Brent Avis Hardcastle Palfreyman (born 20 January 1945) is a former Australian
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 ...
er who played for
Tasmania
Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
. He was born at
Hobart
Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...
in 1945.
Palfreyman never played
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 ...
cricket, his six first-class appearances all came against foreign touring sides. On his first-class debut against the
Marylebone Cricket Club
The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...
in 1966, Palfreyman was bowled by David Brown for six and didn't bat in the second innings. He also went for 34 from four overs of medium pace bowling in the first innings and took a catch to dismiss David Allen .
He had to wait another five years to represent Tasmania again at first-class level and it was once more against the touring MCC. In the first of two matches, he fell victim to
Peter Lever
Peter Lever (17 September 1940 – 27 March 2025) was an English cricketer, who played in seventeen Tests and ten ODIs for England from 1970 to 1975. A fast-medium opening bowler, he took 41 wickets and was a handy lower-order batsman with a t ...
then
Derek Underwood
Derek Leslie Underwood (8 June 1945 – 15 April 2024) was an English international cricketer. In retirement he became president of the Marylebone Cricket Club
The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based s ...
, for 3 and 20 respectively. His second appearance was for a Tasmania Combined XI but the match was ruined by rain and only 47 overs were possible, although he managed to catch to dismiss
Colin Cowdrey
Michael Colin Cowdrey, Baron Cowdrey of Tonbridge, (24 December 1932 – 4 December 2000) was an English cricketer who played for Kent County Cricket Club from 1950 to 1976, and in 114 Test matches for England from 1954 to 1975. He was born i ...
.
The following summer he was picked in the Tasmanian team to play the World XI. Against a bowling line-up consisting of players to the calibre of
Gary Sobers
The Right Excellent Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, NH, AO, OCC (born 28 July 1936), also known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a Barbadian born former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974. A highly skilled bowle ...
,
Tony Greig
Anthony William Greig (6 October 194629 December 2012) was a South African-born cricketer and commentator. Greig qualified to play for the England cricket team by virtue of his Scottish father. He was a tall () all-rounder who bowled both ...
and
Bishan Bedi
Bishan Singh Bedi (25 September 1946 – 23 October 2023) was an Indian cricketer who was primarily a slow left-arm orthodox bowler. He played Test cricket for India from 1966 to 1979 and formed part of the famous Indian spin quartet. He played ...
, Palfreyman made his highest first-class score of 30 before being dismissed by the Indian spinner. Later in the week he made another appearance against the World XI, this time for the Combined Tasmanian outfit and he made 22 in his only innings.
His last summer of first-class cricket was in 1972/73 when he represented Tasmania against Pakistan. The Tasmanians bowled first and Palfreyman went for 41 runs off his seven overs but threw the ball which ran out Talat Ali. When it was his turn to bat, Palfreyman was dismissed by
Intikhab Alam
Intikhab Alam Khan (Urdu:; born 28 December 1941) is a Pakistani cricket coach and former cricketer who played in 47 Test matches and four One Day Internationals from 1959 to 1977. He captained Pakistan in 17 Tests between 1969 and 1975. He al ...
for a duck, with the Pakistani finishing with his career best figures of 8-54. After Tasmania followed on, Palfreyman yet again lost his wicket to a spin bowler, this time
Nasim-ul-Ghani
Nasim-ul-Ghani (born 14 May 1941) is a former Pakistani cricketer who played in 29 Test matches and one One Day International between 1958 and 1973. At the time of his debut, aged 16 years, he was the world's youngest Test player.One Day Competition, both quarter finals which Tasmania lost.
At the
1992 Cricket World Cup
The 1992 Cricket World Cup (known as the Benson & Hedges World Cup 1992 for sponsorship reasons) was the fifth Cricket World Cup, the premier One Day International cricket tournament for men's national teams, organised by the International Cric ...
, Palfreyman was the
match referee
A match referee is an official appointed to oversee professional cricket matches. Match referees for Test matches and One Day Internationals are appointed by the International Cricket Council (ICC). Most matches below international level do not ...
for a match between Australia and Zimbabwe in Hobart.
Palfreyman was also a successful
Australian rules football
Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...
er, who played in the
Tasmanian Football League
The Tasmanian State League (TSL), colloquially known as the Tasmanian Football League (TFL), was the highest-level Australian rules football competition in the state of Tasmania. It disbanded following the end of the 2024 TSL season, 2024 season ...
for Sandy Bay. A forward, he was the TFL leading goal-kicker in 1969 with 51 goals and again in 1970 with 67 goals. He was a member of the 1971 Sandy Bay premiership team which in 2007 was inducted into the
Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame
The Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame was established to help recognise outstanding services and overall contribution made to the sport of Australian rules football in Tasmania. Any participant of the sport, including players, umpires, media person ...
Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
.
Palfreyman, an accountant, went into cricket administration after ending his playing career and has served as the chairman of the
Tasmanian Cricket Association
Cricket Tasmania (formerly the ''Tasmanian Cricket Association'') is the administrative body for cricket in Tasmania, Australia, and is based at Bellerive Oval in Hobart.
Cricket Tasmania's primary purpose is to promote and develop the game of ...