Famous Cricketers No 54 - Stan McCabe

bowling at The Oval in 1938 did he lead the side, but with two of their best batsmen injured they were well beaten by an innings and 579 runs, which is the largest margin of victory in a Test. For New South Wales he captained them 24 times, winning 16, losing three with five draws, and in the Sheffield Shield he led them 14 times, winning seven times, losing two with five draws. As Australian captain he led them eleven times, winning six, losing only one with four draws. McCabe did not play much part in the war because of his foot problem and joined the Army towards the end of 1942, where he served for 12 months in a clerical capacity. In early January 1957 a testimonial match was held at Sydney Cricket Ground for McCabe and O’Reilly, captained by Lindwall and Harvey. The match netted approximately 4000 dollars for each player. Stan McCabe died at the early age of 58 on Sunday 25 August 1968, after falling from a cliff at the bottom of his garden at Beauty Point in Mosman, Sydney. The fifth Test Match between Australia and England at The Oval was being played at the time and upon news of McCabe’s death all the flags were lowered to half-mast in respect. Upon his death, great tributes followed: “At his best, a magnificent driver, McCabe was a fine, all-round cricketer and in only one Test did he actually fail in batting. This was at Manchester and there he atoned by some extremely effective bowling. With a quick action he made the ball come off the pitch at a rare pace, with just enough break to beat the bat.” ( Wisden ) “In McCabe the cricketer, you saw McCabe the man – urbane, sociable, unpretentious, straightforward, incapable of anything mean-spirited. In all the pre-war Test series he was best liked by both his own team and his opponents.” (Ray Robinson) “Regardless of the state of the match he always played magnificent strokes and was at his greatest when his side badly needed runs under any conditions and against all types of bowlers.” (Len Darling) “Here was a lovely player.” (Don Bradman) “He had qualities that even Bradman hadn’t got.” (Len Hutton) 6