Alison Ruth Preston-Thomas (née Hughes; 25 November 1927 – 31 January 2020) was New Zealand netball player. She played in the New Zealand team in all three Tests against the touring Australian team in 1948.

Early life

Preston-Thomas was born Alison Ruth Hughes on 25 November 1927. She was educated at

Avonside Girls' High School Avonside Girls' High School is a large urban high school in Christchurch, New Zealand, with more than 1,000 girls from Year 9 to Year 13. It was formerly in the suburb of Avonside but moved in 2019, along with Shirley Boys' High School, to the fo ...

in Christchurch, where she was senior tennis champion in 1945. She trained as a teacher at the Dunedin Training College in 1949.

Netball career

Hughes was a stalwart of the Canterbury provincial netball team for many years, including a period as captain of the side. She represented Otago for one year, in 1949, while a student at the teachers' college in Dunedin. She was described as a "particularly bright exponent of the game", with her "speed and handling being first-rate". After the 1947 national championships, won by Canterbury, Hughes was selected for the New Zealand team to play the visiting Australian team the following year. Subsequently, she was chosen as one of the two players to appear in all three Test matches against Australia in 1948. New Zealand lost the first Test at

Forbury Park Forbury Park Raceway was a horseracing venue in the New Zealand city of Dunedin until its closure in 2021. It was located close to the Pacific Ocean coast in the suburb of Saint Kilda. The raceway was initially developed in 1870 on an area of ...

in Dunedin 16–27, with Hughes reported to have "scored some fine goals in the face of disturbing resistance". In the second Test in

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

, New Zealand lost 13–44, although it was said that Hughes' play "would have been brilliant but for the sterling defence work by the Australians". The third Test in Auckland was won by Australia, 44–22. In 1949, Hughes was part of the Otago team that finished third at the national provincial championships, and was said to be in "excellent form" in the match to decide third place against Wellington that was won by Otago 17–10. Hughes was back playing for Canterbury at the 1950 national championships, with Canterbury beating Auckland in the final 22–7. She was subsequently named in the South Island team for the interisland match, which was won by the South Island 17–16.

Later life and death

Hughes was a physical education teacher at Avonside Girls' High School for many years. She married Grant Preston-Thomas, an engineer, in about 1963, and the couple had two children. In his retirement, Grant Preston-Thomas was noted as one of a group of volunteers that developed walking tracks in the bush-covered hills around Wellington. He died of cancer in 2013. Alison Preston-Thomas died in Wellington on 31 January 2020, aged 92.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Preston-Thomas, Alison 1927 births 2020 deaths Netball players from Christchurch People educated at Avonside Girls' High School New Zealand international netball players New Zealand netball players Dunedin College of Education alumni