Cricket lover

Press, 31 October 1981, Page 22

Cricket lover

Canterbury cricket lost one of its most staunch supporters with the .death last week of Jim Patterson.

A quiet, gentle man, very reserved, he would open out, his eyes would brighten, if someone talked with him of the game he loved so well. He fell for the charm of the game when he was seven, and his affection never diminished in the next 80 years. He was a good cricketer himself: at West Christchurch High School, when in the first team, his slow left-arm bowling brought him all 10 Christ’s College wickets in one innings — and a bat from the Christ’s College headmaster. Later he played seniors for Linwood, with such as Reg Read and Arthur Thomas.

The outstanding all-roun-der of his time, Dan Reese, was Jim Patterson’s hero but he had others. One was Jack Hobbs, and he went to Australia in 1929 to watch the great England batsman. He

even had a letter of introduction, and had the great pleasure of walking through Sydney for half an hour with Hobbs. He saw Don Bradman too — and Victor Trumper making his memorable 293 in three hours at Lancaster Park.

For 50 years, Jim Patterson missed only a couple of Plunket Shield matches in Christchurch and travelled regularly to see Canterbury play in Dunedin or Wellington. He saw the first Plunket Shield match ever played — at Hagley Oval in 1907 — and throughout his life, his memories of the play and the players were sharp and vivid. When his sight began to fail, he never missed any radio commentaries available.

A man of kindly disposition, generous in his praise, loyal to the game, Jim Patterson won the respect of those-who knew him.

R. T. BRITTENDEN