Roy Levy
Encyclopedia
Roy Mark Levy is a former Australian cricket
er and baseball
er who represented the Australian baseball team
in 1936. He also played for the Queensland
Sheffield Shield team for seven years, captaining them 11 times in his 25 appearances.
who also played shortstop
. He played with the Waverley
cricket and baseball clubs under coach, and ex-international player Alan Kippax
. Roy assisted Waverley to dominate the Sydney Baseball Premiership
winning the competition from 1924 through to 1928 and represented New South Wales
through these years. Through his success in baseball he became the first player to be offered a scholarship to play and study in the US. Although he declined this offer so he could continue his studies on insurance
in Australia.
In 1928, Levy's insurance company moved him to an office in Brisbane where he went to play his sport with Valley. He dominated the competition as a pitcher and the following year he played with Eastern Suburbs alongside Gunnah Mollah
where they dominated the competition until Mollah switched to Valley in 1930 as to even up the competition. During his time playing baseball in Queensland, he got selected in the Queensland cricket team
in 1929 and made his debut against Victoria
scoring 129 and playing as a wicket-keeper
.
In 1932, Levy along with Roger Hartigan
, persuaded Jack Hutcheon, president of Queensland Cricket, to call a meeting at Brisbane YMCA
Hall for men interested in playing baseball and produced great interest among cricketers in the winter
off-season. Roy was instrumental in the resurgence of baseball both in this era and after World War II
and is etched everywhere in Queensland's baseball history around this time. He was president
of the organisation from 1936–1938 and was a player coach of the state team from 1933–1938 and again in 1954.
Roy continued to have success over the next seven years of state cricket, including matches against a touring Marylebone Cricket Club
averaging over 40 and was seriously considered for Australian selection, but was refused to travel inter-state with the Queensland team by his insurance company, effectively preventing him from participating in the 1939 Claxton Shield
, the first Queensland
participated in.
After retiring from professional cricket, he went on to coach Queensland in interstate games as well as a friendly series against the Tokyo Giants in 1954.
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 and baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
er who represented the Australian baseball team
Australia national baseball team
The Australian national baseball team represents Australia in international baseball tournaments and competitions. They are ranked as the top team in Oceania, and are the Oceanian Champions, having been awarded the title in 2007 when New Zealand withdrew from the Oceania Baseball Championship. They...
in 1936. He also played for the Queensland
Queensland Bulls
The Queensland cricket team, nicknamed the Bulls, are the Brisbane-based Queensland representative cricket team in Australia's domestic cricket tournaments:*Sheffield Shield, 4-day matches with first-class status, since the 1926/27 season...
Sheffield Shield team for seven years, captaining them 11 times in his 25 appearances.
Playing career
Levy was a prolific left-handed batter who was a right-handed medium pace bowler and right-handed pitcherPitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
who also played shortstop
Shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...
. He played with the Waverley
Waverley, New South Wales
Waverley is an eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Waverley is located 7 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council....
cricket and baseball clubs under coach, and ex-international player Alan Kippax
Alan Kippax
Alan Falconer Kippax was a cricketer for New South Wales and Australia. Regarded as one of the great stylists of Australian cricket during the era between the two World Wars, Kippax overcame a late start to Test cricket to become a regular in the Australian team between the 1928–29 and...
. Roy assisted Waverley to dominate the Sydney Baseball Premiership
New South Wales Major League
The New South Wales Major League is the highest level of play for the sport of baseball in New South Wales. It is currently composed of clubs predominantly from Sydney, with one club from the Central Coast...
winning the competition from 1924 through to 1928 and represented New South Wales
New South Wales Patriots
New South Wales Patriots compete in the Claxton Shield baseball championship in Australia.The Patriots were one of the founding teams of the Claxton Shield in 1934 and competed as New South Wales until 1988 when the Claxtion Shield was awarded to the winner of the Australian Baseball League...
through these years. Through his success in baseball he became the first player to be offered a scholarship to play and study in the US. Although he declined this offer so he could continue his studies on insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
in Australia.
In 1928, Levy's insurance company moved him to an office in Brisbane where he went to play his sport with Valley. He dominated the competition as a pitcher and the following year he played with Eastern Suburbs alongside Gunnah Mollah
Gunnah Mollah
Gunnah Mollah was an Australian baseball player, coach and umpire. He is considered as one of the founding fathers of Queensland Baseball. Mollah played with the Eastern Suburbs club in the QBA Fixtures as a catcher in 1927 before moving to Valley in 1930...
where they dominated the competition until Mollah switched to Valley in 1930 as to even up the competition. During his time playing baseball in Queensland, he got selected in the Queensland cricket team
Queensland Bulls
The Queensland cricket team, nicknamed the Bulls, are the Brisbane-based Queensland representative cricket team in Australia's domestic cricket tournaments:*Sheffield Shield, 4-day matches with first-class status, since the 1926/27 season...
in 1929 and made his debut against Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
scoring 129 and playing as a wicket-keeper
Wicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...
.
In 1932, Levy along with Roger Hartigan
Roger Hartigan
Michael Joseph 'Roger' Hartigan was an Australian Test cricketer and Administrator....
, persuaded Jack Hutcheon, president of Queensland Cricket, to call a meeting at Brisbane YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
Hall for men interested in playing baseball and produced great interest among cricketers in the winter
Winter
Winter is the coldest season of the year in temperate climates, between autumn and spring. At the winter solstice, the days are shortest and the nights are longest, with days lengthening as the season progresses after the solstice.-Meteorology:...
off-season. Roy was instrumental in the resurgence of baseball both in this era and after 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...
and is etched everywhere in Queensland's baseball history around this time. He was president
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
of the organisation from 1936–1938 and was a player coach of the state team from 1933–1938 and again in 1954.
Roy continued to have success over the next seven years of state cricket, including matches against a touring Marylebone Cricket Club
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...
averaging over 40 and was seriously considered for Australian selection, but was refused to travel inter-state with the Queensland team by his insurance company, effectively preventing him from participating in the 1939 Claxton Shield
1939 Claxton Shield
-Third place final:-Championship game:-----All-Australian team:At the conclusion of the tournament, representatives from the Australian Baseball Council selected an All-Australian team. Though the selected team did not actually play together, it was the first time an Australian team had been...
, the first Queensland
Queensland Rams
Queensland Rams compete in the Claxton Shield Baseball Championship in Australia. The Rams were one of the founding teams of the Claxton Shield in 1934 and competed as Queensland until 1988. Between 1988 and 1999, the Claxton Shield was awarded to the winner of the Australian Baseball League...
participated in.
After retiring from professional cricket, he went on to coach Queensland in interstate games as well as a friendly series against the Tokyo Giants in 1954.