Gary Palmer
Encyclopedia
Gary Vincent Palmer played first-class
and List A cricket
for Somerset
from 1982 to 1989. He also played for the England Young Cricketers
side in both under-19 Test and One-day International matches. He was born at Taunton
, Somerset
and is the son of the former Somerset and England Test
cricketer Ken Palmer
.
at Bristol, he made 78 and put on 124 for the seventh wicket with Peter Denning
. Then, in the last match of the season against Warwickshire
he took five wickets for 38 runs in the first innings, and this would be the only five-wicket haul of his first-class career.
In 1984, with Somerset's overseas players Viv Richards
and Joel Garner
absent playing for the West Indies touring team
, Palmer played fairly regularly for both the first-class and List A sides. Wisden
noted, though, that he "did not make the progress hoped for" and that, though "a spirited competitor, he possible needs more positive thought and application to bring greater consistency". In 16 first-class games, he hit 299 runs at an average of 16.61 with only one score of more than 50 and took 30 wickets at an average of 41.03 runs per wicket. Success was even more elusive in the one-day games: in 20 matches, he took only nine wickets at an average of more than 70 runs per wicket.
at Canterbury
in the John Player League in 1985, he took five wickets for 34 runs, his first five-wicket haul in limited-overs cricket. And the following year in the Benson and Hedges Cup match against Sussex
at Hove he scored 53, his only innings of more than 50 in List A cricket. The departure of major cricketers – Richards, Garner and Ian Botham
– after Somerset's disastrous 1986 season gave Palmer more opportunities in 1987, but his impact was confined largely to the one-day game and in the match against Kent at Canterbury he improved on his best bowling figures from two years before, taking five for 24: these remained the best List A bowling figures of his career.
But in 1988 he was dropped from the team for many games and after the 1989 season, when he played only one-day matches for the team, he left the Somerset staff.
After leaving Somerset, Palmer played Minor Counties cricket for Bedfordshire
and Oxfordshire
, second eleven cricket for Derbyshire
, minor matches for Dorset
and lesser matches for MCC
. But he did not reappear in either first-class or List A 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...
and List A cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
for 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...
from 1982 to 1989. He also played for the England Young Cricketers
English U-19 cricket team
The English Under-19 cricket team have been playing official Under-19 test matches since 1974. Prior to 1991/92 they were known as England Young Cricketers....
side in both under-19 Test and One-day International matches. He was born at Taunton
Taunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
and is the son of the former Somerset and England Test
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...
cricketer Ken Palmer
Ken Palmer
Ken Palmer is an English former cricketer and umpire, who played in one Test in 1965, and umpired twenty two Tests and twenty three ODIs from 1977 to 2001.-Life and career:...
.
Early cricket career
Palmer was a lower order right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-pace bowler. He made his first-class and List A cricket debuts as a 16-year-old for Somerset in 1982, making 27 in the second innings of his first first-class game. In 1983, he played in 10 first-class games and made both his highest score and took his career-best innings return in the season. In only his third first-class match, against GloucestershireGloucestershire 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....
at Bristol, he made 78 and put on 124 for the seventh wicket with Peter Denning
Peter Denning (cricketer)
Peter William Denning was an English first-class cricketer who played for Somerset from 1969 to 1984. He was known to Somerset cricket fans as 'Dasher' due to his "pace over the ground", and he was also known for an unorthodox stroke called the 'Chewton carve' or 'Chewton chop', a stroke that cut...
. Then, in the last match of the season against Warwickshire
Warwickshire County Cricket Club
Warwickshire 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 Warwickshire. Its limited overs team is called the Warwickshire Bears. Their kit colours are black and gold and the shirt sponsor...
he took five wickets for 38 runs in the first innings, and this would be the only five-wicket haul of his first-class career.
In 1984, with Somerset's overseas players Viv Richards
Viv Richards
Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards, KNH, OBE is a former West Indian cricketer. Better known by his second name, Vivian or, more popularly, simply as Viv or King Viv Richards was voted one of the five Cricketers of the Century in 2000, by a 100-member panel of experts, along with Sir Donald...
and Joel Garner
Joel Garner
Joel Garner , also known as "Big Joel" or "Big Bird", is a former West Indian cricketer, and a member of the highly regarded late 1970s and early '80s West Indies cricket teams....
absent playing for the West Indies touring team
West Indian cricket team in England in 1984
The West Indian cricket team in England in 1984 played three One Day Internationals and five Tests. West Indies beat England 2-1 in the ODI series and then whitewashed England in the Test series, winning 5-0...
, Palmer played fairly regularly for both the first-class and List A sides. Wisden
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom...
noted, though, that he "did not make the progress hoped for" and that, though "a spirited competitor, he possible needs more positive thought and application to bring greater consistency". In 16 first-class games, he hit 299 runs at an average of 16.61 with only one score of more than 50 and took 30 wickets at an average of 41.03 runs per wicket. Success was even more elusive in the one-day games: in 20 matches, he took only nine wickets at an average of more than 70 runs per wicket.
Youth international player
In both 1983 and on the tour to the West Indies in 1984-85, Palmer played in England's youth cricket team as a lower order batsman and seam bowler. He played four under-19 Tests, including three on the West Indies tour, and in five youth One Day International matches.Later cricket career
Despite this recognition, Palmer's career at Somerset failed to take off. In 1985, he was restricted to eight first-class matches and 10 List A games; in 1986, there were just four and nine of each. His best performances in these seasons came in one-day matches. Against KentKent County Cricket Club
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...
at Canterbury
St Lawrence Ground
The St Lawrence Ground is a cricket ground in Canterbury, Kent and is the home of Kent County Cricket Club. It is one of the oldest grounds on which first-class cricket is played, having been in use since 1847...
in the John Player League in 1985, he took five wickets for 34 runs, his first five-wicket haul in limited-overs cricket. And the following year in the Benson and Hedges Cup match against 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...
at Hove he scored 53, his only innings of more than 50 in List A cricket. The departure of major cricketers – Richards, Garner and Ian Botham
Ian Botham
Sir Ian Terence Botham OBE is a former England Test cricketer and Test team captain, and current cricket commentator. He was a genuine all-rounder with 14 centuries and 383 wickets in Test cricket, and remains well-known by his nickname "Beefy"...
– after Somerset's disastrous 1986 season gave Palmer more opportunities in 1987, but his impact was confined largely to the one-day game and in the match against Kent at Canterbury he improved on his best bowling figures from two years before, taking five for 24: these remained the best List A bowling figures of his career.
But in 1988 he was dropped from the team for many games and after the 1989 season, when he played only one-day matches for the team, he left the Somerset staff.
After leaving Somerset, Palmer played Minor Counties cricket for Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire County Cricket Club
Bedfordshire 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 Bedfordshire and competing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy. The Minor Counties play three-day...
and Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire County Cricket Club
Oxfordshire 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 Oxfordshire and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy...
, second eleven cricket for Derbyshire
Derbyshire County Cricket Club
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the England and Wales domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Derbyshire...
, minor matches for Dorset
Dorset County Cricket Club
Dorset 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 Dorset and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy...
and lesser matches for MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
. But he did not reappear in either first-class or List A cricket.