Lives in Cricket No 20 - Maurice Tompkin

season, and Gerry Lester reached 977. Thus all contributed at various times in this spell; indeed Maurice completed his thousand runs on 28 June in the match against Somerset. The magic ended with the match against Worcestershire at Dudley. Whilst fielding on the Monday afternoon he damaged his knee ligaments, and took no further part in the game. The Mercury announced that he would be out for a week. His enforced rest at home had an unfortunate repercussion however. His sons were in turn – naturally – ill with mumps, an illness Maurice had never contracted as a child. So in due course he too caught the virus and was quite poorly. So poorly in fact that he was admitted to hospital on 5 August with severe pains to the head. His expected return on 20 August was delayed because of more tests. He finally returned for the return match against Worcestershire, with only three games left. It was hardly surprising that his six-match absence had seen three more defeats and only one victory, against Kent at Loughborough. This was certainly a match for batsman to miss, with the top-scorers in the game being the wicketkeepers, Jack Firth with 38 for Leicestershire and Godfrey Evans with 70 for Kent. The superiority of the Leicestershire spinners, Jackson and Walsh, proved to be the difference. If his return match, and its two single-figure scores, was a disappointment, the following match against Somerset brought a return to form and another century. This time he was involved in yet another major third-wicket partnership with Charles Palmer, this one worth 176 in 162 minutes, with Maurice reaching his century in just three hours. Vic Munden and Charles Palmer proved too much for the Somerset batsman, and an innings victory ensued. The season ended, as with the year before, by another appearance for the Players against the Gentlemen at Scarborough. Appearing for the Gentlemen were his county skipper, Charles Palmer, and the South African, Cuan McCarthy, who had so damaged his prospects the previous summer by dismissing him at Lord’s. This time he batted in his usual ‘first wicket down’ position, and Len Hutton came in at five. He shared in a large fourth-wicket partnership with the England captain of 156. Neither made a century, Maurice being bowled by Bill Edrich for 98, and Hutton run out for 99. In the second innings, he scored 64, this time putting on exactly 100 with Tom Graveney in an hour, hitting three sixes and three fours. The declaration was well timed, for at the close, the Gentlemen were two runs short with two wickets standing so the game was drawn. These two innings helped Maurice to fifteenth place in the national averages, his highest position by that particular measure. * * * * * Years of Plenty, 1950 to 1953 79