Register of photographic images of ABC Cricket Book scorecards (and covers).

 

Recently Swish Schwerdt popped a photo of his ABC Cricket Book scorecard for the famous 1974-75 First Test in Brisbane on Twitter.

It prompted JTH to dig out his too.

If you have an ABC Cricket Book, send a photo of a scorecard you kept to [email protected]

So far below we have:

Swish Schwerdt
John Harms
Peter Clark
Luke Reynolds
Dave Brown

 

Swish Schwerdt’s 1974-75 First Test scorecard:

 

 

The cover of Swish’s 1974-75 ABC Cricket Book:

 

 

John Harms’s First Test of the 1974-75 Ashes series:

 

 

JTH’s scorecard is in his 1974-75 ABC Cricket Book the cover of which did not survive:

 

 

And here’s another cover. The scorecards were not filled out on this one. The first one Dad bought for us had John Gleeson on the front I reckon. Just can’t put my hands on that one.

 

 

From Peter Clark:

I still have my ABC Cricket Book from the 1968 Australian tour of England.

The cover featured Barry Jarman and Doug Walters.

 

 

 

My First Test scorecard from Old Trafford is a little incomplete:

 

 

The First Test was a good game for KD Walters who scored two eighties. I was very surprised when I checked the official scorecard to read that Bob Cowper was Australia’s leading wicket taker in the match with 6. It was a good start to the series by Australia.

Buying an ABC Cricket Book was a family tradition started by my Dad in the 1960s and continued for many years. I gave him one for Christmas last year, when he was 92 not out. I must get shopping soon and send him this season’s ABC Cricket Book.

Cheers to all ABC Cricket Book fans.

Peter Clark

 

More From Swish:

The tradition of ABC Cricket Books for overseas tours was still in place in the mid-70s, with this cover depicting Thommo in various stages of “whang”.

 

 

Here’s my scorecard from the First Test of that historic tour (which followed on from the first World Cup). My left-handed penmanship hadn’t improved, although I started keeping running averages, so maybe my maths had. To clarify, Chappelli scored 52 at #3, Greg’s blob was made at #4.

 

 

The back cover was notable for this foray into advertising. I have no idea why I labelled each of the players, it wasn’t as if I didn’t know who they were.

Luke Reynolds is a generation later. Here’s his collection:

I reckon this is Luke’s first:

Old Trafford 1993 – including The Gatting Ball.

MCG, Australia v England 1990-91:

 

Though not his original work (you can thank Malcolm Jones of Torrens Park for that), Dave Brown can add the 1962/63 Ashes tour ABC Cricket Book to the collection:

Here are the scorecards from the 1963 Adelaide test, which ended in a draw:

 

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About John Harms

JTH is a writer, publisher, speaker, historian. He is publisher and contributing editor of The Footy Almanac and footyalmanac.com.au. He has written columns and features for numerous publications. His books include Confessions of a Thirteenth Man, Memoirs of a Mug Punter, Loose Men Everywhere, Play On, The Pearl: Steve Renouf's Story and Life As I Know It (with Michelle Payne). He appears (appeared?) on ABCTV's Offsiders. He can be contacted [email protected] He is married to The Handicapper and has three school-age kids - Theo, Anna, Evie. He might not be the worst putter in the world but he's in the worst four. His ambition was to lunch for Australia but it clashed with his other ambition - to shoot his age.

Comments

  1. Loved these as a kid, think I gave them all away. I had 10 – 15 of them.

  2. Terrific stuff. Dad had them going back to the early 50’s. I can remember one of the West Indies here in 51/52 with the 3W’s – Worrell, Walcott and Weekes. Wish we still had them.
    The greatest treasure was leather bound bank ledgers with weekly sporting highlights from the early 50’s before mum and dad were married. Clippings of each round in the SANFL and VFL cut from the Sunday Mail, pink Sporting Globe and the “all colour” Melbourne Argus. Some cricket clippings and Davis Cup with Hoad and Rosewall as teenagers.
    I asked a few years ago if I could keep them for posterity and got a blank “I thought no-one was interested and I tossed them when we moved”.
    They were pure gold. If I could turn back time.

  3. Mark 'Swish' Schwerdt says

    This piece just had a mention on the ABC call

  4. Fantastic!
    I kept these religiously.
    Will have to have a fossick around Mums when I get back there in December.

    HB

  5. Luke Reynolds says

    Yes, the 1990/91 edition was my first ABC cricket book.
    Remember writing about great cricketers for a school project in 1991 while in Grade 6. Was too young to get that Matthew Engel’s piece in the 90/91 ABC book was satirical, so took his reference to “Sir Ian Botham” literally.
    Was marked down for writing about “Sir Ian Botham” and it came up at my parent/teacher interview, both the teacher and my Mum laughing and agreeing that a Botham knighthood could never be possible.
    Of course Botham was knighted in 2007.

  6. Mark 'Swish' Schwerdt says

    Luke, my collection stopped just after the time yours started. Except that I also have the 2012/13 Watto Battle Royale, which I received as a prize at a Coodabeens Arts Centre show – in 2016.

  7. Gee whiz, I collected these ABC books as a kid. And would fill out the scorecards.
    Then I got lazy and began clipping out the scorecards from the Age and the Sun and sticking them in the books.
    Unfortunately, I threw them all out when I got married.

    Some years later, on a family holiday in Pambula, I walked into a second-hand book-store which was selling these books for 20 cents each. I still regret not buying them.

  8. Luke, where were you for the Gatting ball?

    And were you actually at the 1990-91 Melbourne Test?

    If not, what was your first Test match at the MCG?

  9. Luke Reynolds says

    John, for the Gatting ball I was alone, in front of the fire while the rest of the family slept. What a moment.
    Barely missed a ball of the 1993 Ashes, must have been zombie-like at school that winter.

    No, wasn’t at the 1990/91 Test, despite attending several ODI’s my first MCG Test wasn’t until 1995/96 v Sri Lanka.
    Have been to at least one day of every MCG Test since.

  10. Made my test cricket (spectating) debut at the 1986/87 Ashes but have collected a couple of older ABC cricket books over the years, the earliest being 1963 with Richie Benaud mid-delivery on the cover. I’ll scan some of the lovingly filled in pages and send them in.

  11. They are terrific because they are filled out with hand writing. Remember that? In the future we’ll be getting all sentimental about old hard drives.

  12. Luke Reynolds says

    Swish, surprised how recent a book the Coodabeens gave you. I assumed they were still giving out mid 1980’s ABC Cricket Books!

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