Winston Place (7 December 1914 − 25 January 2002) was an English
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 in three
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), ...
in 1948. An opening batsman for
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, he shared a prolific partnership with
Cyril Washbrook
Cyril Washbrook (6 December 1914 – 27 April 1999) was an English cricketer, who played for Lancashire and England. He had a long career, split by World War II, and ending when he was aged 44. Washbrook, who is most famous for opening the batt ...
and was part of the
county championship
The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...
winning side of 1950. Place 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 ...
until 1955, when his contract was not renewed. He became an
umpire
An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection.
The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...
for one season, but retired to spend more time with his family.
Youth and early career
Winston Place was born in Rawtenstall; he was orphaned at the age of 5 and was raised by his aunt. He represented Rawtenstall's cricket team in the
Lancashire League. At the age of 15, Place began
opening the batting for his club side. The club's professional player,
Sydney Barnes
Sydney Francis Barnes (19 April 1873 – 26 December 1967) was an English professional cricketer who is regarded as one of the greatest bowlers of all time. He was right-handed and bowled at a pace that varied from medium to fast-medium with ...
, recommended Place to
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in English cricket. The club has held first-class status since it was founded in 1864. Lancashire's home is Old Trafford Cricket Ground, although the team also play ...
. Place served an apprenticeship as an engineer before serving an apprenticeship at Lancashire in 1936.
[ Retrieved on 17 December 2008.]
The Lancashire batting line up of the time was a strong one, and Place had limited opportunities to break into the first team. He managed to make his debut in 1937, scoring his maiden century in his first season against
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
.
He finished with 563 runs from 14 matches at an average of 29.63.
[ Retrieved on 17 December 2008.] He enjoyed playing for Lancashire; on the last day of his first season, when asked by other cricketers in the Lancashire team how he would be spending his holiday, he replied "this is the last day of my holiday".
[ Retrieved on 18 December 2008.] Between 1937 and 1939, Place was unable to secure a permanent place in Lancashire's team and in three seasons he managed 1,277 runs in 33 matches at an average of 29.02 with two centuries.
In 1939, when opening with
Cyril Washbrook
Cyril Washbrook (6 December 1914 – 27 April 1999) was an English cricketer, who played for Lancashire and England. He had a long career, split by World War II, and ending when he was aged 44. Washbrook, who is most famous for opening the batt ...
as a replacement for the injured
Eddie Paynter
Edward Paynter (5 November 1901 – 5 February 1979) was an English cricketer: an attacking batsman and excellent fielder. His Test batting average of 59.23 is the seventh highest of all time, and second only to Herbert Sutcliffe amongst Englis ...
, Place scored 164 against the
touring West Indies team
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
.
In 1939, Place was awarded his
cap
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...
by Lancashire.
The outbreak of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
prevented Place from playing first-class cricket until 1946, he was able to play charity matches and represented
Horwich
Horwich ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. Prior to 1974 in the historic county of Lancashire. It is southeast of Chorley, northwest of Bolton and northwest of Manchester. It l ...
in the
Bolton Cricket League
The Bolton Cricket League is a cricket league comprising fifteen teams in and around Bolton, Greater Manchester in North West England. The league runs competitions at First Team, Second Team, Under 18, Under 15, Under 13 and Under 11 levels. It exp ...
. During the war, worked as an engineer in
Accrington
Accrington is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies about east of Blackburn, west of Burnley, east of Preston, north of Manchester and is situated on the culverted River Hyndburn. Commonly abbreviated by locals to ...
.
He was married in 1940.
Post-war career
After the war, Place, who was 31 at the time, was the first choice batsman to open with
Cyril Washbrook
Cyril Washbrook (6 December 1914 – 27 April 1999) was an English cricketer, who played for Lancashire and England. He had a long career, split by World War II, and ending when he was aged 44. Washbrook, who is most famous for opening the batt ...
.
[ Retrieved on 18 December 2008.] The partnership was one of the most prolific for Lancashire and the best on the
county circuit at the time.
The 1946 and 1947 English cricket seasons were Place's most successful, producing 1,868 runs at 41.51 and 2,501 at 62.52 respectively. These were his most productive seasons and in 1947 he scored 10 centuries including his career best 266 not out which was scored against Oxford University; his second-highest total centuries for a season is four.
He was 12th man for
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
against
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 ...
when they played a Test match at Headingley.
Place's "golden summer" earned him selection for England's tour of the West Indies when
Denis Compton
Denis Charles Scott Compton (23 May 1918 – 23 April 1997) was an English multi-sportsman. As a cricketer he played in 78 Test matches and spent his whole cricket career with Middlesex. As a footballer, he played as a winger and spent most o ...
,
Bill Edrich
William John Edrich (26 March 1916 – 24 April 1986) was a first-class cricketer who played for Middlesex County Cricket Club, Middlesex, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Norfolk County Cricket Club, Norfolk and England cricket team, England.
Ed ...
,
Len Hutton
Sir Leonard Hutton (23 June 1916 – 6 September 1990) was an English cricketer. He played as an opening batsman for Yorkshire County Cricket Club from 1934 to 1955 and for England in 79 Test matches between 1937 and 1955. ''Wisden Cricketer ...
, and fellow Lancastrian Cyril Washbrook opted out of the tour.
He made his debut on 21 January 1948 against 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 ...
at Bridgetown. Place opened the batting with
Jack Robertson, but was unsuccessful,
scoring 12 in the first innings and 1
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 ...
in the second when he dropped down the batting order to number six. Place sustained a bruised knuckle in the Test and missed the second Test due to a ruptured groin muscle that happened during a tour match against Trinidad. He was able to return for the final two matches of the series. Due to injuries to the team, Len Hutton had been called up, forcing Place to move from his accustomed place opening the batting to number three. In the third Test, he scored 1 and 15.
Place's most significant Test innings came in his final match. After scoring 8 in the first innings, Place scored a battling 107, his only Test century.
On his return to England, Place drifted out of England contention, and did not even feature in the Test trial as England prepared for
Australia's
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by a ...
tour in 1948.
Despite being overlooked by the national selectors, he remained an integral part of Lancashire's batting line up, scoring 1,000 every season between 1946 and 1953.
In 1949, Place suffered a broken hand, keeping him from playing seven matches, although he did manage a
county championship
The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...
best of 226 not out against
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
. He toured with the
Commonwealth XI which
toured India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka in 1949/50,
scoring 386 runs at 20.31 in 12 matches.
Decline and after cricket
Place's benefit year was in 1952 and raised £6,297; at the time this figure was only bettered by the benefits of Washbrook and
Dick Pollard
Richard Pollard (19 June 1912 – 16 December 1985) was an English cricketer born in Westhoughton, Lancashire, who played in four Test matches between 1946 and 1948. A fast-medium right-arm bowler and a lower-order right-handed batsman who mad ...
, and demonstrated his popularity with the Lancashire fans.
The last time Place passed 1,000 runs in a season was in 1953.
In 1954 he averaged a disappointing 21.64 with only one century, but the 1955 season was leaner still, amassing only 179 runs from 10 matches.
At the age of 40, Place was released by Lancashire, and on being told his career with Lancashire was over he broke down in tears.
He became a first-class umpire, and although he enjoyed the job he disliked being separated from his family and quit after one season. Of Place's umpiring,
Peter Tinniswood
Peter Tinniswood (21 December 1936 – 9 January 2003) was an English radio and TV comedy scriptwriter, and author of a series of popular novels. He was born in Liverpool, but grew up above a dry cleaner's on Eastway in Sale, Cheshire.
Early ca ...
said "I am reminded here of that great and saintly Lancashire cricketer, Mr Winston Place, who on retiring from the first-class game took up umpiring. He resigned from his position, however, because such was his goodness and benevolence, he could not bear to give people out. God is rather like Winston Place".
On retiring, he became a newsagent in his home town of Rawtenstall, even playing for the town's cricket team, living with his wife and two daughters. He died on 25 January 2002.
References
External links
CricketArchive stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Place, Winston
1914 births
2002 deaths
England Test cricketers
English cricketers
Lancashire cricketers
Commonwealth XI cricketers
People from Rawtenstall
Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers
North v South cricketers