Ron Hamence
Encyclopedia
Ronald Arthur Hamence was a cricket
er who played for South Australia
(SA) and Australia. A short and compact right-handed batsman, Hamence excelled in getting forward to drive
and had an array of attractive back foot strokes. Already the youngest Australian to play district cricket, he was also, from the death of Bill Brown
in 2008 until his own death in 2010, the oldest surviving Australian Test cricket
er.
While Hamence only played three Test matches for his national team, he had a successful domestic career, being called South Australia's most successful batsman in 1950. He played 99 first-class
matches from 1935 until 1951, which brought him a career total of 5,285 runs
that came at an average of 37.75 runs per innings and included 11 centuries
. He scored two of these centuries in his first and last first-class matches.
suburb of Hindmarsh
, Hamence was the cousin of Charlie Walker
, a fellow Australian cricketer. At 15 years and 25 days, Hamence became the youngest district cricketer
in South Australian cricket history when he made his debut for Adelaide club West Torrens
in 1930. While playing with the SA team, he worked as a public servant
at the Government Printing Office. He was a compact batsman preferring attack over defence, however he suffered a weakness throughout his career against fast bowling
.
He joined South Australia part way through the 1935–36 season, and in March 1936, he scored a century
(121) on his first-class cricket
debut against Tasmania
at the Adelaide Oval
. This was to be his only match of the season, which left him with a debut season average of 121.00. At the start of his first full season, he followed this up with scores of 16 and four against the touring England team
and Victoria
and seven and 19 against New South Wales. On Christmas Day, 1936, however, he scored his second first-class century, 104 against Queensland in the first innings. He would go on to score 52 in the second.
Scores of three not out
, 28, 27, 35 and four followed before his next significant score, 52, against Queensland on 12 February 1937. He ended the season with 336 runs, one century, and an average of 30.54. He then suffered his worst period of form thus far at the start of the 1937–38 season, failing to reach double figures from 17 December 1937 until early January 1938, when he scored 64 in the second innings, against Victoria. He followed this with 49 against New South Wales, and ended his third season with 283 runs at an average of 21.76. He did not play another cricket match until 16 December 1938 at the start of the next season, however he returned with a score of 90 against New South Wales, and followed that up two matches later with 84 against Victoria. He narrowly missed out on his third century in November 1939 when he was caught
by Morris Sievers
for 99 against Victoria. He scored 41, 12, 6 and 20 to see out the rest of the year, ending with 239 runs at an average of 47.80, his most successful full season thus far.
In 1940, he began the year with 26 and two against Queensland, and then a 43 against New South Wales. A series of low scores followed until he hit a vein of strong form beginning in February of that year. He scored 63 against Western Australia on 16 February 1940 in his last match of the 1939–40 season. He began the following season with 41 in the following match against New South Wales. Hamence then enjoyed great success against Victoria, where he scored 130 and 103 not out
in one inter-state match, and then 85 and 62 in the next. Following this, in a match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
between two representative selections to raise money for the war effort, he played for Don Bradman's XI and scored 73 and 35. He returned to play for South Australia for a match against New South Wales, where he scored 31 and five. He ended the 1940–41 season with the highest average for a single season he would achieve in his career, 569 runs at 63.22, with two hundreds.
Hamence was not to play another first-class match until December 1945 after the end of the Second World War
. During the war, he served for four years with the Royal Australian Air Force
. Upon his return, he immediately hit form for South Australia against New South Wales where he hit 74 not out and 75 in a match starting 14 December 1945. He then scored 56 against Victoria on 18 January, and then after three single figure scores he hit 76 against Queensland. He then experienced a drop in form, with only one significant score, 46 against Wellington
, for seven innings. He ended the 1945–46 season with 332 runs at 36.88. At the start of the 1946–47 season, however, he enjoyed his greatest success thus far, scoring consecutive centuries in three innings from 15 November 1946 until 19 December: 116 against Victoria and 132 and 101 not out against New South Wales, the latter followed up by a score of 48 in the second innings. This was followed by a career-best 145 against the touring MCC team
on 24 January 1947, and 63 against Queensland on 21 February. He ended the season with 675 runs at 56.25.
These centuries led to his debut for Australia
in the Fifth Test at Sydney on 28 February 1947. Hamence scored 30 not out in the first innings as Australia made 253 in response to England's first innings 280. England managed 186 in response and Australia, set 213 to win, reached it in 52.2 overs. However Hamence made only one in his second innings. He returned to domestic cricket, however over six innings his highest score was 27.
Nevertheless, Hamence was picked to play in the Second and Third Tests against the touring Indian cricket team in Australia in 1947–48
. He made 25 in the first innings of both matches, with the first, starting 12 December 1947, ended in a draw before Hamence could bat again. In the Third Test, which started on 1 January 1948, Australia achieved victory with centuries from Don Bradman and Arthur Morris
meaning Hamence was again not needed to bat in the second innings. He was then replaced by Neil Harvey
for the final two Tests.
Returning once again to domestic cricket, Hamence scored 85 and 66 against Queensland, and this kept him in the running for a place in the national team, as he toured with The Invincibles in England in 1948. He was not selected to play in any of the Tests, however he reiterated when interviewed in 2008 that he felt no resentment over not having played. Hamence was a popular member of the touring squad and his cheerful nature and splendid tenor
voice added to the good spirits of the team. His success in the warm up games was mixed, scores of 92, 46 and 49 not out against Cambridge University
, Essex and Lancashire mixed with a duck
, seven, one, three, two and five against other counties. Against Somerset
, approaching his first century of the tour, the Australian players, keen to see Hamence succeed, left their card games to applaud only to see him dismissed for 99, his highest score for the season. He also faced Scotland for two matches in August 1948, scoring six and 15. Overall on the tour he played 19 matches scoring 582 runs at an average of 32.33.
His touring colleague Sid Barnes
criticised the omission of Hamence from much meaningful cricket on the tour. He wrote: "For instance, against the Gentlemen at Lord's we were 532 when Hamence came to bat. Brown got 120, Bradman 150, Hassett, not out, 200 and Miller 69. Hamence was left not out with 24. This was an innings in which he could have been sent in first wicket down
, where he batted with his interstate team ... Despite this, Hassett still went in before Hamence in the next game, against Somerset ... Hamence batted No. 6... but he should have been sent in No. 3." Bradman, following the Invincibles tour described Hamence as "a fine batsman of the strictly orthodox type. Very sound and reliable with his game based on driving" and a "very safe fieldsman".
Barnes reported that Hamence, along with the other frequent omissions Colin McCool
and Doug Ring
, termed themselves the "Ground Staff". He added: "In the dressing room during county games
they would break out into ironic song about the few chances they got."
Bradman did later state that "because of the strong array of batsman ahead of him, [Hamence] seldom had an opportunity to make big scores" but "was an extremely useful reserve who could have been played in the Tests with confidence".
Hamence scored 58 and 45 in his first match upon return to Australia, playing for Bradman's XI against a team captained by Lindsay Hassett
on 3 December 1948. He then scored a career best 173 against New South Wales, and 55 the following match against Queensland. He then faced Western Australia for his 91st first-class match, scoring another century when he hit 117 against Western Australia
. Hamence then suffered a loss of form, not exceeding 31 for 11 innings. He scored a 53 against New South Wales, 64 not out against Queensland and 58 against Victoria, however he then scored nine, one and five in his next three innings. A 48 and 78 against New South Wales and Western Australia followed, however it was becoming clear that his form was waning. Hamence played his final match against Freddie Brown's MCC team
on 27 October 1950, scoring 114 in the first innings as South Australia reached 350, and then seven in his final innings before being run out by Bob Berry
. His final full season saw him score 418 runs at 32.15.
In total, Hamence played 69 matches for South Australia, scoring 4,244 runs at an average of 38.93, with 11 centuries and 22 fifties. Aside from his 52.75 average for Bradman's XI, South Australia was to be Hamence's most successful team. Of his eleven centuries, three were scored against Victoria, against whom he had an average of 41.75, however he scored the most runs, and his highest score, against New South Wales. In 2001, Hamence was awarded the Centenary Medal
for services to Australian society through the sport of cricket.
He died in an Adelaide nursing home, aged 94, in 2010.
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 South Australia
Southern Redbacks
The South Australia cricket team, nicknamed the Southern Redbacks and known as the West End Redbacks due to their sponsorship agreement with local brewers West End, are an Australian first class cricket team based in Adelaide, South Australia, and represent the state of South Australia...
(SA) and Australia. A short and compact right-handed batsman, Hamence excelled in getting forward to drive
Batting (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the cricket ball with a cricket bat to score runs or prevent the loss of one's wicket. A player who is currently batting is denoted as a batsman, while the act of hitting the ball is called a shot or stroke...
and had an array of attractive back foot strokes. Already the youngest Australian to play district cricket, he was also, from the death of Bill Brown
Bill Brown (cricketer)
William Alfred "Bill" Brown, OAM was an Australian cricketer who played 22 Tests between 1934 and 1948, captaining his country in one Test. A right-handed opening batsman, his partnership with Jack Fingleton in the 1930s is regarded as one of the finest in Australian Test history...
in 2008 until his own death in 2010, the oldest surviving Australian Test cricket
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...
er.
While Hamence only played three Test matches for his national team, he had a successful domestic career, being called South Australia's most successful batsman in 1950. He played 99 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...
matches from 1935 until 1951, which brought him a career total of 5,285 runs
Run (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...
that came at an average of 37.75 runs per innings and included 11 centuries
Century (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a batsman reaches his century when he scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. The term is also included in "century partnership" which occurs when two batsmen add 100 runs to the team total when they are batting together. A century is regarded as a landmark score for...
. He scored two of these centuries in his first and last first-class matches.
Career
Born in the AdelaideAdelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
suburb of Hindmarsh
Hindmarsh, South Australia
Hindmarsh is an inner urban suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of Charles Sturt.-History:The suburb is named after South Australia's first Governor, Sir John Hindmarsh....
, Hamence was the cousin of Charlie Walker
Charlie Walker (cricketer)
Charles William "Charlie" Walker was a cricketer who played for South Australia. A specialist wicket-keeper and right-handed batsman, Walker was born in Brompton, an inner-suburb of Adelaide....
, a fellow Australian cricketer. At 15 years and 25 days, Hamence became the youngest district cricketer
South Australian Grade Cricket League
South Australian Grade Cricket is the semi-professional State league based in metropolitan Adelaide, South Australia. It is currently the highest level of cricket played in South Australia outside first class cricket...
in South Australian cricket history when he made his debut for Adelaide club West Torrens
West Torrens Cricket Club
The West Torrens District Cricket Club is a semi-professional cricket club in Adelaide, South Australia. It competes in the West End Grade Cricket Competition, which is administered by the South Australian Cricket Association ....
in 1930. While playing with the SA team, he worked as a public servant
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
at the Government Printing Office. He was a compact batsman preferring attack over defence, however he suffered a weakness throughout his career against fast bowling
Fast bowling
Fast bowling, sometimes known as pace bowling, is one of the two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket. The other is spin bowling...
.
He joined South Australia part way through the 1935–36 season, and in March 1936, he scored a century
Century (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a batsman reaches his century when he scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. The term is also included in "century partnership" which occurs when two batsmen add 100 runs to the team total when they are batting together. A century is regarded as a landmark score for...
(121) on his 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...
debut against Tasmania
Tasmanian Tigers
The Tasmanian cricket team, nicknamed the Tigers, represents the Australian state of Tasmania in cricket tournaments. They compete annually in the Australian domestic senior men's cricket season, which currently consists of the first-class Sheffield Shield, the limited overs Ford Ranger Cup, and...
at the Adelaide Oval
Adelaide Oval
The Adelaide Oval is a sports ground in Adelaide, South Australia, located in the parklands between the Central Business District and North Adelaide...
. This was to be his only match of the season, which left him with a debut season average of 121.00. At the start of his first full season, he followed this up with scores of 16 and four against the touring England team
English cricket team in Australia in 1936-37
The England cricket team toured Australia in the 1936-37 season to play a five-match Test series against Australia for The Ashes. The tour was organised by the Marylebone Cricket Club and matches outside the Tests were played under the MCC name....
and Victoria
Victorian Bushrangers
The Victorian cricket team, nicknamed the Bushrangers, is an Australian cricket team based in Melbourne, that represents the state of Victoria. It is administered by Cricket Victoria and draws its players from Melbourne's Premier Cricket competition...
and seven and 19 against New South Wales. On Christmas Day, 1936, however, he scored his second first-class century, 104 against Queensland in the first innings. He would go on to score 52 in the second.
Scores of three 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...
, 28, 27, 35 and four followed before his next significant score, 52, against Queensland on 12 February 1937. He ended the season with 336 runs, one century, and an average of 30.54. He then suffered his worst period of form thus far at the start of the 1937–38 season, failing to reach double figures from 17 December 1937 until early January 1938, when he scored 64 in the second innings, against Victoria. He followed this with 49 against New South Wales, and ended his third season with 283 runs at an average of 21.76. He did not play another cricket match until 16 December 1938 at the start of the next season, however he returned with a score of 90 against New South Wales, and followed that up two matches later with 84 against Victoria. He narrowly missed out on his third century in November 1939 when he was caught
Caught
Caught is a method of dismissing a batsman in the sport of cricket. Being caught out is the most common method of dismissal at higher levels of competition...
by Morris Sievers
Morris Sievers
Morris William Sievers was an Australian cricketer who played in three Tests in 1936–37.-First-class career:Sievers began his career in 1930 for the Colts, at 17 years of age...
for 99 against Victoria. He scored 41, 12, 6 and 20 to see out the rest of the year, ending with 239 runs at an average of 47.80, his most successful full season thus far.
In 1940, he began the year with 26 and two against Queensland, and then a 43 against New South Wales. A series of low scores followed until he hit a vein of strong form beginning in February of that year. He scored 63 against Western Australia on 16 February 1940 in his last match of the 1939–40 season. He began the following season with 41 in the following match against New South Wales. Hamence then enjoyed great success against Victoria, where he scored 130 and 103 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...
in one inter-state match, and then 85 and 62 in the next. Following this, in a match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
between two representative selections to raise money for the war effort, he played for Don Bradman's XI and scored 73 and 35. He returned to play for South Australia for a match against New South Wales, where he scored 31 and five. He ended the 1940–41 season with the highest average for a single season he would achieve in his career, 569 runs at 63.22, with two hundreds.
Second World War and after
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...
. During the war, he served for four years with the Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
. Upon his return, he immediately hit form for South Australia against New South Wales where he hit 74 not out and 75 in a match starting 14 December 1945. He then scored 56 against Victoria on 18 January, and then after three single figure scores he hit 76 against Queensland. He then experienced a drop in form, with only one significant score, 46 against Wellington
Wellington Firebirds
The Wellington Firebirds are one of six New Zealand first-class cricket teams that make up New Zealand Cricket.It is based in Wellington. It competes in the State Championship first class competition, the State Shield domestic one day competition and the State Twenty20 Cricket Tournament.The...
, for seven innings. He ended the 1945–46 season with 332 runs at 36.88. At the start of the 1946–47 season, however, he enjoyed his greatest success thus far, scoring consecutive centuries in three innings from 15 November 1946 until 19 December: 116 against Victoria and 132 and 101 not out against New South Wales, the latter followed up by a score of 48 in the second innings. This was followed by a career-best 145 against the touring MCC team
MCC tour of Australia in 1946–47
The Marylebone Cricket Club tour of Australia in 1946-47 under the captaincy of Wally Hammond was its eighth since it took official control of overseas tours in 1907-1908 and the first since the Second World War. The touring team played as England in the 1946–47 Ashes series against Australia, but...
on 24 January 1947, and 63 against Queensland on 21 February. He ended the season with 675 runs at 56.25.
International debut, England, India and the Invincibles
Australian cricket team in Australia in 1946-47
The 1946-47 Australians defeated the touring England team 3-0 in the 1946-47 Ashes series. First class cricket had continued in Australia until January 1942 and as grade cricket had continued throughout the war there had been less of an hiatus than in England...
in the Fifth Test at Sydney on 28 February 1947. Hamence scored 30 not out in the first innings as Australia made 253 in response to England's first innings 280. England managed 186 in response and Australia, set 213 to win, reached it in 52.2 overs. However Hamence made only one in his second innings. He returned to domestic cricket, however over six innings his highest score was 27.
Nevertheless, Hamence was picked to play in the Second and Third Tests against the touring Indian cricket team in Australia in 1947–48
Indian cricket team in Australia in 1947-48
The India national cricket team toured Australia in the 1947–48 season to play a five-match Test series against Australia. Australia won the series 4-0, with one match drawn....
. He made 25 in the first innings of both matches, with the first, starting 12 December 1947, ended in a draw before Hamence could bat again. In the Third Test, which started on 1 January 1948, Australia achieved victory with centuries from Don Bradman and Arthur Morris
Arthur Morris
Arthur Robert Morris MBE is a former Australian cricketer who played 46 Test matches between 1946 and 1955. An opener, Morris is regarded as one of Australia's greatest left-handed batsmen. He is best known for his key role in Don Bradman's Invincibles side, which made an undefeated tour of...
meaning Hamence was again not needed to bat in the second innings. He was then replaced by Neil Harvey
Neil Harvey
Robert Neil Harvey MBE is a former Australian cricketer who represented the Australian cricket team between 1948 and 1963, playing in 79 Test matches. He was the vice-captain of the team from 1957 until his retirement...
for the final two Tests.
Returning once again to domestic cricket, Hamence scored 85 and 66 against Queensland, and this kept him in the running for a place in the national team, as he toured with The Invincibles in England in 1948. He was not selected to play in any of the Tests, however he reiterated when interviewed in 2008 that he felt no resentment over not having played. Hamence was a popular member of the touring squad and his cheerful nature and splendid tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
voice added to the good spirits of the team. His success in the warm up games was mixed, scores of 92, 46 and 49 not out 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...
, Essex and Lancashire mixed with a duck
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...
, seven, one, three, two and five against other counties. Against 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...
, approaching his first century of the tour, the Australian players, keen to see Hamence succeed, left their card games to applaud only to see him dismissed for 99, his highest score for the season. He also faced Scotland for two matches in August 1948, scoring six and 15. Overall on the tour he played 19 matches scoring 582 runs at an average of 32.33.
His touring colleague Sid Barnes
Sid Barnes
Sidney George Barnes was an Australian cricketer and cricket writer, who played 13 Test matches between 1938 and 1948. Able to open the innings or bat down the order, Barnes was regarded as one of Australia's finest batsmen in the period immediately following the Second World War...
criticised the omission of Hamence from much meaningful cricket on the tour. He wrote: "For instance, against the Gentlemen at Lord's we were 532 when Hamence came to bat. Brown got 120, Bradman 150, Hassett, not out, 200 and Miller 69. Hamence was left not out with 24. This was an innings in which he could have been sent in first wicket down
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...
, where he batted with his interstate team ... Despite this, Hassett still went in before Hamence in the next game, against Somerset ... Hamence batted No. 6... but he should have been sent in No. 3." Bradman, following the Invincibles tour described Hamence as "a fine batsman of the strictly orthodox type. Very sound and reliable with his game based on driving" and a "very safe fieldsman".
Barnes reported that Hamence, along with the other frequent omissions Colin McCool
Colin McCool
Colin Leslie McCool was an Australian cricketer who played in 14 Tests from 1946 to 1950. McCool, born in Paddington, New South Wales, was an all-rounder who bowled leg spin and googlies with a round arm action and as a lower order batsman was regarded as effective square of the wicket and against...
and Doug Ring
Doug Ring
Douglas Thomas Ring was an Australian cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia in 13 Tests from 1948 to 1953...
, termed themselves the "Ground Staff". He added: "In the dressing room during county games
County cricket
County cricket is the highest level of domestic cricket in England and Wales. For the 2010 season, see 2010 English cricket season.-First-class counties:...
they would break out into ironic song about the few chances they got."
Bradman did later state that "because of the strong array of batsman ahead of him, [Hamence] seldom had an opportunity to make big scores" but "was an extremely useful reserve who could have been played in the Tests with confidence".
Return, retirement and later life
Lindsay Hassett
Arthur Lindsay Hassett MBE was a cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia. The diminutive Hassett was an elegant middle-order batsman, described by Wisden as, "... a master of nearly every stroke ... his superb timing, nimble footwork and strong wrists enabled him to make batting look a...
on 3 December 1948. He then scored a career best 173 against New South Wales, and 55 the following match against Queensland. He then faced Western Australia for his 91st first-class match, scoring another century when he hit 117 against Western Australia
Western Warriors
The Western Australia cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team representing the state of Western Australia...
. Hamence then suffered a loss of form, not exceeding 31 for 11 innings. He scored a 53 against New South Wales, 64 not out against Queensland and 58 against Victoria, however he then scored nine, one and five in his next three innings. A 48 and 78 against New South Wales and Western Australia followed, however it was becoming clear that his form was waning. Hamence played his final match against Freddie Brown's MCC team
English cricket team in Australia in 1950-51
Freddie Brown captained the English cricket team in Australia in 1950–51, playing as England in the 1950-51 Ashes series against the Australians and as the MCC in their other matches on the tour. They were regarded as a weak team - some critics wanted to cancel the tour - and failed to regain the...
on 27 October 1950, scoring 114 in the first innings as South Australia reached 350, and then seven in his final innings before being run out by Bob Berry
Bob Berry (cricketer)
Robert Berry was an English cricketer. He played in two Tests in 1950. He played county cricket for Lancashire from 1948 to 1954, for Worcestershire from 1955 to 1958, and for Derbyshire from 1959 to 1962...
. His final full season saw him score 418 runs at 32.15.
In total, Hamence played 69 matches for South Australia, scoring 4,244 runs at an average of 38.93, with 11 centuries and 22 fifties. Aside from his 52.75 average for Bradman's XI, South Australia was to be Hamence's most successful team. Of his eleven centuries, three were scored against Victoria, against whom he had an average of 41.75, however he scored the most runs, and his highest score, against New South Wales. In 2001, Hamence was awarded the Centenary Medal
Centenary Medal
The Centenary Medal is an award created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the Centenary of Federation of Australia and to honour people who have made a contribution to Australian society or government...
for services to Australian society through the sport of cricket.
He died in an Adelaide nursing home, aged 94, in 2010.
Test match performance
| Batting | Bowling | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opposition | Matches | Runs | Average | High Score | 100 / 50 | Runs | Wickets | Average | Best (Inns) |
| England | 1 | 31 | 31.00 | 30* | 0/0 | – | – | – | – |
| India | 2 | 50 | 25.00 | 25 | 0/0 | – | – | – | – |
| Overall | 3 | 81 | 27.00 | 30 | 0/0 | – | – | – | – |