Martin Donnelly (cricketer)
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| Born |
17 October 1917 Ngaruawahia, New Zealand |
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| Died | 22 October 1999 (aged 82) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
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| Batting style | Left-hand bat | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling style | Slow left-arm orthodox | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Source: ESPNcricinfo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Martin Paterson Donnelly (17 October 1917 – 22 October 1999) was a New Zealand Test cricketer and England Rugby Union player.
Born in Ngaruawahia, New Zealand, Donnelly's twin brother Maurice died in the Spanish flu epidemic in 1918. Donnelly's maternal great grandfather, William Butler was a British Army veteran in the 20th Regiment of Foot later renamed the Lancashire Fusiliers and settled in Howick, New Zealand in 1847 as part of the Royal New Zealand Fencible Corps.
Donnelly's sporting talent emerged quickly and Donnelly became known for his batting and fielding skills, as well as his prowess at Rugby Union. While still a student at New Plymouth Boys' High School, Donnelly made 49 for Taranaki against the touring MCC side in January 1936. This led to his first-class debut in January 1936 for Wellington in a Plunket Shield match against Auckland, in which he made 22 and 38.
Aged only 19, Donnelly was a surprise selection for the 1937 New Zealand tour of England, having played only one first-class match. After showing more promise than results in the warm up matches, the selectors showed patience and Donnelly made his Test debut in the 1st Test at Lord's. He made a duck and 21, but remained in the team to make 4 and 37*, and 58 and 0 in the following two Tests. He achieved greater success against the county sides, finishing second in the batting averages, and earned praise from Wisden, which called him "a star in the making".
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