Lives in Cricket No 16 - Joe Hardstaff

going on to say that the innings took him back years ‘to watch his gracefully wielded bat urging runs from a wide repertoire of strokes.’ On Monday Len Hutton batted for almost five hours to make his 129th and final first-class century, 194 in a Yorkshire total of 389 for nine declared. As was often the case at Trent Bridge in those days there was now little prospect of a result. Notts batted for the rest of the match to reach 280 for five. In what was described by Harry Richards as ‘a polished first century of the season’ Joe hit 19 fours in an innings of 134 made in two hours and fifty minutes before he was caught by Hutton. It was his 83rd and final first-class century and Hutton’s catch was his last in first-class cricket. It was almost the end of the road for both players whose Test and County careers stretched back into the thirties. Yorkshire went on to Bournemouth where Hutton, utterly exhausted by his efforts at Trent Bridge, was dismissed for nought and two in what turned out to be his last match for Yorkshire. Joe went to Birmingham and managed nought and eight against Warwickshire. He missed the next four matches, before returning to the side for the Gloucestershire match at Trent Bridge which began on 20 July. In the first innings he opened the batting with Clay, but was caught by Young off McHugh for three. Notts could only manage only 238 in reply to the Gloucestershire total of 297. Batting again Gloucestershire made 241 for seven before declaring and setting Notts 301 to win. Notts were all out for 154 but not before Joe had made 32 with six fours in what Wisden described as ‘a spirited display’. This ‘spirited display’ was his last first-class appearance for Notts. During the match H.A.Brown, the Notts Secretary, had announced that, as the strain of three-day cricket was becoming too much for him, Joe had asked to be left out of the side for the remaining matches, unless there was an emergency. However, it was not quite the end. Three days later, on 25 July, Joe turned out for the Second Eleven against Northamptonshire’s seconds at Newark on the Ransome, Hoffman and Pollard ground in Elm Road. He made 23 out of a total of 286 in the two-day match which ended in a draw. Most surprisingly Wisden’s report of Notts’ doings in 1955 makes only a statistical reference to Joe’s retirement. 75 By contrast Arthur County Cricketer, 1949-1955 115 75 The index refers the enquirer to page 506 but there is nothing there, so perhaps he was the victim of a last-minute editorial excision.