John Lambert Kerr (28 December 1910 – 27 May 2007) was a New Zealand

cricketer 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 ...

who played seven

Tests 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), ...

for the

New Zealand 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 ...

before the

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. He was the second oldest surviving

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 ...

er at the date of his death, 10 days younger than fellow countryman

Eric Tindill Eric William Thomas Tindill (18 December 1910 – 1 August 2010) was a New Zealand sportsman. Tindill held a number of unique records: he was the oldest ever Test cricketer at the time of his death, the only person to play Tests for New Zeala ...

, Obituary
''

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'', 4 June 2007. and the third longest-lived Test cricketer, after Tindill and

Francis MacKinnon Francis Alexander MacKinnon, The 35th MacKinnon of MacKinnon DL (9 April 1848 – 27 February 1947) was the longest-lived Test cricketer until being surpassed by Eric Tindill of New Zealand on 8 November 2009. MacKinnon, who was 98 years, 324 d ...

Early life and career

Kerr was born in Dannevirke in the Manawatu-

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 ...

district in the south of the

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 ...

. His father encouraged him to take up cricket. He studied at Wanganui Technical College, where he was coached by

Stewie Dempster Charles Stewart Dempster (15 November 1903 – 14 February 1974) was a New Zealand Test cricketer and coach. As well as representing New Zealand, he also played for Wellington, Scotland, Leicestershire and Warwickshire. Early life Born to a Sco ...

. A solid

opening batsman In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batters play through their team's innings, there always being two batters taking part at any one time. All eleven players in a team are required to bat if the innings is completed (i.e., if ...

, with a technique based on a sound defence and scoring shots off his pads, he began to play in the

Hawke Cup The Hawke Cup is a non-first-class cricket competition for New Zealand's district associations. Apart from 1910–11, 1912–13 and 2000–01 the competition has always been on a challenge basis. To win the Hawke Cup, the challengers must beat t ...

for Wanganui aged 15, helping his side to win the competition in his second year. He moved to Christchurch on the

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 ...

to take up a job as an

accountant An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certifi ...

, and he played 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. ...

in the

Plunket Shield New Zealand has had a domestic first-class cricket championship since the 1906–07 season. Since the 2009–10 season it has been known by its original name of the Plunket Shield. History The Plunket Shield competition was instigated in Octob ...

in 1929–30 and 1930–31.

Test career

Kerr was selected to play for the

on its tour to England in 1931. He had mixed results in the Tests, scoring 2 and 0 in the 1st 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 ...

and 34 and 28 in the 2nd Test at

the Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

, and was dropped for the 3rd Test at

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...

, but was more successful in the matches against the counties, scoring a total of 804 runs during a damp summer, at an average of 22.97. He played in one Test against the touring South African cricket team in 1932, scoring 0 and 3. He played his fourth Test against the touring England team in 1933, who were returning from the controversial

Bodyline Bodyline, also known as fast leg theory bowling, was a cricketing tactic devised by the English cricket team for their 1932–33 Ashes tour of Australia. It was designed to combat the extraordinary batting skill of Australia's leading batsman, ...

tour to Australia, making 59, his top Test score and only Test half-century. He was dominant in first class cricket in his native country, and made his highest first-class score the same year, reaching 196 playing for Canterbury against Wellington cricket team, Wellington. Kerr scored 146 not out and 71 for Canterbury against Errol Holmes's Marylebone Cricket Club, MCC tourists in 1935–36 and then posted 105 not out at Wellington and 132 at Christchurch in the "unofficial Tests", and was recognised as the season's best batsman, winning the Redpath Cup. Kerr toured England again in 1937, playing his final two Tests at Lord's and Old Trafford, and scoring a total of 1,205 first-class runs on the tour at 31.71, with two hundreds.

Later career

After retiring from the game and serving in the armed forces during the

, Kerr chaired the New Zealand Cricket, New Zealand Cricket Council and managed the New Zealand side on their tour of South Africa in 1953–54.Jack Kerr dies at 96
Cricinfo, 29 May 2007. He also served as a Test selector after the Second World War.Obituary
NZCity, 29 May 2007. New Zealand Cricket Chairman John Anderson (New Zealand businessman, born 1945), Sir John Anderson paid his predecessor the following tribute: "Jack [Kerr] made a significant contribution to New Zealand Cricket and the New Zealand Cricket Foundation over a number of years and his support was warmly welcomed and greatly appreciated." Kerr was President from 1956–57 to 1972 and Patron from 1977 to 2005 of the Burnside West Christchurch University Cricket Club during this time he saw the merger of the club with Burnside Cricket Club and the move to Burnside Park. He continued to work as an accountant, in the firm of Holland and Kerr. He had two children with his wife, Edna. One, Robert, became a judge. Kerr died in Christchurch, aged 96.

Honours and awards

In the 1972 Birthday Honours (New Zealand), 1972 Queen's Birthday Honours, Kerr was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, for valuable services to cricket. In the 1999 Birthday Honours (New Zealand), 1999 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the community.

References

External links

* *
Times obituary
28 June 2007 {{DEFAULTSORT:Kerr, Jack 1910 births 2007 deaths Canterbury cricketers Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit Cricketers from Dannevirke New Zealand Army cricketers New Zealand military personnel of World War II New Zealand Officers of the Order of the British Empire New Zealand Test cricketers