BRADMAN HITS A TON IN 3 OVERS FOR BLACKHEATH V LITHGOW.

Hello….Editor Des here, with a story about BRADMAN! 🏏

Well until the dreaded virus it was all sport, sport, sport in our household. So I thought I would write a piece about a famous cricketer!  By the way, the local coach once told me that I had a great future as twelfth man for Blackheath (the village where I live). Unfortunately, because  my guardians Pauline and Dr Bob had  such a  wandery lifestyle until recently, I missed too many practice sessions and was asked not to come anymore. 😰

Anyway, this is the story of the day ‘The Don’ (that’s what we call him in Australia) smacked a hundred runs in three, 8 ball overs for   little Blackheath, in the Blue Mountains. Yes, it’s true!  It was during the Great Depression, in 1931, which sort of makes it even more special.

On  October 4 that year the following  advertisement appeared in the  Sydney Morning Herald;

VISIT BY BRADMAN WANTED

BLACKHEATH  Tuesday

Efforts are being made to secure a visit by Don Bradman to “open” the new wicket laid on Blackheath oval by the Blackheath Cricket Club.

The match was to be against the neighbouring, much bigger coal mining town of  Lithgow.   I have been told it was the  Lithgow Potteries Team.  The cricket pitch was made of cement…nasty if a batsman fell over but they were pretty tough in those days.  Now at one point during the match Bradman muttered to his fellow batsman: ‘I think I’ll have a go.’   Well…that was an understatement.  In the next THREE overs (OK, they were then eight ball overs, not six)  he made a hundred runs!  Can you believe that?  Down the other end Wendell Bill contributed just  two singles in the third over, in which The Don scored 6,4,4,6,6,4,6,4.  Wendell probably called  for a sandwich and a drink and  simply watched on in awe.

Little boys were to be seen scurrying amongst the bordering  pines; competing for the honour of  retrieving the ball. The unfortunate bowler for Lithgow was  a bloke called Bill Black. And he certainly had a black day..ha ha.

The stats for the three overs were as follows;

A  report of Bradman’s feat appeared  in the Singleton Argus on November 30:

Don Bradman had a merry knock playing for Blackheath against Lithgow on Monday. He scored 256 before he was caught. Wendell Bill who also played for Blackheath scored 66…Blackheath scored 357, and Lithgow 228.

When Lithgow’s off-spinner Bill Black had been given the ball in an attempt to dismiss The Don, hopes were high;

Commenting later on his incredible three overs Bradman said; ‘It is important I think to emphasize that the thing was not planned. It happened by accident and everyone was surprised at the outcome, none more so than me’.

As Bradman’s innings continued Lithgow’s ‘Toby’ Baker resorted to bowling ‘Donkey Drops’, but it made no difference. 😨

‘The Don’ was eventually dismissed for 256 by Lithgow’s Reg Cullen.

At the conclusion of the match Blackheath’s mayor Peter Sutton asked if he could have the bat as a memento. Bradman generously agreed, but asked  if Sutton could  wait until he was no longer using it.  On Jan 19 the following year The Don split the bat while playing in a match at Sydney’s Callen Park Mental Hospital. As promised, he sent it to Sutton.

The iconic bat is now on display in the International Cricket Hall of Fame at Bowral; Don Bradman’s childhood town in the NSW Southern Highlands. Why on earth did we Blackheathens let it go?

Following the cricket match there was a dance, at which one of the  Lithgow cricketers got up and sang. He was Bob Nicholson, a coal miner with a rich baritone voice.  Don Bradman was so impressed by Nicholson that he asked him to sing at his marriage to Jessie Menzies  the following April.  Bob Nicholson went on to have a successful career as an opera singer, performing at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York. Isn’t that interesting?

If you visit the cricket ground today you can see a story board about the famous match, with a photo of the team and the mayor. The Don is in the centre without his cap, a small boy probably snaffled it! I’m sorry the writing is hard to read….you will have to come up and decipher it yourself. 😛

Well here is another story about  CRICKET.

And another one about BLACKHEATH

Have you got a special little  sports story you could share? Not a nasty one about Australia though, or Pauline will send it to spam cemetery. She is very one-eyed I’m afraid…not a pleasant trait.  DON’T FORGET TO COMPLETE THE SUM UNDER THE COMMENT BOX BEFORE YOU PRESS SUBMIT. Thank you…Editor Des. xx