Guy Blaikie
Encyclopedia
Kenneth Guy Blaikie generally known as "Bill Blaikie", played first-class
cricket
for Oxford University
and Somerset
in the early 1920s. He was born at Johannesburg
in South Africa
and died at Lennoxville, Quebec
, Canada
. He was the father of the prominent Canadian lawyer and politician Peter Blaikie
.
in 1861. His father served in active duty during the Second Boer War
and died during the Siege of Ladysmith
in 1900. Blaikie himself was in 1918 awarded a Rhodes Scholar
to study at Oxford University, though he was allowed to defer his Oxford entry
because at this stage he was still serving in the army. In 1924 he was effectively "headhunted" from Oxford by H. W. Matheson (who later became Vice-President for Research and Patents with Shawinigan Chemicals Ltd.). Blaikie insisted on remaining in England for the rest of the cricket season and then relocated to Canada
where he worked as a chemist
in the laboratory of the Shawinigan Chemicals Industries. In September 1932 he married Mary Petrie Black and their son Peter
was born in 1937. A daughter, Jane, was born in 1940.
Blaikie also served as a captain with the 81st Field Artillery Battery (which is now the 62nd (Shawinigan) Field Regiment, RCA
's senior sub-unit) during World War II
.
for cricket that year, his last first-class match being the University Match against Cambridge University
.
Blaikie had a curious start to his first-class cricket career. He was picked for an early season match in 1921 for Oxford against Middlesex
but made little impression with either bat or ball. Dropped from the Oxford side after this single match, he next appeared less than two weeks later in a game against the university side, playing for Somerset, and making 45 in the county's second innings. That convinced the Oxford team to give him another trial, but he was not successful in two further matches. This pattern was repeated in 1922: an early unsuccessful match against Middlesex, followed by a match four weeks later against the University side for Somerset in which he this time scored a second innings 65 and took three wickets as well. A further few matches for Oxford followed, but again Blaikie was unable to keep his place.
For a third time, Blaikie failed to make an impression in early-season matches for Oxford in 1923, and from the end of May he switched to play occasional games for Somerset, making his highest score for the county side, 73, in the game against Glamorgan
at Cardiff Arms Park
.
In contrast to his earlier travails, Blaikie enjoyed great success for Oxford University in 1924, finishing at the top of the team's batting averages and third in the bowling. Coming into the side in late May, he first enjoyed bowling success, taking four wickets for 14 runs, the best innings figures of his career, in the match against the Free Foresters. Blaikie came into his own as a batsman when Oxford left The Parks and went on tour. In the first match away from Oxford, against Surrey
, he bettered his highest first-class score, making 75 in the first innings. Then, against the MCC
at Lord's, according to Wisden
, he "astonished the critics by the vigour of his left-handed hitting". He made 120, which was to be the highest score of his first-class career. The next match was against Gloucestershire
, and Blaikie hit 102 in 75 minutes with 19 fours, the next highest score in the innings being just 28. The University Match was a disappointment for Oxford, with Cambridge winning by nine wickets, and Blaikie scored 0 in the first innings, and 48 in the second, when he "hit away with amazing brilliancy", according to Wisden. This may have been the match which according to a Punch
report came alive only when "Guy Blaikie came in to bat. Not only did he hit to the boundary. One ball went right over the fence and dropped into St. John's Wood Road".
Blaikie did not play again in first-class cricket after leaving Oxford for Canada in the summer of 1924.
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...
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 Oxford University
Oxford University Cricket Club
Oxford University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team, representing the University of Oxford. It plays its home games at the University Parks in Oxford, England...
and 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...
in the early 1920s. He was born at Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
in 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...
and died at Lennoxville, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. He was the father of the prominent Canadian lawyer and politician Peter Blaikie
Peter Blaikie
Peter Macfarlane Blaikie is a prominent Canadian lawyer and a fluently bilingual statesman from Quebec.-Genealogy:Blaikie was born in Shawinigan, Mauricie on May 10, 1937. He was the son of Kenneth Guy "Bill" Blaikie and Mary Petrie Black....
.
Family and career
Blaikie's grandfather moved to South Africa from ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 1861. His father served in active duty during the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
and died during the Siege of Ladysmith
Siege of Ladysmith
The Siege of Ladysmith was a protracted engagement in the Second Boer War, taking place between 30 October 1899 and 28 February 1900 at Ladysmith, Natal.-Background:...
in 1900. Blaikie himself was in 1918 awarded a Rhodes Scholar
Rhodes Scholarship
The Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as...
to study at Oxford University, though he was allowed to defer his Oxford entry
Matriculation
Matriculation, in the broadest sense, means to be registered or added to a list, from the Latin matricula – little list. In Scottish heraldry, for instance, a matriculation is a registration of armorial bearings...
because at this stage he was still serving in the army. In 1924 he was effectively "headhunted" from Oxford by H. W. Matheson (who later became Vice-President for Research and Patents with Shawinigan Chemicals Ltd.). Blaikie insisted on remaining in England for the rest of the cricket season and then relocated to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
where he worked as a chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
in the laboratory of the Shawinigan Chemicals Industries. In September 1932 he married Mary Petrie Black and their son Peter
Peter Blaikie
Peter Macfarlane Blaikie is a prominent Canadian lawyer and a fluently bilingual statesman from Quebec.-Genealogy:Blaikie was born in Shawinigan, Mauricie on May 10, 1937. He was the son of Kenneth Guy "Bill" Blaikie and Mary Petrie Black....
was born in 1937. A daughter, Jane, was born in 1940.
Blaikie also served as a captain with the 81st Field Artillery Battery (which is now the 62nd (Shawinigan) Field Regiment, RCA
62nd (Shawinigan) Field Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery
The 62nd Field Artillery Regiment, RCA is a militia unit of the Canadian Army that has its own military band and is located in Shawinigan, Quebec...
's senior sub-unit) during World War II
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...
.
Cricket career
As a cricket player, Blaikie was a left-handed batsman who usually played in the middle of the batting order but was on occasion used as an opening batsman, and a left-arm medium-pace or orthodox spin bowler. He played for Oxford University over four seasons from 1921, but only in his last season, 1924, did he gain a regular place and he won his blueUniversity Sporting Blue
A Blue is an award earned by sportsmen and women at a university and some schools for competition at the highest level. The awarding of Blues began at Oxford and Cambridge Universities...
for cricket that year, his last first-class match being the University Match against Cambridge University
Cambridge University Cricket Club
Cambridge University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team. It now plays all but one of its first-class cricket matches as part of the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence , which includes Anglia Ruskin University...
.
Blaikie had a curious start to his first-class cricket career. He was picked for an early season match in 1921 for Oxford against Middlesex
Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex 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 Middlesex. It was announced in February 2009 that Middlesex changed their limited overs name from the Middlesex Crusaders, to the...
but made little impression with either bat or ball. Dropped from the Oxford side after this single match, he next appeared less than two weeks later in a game against the university side, playing for Somerset, and making 45 in the county's second innings. That convinced the Oxford team to give him another trial, but he was not successful in two further matches. This pattern was repeated in 1922: an early unsuccessful match against Middlesex, followed by a match four weeks later against the University side for Somerset in which he this time scored a second innings 65 and took three wickets as well. A further few matches for Oxford followed, but again Blaikie was unable to keep his place.
For a third time, Blaikie failed to make an impression in early-season matches for Oxford in 1923, and from the end of May he switched to play occasional games for Somerset, making his highest score for the county side, 73, in the game against 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...
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...
.
In contrast to his earlier travails, Blaikie enjoyed great success for Oxford University in 1924, finishing at the top of the team's batting averages and third in the bowling. Coming into the side in late May, he first enjoyed bowling success, taking four wickets for 14 runs, the best innings figures of his career, in the match against the Free Foresters. Blaikie came into his own as a batsman when Oxford left The Parks and went on tour. In the first match away from Oxford, against Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
, he bettered his highest first-class score, making 75 in the first innings. Then, against the 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...
at Lord's, according to Wisden
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom...
, he "astonished the critics by the vigour of his left-handed hitting". He made 120, which was to be the highest score of his first-class career. The next match was 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 Blaikie hit 102 in 75 minutes with 19 fours, the next highest score in the innings being just 28. The University Match was a disappointment for Oxford, with Cambridge winning by nine wickets, and Blaikie scored 0 in the first innings, and 48 in the second, when he "hit away with amazing brilliancy", according to Wisden. This may have been the match which according to a Punch
Punch (magazine)
Punch, or the London Charivari was a British weekly magazine of humour and satire established in 1841 by Henry Mayhew and engraver Ebenezer Landells. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 50s, when it helped to coin the term "cartoon" in its modern sense as a humorous illustration...
report came alive only when "Guy Blaikie came in to bat. Not only did he hit to the boundary. One ball went right over the fence and dropped into St. John's Wood Road".
Blaikie did not play again in first-class cricket after leaving Oxford for Canada in the summer of 1924.