LOSS TO CRICKET

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19043, 17 June 1936, Page 7

LOSS TO CRICKET

MR. O. J.. ROBERTSON

TRANSFER TO DUNEDIN

FINE DISTRICT CAREER

By the transfer of Mr. G. J. Robertson from Gisborne to the Dunedin branch of the National Bank of New Zealand, Poverty Bay will lose a cricketer of all-round talent, and one whose services have proved most valuable in club and representative matches alike. From ids school days Mr. Robertson lias been prominent in the game, and he has probably represented the district in more Hawke Cup matches than any other players now active. While still at the primary school, Mr. Robertson started his cricketing career in the 1921-22 season by playing for the Gisborne juniors. His entry into senior cricket coincided with his passing into the Gisborne High School, and he was a member of the school first eleven during his stay there. Later he joined the United club, in the 1923-24 season, and continued his membership until the club broke up in 1928. The following three seasons saw him with Old Boys’ club, the first of the,so three being perhaps his best all-round year. Ilis club figures for the season comprised 13 innings for an aggregate of 518 runs, and 91 wickets at an average cost of 6.09. In representative and club fixtures, he narrowly missed the coveted double, scoring just over 900 runs and taking 112 wickets. The Civil Service club secured his services in 1930-31, and G. J. Robertson continued to play with that club until 1934, when the Whataupoko colts took the field as a team. With Civil Service in 1932-33, he was probably at his best form with the bat. scoring 797 runs at 411 average of 66.4 runs per innings; three of his four centuries were in consecutive innings, and including his representative scores, he aggregated well over 1000 runs. MARKED SUCCESS Leading the Whataupoko colts in their first season, 1934-55, he secured marked success, and the fact that this team finished second in the senior competition for the season was largely due to his own contribution of 643 runs and 59 wickets. When the senior teams were re-shuffled last season, G. J. Robertson was invited to lead the Marist seniors, and again piloted his team through to the position of runner-up in the competition. In all, since his entry into senior cricket in 1923, he has scored over 6300 runs at an average of just over 30 per innings, and taken over 700 wickets at an average cost of 10 runs. While still at High School, in the L 923-24 season, G. J. Robertson was invited to play his first representative match, and since that date he has played in every major representative game for Poverty Jlav. Hawke Cup challenge matches have taken him to Wanganui twice, to New Plymouth twice, to Palmerston North three times, and to Hamilton once. In 1926 he played'for the New Zealand Minor Associations, and in 1953 he was selected to represent the' Country in the annual match against . Town at Auckland. Outstanding performances for Poverty Bay in representative games registered by Robertson are his 68 against Wanganui in 1925: his ICO against E. C. Beale’s Auckland eleven in 1926; his 98 and 85 against A. E. Donoghue’s Wellington side in 1930, and 100 against the Auckland (Parnell) eleven in 1932. On the bowling side, his performance against Hawke’s Bay at Gisborne last season stands out prominently, Robertson having taken 10 wickets in two innings of that match, for a total of 50 runs, bowling 34 overs. Seldom spectacular in bis methods, and almost invariably a slow scorer. Robertson nevertheless has proved of the utmost value to the district in cricket, and was counted a player who could hold his end up against almost any type of bowling. In his school years and for some time thereafter he played a sound game of Rugby football, and only surrendered bis active interest in that game when an injury put him permanently on the bank. In later years he has been a mainstay of the High School Old Boys’ club.