Lives in Cricket No 32 - Eric Rowan

95 Eric possessed a wonderful command of the English language and used this to be involved in journalism on a part-time basis. His articles were clear and to the point and he did not mince his words if he felt something was deserving of criticism. In one of Athol Rowan’s scrapbooks there is an article written by Eric entitled How to Learn to Bat. As expected it is full of common sense. He talks about starting young and implores coaches not to destroy individuality. ‘During my career I have encountered many coaches, most of whom were too dogmatic and relied too much on textbook methods. There are certain fundamental principles, which must be mastered before you can be a good batsman, but once those have been absorbed, it is a mistake to endeavour to robotise a young player. A batsman should be allowed to develop along his own individual lines.’ Eric’s forthright character and lack of fear in expressing opinions made him a successful public speaker in demand for dinners and other functions. He would have been nothing less than entertaining. As one would expect, Eric’s private life matched the tempestuous nature of his cricket career. His two marriages both ended in acrimony and divorce. On 28 January 1932 he married Gladys Mabel Oliver at St John’s Anglican Church in Belgravia, a suburb of Johannesburg. Their son, Eric Anthony Rowan, known as Baby Eric, was born on 12 January 1935. He believes that his mother was engaged to someone else when his parents met, but that his father was such a charmer that she soon changed her mind. Eric always called her ‘Glad Eyes’, but the marriage was a difficult one. Involvement in cricket meant periods away from home and he was such a ladies’ man that he was unable to resist the temptations that came his way. Gladys tolerated the indiscretions for some time, but eventually her husband’s extra-marital activities became too much to bear and she filed for divorce. Their son cannot remember the exact date this occurred, but it must have been around 1947 as he was 12 years old at the time and a boarder at Mpiti House which is a feeder boarding house for Jeppe Boys High School. Gladys told family members how much she loved Eric, but could not tolerate all the other women. Most believed she remained in love with him until the day she died. Baby Eric married Gloria McLoughlin on 5 October 1957 and they A Life Beyond Play