Lives in Cricet No 33 - Jack Robertson and Syd Brown

74 played in the humidity of the Bourda ground at Georgetown, England had been strengthened, and heartened, by the presence of Hutton who had already made 200 runs for once out against British Guiana. 102 The West Indian captaincy passed to Barbadian John Goddard. After the home side had declared at 297 for eight, Hutton (31) and Robertson (23) began well on a rain-affected pitch, but when the partnership was broken at 59, the rest of the side folded against Ferguson and the brisk off spin of Goddard. Although the elegant Hardstaff made 63, England didn’t make enough runs in the follow-on to prevent a West Indies victory. The final leg of the tour took MCC some 1,500 miles north-west to Kingston, Jamaica and Sabina Park, a rather cramped ground with the imposing Blue Mountains rising in the distance. Overcoming help given to the West Indian quick bowlers by a ridge just short of a length at one end, the Hutton/Robertson partnership thrived once more: in the final Test they opened with a solid 129 in three hours before Jack was leg-before for 64 to Hines Johnson, a 37-year-old local fast bowler making his Test debut. Johnson took five wickets in each innings but was yet another West Indies success who went on to have only a very brief Test career. Another collapse, and then consistent West Indies batting, and England went in 102 Given that, writing later in his benefit brochure, Jack revealed that Joe Hardstaff had been ‘trying his hand’ at piloting the plane as it approached Georgetown, some of the team were probably quite relieved to arrive in one piece. Caribbean Len Hutton and Jack opening the batting in the visitors’ first innings at Georgetown in the Third Test in March 1948; they put on 59, but England were all out for 111.