Douglas Stuart St John (26 February 1928 – 11 July 1992) was a

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 ...

first class

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 who 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 ...

and

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 ...

between 1946 and 1956. A right-handed batsman, St. John played 34 matches in total, scoring 1,236 runs at 20.94 with five half-centuries.

Career

Doug St John attended Otago Boys' High School, where he won the award for most improved player in the cricket team in his second-last year, 1944. He went on to study commerce at the

University of New Zealand The University of New Zealand was New Zealand's sole degree-granting university from 1874 to 1961. It was a collegiate university embracing several constituent institutions at various locations around New Zealand. After it was dissolved in 196 ...

. St. John made his debut on 1 January 1947, against

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 ...

. Batting at six for Otago, he scored 28 and 31, and took two catches but could not stave off a one wicket defeat. He went on to play two more matches that season; scoring eight and eight

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 ...

against Wellington on 31 January, six and 25 in a drawn game against the

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

on 25 March. He ended his first season with 106 runs from three matches at 21.20, with a best of 31. At the start of the next season, St. John scored 85 and five not out against Wellington on

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. He would go on to play five matches in total, scoring a career-best 278 runs at 34.75, with two half centuries. He was selected to play for

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

in the match against

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

at the end of the season, scoring 47 and 63. His batting and sharp fielding in the match were noted, and he was named alongside John Reid as a promising player who might be selected to tour England in 1949. He struggled with the bat during the next few seasons, scoring only 102 runs during 1948/49 at 20.40 with a best of 53, and 117 during 1950/51 at 16.71, followed by 92 runs at 13.13 and 146 runs at 18.25 during his first two seasons at Wellington. He improved, however, during the 1954/55 season, where he scored 213 runs at 21.30, including a career-best 88 in 116 minutes against Central Districts on 7 January 1955. Opening the batting – as he often did after moving to Wellington – St. John's 88 was bettered only by Test cricketer John Reid's 106 as Wellington pursued Central Districts' first innings score of 183 all out. St. John made 15 more runs in the second innings as Wellington reached victory by four wickets. The following season was to be his last, however, and saw St. John play five matches, scoring 182 runs at 20.22 with a best of 52 – his only half century of the season, which came in his final match. He bowed out on 10 February 1956, against a touring

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

side that included

Garfield Sobers Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, (born 28 July 1936), also known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974. A highly skilled bowler, an aggressive batsman and an excellent fielder, ...

. St. John scored his 52 in the first innings before being caught by Sobers, and made 19 as Wellington were forced to follow on and fell to an innings defeat.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:St. John, Douglas 1928 births 1992 deaths People educated at Otago Boys' High School University of New Zealand alumni Cricketers from Nelson, New Zealand Otago cricketers Wellington cricketers South Island cricketers

Career

See also

References

External links