Initially a right-arm fast-medium seamer and subsequently a medium-paced offcutter, Don Shepherd was a stalwart of Glamorgan cricket for two decades, taking a county record of 2, 174 wickets between 1950 and 1972. In all first-class cricket, he claimed 2,218 victims, yet remarkably, Shepherd never played in Test cricket. His remarkable record also spoke volumes both for his ability and perseverance. As a fast-medium bowler, he took 155 wickets in 1952, winning his county cap, but he lost his form in the mid 1950s and converted to bowling offcutters as a result. In the first season of this change - 1956 - he took 168 wickets, and he exceeded 100 wickets 11 more times. His stamina and ability to bowl well on most types of pitch made him a godsend to successive captains. His batting was exciting, as evidenced by a 15-minute fifty against the Australians in 1961. But despite this, he never won an England call-up, although he did tour Ceylon and Far East with MCC in 1969-70 and was one of Wisden's Cricketers of the Year in 1970. After retiring, he kept a close link with the county game by acting as their bowling coaching, as well as broadcasting with BBC Radio Wales.
Martin Williamson