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Australia's oldest living first-class cricketer reaches his century

Roar Pro
8th March, 2017
3

Today is the 100th birthday of Jack Laver, who played 13 first-class matches for Tasmania between 1946 and 1952.

Australia’s most senior, Jack is the second oldest living first-class cricketer in the world, after Hampshire’s John Manners, who is 102.

Born John Francis Lee Laver on March 9, 1917, in Malvern, Melbourne, Jack’s uncle, Frank Laver, had been a prominent Test cricketer and Australian Test team manager.

Jack attended Melbourne High School, where he was coached by former Australian Test captain Bill Woodfull. He represented Victoria as a schoolboy, but after breaking his arm he took up baseball, playing nine years of first grade in Melbourne.

Primarily a batsman at school, Jack played in the Victorian Junior Cricket association for South Suburban Churches in intra-association games, where he had huge success, taking an incredible 128 wickets and scoring 870 at an average of 80 in just his second year.

Jack first went to Tasmania in 1940-41, where he played for South Launceston and had the highest batting average (42) in the North Tasmanian Cricket Association, leading to his selection to play for North against South as a batsman, and also at tennis.

He joined the armed forces for the next five years and became a lieutenant in the sixth Australian Division Provost Company of the Royal Australian Army.

Returning from the war, Jack captained the West Launceston club, before making his first class debut, against Victoria in December 1946. He made 93 in just 92 minutes and followed this with an impressive performance with his off breaks against the touring MCC team in his next first class match, taking 5-26 and dismissing Denis Compton, Bill Edrich and captain Norman Yardley.

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Laver captained Tasmania once against Victoria, and ended his first-class career with 343 runs at an average of 14.91, having also taken 20 wickets at an average of 42.80.

It would be a pity to allow today to pass without recognising the life and achievements of Jack Laver.

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