Lives in Cricket No 36 - WE Astill

125 The Test Player ten of which came in one match with Jamaica, while he made a further half-century (53) against Jamaica’s Next XV in a two-day match. At the conclusion of the tour the president of the island’s Board of Control, Sir William Morrison, presented him, and all the other players, with a bat as a token of appreciation. Meanwhile the Leicestershire committee, in an attempt to make up the huge financial loss of £1,275 (about £63,000 at 2013 prices) on the previous season, determined to sub-let the ground for dirt-track racing, a decision turned down by a special meeting of the members. On the playing field, however, another fairly successful season was enjoyed. Indeed, as pointed out by Wisden , if play in the first half of the season had matched that in the second, the county would have challenged for the Championship. As it was they finished ninth again but with an increase in victories from six to nine. Geary, now fully recovered, took the bowling honours together with Astill, whose 111 in the Championship cost just 18.39 each. Wisden noted that he ‘relied almost entirely on the slow ball, mixing pace, flight and break, frequently bowled long spells round the wicket, and, with his splendid length so ably maintained, often exhausted the patience of the opposing batsmen’. With the side being again strong in batting, his contributions in that discipline were not as vital as in many earlier years and he scored only 816 runs in the Championship, but boosted by other matches for the county he increased this number to 987 while through participation in the Scarborough Festival he was able to creep over the barrier of 1,000 and Julien Cahn’s XI for their three first-class matches in Jamaica 1929. Standing (l to r): A.Sandham, B.Lilley, H.A.Peach, J.Iddon, F.J.Durston, W.E.Astill, F.W.H.Nicholas. Seated: E.W.Dawson, Lord Tennyson, J.Cahn, W.W.Whysall.