Grahame Parker

Grahame Parker was a formidable Cambridge all-round sportsman of the 1930s and an England full-back as well as university cricket captain and rugby Blue all four years. After war-time service he had two careers, both highly successful, the first as schoolmaster at Blundell's, the second as secretary manager and finally in 1986-87 as president of Gloucestershire.

Educated at the Crypt School, Grahame Wilshaw Parker was a Gloucestershireman through and through. We shared a birthday on Feb 11 and for years kept annually in touch. He was a man whose quiet manner concealed great strength of character and a wry humour. At full-back Parker was one of eight resident or later internationals in the great side of 1934-35 inspired by Wilfred Wooller and Cliff Jones which demolished Oxford 29 for 4. At Lord's he was run out for 94 in the drawn 1934 University Match (wherein the 'poor' attendance of 24,000 was put down to the counter-attraction of the Old Trafford Test against Australia). The following year, when Cambridge won by 195 runs, was a triumph for him both as leader and, with top score of 76 not out, as batsman. A steady opening bat, magnificent fielder and useful swing bowler on his day he played 70 Gloucestershire matches, in 1937 making 210 against Kent and two other hundreds.

In 1938, as a Dulwich master, he played twice at full-back for England, kicking 15 points in a handsome victory in Dublin. As a major in the RASC he saw service in North Africa and Italy, winning a military MBE, upgraded to OBE following his command of the Blundell`s Cadet Force. He taught for 22 years at Blundell's, 15 of them as housemaster of Westlake and, simultaneously, with Ted Crowe, coach of the XV. Finally, Parker took over the secretary managership of Gloucestershire when their affairs were at a low ebb. He transformed them to championship runners-up in 1969 and winners of the Gillette Cup in 1973 and the Benson and Hedges Cup in 1977.

Tony Brown, captain throughout his secretarial/managerial time, was among his warmest admirers: "It was a great pleasure to work with him. Grahame might disagree with people but would never quarrel. He was too big a man for squabbles."
EW Swanton