Jack Mercer (cricketer)
Encyclopedia
John "Jack" Mercer was the main bowler for Glamorgan in their early years in the County Championship
. He bowled medium pace
and could swing
the ball both ways, whilst when wickets were affected by rain he was able to get on a good deal of off-break. He suffered during his career from Glamorgan's lack of agile, athletic fieldsmen, which meant he was often plagued by dropped catches - otherwise his figures would have been much better. On occasions, he was a dangerous tail-end batsman, who once hit Wilfred Rhodes
for 36 runs from 3 overs and hit Dick Howorth
for 31 runs off an eight-ball over in his last season with Glamorgan. John Arlott said of him, "he bowled more overs, conceded more runs, took more wickets, scored the fastest 50, made more ducks
and was not out
more often than anyone else in the county's history".
after World War I
in 1919
but found he had very little opportunity because Sussex had so many medium-pace bowlers of similar type on their professional staff, notably Maurice Tate
and the Relf brothers. Mercer got a bit of bowling in 1920
but his lack of opportunities in 1921 led him to qualify for the newly-promoted first-class
county Glamorgan
.
- when Glamorgan's utterly abysmal batting caused them to suffer a record number of defeats in the Championship - he was a well-established bowler and took over 100 wickets for the first time.
, with Glamorgan's batting much improved, the county rose to eighth and Mercer's superb bowling - highlighted by eight for 39 against Gloucestershire
and the dismissal of Somerset
for 59 and 77 on a sticky wicket at Cardiff Arms Park
- put him in second place in the averages and won him a Cricketer of the Year nomination from Wisden in a year when an Ashes tour intensified competition for the honour.
and Ceylon without doing anything spectacular, and in 1927 when pitches were almost always soft and wet (often so much so as to be really easy for batting) he did not do as well as expected until late in the season. However, in 1929
with fourteen for 119 against the touring South Africans, Mercer perhaps justified those who wondered why he was always overlooked for representative cricket.
. However, 1935
and 1936
saw him back at his very best, with the latter season seeing him take all ten wickets in an innings at New Road, Worcester
and twelve wickets for 123 against Leicestershire
. He finished the season with 116 wickets when no other Glamorgan bowler exceeded 46, but in 1937
he lost so much form that he was in and out of the team. Ordinarily, Glamorgan would have ended Mercer's contract, but the erratic availability of their best bowlers meant he stayed with them for another two years, during which he produced his famous hitting spree against Worcestershire
at Cardiff when Glamorgan were faced with certain defeat (the weather saved them).
, Glamorgan announced Mercer would not be retained for 1940, but war
brought an end to county cricket until 1946. Mercer then took up an appointment as coach of Northamptonshire
, and even played one match for them at the extraordinary age of fifty-four. Mercer's vitality was shown by the fact that he lived to the age of ninety-four, dying in London in 1987.
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
. He bowled medium pace
Seam bowling
Seam bowling is a phrase used for a bowling technique in cricket whereby the ball is deliberately bowled on to its seam, to cause a random deviation. Practitioners are known as seam bowlers or seamers....
and could swing
Swing bowling
Swing bowling is a technique used for bowling in the sport of cricket. Practitioners are known as swing bowlers. Swing bowling is generally classed as a subtype of fast bowling.-Physics of swing bowling:...
the ball both ways, whilst when wickets were affected by rain he was able to get on a good deal of off-break. He suffered during his career from Glamorgan's lack of agile, athletic fieldsmen, which meant he was often plagued by dropped catches - otherwise his figures would have been much better. On occasions, he was a dangerous tail-end batsman, who once hit Wilfred Rhodes
Wilfred Rhodes
Wilfred Rhodes was an English professional cricketer who played 58 Test matches for England between 1899 and 1930. In Tests, Rhodes took 127 wickets in and scored 2,325 runs, becoming the first Englishman to complete the double of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets in Test matches...
for 36 runs from 3 overs and hit Dick Howorth
Dick Howorth
Dick Howorth was an English all-rounder for Worcestershire between 1933 and 1951. Chiefly remembered as a left-arm spin bowler, Howorth also occasionally bowled medium pace and was a capable hard-hitting left-handed batsman...
for 31 runs off an eight-ball over in his last season with Glamorgan. John Arlott said of him, "he bowled more overs, conceded more runs, took more wickets, scored the fastest 50, made more ducks
Duck (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a duck refers to a batsman's dismissal for a score of zero.-Origin of the term:The term is a shortening of the term "duck's egg", the latter being used long before Test cricket began...
and was not out
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
more often than anyone else in the county's history".
Beginnings
Mercer began his cricket with SussexSussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in 1919
1919 English cricket season
The 1919 English cricket season was the first to stage first-class cricket since 1914. Yorkshire won the title but in their team as in everyone else's, the sense was of overwhelming loss. The county matches in this season were played over a course of two days...
but found he had very little opportunity because Sussex had so many medium-pace bowlers of similar type on their professional staff, notably Maurice Tate
Maurice Tate
Maurice William Tate was a Sussex and England cricketer of the 1920s and 1930s and the leader of England's Test bowling attack for a long time during this period...
and the Relf brothers. Mercer got a bit of bowling in 1920
1920 English cricket season
The 1920 English cricket season had no Test cricket as the post-war recovery continued. Middlesex rose from 13th in 1919 to take the first of two back-to-back titles...
but his lack of opportunities in 1921 led him to qualify for the newly-promoted first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
county Glamorgan
Glamorgan County Cricket Club
Glamorgan County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County...
.
100 Wickets
He started slowly, but by 19251925 English cricket season
The 1925 English cricket season did not have a Test series and the focus was ostensibly upon the County Championship, except that proceedings were dominated by Jack Hobbs who scored a then-record 16 centuries and 3024 runs. Along the way, Hobbs equalled and then surpassed the career record for...
- when Glamorgan's utterly abysmal batting caused them to suffer a record number of defeats in the Championship - he was a well-established bowler and took over 100 wickets for the first time.
Awards
The following year1926 English cricket season
The 1926 English cricket season saw England regain the Ashes. Lancashire overcame its eternal rivals and began a hat-trick sequence of county titles.-Honours:*County Championship - Lancashire*Minor Counties Championship - Durham...
, with Glamorgan's batting much improved, the county rose to eighth and Mercer's superb bowling - highlighted by eight for 39 against Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
and the dismissal of Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
for 59 and 77 on a sticky wicket at Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park , also known as The Arms Park, is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green, and is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World...
- put him in second place in the averages and won him a Cricketer of the Year nomination from Wisden in a year when an Ashes tour intensified competition for the honour.
Touring
Mercer then went on tours of IndiaBritish Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
and Ceylon without doing anything spectacular, and in 1927 when pitches were almost always soft and wet (often so much so as to be really easy for batting) he did not do as well as expected until late in the season. However, in 1929
1929 English cricket season
The 1929 English cricket season featured a tour by the South African team. In domestic cricket, Nottinghamshire overcame their two northern rivals, Lancashire and Yorkshire, to win the County Championship.-Honours:*County Championship - Nottinghamshire...
with fourteen for 119 against the touring South Africans, Mercer perhaps justified those who wondered why he was always overlooked for representative cricket.
1929-1937
In this season, he claimed a personal best 145 wickets, but strains in his thigh caused a gradual decline during the early 1930s and Mercer did not even take 50 wickets in 19341934 English cricket season
The 1934 English cricket season saw England lose the Ashes they had won via Bodyline in 1932-3, with Don Bradman again the crucial difference between two very strong teams.-Honours:*County Championship - Lancashire...
. However, 1935
1935 English cricket season
The 1935 English cricket season saw England beaten by South Africa who won the Test series 1-0 with four matches drawn.-Honours:*County Championship - Yorkshire*Minor Counties Championship - Middlesex II...
and 1936
1936 English cricket season
The 1936 English cricket season saw Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1936 win its first-ever County Championship.-Honours:*County Championship - Derbyshire*Minor Counties Championship - Hertfordshire...
saw him back at his very best, with the latter season seeing him take all ten wickets in an innings at New Road, Worcester
New Road, Worcester
New Road, Worcester, England, has been the home cricket ground of Worcestershire County Cricket Club since 1896. Immediately to the northwest is a road called New Road, part of the A44, hence the name.- Overview :...
and twelve wickets for 123 against Leicestershire
Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
. He finished the season with 116 wickets when no other Glamorgan bowler exceeded 46, but in 1937
1937 English cricket season
-Honours:*County Championship - Yorkshire*Minor Counties Championship - Lancashire II*Wisden - Tom Goddard, Joe Hardstaff, Leonard Hutton, Jim Parks senior, Eddie Paynter-Test series:England defeated New Zealand 1-0 with two matches drawn....
he lost so much form that he was in and out of the team. Ordinarily, Glamorgan would have ended Mercer's contract, but the erratic availability of their best bowlers meant he stayed with them for another two years, during which he produced his famous hitting spree against Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Worcestershire...
at Cardiff when Glamorgan were faced with certain defeat (the weather saved them).
1939 onwards
During 19391939 English cricket season
The 1939 English cricket season was the last before the Second World War and it was not until 1946 that first-class cricket could resume in England on a normal basis....
, Glamorgan announced Mercer would not be retained for 1940, but war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
brought an end to county cricket until 1946. Mercer then took up an appointment as coach of Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Northamptonshire. Its limited overs team is called the Northants Steelbacks. The traditional club colour is Maroon. During the...
, and even played one match for them at the extraordinary age of fifty-four. Mercer's vitality was shown by the fact that he lived to the age of ninety-four, dying in London in 1987.