Famous Cricketers No 59 - Aubrey Faulkner

Faulkner was quick to enlist when the First World War broke out in August 1914, joining the Worcestershire Regiment, but soon transferred to the Royal Field Artillery. After serving briefly on the Western Front he sailed for Thessaloniki, and saw action in Macedonia, where freezing conditions caused as much hardship as the enemy. In 1917 he was shipped out to Palestine and was promoted to acting major. His brigade played a major role in the capture of Jerusalem, but he contracted malaria, which was to affect him for the rest of his life. In recognition of his outstanding efforts he was awarded the DSO and the Order of the Nile. His marriage did not long survive his return from active service and he was divorced in 1920 shortly before he accepted a post as games master at St Piran’s Preparatory School in Maidenhead. Among the pupils there was Freddie Brown, who Faulkner turned into a highly competent leg-spinner, setting him on the road to Test match cricket and the captaincy of England. Faulkner proved an excellent coach and was immensely popular with the boys, so much so that he was offered a partnership by the headmaster. Nothing came of this however. Shortly before taking up his appointment at the school he appeared for the Gentlemen and MCC, and the following season he was persuaded to turn out for an England XI, put together by Archie MacLaren, against the Australians at Eastbourne. Up to that time the tourists had been undefeated in 34 matches and had thrashed England 3-0 in the Test series. The Australians routed the England XI for 43 (Faulkner 3), but struggled in making 174 (Faulkner 4/50) in reply. Their lead of 131 seemed enough to ensure an innings win, but Faulkner proceeded to play what was probably the finest innings of his life. Although only four months short of his 40th birthday, he displayed all the brilliance of his youth as he hammered the bowling of Jack Gregory, Ted McDonald, Arthur Mailey and Armstrong all around the ground. Batting for three and a half hours without giving a chance, he hit a six and 20 fours in making 153. Set 196 to win, the Australians were bowled out for 167 (Faulkner 2/13) to suffer their first loss. When the Springboks toured England in 1924, injuries depleted their ranks to such a degree that they called up Faulkner for the Second Test, at Lord’s. Out of condition and short of practice, he made 25 and 12 (run out), and had figures of 0/87 in a sad end to a distinguished Test and first-class career. The following year, after severing his connections with St Piran’s, he opened a cricket school in a garage in Petersham Road, Richmond. The Faulkner School of Cricket was the first of its kind in the world and attracted a large number of pupils, among whom was a 17-year-old Scottish boy by the name of Ian Peebles. Excited at the youngster’s ability to bowl sharply-turning leg-breaks, Faulkner predicted a great future for him and offered him a position as his secretary. Finding the Richmond premises too small, Faulkner set about searching for a better site and eventually found what he was looking for in Farm Lane, Walham Green. The much larger building allowed him to install six matting pitches providing a variety of bounce and turn. In spite of his success as a coach and the large number of pupils he attracted, Faulkner always struggled to make ends meet, and worked himself extremely hard, spending many hours bowling in the nets. When his right arm tired he would bowl with his left. He married again in 1928 at the age of 46, his bride being considerably younger. The second Mrs Faulkner took over as his secretary and worked tirelessly to help her husband, planning with him to extend the school to incorporate facilities for a gymnasium. Faulkner could well have augmented his income by applying for a liquor licence, but his early experiences of his father’s drinking led him to discount the idea. Among his pupils who went on to fame on the cricket field were Doug Wright, the South African leg-spinner Denis Tomlinson and Nottinghamshire all-rounder Tom Reddick. In spite of his wide circle of friends, Faulkner was not as happy and gregarious as he outwardly seemed. Lurking below the surface were demons which caused moods of deep depression, exacerbated by his attacks of malaria. As the years passed he became more prone to what was probably manic depression, and on September 10th 1930 he could stand it no longer and gassed 5