Eddie Barlow

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Eddie Barlow
South Africa (RSA)
Eddie Barlow
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling type Right-arm medium pace
Tests First-class
Matches 30 283
Runs scored 2,516 18212
Batting average 45.74 39.16
100s/50s 6/15 43/86
Top score 201 217
Balls bowled 3021  ?
Wickets 40 571
Bowling average 34.05 24.14
5 wickets in innings 1 16
10 wickets in match 0 2
Best bowling 5/85 7/24
Catches/stumpings 35/- 335/-

Test debut: 8 December 1961
Last Test: 10 March 1970
Source: Cricinfo

Edgar ("Eddie") John Barlow (12 August 1940 in Pretoria, Transvaal, South Africa – 30 December 2005 in Jersey) was a South African cricketer (All rounder). Barlow played first-class cricket for Transvaal and Eastern Province from 1959-60 to 1967-68 before moving to Western Province for the seasons from 1968-69 to 1980-81. During this time he also played three seasons with Derbyshire in the English County Championship from 1976 - 1978. He completed his first-class career in Boland in 1982-83. Barlow was named as one of the six South African Cricket Annual players of the year in 1962.

The bespectacled Barlow was both a popular and easily recognisable figure in South African cricket from the 1960s onwards - a prodigious run-maker and frequent wicket-taker, he was one of the leading all-rounders on the world stage in the 1960s. He was nicknamed "Bunter" because of his supposed resemblance to Billy Bunter. A stand at Newlands Cricket Ground was to have been named after Barlow but due to opposition from some of the voting clubs it has been "Put on hold".

Contents

[edit] Test career

Barlow also played 30 official Tests for South Africa, which would have been more but for South Africa's exclusion from the international game after 1970 because of its then government's apartheid policies.

In 1963 Barlow became the first South African player to make a century in his first Test match against Australia. He scored 603 runs in the series including a double century at Adelaide.

During England's 1964-65 tour of South Africa, Barlow became embroiled in controversy in the third Test at Newlands after he survived a bat-pad chance when England bowler Fred Titmus thought he had had Barlow caught by Peter Parfitt in the gully. It was already an ill-tempered series, and when Barlow went on to complete his hundred it was little recognised by the England players. Instead, when Tony Pithey reached his half-century shortly afterwards, the England players went overboard in their congratulations to him, seemingly to make a point about Barlow's behaviour. The local South African papers attacked England for this, and later in the same match, English batsman Ken Barrington caused a greater furore when he walked despite not being given out by the same umpire that had not given Barlow out.

In addition to his 30 official Tests, Barlow also played in 5 matches for the Rest of the World side that toured England in 1970 that were originally designated as Test matches, though they were later stripped of Test status. In the fourth of these "Tests" at Headingley he achieved what was then the 17th hat-trick. After a further dot ball, Barlow took another wicket to make it four wickets in five balls.

Barlow's last official Test series was South Africa's 4-0 whitewashing of Australia in 1970-71.

[edit] World Series Cricket

When Kerry Packer began his World Series Cricket tournament in 1977-78, it gave a new avenue for the leading South African cricketers to play international cricket. Barlow was signed up for both the 1977-78 and 1978-79 seasons in which the tournament ran, and captained the WSC Cavaliers side which played in many non-Supertest matches.

[edit] Derbyshire

In 1976 Eddie went to Derbyshire as the overseas professional and took over the captaincy half way through his first season. His methods were revolutionary for the times but he took the team to a final at Lord's.

[edit] Post-retirement

After his retirement, Barlow became more active in espousing his liberal views against the apartheid policy then in place in his homeland. He took up a post as Director of the South African Sports Office in London and afterwards he became a cricket coach. He was appointed coach at Gloucestershire but owing to his father's death had to leave after two seasons. He coached Orange Free State and then Transvaal. He then became the first coach of the newly formed Super Juice Academy which was based in the Western Cape and was a feeder for Western Province and Boland cricket. From concentrating on his wine farm he was lured back to Griqualand West to coach at Kimberley. He was then invited to become the national coach of Bangladesh in 1999 and helped put together the plans that enabled the country to achieve official Test status the following year.

In 1996 he acquired a wine farm in the Robertson region of the Western Cape which he named "Windfall" because he and his wife considered they bought it at a good price.

In 2000 he suffered a stroke in Bangladesh which put him initially in intensive care and then a wheelchair. He was forced to sell the wine farm in 2001 to pay for medical bills that his insurer refused to pay. Later he moved to North Wales, where he continued to coach locally at Marchwiel & Wrexham and also NE Wales Development squads. He was also involved with Disabled cricket in Wales. As often erroneously stated he was not wheelchair bound but could only walk very slowly so it was easier to get from A to B in the wheelchair and for the days when he coached he used an electric scooter which was provided for him by the PCA. He died after a brain haemorrhage in Jersey on 30 December 2005.

[edit] Family life

Barlow was married three times and left a widow.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

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