Obituary Mr J. Lamason Was Fine All-Round Sportsman

Press, Volume C, Issue 29549, 26 June 1961, Page 12

Obituary Mr J. Lamason Was Fine All-Round Sportsman

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON. June 25. John Ryder (Jack) Lamason. one of WeMingtoa'a best-known sports personalities. died suddenly today. He was 55.

Mr Lamason is remembered as an all-round sportsman with great natural ability. He was a member of the 1937 New Zealand cricket team which toured England, a provincial Rugby forward who might have worn an All Black jersey, a tournament bowler of reel ability, and a first-class billiards player. More recently, he was a sole selector of Wellington’s Plunket Shield cricket teams, and an authoritative cricket and Rugby commentator. Perhaps Mr Lamason’* finest achievement in a sporting career was leading Wellington to a 14-run win over Errol Holmes’ 1935 M.C.C touring team. Mr Lamason went to the wicket with four Wellington first-innings batsmen out for 29 runs. The first ball he received—from the Middlesex spinner, Jim Sims—he drove back over the bowler’s head and into Kent terrace. He scored 67 on that occasion.

Mr Lamason was also an outstanding spin bowler and once returned the remarkable senior club analysis of seven wickets for eight runs in the first innings, and eight for three, including the hat-trick, in the second.

He began his representative cricket career in the mid-1920’5, and, soon after, became an automatic choice for teams.

Mr Lamason’s representative Rugby career extended from 1929 to 1936. He captained the Wellington team in latter years. Cliff Porter, who led the 1924 All Blacks in Britain, said that Mr Lamason, also a wing forward, and later a side and back-row forward, was most difficult to play against. At club level, Mr Lamason led Wellington College Old Boys to championship success in 1933, and kicked some great goals in the process. He is survived by his wife.

Mrs In* Lamason. who her- ■ self is an outstanding New i Zealand sports personality • and a former double “All ■ Black” in women’s hockey and cricket. i, .

1 ■ i ■ MR A. CAMERON

r 1 Mr Allan Cameron, who ’ was superintendent of police i in Christchurch when he retired in May, 1939. died at ’ his home in St. Albans on Saturday. He was 86 Born in Australia, Mr Cameron came to New Zea-

land as a representative of a farm machinery company. He joined the police in 1897. He is survived by two brothers and two sisters.

MR L. C. PETERSEN

Mr Louis Charles Petersen, one of the finest Rugby footballers Canterbury has produced and a player who gained a fine reputation as a line-out forward, died at his home in Cardiff avenue. Somerfleld, yesterday. He was 64. National representation in both Rugby and Rugby League was achieved by Mr Petersen in the years immediately after World War I. As an All Black, he played against New South Wales in 1921 and 1923. and against Australia in 1922. He was a member of the South Island XV’s of 1919, 1921, 1922. and 1923. and represented Canterbury 19 times between the 1920 and 1923 seasons. Mr Petersen then turned to Rugby League and almost immediately played for Canterbury in his new code Later, he played for New Zealand in this country and overseas. As a member of the Ist N.Z.EJ*., Mr Petersen learned his football in France during the war. He became a member of the noted Trench team. He was educated at the Marist Brothers’ School in Christchurch and played Rugby for the Marist Old Boys’ Club. A lock forward, he made a name for himself during a great era in New Zealand Rugby. Mr Petersen is survived by his wife and two sons. Messrs Dennis and Raoul Petersen.

DR. J. MURRAY

(N.Z. Press Association) DUNEDIN, June 25. The death of Dr. James Murray, of Dunedin, in a motor accident on Saturday, cut short a distinguished career in the fields of chemistry and botany. Dr. Murray, who was 38. was a senior lecturer in chemistry at the University of Otago. His principal research interest has been in the chemistry of New Zealand plant products and he has published some 16 papers in this field.

Recently he had been preparing a series of papers on New Zealand lichens, of which four have beep published. He had also begun a still more important task of writing, in collaboration with the British Museum, a world monograph on the lichen genus stricta. Dr. Murray came from Winton. Southland, and was

dux of the Otago Boys’ High Schoo] in 1941. Ha liter graduated from the University of Otago with first-class honours in chemistry. With the award of a National Research Fellowship in 1951, Dr. Murray went to Cambridge where after two years was awarded a doctorate of philosophy in chemistry. In 1959 he was awarded a Nuffield travelling fellowship in science for study in London at the Imperial College and tha British Museum.

Dr. Murray is survived by his wifi and three children.