Bill Athey
Encyclopedia
Charles William Jeffrey Athey (born 27 September 1957, Middlesbrough
, Yorkshire
, England
) was an English first-class cricket
er, who played for England
, and first class cricket for Gloucestershire
, Yorkshire
and Sussex
; he also played a solitary one-day game for Worcestershire
. His bulldog spirit was exemplified by the Union Jack
tattooed on his arm. He played in 23 Test matches
between 1980 and 1988, but scored more than 50 runs only five times in 41 innings. In 1990, Athey joined the rebel tour
to South Africa
.
At the end of that season he joined Worcestershire as coach, having 'retired' from playing, though in spite of his status he did play several times for the Second XI and once (in 1999) in a National League
game. He left New Road
at the end of 2000. He played 467 first class matches and batted 784 times with 71 not outs. He scored 25,453 first-class runs, with a best of 184, at an average of 35.69, with 55 centuries and 126 fifties. He took 429 catches, and 2 stumpings on his rare ventures behind the stumps. In 459 List A one-day matches, he scored 13,240 runs, with a top score of 142 not out at an average of 33.86, scoring 12 centuries, 89 fifties, and taking 171 catches and one stumping. He also played Minor Counties cricket for Suffolk
.
He was a middle order
batsman by inclination, but found greatest success at Test level as an opener
. Selected for the 1986/87 tour of Australia
as middle order cover, he ended up opening in all five Tests with Chris Broad
. His top score was 96 in Perth
. In the 1987 summer, he was initially meant to revert to the middle order, but an injury to Broad meant that he opened in the first Test with Tim Robinson
. However, in the second Test he reverted to number three, and made his only Test hundred at Lord's
.
He missed only one of twenty Test matches from 1986 to 1988. Nevertheless, his 23 Test appearances were spread over eight years. He made his debut in the Centenary Test
at Lord's in 1980, and eight years later appeared in the Bicentennial Test
in Sydney, along with fellow survivors John Emburey
and Mike Gatting
.
Although never thought of as a one-day player, Athey hit two centuries in One Day Internationals, and top-scored for England before being run out in their Cricket World Cup
final
defeat against Australia at Calcutta in 1987
. He was suspended for playing in South Africa in 1990, but the suspension was remitted two years later when South Africa rejoined the world game.
Athey now works at Dulwich College
school in South London, as the First XI Cricket Coach. He also takes the Second XI football team, and is house master of Old Blew, one of the four Dulwich College boarding houses.
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough is a large town situated on the south bank of the River Tees in north east England, that sits within the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) was an English first-class cricket
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...
er, who played for England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
, and first class cricket for 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....
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
and Sussex
Sussex 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...
; he also played a solitary one-day game for 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...
. His bulldog spirit was exemplified by the Union Jack
Union Flag
The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...
tattooed on his arm. He played in 23 Test matches
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
between 1980 and 1988, but scored more than 50 runs only five times in 41 innings. In 1990, Athey joined the rebel tour
South African rebel tours
The South African rebel tours were a series of seven cricket tours staged between 1982 and 1990. They were known as the rebel tours because South Africa was throughout this period banned from international cricket due to the apartheid regime...
to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
Life and career
He made his debut for his native Yorkshire in 1976, before moving to Gloucestershire in 1984. He captained the side in 1989, and scored four hundreds in successive innings while there. In 1993, he moved to Sussex, and passed the increasingly rare landmark of 25,000 first class runs when he made an unbeaten century against Somerset in 1997.At the end of that season he joined Worcestershire as coach, having 'retired' from playing, though in spite of his status he did play several times for the Second XI and once (in 1999) in a National League
National League (cricket)
The NatWest Pro40 League was a one-day cricket league for first-class cricket counties in England and Wales. It was inaugurated in 1999, but was essentially the old Sunday League retitled to reflect the fact that large numbers of matches were played on days other than Sunday.-Sunday League:The...
game. He left New Road
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 :...
at the end of 2000. He played 467 first class matches and batted 784 times with 71 not outs. He scored 25,453 first-class runs, with a best of 184, at an average of 35.69, with 55 centuries and 126 fifties. He took 429 catches, and 2 stumpings on his rare ventures behind the stumps. In 459 List A one-day matches, he scored 13,240 runs, with a top score of 142 not out at an average of 33.86, scoring 12 centuries, 89 fifties, and taking 171 catches and one stumping. He also played Minor Counties cricket for Suffolk
Suffolk County Cricket Club
Suffolk County Cricket Club is one of the county clubs which make up the Minor Counties in the English domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Suffolk....
.
He was a middle order
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
batsman by inclination, but found greatest success at Test level as an opener
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
. Selected for the 1986/87 tour of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
as middle order cover, he ended up opening in all five Tests with Chris Broad
Chris Broad
Brian Christopher Broad, usually known as Chris Broad is a former England Test cricketer and current Test official. An opening batsman, Broad had a 25-match long international Test career during which he hit six centuries, together with 34 One Day International matches with a respectable over 40...
. His top score was 96 in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
. In the 1987 summer, he was initially meant to revert to the middle order, but an injury to Broad meant that he opened in the first Test with Tim Robinson
Tim Robinson
Tim Robinson is an English former cricketer, and current cricket umpire, who played in 29 Tests and 26 ODIs for England from 1984 to 1989....
. However, in the second Test he reverted to number three, and made his only Test hundred at Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
.
He missed only one of twenty Test matches from 1986 to 1988. Nevertheless, his 23 Test appearances were spread over eight years. He made his debut in the Centenary Test
Centenary Test
Centenary Test refers to two matches of Test cricket played between the English cricket team and the Australian cricket team, the first in 1977 and the second in 1980. These matches were played to mark the 100th anniversaries of the first Test cricket matches played in Australia and in England ...
at Lord's in 1980, and eight years later appeared in the Bicentennial Test
Bicentennial Test
The Bicentennial Test was a single Test cricket match played between Australia and England at the Sydney Cricket Ground in celebration of the bicentenary of permanent white settlement in Australia. The match took place from 29 January to 2 February 1988 and was drawn...
in Sydney, along with fellow survivors John Emburey
John Emburey
John Ernest Emburey is a former English cricketer, who played for Middlesex, Northamptonshire, Western Province, Berkshire and England....
and Mike Gatting
Mike Gatting
Michael "Mike" William Gatting OBE is a former English cricketer, who played first-class cricket for Middlesex and for England from 1977 to 1995, captaining the national side in twenty-three Test matches between 1986 and 1988...
.
Although never thought of as a one-day player, Athey hit two centuries in One Day Internationals, and top-scored for England before being run out in their Cricket World Cup
Cricket World Cup
The ICC Cricket World Cup is the premier international championship of men's One Day International cricket. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Cricket Council , with preliminary qualification rounds leading up to a finals tournament which is held every four years...
final
1987 Cricket World Cup Final
The final of the 1987 ICC Cricket World Cup was played in Eden Gardens, Kolkata on November 8. The match was finally won by the Aussies who defeated England by 7 runs to lift their first ever World Cup trophy. This was the first ever Cricket World Cup final to be played outside...
defeat against Australia at Calcutta in 1987
1987 Cricket World Cup
The 1987 Cricket World Cup was the fourth edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup tournament. It was held from October 8 to November 8, 1987 in India and Pakistan — the first held outside England. The format was unchanged from 1983 except for a reduction in the number of overs a team played from 60...
. He was suspended for playing in South Africa in 1990, but the suspension was remitted two years later when South Africa rejoined the world game.
Athey now works at Dulwich College
Dulwich College
Dulwich College is an independent school for boys in Dulwich, southeast London, England. The college was founded in 1619 by Edward Alleyn, a successful Elizabethan actor, with the original purpose of educating 12 poor scholars as the foundation of "God's Gift". It currently has about 1,600 boys,...
school in South London, as the First XI Cricket Coach. He also takes the Second XI football team, and is house master of Old Blew, one of the four Dulwich College boarding houses.