David Glendenning Watt (21 July 1920 – 29 August 1996) was a New Zealand

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

periodontist Periodontology or periodontics (from Ancient Greek , – 'around'; and , – 'tooth', genitive , ) is the specialty of dentistry that studies supporting structures of teeth, as well as diseases and conditions that affect them. The supporting ...

. In his only first-class match, which he played for

Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...

in the 1943–44 season, he scored a

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 ...

Life and career

Born in Ashburton, where his father was a dentist, David Watt attended

Timaru Boys' High School Timaru Boys' High School (also known as TBHS), established in 1880, is a single sex state (public) secondary school located in the port city of Timaru, South Canterbury, New Zealand. TBHS caters for years 9 to 13 (ages 12 to 19 years). At th ...

before studying dentistry at the

University of Otago , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate u ...

. After completing his degree in 1943 he spent a year teaching at the university's medical school before returning to Ashburton and taking over his father's dental practice. While working at the university and representing the University club in senior

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 ...

cricket, Watt was selected to be twelfth man for

in a first-class match against

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. ...

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 / ...

over the Christmas period in 1943. When one of the Otago players,

Bill McDougall William Henry McDougall (born August 10, 1966) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He is best known for his record-setting scoring performance during the 1992–1993 AHL playoffs, in which he set the AHL records for goals, assis ...

, was unable to travel to Christchurch for the match, Watt took his place in the team. He scored 15 in the first innings and 105 in the second; no other Otago batsman in either innings reached 40 in their innings defeat. Otago's only other scheduled first-class match for the season, a return match against Canterbury in Dunedin, could not take place owing to travel restrictions, so Watt was unable to play again for Otago before he returned to Ashburton in mid-1944. While living in Ashburton he played minor inter-provincial cricket for Ashburton County. After three years practising as a dentist in Ashburton, Watt was awarded a travelling scholarship, the Dunedin Savings Bank Scholarship, and he and his wife went to Canada for three years, where Watt completed a DDS with honours and a

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. He returned to New Zealand to practise as a

, settling 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 ...

. He served as secretary of the New Zealand Society of Periodontology, and chairman of the New Zealand Dental Council. In 1977, he was awarded the

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'argent de la reine Elizabeth II) is a commemorative medal created in 1977 to mark the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The medal is p ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Watt, David 1920 births 1996 deaths People educated at Timaru Boys' High School University of Otago alumni University of Toronto alumni People from Ashburton, New Zealand New Zealand cricketers Otago cricketers New Zealand dentists Periodontists