Ray Dovey

DOVEY, RAYMOND RANDALL, the Kent off-spin bowler, died suddenly at his home in Tunbridge Wells on December 27, 1974, aged 54. He appeared for Kent in a few matches before the 1939-45 war and when he retired in 1955 he had taken 777 wickets in first-class cricket at 27.53 runs each and scored 3,827 runs, average 11.59. Born at Chislehurst, Dovey was tall and lean and wore glasses. He was a reliable stock bowler who could turn to medium pace and when he accomplished his best performance, eight wickets for 23 runs in 19.2 overs for Kent at Blackheath in 1950, he opened the attack with J. W. Martin. On a rain-affected pitch, he turned the ball sharply into the batsmen and many fell to leg-side catches. As he took five for 52 in the second innings, his match figures were thirteen for 75 and Kent won for the first time in 16 years in the then traditional Surrey fixture at The Rectory Field. On his retirement, Dovey went first as coach to Sherborne, playing for a time for Dorset. He then moved to Tonbridge where he was responsible for the high standard of cricket for many years. Colin Cowdrey paid a special tribute to Dovey for his work at Tonbridge, where he also ran the school shop.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack