Lives in Cricket No 15 - Michael Falcon

and was able to play for Norfolk only intermittently thereafter. He was great friends with Michael Falcon who attended the funeral and later delivered a eulogy to Colman at the Norfolk club’s annual meeting. Norfolk continued to shine in 1935, winning five games outright and conceding first innings leads only to arch-rivals Buckinghamshire. The batting was very much a team effort with seven players averaging over 26. Michael Falcon demonstrated much improved form, amassing 397 runs at an average of 30.54. He played aggressively all season and was only overshone in the away fixture with Buckinghamshire. The last man Wilfrid Thompson came in to join him when Norfolk, who had followed on, were a mere 31 ahead. Thompson proceeded to pummel 58 out of a partnership of 67 in 25 minutes: he hit four sixes, breaking a cottage window, then losing two balls and finishing off by smashing the window of a car parked near the pavilion. By then Norfolk were safe. Falcon took a mere nine wickets all season but did have one match-winning spell: in the first game of the season Hertfordshire were made to follow on and Falcon’s four for 44 in the second innings was instrumental in setting up Norfolk’s ten wicket victory with a mere ten minutes to spare. His captaincy continued to receive favourable notice in the Eastern Daily Press : ‘the captain … making the best possible use of the bowling at his command’. 1936 Norfolk’s unbeaten run in the Championship continued into 1936 when, with three outright wins, they finished second to Hertfordshire. As they had played Hertfordshire in the regular season, they were unable to issue a challenge for the title: this was frustrating as Norfolk had had very much the better of Hertfordshire in the two fixtures between the counties. They won the first by ten wickets and, in the second, Hertfordshire, following on, were a mere six runs ahead with three wickets remaining when time ran out. Slow left-armer Tristan Ballance was largely responsible for this dominance, his hauls against Hertfordshire totalling 21 wickets for 113 runs. These feats helped him to a highly impressive total of 42 wickets at 8.11 apiece. The other bowlers had supporting roles with, surprisingly, Michael Falcon returning the most economical figures: he took 17 wickets at less than 12, chipping in almost every time he had a bowl. His deadliest 88 Elder Statesman: 1930-1939