an allrounder, performing the double in 1938, the first Yorkshireman to do so since Roy Kilner and Wilfred Rhodes back in 1926. Born in Ripley, North Yorkshire in 1910, his father a cattle dealer, Smailes was educated at Pocklington School. He began playing with Ilkley at the age of 16, and after spells with Harrogate, and then as a professional with Forfarshire and with Brighouse, became a Yorkshire regular in 1934, the imminent ending of George Macaulay’s career leaving a vacancy in the side. Four years later he was named among the 13 players from whom the England side to play Australia at Old Trafford would be selected.