George Hearne

Wisden obituary
George Alfred Lawrence Hearne, who died at Barberton in the Eastern Transvaal on November 13, 1978, at the age of 90, was a member of the 1924 South African team to England and appeared in the fifth Test. He was the son of Frank Hearne (1858-1949) and was born at Catford, Kent, on March 27, 1888. In November of that year Frank Hearne sailed as a member of Major Wharton's team (the first English team to visit South Africa) which played in two test matches which marked the start of first-class cricket in South Africa. Thus George Hearne's lifetime exactly spanned this era. His father stayed on to coach in South Africa and subsequently played for South Africa in several Test matches. Both father and son lived to the age of 90, which must be unique in Test match history. George, at the time of his death, was not only the senior South African Test player (on an age basis) but second only to EJ (Tiger) Smith in the world. It was the season of 1921-22 which brought him into prominence. That year he made 541 runs at an average of 45. His highest score of 138 was made in his last season - 1926-27.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack