Lives in Cricket No 14 - Jack Bond

Among the compensations for Jack in this unfulfilling interlude had been his ability to join the Test selection panel, a job for which his regular involvement on the field well equipped him. He served under the chairmanship of Alec Bedser, with Brian Taylor and Ossie Wheatley as his fellow selectors, in a summer in which Mike Denness led England to series wins against India and Pakistan. There was a first cap for David Lloyd in the second Test of the summer and a highlight of the annihilation of India and their vaunted spin attack was his double century in the next match at Edgbaston. The series against Pakistan hinged on ruthless exploitation of a rain-affected pitch at Lord’s by Derek Underwood, but the limitations of the England attack were exposed in a high-scoring draw at The Oval, as the batsmen’s frailties would be the following winter when confronted by the pace of Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson. Jack had only the briefest taste of life as a selector, and he was not around to advise on the repair work required when the battered touring party returned home, for an advertisement in The Cricketer was to lead his life in an unexpected direction. King William’s College on the Isle of Man sought a cricket coach and Jack’s application brought a swift response. Principal of a school that was founded in 1833 was Geoffrey Rees-Jones, scorer of two famous tries in Wales’ defeat of the 1936 All Blacks, and the Vice-Principal was C.I.M.Jones, one-time captain of the Great Britain hockey team and a man who had played two first-class cricket matches for Cambridge. Together they persuaded Jack to uproot and move to the island, a special carrot being that Wesley could finish his secondary education at the College. Ian Jones, known universally as CIM, pronounced in the manner of Kipling, well remembers the happy outcome of that first meeting. ‘Jack’s impact was immediate. He had a marvellous way with people and he was involved with everything right from the start. I was also coaching the College hockey eleven and organised a number of scratch teams to play against the school teams and other Island teams. Jack had not played hockey since his National Service, but he was soon an integral and above all an enthusiastic member of the team. He also played Isle of Man table tennis, so was well known and accepted on the Island before the cricket season even started.’ ‘Together we ran the College eleven. Our first match was away at Merchant Taylor’s Crosby, whom we had not beaten for some time. ‘Nobody ever locked their doors’ 117