Willie Jones

In 1948 Willie Jones created a unique place for himself in Glamorgan`s history, by hitting two double hundreds within the space of a fortnight, with 207 against Kent at Gravesend, followed by an unbeaten 212 against Essex at Brentwood.

The left-handed batsman and spin bowler made his county debut in 1935 and as befitting a talented rugby player, he soon impressed with his swift running and safe catching, whether close to the wicket, or in the outfield. His excellent fielding and ever developing batting skills won him a regular place in the Glamorgan team from 1938 and after the Second World War, he became the mainstay of Glamorgan`s middle order, always ready to punish any wayward deliveries, with a rasping square cut or a flashing off-drive. His aggressive batting paradoxically belied his quite shy and reserved manner, and there are many, probably apocryphal, stories of Willie asking his wife to contact the Glamorgan office to check that he was in the Glamorgan team!

On seven occasions, Jones passed a thousand runs for the season, and in 1948 Willie scored 1,656 runs in first-class matches. He was also chosen to appear in the 1949 Test Trial, but sustained an injury whilst fielding and missed much of the season, just when staking a claim to a place in the England side. He regained fitness in 1950, but no further opportunities came his way to impress at the highest level. Despite this, he remained a prolific runmaker in the county game until retiring in 1958. (Submitted by Andrew Hignell - May 2000)