Lives in Cricket No 40 - Edwin Smith

36 A hundred wickets the attack almost with disdain. The pair added 157 runs in 89 minutes, completely changing the game. Derbyshire ended with 354, of which Hamer hit 227 (five sixes and 27 fours) and Edwin a precious 57 with eight boundaries. He and Gladwin bowled out Nottinghamshire the following day and after heavy rain that evening, Derbyshire won by 111 runs on the last day. Then it was back to Chesterfield, where his second innings five for 22 was not enough to prevent a Hampshire win. There followed two games in which he had only two wickets, before Derbyshire headed to Edinburgh on the overnight sleeper, for a three-day game against Scotland. Gladwin was rested and Jackson injured, so Brian Furniss, from Baslow, made his debut and took the new ball with Derek Hall. Scotland batted solidly and amassed 289, with Edwin taking five for 66 in 39 overs. Then Guy Willatt’s fine century showed what the county were missing, as Derbyshire took a first innings lead of one run. Edwin takes over the story. Scotland moved nicely to 45 without loss before I took the first wicket and then it became a procession. Most of them went to the leg trap as I took the first nine wickets to fall on a turning wicket. Then, with the last pair together, the batsman hit one back at me. It wasn’t easy, but I should have held it. Arnold Hamer, who was bowling his off spin at the other end, came up to me and said ‘Well, if you don’t want it, I’ll have it’ and took the last wicket in the next over! Nine for 46 in 26 overs gave Edwin match figures of 14 for 112 and Derbyshire eased to a win by eight wickets, aided by John Kelly being dropped four times. The steady bowling continued to the end of the season and six for 80 against Sussex, albeit in a losing cause, reinforced Edwin’s case for international consideration. He had passed the hundred wicket mark for the first time and proved himself a bowler capable of getting teams out when conditions suited, as well as keeping them quiet when the batsmen held sway. His name was mentioned in press circles as a likely tourist for Pakistan in 1955-56, a side that would be captained by his county skipper, Donald Carr. Serious consideration was still a thing for the future, but a congratulatory telegram from Les Jackson, on achieving his hundred wicket milestone, took pride of place in his souvenirs from the season.