Cyril John Poole (13 March 1921 – 11 February 1996) was an English

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 for

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

and 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) ...

for

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. He also played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

for

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...

, Gillingham and

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

Life and career

Poole was born in

Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of the Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area and the second largest settlement in Nottinghamshire (following the city ...

. An entertaining left-handed batsman, Poole was 27 before he came into

county cricket Inter-county cricket matches have been played since the early 18th century, involving teams that are representative of the historic counties of England and Wales. Two county championship competitions have existed since the late 19th century at ...

, but soon established himself in what was, throughout his time with them, one of the weaker first-class county sides. His best season was 1961, when he scored 1,860 runs in first-class cricket.Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, 1997, p.1413 His one taste of

Test cricket Test cricket is a Forms of cricket, format of the sport of cricket, considered the game’s most prestigious and traditional form. Often referred to as the "ultimate test" of a cricketer's skill, endurance, and temperament, it is a format of i ...

came on the 1951/52 tour to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. Poole, who had replaced

Jack Ikin John Thomas Ikin (7 March 1918 – 15 September 1984) was an English cricketer, who played in eighteen Test matches from 1946 to 1955. A "calm, popular left-hander who also bowled leg spin", Ikin played most of his cricket for Lancashire. He wa ...

because of injury, played three times for what was, in effect, an England second eleven, scoring two fifties. He was never picked for England again, his batting defensive frailties counting against him, though he continued in county cricket until 1962, and had his best season at the age of 40. He was an outstanding fielder in almost any position. His healthy Test batting average of 40.25, was complemented by one of 32.45 at first-class level. Poole was an occasional bowler and

wicket-keeper In cricket, the wicket-keeper is the Cricket player, player on the fielding (cricket), fielding side who stands behind the wicket, ready to stop Delivery (cricket), deliveries that pass the batsman, and take a Caught, catch, Stumped, stump the ...

. As a footballer, he became

's youngest-ever debutant, aged 15. He later played for Gillingham and Wolves. He played as a

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

. Cyril Poole died, in

Balderton Balderton is a village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England, which had a population of 9,757 at the 2011 census, increasing to 9,917 at the 2021 census. Balderton is one of the largest villages in Nottinghamshire, although it may b ...

, Nottinghamshire, on 11 February 1996, aged 74. His ''Wisden'' obituary in 1997, which described him as a "splendidly entertaining" cricketer, "one of the most gifted and audacious left-handed batsmen on the circuit... and a great fielder". It also included an anecdote:

"He would regularly borrow any bat that was lying around the dressing room, never worrying about the weight or other technicalities. It is said that his team-mates tried to cure him with a trick bat, which was merely a shell filled with sawdust. He scored about 70 with it and apparently never noticed."

References

External links

Cricinfo page on Cyril Poole
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poole, Cyril 1921 births 1996 deaths People from Balderton Sportspeople from Mansfield English cricketers England Test cricketers Cricketers from Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers North v South cricketers T. N. Pearce's XI cricketers English men's footballers English Football League players Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football wingers Gillingham F.C. players Mansfield Town F.C. players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players 20th-century English sportsmen