Lives in Cricket No 6 - Bill Copson

for the rest of the season might well very have emulated the feat of Jim Parks sr, ten years previously, who completed the unique ‘double’ of 3,000 runs and 100 wickets. For the first time ever, Derbyshire provided both opening bowlers in a Test Match as Cliff Gladwin was also playing. England won the toss and, although scoring somewhat slowly in this four day game, amassed the respectable score of 427. Copson batted for the first and only time in his Test career, scoring six runs in thirteen minutes, before being bowled by the medium pace of Ossie Dawson. N.B.F. ‘Tufty’ Mann, the South African slow left-arm bowler, in long economical spells, took four for 93 from 64 overs, of which 28 were maidens. Gladwin made a very useful 51 not out which made some amends for his running out of Godfrey Evans, when he refused an easy single to deep mid off. Copson had a steady spell of bowling in the South African first innings. At one stage they had reached 243 for the loss of four wickets, Bruce Mitchell being the sheet anchor. He had an inspired piece of bowling when he took the new ball at the Pavilion End and dismissed Mann, V.I.Smith and last man out Mitchell in only seven balls, without conceding a run. His figures in this spell were seven overs, six maidens, four runs, three wickets. This was the first and only time that the author ever saw Bill Copson bowl and he remembers being impressed and surprised at how short his run was – about ten paces or so – compared with the pace he generated off the pitch. Howorth also bowled well in a very long spell and took a wicket with his first ball in Test cricket. England went for quick runs in their second innings to build on their lead of 125 and Denis Compton, at the very top of his form, made a most attractive 113. This was his fourth century of the rubber and altogether against the tourists he hit six scoring over a thousand runs at an average of 84.78. South Africa were set a total of 450 runs to win the match and came very close to achieving the target. Mitchell, in another splendid innings, completed his second hundred of the match and finished on 189 not out: he was on the field for all but eight minutes of the match. South Africa finished only 28 runs short of the required total and the match was drawn. Bill failed to take a wicket in this innings, although chances were missed off him. This was the end of Copson’s all too brief Test career, in which he finished with career figures of fifteen wickets at an average of 19.80 from three appearances, an average of five wickets per 70 Final First-Class Seasons