Les Berry
Encyclopedia
George Leslie "Les" Berry, born at Dorking
, Surrey
on 28 April 1906 and died at Great Glen, Leicestershire
on 5 February 1985, was a cricket
er who played for Leicestershire
and holds many of the county's first-class
batting records.
A right-handed batsman who started his career in the middle order but became an opener, Berry, who had moved to Market Harborough
at the age of eight, joined Leicestershire in the 1924 season, when he played in half the first-class matches but with little success. The following year, however, he made 1,071 runs at an average of 21 and appeared in virtually every match. He was then a regular member of the team until he retired, at the age of 45, at the end of the 1951 season.
As well as the 1,000 runs he scored in 1925, he passed the 1,000-run mark in every English first-class cricket season from 1928 to 1950, and his 2,446 runs at an average of more than 50 runs an innings in 1937 remains the Leicestershire record for a season. His first century, against Worcestershire
at Ashby-de-la-Zouch
in 1928, was a score of 207 at not much short of a run a minute, and by the time he retired he had added 44 others for Leicestershire: the total of 45 first-class centuries remains the county record. He also holds the county record for most first-class runs with 30,143, and his seven centuries in 1937 have been equalled for Leicestershire by Willie Watson
and Brian Davison, but never beaten.
Berry was a record-holder in another respect as well: when cricket resumed after the Second World War, Leicestershire had no suitable amateur to captain the side, so Berry became the county captain. Though Ewart Astill
had captained Leicestershire in a similar hiatus in 1935, Berry was the first professional captain for one of the English cricket counties who was more than a stopgap: he was reappointed for two further seasons, and in his final season as captain, 1948, he was joined as a professional county captain by Tom Dollery
of Warwickshire
.
Berry was perhaps unlucky not to be chosen for representative matches, but was not very successful in the few games he played for teams other than Leicestershire. Every single one of his scores of 50 and over was made for the county side. He was a good outfielder but no bowler.
After retiring from cricket, he became the cricket coach at Uppingham School
. For most of his cricket career, he was known as L. G. Berry.
Dorking
Dorking is a historic market town at the foot of the North Downs approximately south of London, in Surrey, England.- History and development :...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
on 28 April 1906 and died at Great Glen, Leicestershire
Great Glen, Leicestershire
Great Glen , also known as Glen Magna, is a village and civil parish in Leicestershire, England, about seven miles south-east of Leicester. Its name comes from the original Iron Age settlers who used the Celtic word glennos meaning valley, and comes from the fact that Great Glen lies in part of the...
on 5 February 1985, was 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...
er who played for 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....
and holds many of the county's 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...
batting records.
A right-handed batsman who started his career in the middle order but became an opener, Berry, who had moved to Market Harborough
Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town within the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England.It has a population of 20,785 and is the administrative headquarters of Harborough District Council. It sits on the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border...
at the age of eight, joined Leicestershire in the 1924 season, when he played in half the first-class matches but with little success. The following year, however, he made 1,071 runs at an average of 21 and appeared in virtually every match. He was then a regular member of the team until he retired, at the age of 45, at the end of the 1951 season.
As well as the 1,000 runs he scored in 1925, he passed the 1,000-run mark in every English first-class cricket season from 1928 to 1950, and his 2,446 runs at an average of more than 50 runs an innings in 1937 remains the Leicestershire record for a season. His first century, 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 Ashby-de-la-Zouch
Ashby-de-la-Zouch
Ashby-de-la-Zouch, — Zouch being pronounced "Zoosh" — often shortened to Ashby, is a small market town and civil parish in North West Leicestershire, England, within the National Forest. It is twinned with Pithiviers in north-central France....
in 1928, was a score of 207 at not much short of a run a minute, and by the time he retired he had added 44 others for Leicestershire: the total of 45 first-class centuries remains the county record. He also holds the county record for most first-class runs with 30,143, and his seven centuries in 1937 have been equalled for Leicestershire by Willie Watson
Willie Watson (England cricketer)
William "Willie" Watson, was an English cricketer, who played for Yorkshire, Leicestershire and England. He was a double international, as Watson was also a footballer who played for England's national team.-Cricket career:...
and Brian Davison, but never beaten.
Berry was a record-holder in another respect as well: when cricket resumed after the Second World War, Leicestershire had no suitable amateur to captain the side, so Berry became the county captain. Though Ewart Astill
Ewart Astill
Ewart Astill was, along with George Geary, the mainstay of the Leicestershire team from 1922 to about 1935. He played in nine Test matches but was never picked for a home Test or for the Ashes tour...
had captained Leicestershire in a similar hiatus in 1935, Berry was the first professional captain for one of the English cricket counties who was more than a stopgap: he was reappointed for two further seasons, and in his final season as captain, 1948, he was joined as a professional county captain by Tom Dollery
Tom Dollery
Tom Dollery was an English cricketer, who played for England and Warwickshire.-Life and career:Born Horace Edgar Dollery in Reading, Berkshire, and playing Minor counties cricket for Berkshire at the age of 15, Dollery joined Warwickshire in 1934, and was a mainstay of the team until retirement in...
of 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...
.
Berry was perhaps unlucky not to be chosen for representative matches, but was not very successful in the few games he played for teams other than Leicestershire. Every single one of his scores of 50 and over was made for the county side. He was a good outfielder but no bowler.
After retiring from cricket, he became the cricket coach at Uppingham School
Uppingham School
Uppingham School is a co-educational independent school of the English public school tradition, situated in the small town of Uppingham in Rutland, England...
. For most of his cricket career, he was known as L. G. Berry.