At the start of the 1961/62 cricket season, Garry (later Sir Garfield) Sobers, arrived to play cricket with South Australia and Prospect District Cricket Club. His services had been secured as a result of the combined efforts of Sir Donald Bradman, Club secretary the former Test umpire Mel McInnes and Club coach Reg Craig.
In his book, Three Summers of Sobers, Michael Sexton admirably covers the three seasons where, as Sobers said, “I got to know Australia and grew to love it – especially Adelaide, South Australia. In fact it saved my cricketing life”.
Some impressions of his time at Prospect.
The first thing Prospect captain John Ducker asked Sobers was where in the batting order did he wish to bat. “You’re the skipper”, replied Sobers, “I’ll bat where you want me to.”
Ducker has reiterated how this statement marked the respect Sobers always displayed for him as captain and for the team. Sobers then qualified this by saying that he usually batted at number four for the West Indies because he would be shielded should an early wicket be lost or ready to capitalise on a good start.
At the players tea held after practice on the Thursday before the first match of the season, the six team line-ups were announced and Sobers was introduced to the Club. The local paper, The Northern Suburbs Weekly, reported on the gracious speech made by Sobers in which he thanked Club members and his billeting hosts, the Sandford family, for the welcome he had received. He also mentioned the need to “bring the game back to a high standard of entertainment”, the style of bright cricket played in his homeland.
Sobers, or ‘Sobey’ as he became known, certainly did his best to achieve that aim.
(John Ducker, Reg Craig, Jack Stradling, Mel McInnes, Garry Sobers, Tom Watt, David Strudwick. Photo: Prospect DCC)
Over the course of the three seasons from 1961/62 to 1963/64 he was a stellar performer for South Australia and Prospect.
He completed the double of 1000 runs and 50 wickets in two of his three seasons for South Australia. Cricket followers who saw him play still recall a favorite moment.
For Prospect his start with the bat was more than inconspicuous. He did not trouble the scorer in either of his first two innings. The not inconsiderable number of spectators who had each placed one shilling in the large ‘bookies bag’ held by the gatekeeper at the entrance to Prospect Oval were left somewhat bemused. In the first match against Kensington, Sobers hit a sharp return catch to bowler Ken Horsnell. In his second, he was bowled first ball by University left arm chinaman bowler David Sincock with a ball that, as wicket-keeper Denis ‘Rocka’ Brien related, “pitched outside the off stump and hit leg”. Perhaps the ‘other’ ball of the century! It was a different matter when Sobers bowled. With a mix of fast medium, orthodox and wrist spinners he took 10 wickets (3/88 and 7/33) in the first match and 8 (5/41 and 3/47) in the second. Added to this, he took a scorcher of a catch at leg slip in the University match.
During his three seasons with Prospect, Sobers scored 869 runs at an average of 41.3 with centuries in consecutive innings in the pressure of finals matches in 1963/64 – 111 against Woodville in the Semi-final and a brilliant 175 in the Grand Final against West Torrens. He scored 50 or more on seven occasions. With the ball he captured 104 wickets at an average of 13.55. He took five wickets or more in an innings on 6 occasions. Often he would open the bowling in an innings and then later in his spell, as the situation required, he would revert to spin.
(Photo: Prospect DCC)
But there was more to his cricket than statistics. The easy loping stride. The flashing blade. Garry Sobers was a committed and popular member of the Prospect team. He respected the opposition and the game of cricket. While he was friend to all, his particular great mate was Graham ‘Clacker’ Clarke, the bulky left arm seamer who could make the ball swing. Sobers marvelled at how the less than athletic looking Clarke would keep steaming in, maintaining his pace for over after over in the summer heat. At times, during a break in play, Clacker would be keen to hear the results of a race from Morphettville or Flemington. And Sobers’ love of a punt meant that he was always interested in the result as well.
Sobers took to the Adelaide night life as well, often heading into the late evening with a teammate or two when mere mortals were heading home for the night.
Sobers was set to return to South Australia for the 1964/65 season but his appointment as captain of the West Indies team made this impossible. He did return at the start of the 1971/1972 season and in his first match took 10 wickets (8/22 and 2/25) against Kensington. He played in only two other matches before being seconded to captain the Rest of the World Team for the series of matches held as a replacement for the cancelled tour by South Africa.
Sobers returned to Australia on several occasions. On a memorable evening in the mid-1990s, he revisited the Prospect clubrooms and at the pre-Test match Patron’s night dinner he caught up with his old friend Clacker and held club supporters spellbound with his words.
On the eve of the Adelaide Test of the most recent West Indies tour in 2024, a message from Sir Garfield in Barbados was read to patrons at the Prospect Cricket Club/Rotary Club of Adelaide Not The Test Match Dinner.
In his autobiography Cricket Crusader, Sir Garfield/Garry/‘Sobey’ Sobers wrote:
I am proud to have played with the SACA and the Prospect Club, and say thank you for your generosity to me, for your unlimited kindness, your trust and above all your warm and sincere friendship.
RIP Garry Sobers. There are cricket lovers everywhere who thank you.
Have a look at the scorecards from the successful 1963-64 SA Sheffield Shield season. Seems like W.M. Lawry didn’t fancy Sobey too much. HERE
Read more from Peter Crossing HERE.
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Peter Crossing loves the pure ‘n natch’l blues. He is a member of the silver fox faction of the Adelaide Uni Greys. He is something of a cricket tragic although admitting to little interest in the IPL or Big Bash forms of the game.
Terrific piece Peter, what a thrill for all concerned.