Derrick John "Jackie" McGlew (11 March 1929 − 8 June 1998) was a
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 for
Natal
NATAL or Natal may refer to:
Places
* Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil
* Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa
** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843)
** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ...
and
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. He was educated at Merchiston Preparatory School and
Maritzburg College
Maritzburg College is a semi-private English-medium high school for boys situated in the city of Pietermaritzburg, in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1863 and it's the oldest boys' high school in KwaZulu-Natal – and one of the o ...
, where he was Head Dayboy Prefect and captain of both cricket and rugby in 1948.
An opening batsman with fabled powers of adhesion, suiting his name, McGlew set records in the 1950s for slow scoring. But though his tenacity brought criticism – even from
Wisden
''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "bible of cricket" was first used in the 1930s by Alec Waugh in a ...
— he was the linchpin around which the strong South African cricket team of the 1950s was built.
McGlew was picked for the 1951 tour to England on the strength of a century in a 12-a-side match, and was not a success in his two
Test matches Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to:
* Test cricket
* Test match (indoor cricket)
* Test match (rugby union)
* Test match (rugby league)
* Test match (association football)
...
. But within 18 months, he was both a fixture in the Test side and vice-captain as South Africa held the strong
Australians
Australians, colloquially known as Aussies, are the citizens, nationals and individuals associated with the country of Australia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or ethno-cultural. For most Australians, several (or all) ...
to a series draw in 1952–53. And in the same season he hit what was then South Africa's highest Test innings, an undefeated 255, against
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 ...
at
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 ...
.
McGlew was the South Africans' most successful batsman on his second tour of England in 1955, scoring centuries 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 ...
and
Headingley
Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingle ...
. He captained the side in two Tests because of injury to the tour captain,
Jack Cheetham
John Erskine Cheetham (26 May 1920 – 21 August 1980) was a South African cricketer who played in 24 Test matches between 1949 and 1955, captaining South Africa in his last 15 Test matches. He later served as president of the South African Cric ...
. South Africa won both matches, and Cheetham wanted McGlew to remain as captain for the Fifth Test even though Cheetham was fit, but he was over-ruled by the other members of the selection committee. In 1956, for his efforts on the tour, McGlew was named as a
Wisden Cricketer of the Year
The ''Wisden'' Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season". The award began in 1889 with the naming ...
with Wisden contrasting the dourness of his batting with the liveliness of his fielding in the covers.
Dourness reached new levels in 1957–58 in the home Test series against Australia: at
Durban
Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...
, McGlew took 313 minutes to reach 50, and the 545 minutes he took to get to 100 was the world record for the slowest century in
first-class cricket
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 ...
until declining over-rates in the 1970s took all such timed records away. In all, he batted 575 minutes for 105, but South Africa failed to win because there was not enough time left to bowl Australia out twice. Wisden praised the innings as a feat of concentration and endurance but added: "It is doubtful whether South Africa benefited by it."
McGlew's third tour of England in 1960 saw him captain the side. He had a poor Test series, and the tour was blighted by controversy over the bowling action of the South African fast bowler,
Geoff Griffin
Geoffrey Merton Griffin (12 June 1939 – 16 November 2006) was a Test cricketer who toured England with the South African cricket team in 1960, appearing in two Test matches. A right-arm, fast bowler and lower order batsman, his selection fo ...
, who was
no-ball
In cricket, a no-ball is a type of illegal delivery to a batter (the other type being a wide). It is also a type of extra, being the run awarded to the batting team as a consequence of the illegal delivery. For most cricket games, especially a ...
ed for throwing 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 ...
. McGlew retired from Test cricket after the 1961–62 series against New Zealand, in which he scored his seventh and final Test century. In all, he captained South Africa in 13 Tests, winning four and losing five. He scored 2,440 Test runs at an average of more than 42.
A useful before Lunch and Afternoon Tea bowler. he took no Test wickets with his
leg break
Leg spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A leg spinner bowls right-arm with a wrist spin action. The leg spinner's normal delivery causes the ball to spin from right to left (from the bowler's perspective) when the ball bounces on the ...
s, but did reap a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
for Natal against
Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal.
* South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...
in 1963–64, with the wickets spread over two innings. His best bowling figures in a single innings were only two wickets for four runs.
Batting at number eight or nine, he played some useful innings while leading Natal to victory in the
Currie Cup
The Currie Cup is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring (June to October), featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier ...
in 1966–67, then retired from first-class cricket.
An excellent tactical captain, he was warmhearted and devoted to the game. He wrote the books ''Cricket for South Africa'', ''Cricket Crisis'' , (about the 1964–65 series against England) and ''Six for Glory'' (about the 1966–67 series against Australia).
In retirement, he briefly threw in his hat with pro-
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
politics
at one point standing as a candidate for the ruling
National Party, before moving into business. In 1991–92, when post-apartheid South Africa was re-admitted to world cricket, he was picked as manager of the first visit by a South African team to the
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 ...
, the Under-19 tour.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGlew, Jackie
1929 births
1998 deaths
Alumni of Maritzburg College
Cricketers from Pietermaritzburg
KwaZulu-Natal cricketers
South Africa Test cricket captains
Wisden Cricketers of the Year