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Rayford Harold Robinson (26 March 1914 – 10 August 1965) was an Australian
cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
er who played in one Test match in 1936. 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 of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...
for
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
and
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
before
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and in New Zealand for
Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...
between the 1946–47 and 1948–49 seasons.Ray Robinson
CricketArchive. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
Cashman RI ed (1996) ''The Oxford Companion to Australian Cricket'', p. 452. Melbourne: Oxford. Considered a stylish batsman and useful
leg break Leg spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called a leg spinner. Leg spinners bowl with their right-arm and a wrist spin action. The leg spinner's normal delivery is called a leg break, which spins from ...
bowler, Robinson scored over 2,000 first-class runs. He served in the Australian Army during World War II and his later career was affected by the shell shock that he suffered whilst serving in North Africa.


Early life and career

Robinson was born at Stockton in
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
in 1914.McCarron A (2010) ''New Zealand Cricketers 1863/64–2010'', p. 115. Cardiff:
The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians (ACS) was founded in England in 1973 for the purpose of researching and collating information about the history and statistics of cricket. Originally called the Association of Cricket Stati ...
.
Available online
at the
Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians (ACS) was founded in England in 1973 for the purpose of researching and collating information about the history and statistics of cricket. Originally called the Association of Cricket Stati ...
. Retrieved 5 June 2023.)
He played club cricket in
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...
before being spotted at the age of 16 and playing for New South Wales Country and Colts sides in the early 1930s.Cricket coach Ray Robinson arrives, ''
Otago Daily Times The ''Otago Daily Times'' (''ODT'') is a newspaper published by Allied Press Ltd in Dunedin, New Zealand. The ''ODT'' is one of the country's four main daily newspapers, serving the southern South Island with a circulation of around 26,000 and ...
'', issue 26166, 31 May 1946, p. 6.
Available online
at
Papers Past The National Library of New Zealand () is charged with the obligation to "enrich the cultural and economic life of New Zealand and its interchanges with other nations" (National Library of New Zealand (Te Puna Mātauranga) Act 2003). Under the ...
. Retrieved 18 December 2023.)
He made his first-class debut for the state side in a December 1934
Sheffield Shield The Sheffield Shield is the domestic first-class cricket competition of Australia. The tournament is contested between teams representing the six states of Australia. The Sheffield Shield is named after Henry Holroyd, 3rd Earl of Sheffield, Lor ...
match against South Australia at the
Adelaide Oval The Adelaide Oval is a stadium in Adelaide in the state of South Australia. It is located in the Adelaide Parklands, parklands. The venue is predominantly used for cricket and Australian rules football, but has also played host to rugby league, ...
. Considered by critics to be "the greatest natural cricketer since
Victor Trumper Victor Thomas Trumper (2 November 1877 – 28 June 1915) was an Australian cricketer known as the most stylish and versatile batsman of the Golden Age of cricket, capable of playing match-winning innings on wet wickets his contemporaries found ...
" and by others as a "brilliant stylist",Noted cricketer, ''
Otago Daily Times The ''Otago Daily Times'' (''ODT'') is a newspaper published by Allied Press Ltd in Dunedin, New Zealand. The ''ODT'' is one of the country's four main daily newspapers, serving the southern South Island with a circulation of around 26,000 and ...
'', issue 26142, 3 May 1946, p. 4.
Available online
at
Papers Past The National Library of New Zealand () is charged with the obligation to "enrich the cultural and economic life of New Zealand and its interchanges with other nations" (National Library of New Zealand (Te Puna Mātauranga) Act 2003). Under the ...
. Retrieved 18 December 2023.)
he headed the New South Wales batting averages in his second season, averaging 61.3 runs per innings. A series of "heavy scores" made "with style and panache"Robinson, Rayford Harold, Supplementary obituaries, ''
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack ''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" (or variations thereof) has been applied to ''Wi ...
'', 1994.
Available online
at
CricInfo ESPNcricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a Sports journalism, sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including Liveblogging, liveblogs and sco ...
. Retrieved 18 December 2023.)
saw Robinson called into the Australian Test side to play in the first Test of the 1936–37 home Ashes series at
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
. He scored only five runs in the match, a heavy Australian loss, and was twelfth man for the following Test before dropping out of the side altogether. The following season Robinson moved to play for South Australia, making seven first-class appearances for the side, before returning to New South Wales to play twice during the 1939–40 season. During World War II he served in the
Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...
between 1940 and 1943, giving his occupation as a mechanic on his enlistment papers. He served in 6th Australian Division in North Africa and the Middle EastService Records
National Archives of Australia The National Archives of Australia (NAA), formerly known as the Commonwealth Archives Office and Australian Archives, is an Australian Government agency that is the National archives, official repository for all federal government documents. It ...
. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
and played cricket for an Australian Imperial Forces side in Egypt in October 1941. After suffering from
shell shock Shell shock is a term that originated during World War I to describe symptoms similar to those of combat stress reaction and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which many soldiers suffered during the war. Before PTSD was officially recogni ...
he was deemed medically unfit for service and returned to Australia, where he played more cricket at
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
for an Australian Services side in December 1942, before being discharged in March 1943.


Post-war career in New Zealand

After his discharge Robinson found it difficult to secure accommodation for his wife and family. He played grade cricket for Gordon District Cricket Club in Sydney during the 1945–46 season and later in 1946 was employed as a groundsman by
Dunedin City Council The Dunedin City Council () is the Local government in New Zealand, local government authority for Dunedin in New Zealand. It is a Territorial authorities of New Zealand, territorial authority elected to represent the people of Dunedin. Since O ...
in New Zealand, later bringing his family in the country. He also agreed to coach for the
Otago Cricket Association The Otago cricket team, nicknamed the Volts since the 1997–98 season, are a New Zealand first-class cricket team which first played representative cricket in 1864.Otago cricket history, ''The Star (Dunedin), Evening Star'', issue 21864, 30 Oc ...
, and between 1946–47 and 1948–49 played in ten first-class matches for Otago, as well as playing other matches for the province. Robinson suffered from illnesses throughout his later life, caused by his war service, and ''
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" (or variations thereof) has been applied to ''Wi ...
'' reported that he "never recovered either the form or the style of his youth" during his later career. In a total of 46 first-class matches he scored 2,441 runs, including four centuries, and took 44 wickets. All four of his centuries were scored for New South Wales and his batting average for the side of 42.02 far exceeds his career average of 31.70.


Later life

Working as a labourer in his later life, Robinson returned to Australia and, after spending some time in hospital, died at Stockton in 1965. He was aged 51.Ray Robinson
CricInfo ESPNcricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a Sports journalism, sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including Liveblogging, liveblogs and sco ...
. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
An obituary was published in the ''New Zealand Cricket Almanack'' in 1967 but ''Wisden'' did not print an obituary for Robinson until 1994.


Notes


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Ray 1914 births 1965 deaths Australia Test cricketers New South Wales cricketers Otago cricketers South Australia cricketers Australian cricketers Cricketers from Newcastle, New South Wales South Island cricketers D. G. Bradman's XI cricketers Australian Army personnel of World War II 20th-century Australian sportsmen