Milford Laurenson "Curly" Page (8 May 1902 – 13 February 1987) was a New Zealand Test

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er and

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player, who represented his country in both sports.

Early life and family

Born in Lyttelton on 8 May 1902, Page was the son of Olga Marguerite Smith and her husband, David Joseph Page, a produce and coal merchant. He was educated at

Christchurch Boys' High School , motto_translation = I Seek Higher Things , type = State school, Day and Boarding school , gender = Boys , song = The School We Magnify , colours = Blue and Black , established = , address = 71 Straven R ...

where he was a champion all-round sportsman. Page had one sister and two brothers, including

Frederick Page Sir Frederick William Page (20 February 1917 – 29 May 2005) was an English aircraft designer and manager. He had large involvements with two British aircraft projects - the English Electric Lightning and the BAC TSR.2. Arguably, the sum to ...

who was a professor of music, pianist and music critic.

Cricket

In a first-class career extending from 1920–21 to 1942–43, Page was New Zealand's second

Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

captain, and captained the side in seven of the Tests in which he played. He toured England in 1927,

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

and

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Fe ...

, and was captain of the team on the latter tour. He was the only player to appear in all 14 of New Zealand's Test matches before World War II. He usually batted at number four or five, bowled useful slow-medium, and according to

Dick Brittenden Richard Trevor Brittenden (22 August 1919 – 10 June 2002) was from the 1950s to the 1980s New Zealand's most prominent cricket writer. Early life, family and career Brittenden was born at Rakaia on 22 August 1919, and was educated at Chris ...

, his "slip fielding was magnificent, sometimes incredibly swift". His highest first-class score was 206, for

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. ...

against

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 ...

in 1931–32, when he added 278 for the fourth wicket with

Alby Roberts Albert William Roberts (20 August 1909 – 13 May 1978) was a New Zealand Test cricketer who played in five Tests from 1930 to 1937. Career as a batsman Roberts made his first-class debut in 1927–28 at the age of 18 as a middle-order batsman ...

in the second innings after Canterbury had trailed by 277. In the First Test at

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and ...

in 1931 he made 104 after New Zealand had trailed by 230 on the first innings. He added 118 for the third wicket with Stewie Dempster, then Page and

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 ...

added 142 in 105 minutes for the fourth wicket.

Rugby union

A halfback and

first five-eighth In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...

, Page represented at a provincial level in two stints: in 1922 and 1923, and then in 1928 and 1929. He played just one match for the New Zealand national side, the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

, against the touring

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

team at

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 ...

in 1928. He did not appear in any rugby Test matches.

Death

Page died in

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 / ...

on 13 February 1987.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Page, Curly 1902 births 1987 deaths Cricketers from Christchurch People educated at Christchurch Boys' High School New Zealand rugby union players New Zealand international rugby union players Canterbury rugby union players Rugby union scrum-halves Rugby union fly-halves Canterbury cricketers New Zealand cricketers New Zealand Test cricket captains New Zealand Test cricketers Pre-1930 New Zealand representative cricketers International Cavaliers cricketers Rugby union players from Christchurch New Zealand Army cricketers South Island Army cricketers