Lives in Cricket No 22 - Jack Mercer

78 of the seaside revues. Jack invited his pal into the professionals’ changing- room after play on the first day, ostensibly to listen to several of them sing a few songs as they relaxed after the day’s play. Impressed by their vocal ability – not least the fine baritone voice of George Lavis – he suggested to Jack that the team should appear the following night at the theatre. ‘What do you think of it, skipper?’ Jack duly said to Turnbull, who without any hesitation replied, ‘What a grand idea!’ The following night, the entire Glamorgan team ended up on stage, singing their hearts out before making many new friends with the rest of the troupe at an after-show party. One of Turnbull’s other great strengths was his positive outlook, always reassuring the bowlers, regardless of what the scoreboard said. Unlike previous leaders, he rarely gave vent on the field to any frustrations he may have had and no matter how dire the situation actually was, he would tell them instead that they were doing well and that a wicket was just around the corner. Jack also encouraged his colleagues to talk to Turnbull and to share ideas. For Jack, it was a real delight to be able to work regularly with someone who also relished setting subtle traps into which batsmen might fall, and a captain who was prepared to give a few runs away if it meant that ultimately the batsman would get himself out. An example of Turnbull’s method came in 1932 when the Welsh county visited Stourbridge. Worcestershire secured a healthy first-innings lead and at the end of the second day, Glamorgan were 188 for six and facing a heavy defeat. The following morning when the not-out batsmen Arnold Dyson and Trevor Every were strapping on their pads on the balcony of the pavilion, Dyson turned to his junior partner and said, ‘Trevor, stay with me till I get a hundred and I’ll give you ten bob.’ Turnbull overheard this and immediately said ‘Score fifty, Trevor, and I’ll give you a decent bottle of champagne.’ Jack was also sitting nearby and he chipped in by adding, ‘Do that and I’ll give you fifty fags!’ Buoyed by the banter and general camaraderie, Every duly helped Dyson to his century, before playing some flowing strokes himself as he posted a maiden Championship hundred – much to the delight of his team-mates who loudly applauded his feat before being only too pleased to honour their wagers. Every was eventually dismissed for 116 and returned to find in his kit-bag the cigarettes, champagne and money his friends had promised. As he unbuckled his pads, Turnbull shook him by the hand and said, ‘You’ve really earned this, Trevor, and thank you very much.’ By the time Worcestershire took to the field, their target had risen to 263 and with just over three hours remaining, they now faced a stiff run-chase. As always, Jack gave nothing away in his new-ball spell, before alternating with the two Davies – Dai and Emrys – who also bowled accurately to increase the pressure. The result was a steady clatter of wickets before the Worcestershire tail-enders dropped anchor to save the match. Besides cajoling his players, Turnbull was quite prepared to wield a stick, especially if any of the high jinks threatened to get out of hand. An example involved Jack who had egged on Jack Morgan, the Western Mail Life under Turnbull