The

Australia national cricket team The Australia men's national cricket team represents Australia in men's international cricket. As the joint oldest team in Test cricket history, playing in the first ever Test match in 1877, the team also plays One-Day International (ODI) an ...

toured

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

from February to April 1928 and played six

first-class matches First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

including two against the

New Zealand national cricket team The New Zealand national cricket team represents New Zealand in men's international cricket. Named the Black Caps, they played their first Test in 1930 against England in Christchurch, becoming the fifth country to play Test cricket. From 1930 ...

. This was before New Zealand began playing

Test cricket Test cricket is a form of first-class cricket played at international level between teams representing full member countries of the International Cricket Council (ICC). A match consists of four innings (two per team) and is scheduled to last fo ...

Team

Vic Richardson Victor York Richardson (7 September 189430 October 1969) was a leading Australian sportsman of the 1920s and 1930s, captaining the Australia cricket team and the South Australia Australian rules football team, representing Australia in baseba ...

(captain) * Colin Alexander *

Don Blackie Donald Dearness Blackie (5 April 1882 – 18 April 1955) was an Australian Test cricketer who played three Tests as an off-spinner in the summer of 1928–29. At 46 years 253 days of age at the time of his Test debut, Blackie remains the oldest ...

Clarrie Grimmett Clarence Victor "Clarrie" Grimmett (25 December 1891 – 2 May 1980) was a New Zealand-born Australian cricketer. He is thought by many to be one of the finest early spin bowlers, and usually credited as the developer of the flipper. Early li ...

* Archie Jackson *

Alan Kippax Alan Falconer Kippax (25 May 1897 – 5 September 1972) was a cricketer for New South Wales (NSW) and Australia. Regarded as one of the great stylists of Australian cricket during the era between the two World Wars, Kippax overcame a late sta ...

* Ray McNamee * Frank Morton *

Bert Oldfield William Albert Stanley Oldfield (9 September 1894 – 10 August 1976) was an Australian cricketer and businessman. He played for New South Wales and Australia as a wicket-keeper. Oldfield's 52 stumpings during his Test career remains a record ...

* Ron Oxenham *

Bill Ponsford William Harold Ponsford MBE (19 October 1900 – 6 April 1991) was an Australian cricketer. Usually playing as an opening batsman, he formed a successful and long-lived partnership opening the batting for Victoria and Australia with Bill ...

* Karl Schneider *

Bill Woodfull William Maldon Woodfull (22 August 1897 – 11 August 1965) was an Australian cricketer of the 1920s and 1930s. He captained both Victoria and Australia, and was best known for his dignified and moral conduct during the tumultuous bodyline s ...

Don Bradman Sir Donald George Bradman, (27 August 1908 – 25 February 2001), nicknamed "The Don", was an Australian international cricketer, widely acknowledged as the greatest batsman of all time. Bradman's career Test batting average of 99.94 has bee ...

Percy Hornibrook Percival Mitchell Hornibrook (27 July 1899 – 25 August 1976) was an Australian cricketer who played in six Test matches from 1929 to 1930. Career Hornibrook made his first class debut in 1919–20 against Victoria, taking four wickets. In ...

and John Scaife were selected as emergencies, but did not take part in the tour. W. C. Bull of New South Wales was the team manager. It was a strong team. ''

The Cricketer ''The Cricketer'' is a monthly English cricket magazine providing writing and photography from international, county and club cricket. The magazine was founded in 1921 by Sir Pelham Warner, an ex-England captain turned cricket writer. Warner e ...

'' said that "the majority of the cricketers may be expected to represent the Commonwealth

f Australia F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. Hist ...

in the Test matches against England a few months hence. J. M. Gregory, in fact, was the only likely man who did not make the trip."

The tour

The team arrived in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

on the SS '' Marama'' on 14 February. They were given a civic reception at the Town Hall that afternoon by the Mayor of Wellington,

George Troup George McIntosh Troup (September 8, 1780 – April 26, 1856) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Georgia. He served in the Georgia General Assembly, U.S. House of Representatives, and U.S. Senate before becoming the 32nd Governor ...

. The president of the

New Zealand Cricket Council New Zealand Cricket, formerly the New Zealand Cricket Council, is the governing body for professional cricket in New Zealand. Cricket is the most popular and highest profile summer sport in New Zealand. New Zealand Cricket operates the New Z ...

, the former New Zealand captain Dan Reese, also spoke at the reception, noting that the visit marked the

golden jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"সু ...

of cricket tours between the two countries. (First-class matches are indicated below in bold.) * Nelson, Marlborough and Westland v Australians,

Trafalgar Park, Nelson Trafalgar Park is a sports ground located beside the Central Business District of Nelson, in New Zealand's South Island. The stadium has a capacity of 18,000, following upgrades completed for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. It takes its name from it ...

, 15, 16 February 1928. Nelson, Marlborough and Westland XI 161; Australians 472 for 9. Drawn. The Australians arrived in Nelson early on the morning of the match, which commenced at 11.55 after a welcome at the ground by the Mayor of Nelson. Grimmett, returning to New Zealand for the first time since migrating to Australia in 1914, took 7 for 64 on the first day. Kippax scored 115. * Wellington v Australians,

Basin Reserve The Basin Reserve (commonly known as "The Basin") is a cricket ground in Wellington, New Zealand. It has been used for Test matches, and is the main home ground for the Wellington Firebirds first-class team. The Basin Reserve is the only cricke ...

, 17, 18, 20 February 1928. Australians 365 and 65 for 6;

206 and 230. Australians won by four wickets. Woodfull made 165, and Grimmett took seven wickets against his former team.

Ted Badcock Frederick Theodore Badcock (9 August 1897 – 19 September 1982) was a New Zealand first-class and Test cricketer. Perhaps the best all-rounder in New Zealand in the inter-war period, he played seven Test matches for New Zealand between 1930 a ...

took four wickets in each innings for Wellington, and was later selected for the New Zealand team for the unofficial Tests. * North Otago v Australians, Waitaki Boys High School Ground,

Oamaru Oamaru (; mi, Te Oha-a-Maru) is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is south of Timaru and north of Dunedin on the Pacific coast; State Highway 1 and the railway ...

, 22, 23 February 1928.

North Otago North Otago in New Zealand covers the area of Otago between Shag Point and the Waitaki River, and extends inland to the west as far as the village of Omarama (which has experienced rapid growth as a developing centre for astronomy and for glid ...

118 and 268 for 6; Australians 448. Drawn. Oxenham scored 169. In the North Otago second innings, when the Australians rested their main bowlers, Carl Zimmerman scored 117

not out In cricket, a batter is not out if they come out to bat in an innings and have not been dismissed by the end of an innings. The batter is also ''not out'' while their innings is still in progress. Occurrence At least one batter is not out at t ...

, reaching his

century A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. A centennial or ...

in 46 minutes. * Otago v Australians,

Carisbrook Carisbrook (sometimes incorrectly referred to as Carisbrook Stadium) was a major sporting venue in Dunedin, New Zealand. The city's main domestic and international rugby union venue, it was also used for other sports such as cricket, football, ...

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

, 24, 25, 27 February 1928. Australians 454 and 79 for no wicket; Otago 171. Drawn. Rain prevented play on the final day. Ponsford (148) and Woodfull (107) opened the match with a stand of 214. Grimmett took 6 for 23. For Otago, the fast bowler

George Dickinson George Ritchie Dickinson (11 March 1903 – 17 March 1978) was a New Zealand cricketer and rugby union player. He played three tests for the New Zealand cricket team between 1930 and 1932, and five matches for the New Zealand national rugby si ...

dismissed seven of the first eight batsmen, at one stage taking six wickets for three runs in five overs, and finished with 7 for 96. * Southland v Australians,

Rugby Park Rugby Park, also known as The BBSP Stadium Rugby Park for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium situated in the Scottish town of Kilmarnock. It was first used in 1899 and is the home of Kilmarnock F.C. Rugby Park has also been used for con ...

Invercargill Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...

, 28, 29 February 1928.

Southland Southland may refer to: Places Canada * Dunbar–Southlands, Vancouver, British Columbia New Zealand * Southland Region, a region of New Zealand * Southland County, a former New Zealand county * Southland District, part of the wider Southland Re ...

124 and 51 for 2; Australians 507 for 9 declared. Drawn. Ponsford and Jackson each scored 110, and opened with a partnership of 220. The Australians scored their runs off 81 overs – a little above a run a ball. * Canterbury v Australians,

Lancaster Park Lancaster Park, also known as Jade Stadium and AMI Stadium for sponsorship reasons, was a sports stadium in Waltham, a suburb of Christchurch in New Zealand. The stadium was closed permanently due to damage sustained in the February 2011 eart ...

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

, 2, 3, 5 March 1928.

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

305 and 201; Australians 404 and 103 for 1. Australians won by nine wickets. Grimmett took 13 wickets. Schneider scored 138 and Oldfield 137. For Canterbury, Bill Merritt took 5 for 105 in the first innings, and the English coach Jack Newman made 98 and 31. * Waikato v Australians,

Seddon Park Seddon Park is a cricket ground in Hamilton, New Zealand. It is the fourth-largest cricket ground in the country, and is renowned for its "village green" setting, affording a picnic atmosphere for spectators. History Seddon Park was named aft ...

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, 7, 8 March 1928.

Waikato Waikato () is a Regions of New Zealand, local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton City ...

190 and 117; Australians 144 and 5 for 2. Drawn. The Waikato team included five guest players from the major centres; of them, Ted Badcock again took four wickets. Morton was the Australians' most successful bowler, with nine wickets; Grimmett was not playing. * Auckland v Australians,

Eden Park Eden Park is New Zealand's largest sports stadium, with a capacity of 50,000. Located in central Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, it is three kilometres southwest of the CBD, on the boundary between the suburbs of Mount Eden and King ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, 9, 10, 12 March 1928. Australians 431;

171 and 220. Australians won by an innings and 40 runs. Richardson made 107. McNamee had figures of 21–13–12–5 in the first innings, and Grimmett took 7 for 91 in the second. Auckland's top scorer in each innings was their English player James Langridge, who made 46 and 78. * Taranaki v Australians,

Pukekura Park Pukekura Park is a Garden of National Significance, covering 52 hectares near the heart of New Plymouth, Taranaki in New Zealand. History The gala opening of New Plymouth's 15 hectare Recreation Ground was held on 29 May 1876. During the day th ...

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. ...

, 14, 15 March 1928.

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

138 and 112; Australians 427. Australians won by an innings and 177 runs. Kippax made 102 and Alexander 127. The English coach

Benny Wilson Benjamin Birdsall Wilson (11 December 1879 – 14 September 1957) was an English first-class cricketer, who played 185 games for Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 1906 and 1914. Known as "Benny", he was born in Scarborough, Yorkshire. He was ...

opened the batting and scored 80 in Taranaki's first innings. * Wanganui v Australians, Cook’s Gardens,

Wanganui Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whangan ...

, 16, 17 March 1928.

83 and 132; Australians 428. Australians won by an innings and 213 runs. Grimmett took 8 for 30 in the first innings. Ponsford made 101. * Poverty Bay v Australians, The Oval, Gisborne, 20, 21 March 1928.

Poverty Bay Poverty Bay (Māori: ''Tūranganui-a-Kiwa'') is the largest of several small bays on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island to the north of Hawke Bay. It stretches for from Young Nick's Head in the southwest to Tuaheni Point in the north ...

91; Australians 120 for 1. Drawn. Only five hours of play was possible. * New Zealand v Australia, Eden Park, Auckland, 24, 26, 27 March 1928. Australia 573 for 5 declared;

288 and 53 for 1. Drawn. Woodfull made 284, after being 250

at the end of the first day. The opener

Jackie Mills Jackie Mills (born March 11, 1922, New York City - died March 22, 2010, Beaumont, California) was an American jazz drummer. Biography Mills first learned guitar before picking up drums when he was ten years old. He played in the swing groups of ...

was New Zealand's top scorer in the first innings, with 58. Rain delayed the start of the third day's play.

Don Neely Donald Owen Neely (21 December 1935 – 16 June 2022) was a New Zealand cricket historian, administrator and player. He served as president of New Zealand Cricket and wrote or co-wrote over 30 books on New Zealand cricket. Early life Neely wa ...

& Richard Payne, ''Men in White: The History of New Zealand International Cricket, 1894–1985'', Moa, Auckland, 1986, pp. 98–99. * New Zealand v Australia, Carisbrook, Dunedin, 31 March, 2, 3 April 1928. New Zealand 162 and 154; Australia 188 and 129 for 3. Australia won by seven wickets. Grimmett took nine wickets, Blackie six.

Herb McGirr Herbert Mendelson McGirr (5 November 1891, in Wellington – 14 April 1964, in Nelson) was a New Zealand cricketer who played in two Tests in 1930. His father William McGirr played 14 matches for Wellington as an opening bowler from 1883–84 ...

took 4 for 54 in Australia's first innings. On either side, only

Roger Blunt Roger Charles Blunt (3 November 1900 – 22 June 1966) was a cricketer who played nine Test matches for the New Zealand national cricket team. Personal life Blunt was born in England, but his family moved to New Zealand when he was six months ...

, who made exactly 50 in New Zealand's first innings, reached 50; he added 85 for the second wicket with Henry Foley, the highest partnership of the match.

References

External links

Australia in New Zealand : Feb-Apr 1928
at

Cricinfo ESPN cricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including liveblogs and scorecards), and ''StatsGuru'', a d ...

Australia in New Zealand 1927-28
at CricketArchive

Team

The tour

References

External links

Further reading