Keith Thomson (26 February 1941 – 26 January 2023) was a New Zealand sportsman who represented his country at both

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 ...

and

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

. He played two cricket

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) ...

in 1968, and 28 hockey Tests between 1961 and 1971, and was later an umpire in both sports.

Cricket career

A middle-order batsman, Thomson was stoutly built and batted with a crouching stance, but hit the ball hard. He played

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 ...

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. ...

from 1959–60 to 1973–74. 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 1966–67 he hit two centuries and was selected for all four matches for New Zealand against the touring Australian XI. Thomson made his Test debut against

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

in the 1967–68 season at

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 / ...

where he scored 69 (adding 119 for the fifth wicket with

Graham Dowling Graham Thorne Dowling (born 4 March 1937) is a former New Zealand cricketer who played 39 Test matches and captained New Zealand in 19 of them. He led New Zealand to its first victory in a Test series, against Pakistan in November 1969. He wa ...

) and 0 not out in what was New Zealand's fourth victory in Tests. His second, and final, Test came a week later 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 ...

where he scored 25 and 0. His highest score in first-class cricket was 136 not out for Canterbury against

Northern Districts The Northern Districts men's cricket team are one of six New Zealand first-class cricket teams that make up New Zealand Cricket. They are based in the northern half of the North Island of New Zealand (excluding Auckland). They compete in the ...

in 1968–69. He was a fine fieldsman, a good catcher close to the wicket. Thomson later became an umpire, standing in 13 first-class matches and 11 List A matches between 1983–84 and 1986–87.

Hockey career

Thomson played

for Canterbury from 1959 to 1974 mainly as centre half or inside right. He made his debut for New Zealand in 1961 against India at Lancaster Park, Christchurch. Between 1961 and 1971 he represented New Zealand in 28 hockey Tests. At the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, he played in eight games and scored three goals – one each against India, East Germany and Belgium, as New Zealand finished seventh. Thomson was a New Zealand graded hockey umpire and umpired two international matches involving Canada and India. He was awarded life memberships of the Canterbury Hockey Association and the New Zealand Hockey Association.

Later life and death

Thomson worked as a secondary school teacher. He taught at Amuri Area School, Hagley High School, Makora College (in

Masterton Masterton ( mi, Whakaoriori), a large town in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand, operates as the seat of the Masterton District (a territorial authority or local-government district). It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a r ...

) and

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 ...

. Thomson died in Christchurch on 26 January 2023, at the age of 81.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomson, Keith 1941 births 2023 deaths New Zealand Test cricketers New Zealand cricketers Canterbury cricketers New Zealand male field hockey players Field hockey players at the 1968 Summer Olympics Olympic field hockey players for New Zealand South Island cricketers People from Methven, New Zealand Sportspeople from Canterbury, New Zealand