Jack Flavell (15 May 1929 – 25 February 2004) 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 in four

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 ...

from 1961 to 1964. His

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 ...

career was spent with

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

, with whom Flavell won two

County Championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...

titles. His new ball bowling partnership with

Len Coldwell Leonard John Coldwell (10 January 1933 – 6 August 1996) was an English cricketer, who played in seven Tests for England from 1962 to 1964. Coldwell was a right-arm fast-medium bowler who was, for a few years in the early to mid-1960s, half of ...

was one of the most feared and respected in the 1960s.

Life and career

John Alfred Flavell was born in

Wall Heath Wall Heath is a suburban village in the Dudley Metropolitan Borough in the West Midlands of England. It is located on the A449 road, approximately 1.5 miles northwest of Kingswinford (of which it is considered a suburb), 5 miles west of Dudle ...

, Staffordshire. After turning down the offer of a contract at

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

, Flavell began his

career in 1949 as an out and out fast bowler, earning himself the nickname of ‘Mad Jack’. After suffering a back injury, he cut his run and concentrated on accuracy and generating movement off the seam. Unusually for a fast bowler, he was more effective in his thirties than he had been in his twenties, and became one of the most prolific and feared opening bowlers in the

. He claimed 100 wickets or more in a season on eight occasions, and topped the averages in 1961, when he took 171 wickets at 17.79. He took three

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

s – against

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

in 1951,

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in 1953 and

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

in 1963. In the Lancashire game, each batsman was dismissed LBW, a testament to his unrelenting attack on middle stump. He bagged nine wickets in an innings on three occasions, with a best of 9 for 30 against Kent in 1955. Having taken 9 for 90 at

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

, he was denied a chance to take all ten when Sussex declared at tea. In all, appetite for long spells, and ability to shrug off a succession of hamstring and ankle injuries, earned him 1,529 wickets in 401 first-class appearances. From 1957 to 1961 he averaged 970 overs in a season, bowling 1,037 in 1960 and 1,245 in 1961. In partnership with Len Coldwell, he spearheaded Worcestershire's two championship winning campaigns in 1964, when he took 101 wickets, and 1965 when he bagged 132 at 14.99. Coming back from injury in 1964, with Worcestershire's push for the title stalling, he took forty-six wickets in five matches between 8 and 25 August at just 11.71, taking nine in an innings against

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

. He almost helped Worcestershire to a championship hat trick in 1966, bagging 135 at 14 at the age of 37, before retiring the following year. In 1968,

John Arlott Leslie Thomas John Arlott, (25 February 1914 – 14 December 1991) was an English journalist, author and cricket commentator for the BBC's '' Test Match Special''. He was also a poet and wine connoisseur. With his poetic phraseology, he becam ...

wrote that “for a decade he oldwelland Flavell have been as consistently hostile an opening pair as any in the country, not merely for the penetrative quality of their best bowling but because of their combination of persistent accuracy, stamina and edge, giving the batsmen nothing and harrying them, over after over, for long spells”. He represented his country in just four Test matches, against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in 1961 and 1964, and was unlucky to play in an era when England could call on

Fred Trueman Frederick Sewards Trueman, (6 February 1931 – 1 July 2006) was an English cricketer who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the England cricket team. He had professional status and later became an author and broadcaster. Acknowled ...

Brian Statham John Brian Statham, (17 June 1930 – 10 June 2000) was an English professional cricketer from Gorton, in Manchester, who played for Lancashire County Cricket Club from 1950 to 1968 and for England from 1951 to 1965.Frank Tyson Frank Holmes Tyson (6 June 1930 – 27 September 2015) was an England international cricketer of the 1950s, who also worked as a schoolmaster, journalist, cricket coach and cricket commentator after emigrating to Australia in 1960. Nicknamed " ...

. As late as 1964, E.W. Swanton wrote that "Among first-class cricketers as many hold the view that Flavell is the best opening bowler in the country as do the same for Statham". His benefit in 1963 brought him a county record of £6,480 and he was one of

Wisden Cricketers of the Year The ''Wisden'' Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', based "primarily for their influence on the previous English season". The award began in 1889 with the naming ...

in 1965. He retired just as one-day cricket was beginning to take root in county cricket, his accurate bowling earning him thirty three wickets at just 9.75. Flavell had no pretensions as a left-handed batsman, but scored his only first-class fifty against arch rivals Warwickshire at

Dudley Dudley ( , ) is a market town in the West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically part of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley. In the ...

in 1959, and also in partnership with the still-worse “rabbit” Bob Carter won Worcestershire a vital one-wicket victory over

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 ...

with two fours. A talented all round sportsman, Flavell's cricket career almost ended before it began, due to his talent for

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

. He played for

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

, with whom he signed professional terms at 17, and

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

. In 1948 he played in the Army cup final at

Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...

, when lightning killed two players and burned the hair from his head.Telegraph.co.uk
/ref> He was a successful amateur golfer and captained Enville Golf Club. After retirement, with his wife Marie, Flavell ran The Rafters Restaurant near

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

, and then a guest house in

Barmouth Barmouth (formal ; colloquially ) is a seaside town and community in the county of Gwynedd, north-west Wales; it lies on the estuary of the Afon Mawddach and Cardigan Bay. Located in the historic county of Merionethshire, the Welsh form of t ...

Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...

, Wales. He died in his sleep in Barmouth in February 2004, at the age of 74.

References

1929 births 2004 deaths England Test cricketers English cricketers Worcestershire cricketers International Cavaliers cricketers Wisden Cricketers of the Year Players cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers North v South cricketers Sportspeople from the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley People from Staffordshire (before 1974) People from Barmouth Cricketers from Staffordshire 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-cricket-bio-stub