Stern competition in the shape of John Snow, Jeff Jones, David Brown and Ken Higgs meant that Peter Lever was 30 before he played an official Test, in 1970-71, although he did take 7 for 83 at The Oval in 1970 against Garry Sobers's powerful Rest of the World XI. Picked as the upwind seamer in Perth's inaugural Test, Lever was disconcerted to discover that the Fremantle Doctor, the local wind, was so strong that he had to start his run-up two yards nearer the stumps than usual to reach the bowling crease in rhythm. Typically, he battled gamely into it for 21 eight-ball overs. Four years after that Lever's 6 for 38 on a Melbourne greentop helped England, 4-0 down in the Lillee-Thomson series, to win the final Test by an innings, but that tour finished on a low at Auckland where Lever almost killed Ewen Chatfield, the New Zealand No. 11 who was making his debut, with a bouncer that hit him on the temple.
John Thicknesse