Lives in Cricket No 52 - Schooled in Cricket (2nd edition)

226 The following week on June 4 at Dewsbury, Wakefield for once won a match without Johnny being required to bowl or bat though he did take two catches when Wilson decided to go with pace and swing and fast bowler Colin Lumb took six for 29. Johnny was back in the ascendancy in helping wins over Gomersal and King Cross the following week. Five for 37 against Gomersal after Vic Wilson’s first century for the club enabled Wakefield to win by 125 runs. Then on the Monday evening his six for 22 including the first four wickets to fall had a crushing effect as King Cross were whittled out for 50 and a match scheduled for two evenings was over in one with a ten wicket win as the players carried on playing in a torrential shower at the start of Wakefield’s reply. Wakefield were closing in on the leaders at this stage but were still third with Mirfield in second place. Johnny should have had an early wicket in a key match at Mirfield on June 18 but a stumping which would have removed Bob Hagan went begging; after that Wakefield were ‘sadly outplayed’ and their ‘limitations were cruelly exposed’. Hagan (the Australian rugby league international) went on to score 85 and three Woods including two of the illustrious brothers contributed to an outstanding performance by Mirfield as Wakefield clung on for a draw. Surely the Wakefield side of ‘64 or ‘65 would have won the next match on June 25 but in between the showers Johnny took six for 16 in 20 overs – his best figures of the season but King Cross in reply to 154 for two survived 47 overs and the last man survived five balls with the usual cluster of fielders round the bat to achieve a creditable draw and be another thorn in Wakefield’s title bid. When Colin Lumb managed eight wickets the following week at home to Thornhill, Johnny only managed one wicket and his last over went for nine runs leaving the opposition two runs short of victory – another draw and more frustration. Batting collapses first caused a draw at Hanging Heaton even after Johnny had taken four for 11 and two catches and ‘Wakefield’s fall from grace’ was further emphasised by a defeat to Liversedge with Wakefield all out for 42. Fast bowler K. Goddard took six for 16, the great West-Indian leg spinner Sonny Ramadhin took two for 26 and Johnny certainly not for the first time wasted his wicket with a run out! Six for 29 and 15 not out did hugely contribute to what was described as a splendid but little more than a consolation win over Appendix Two: Some of Johnny Lawrence’s league career in more detail