Denis Moore

Denis Moore's county career started in spectacular fashion when in May 1930 he cracked 206 against Oxford University (where he was at the time a student, although unable to win a place in the XI) in a score of 627 for 2. That innings beat the record set in 1867 for the highest score on debut for a county, a record which stood until 1996. The newspapers hailed a new hero - West's wonder batsman - is he the new Hammond? asked one headline. Oxford brought him into their side, smashing 148 against Nottinghamshire and top-scored in both innings of the Varsity match (59 and 29) in a heavy defeat. He ended the summer with 1317 runs at 41.15 - only the seventh person to score 1000 runs in a debut season. He was appointed Oxford captain in 1931, but missed almost all the season when he first split a finger and then contracted pneumonia and pleurisy, and after recovering opted to leave university and join the family law firm. Thereafter he never played regularly, although he continued to turn on occasionally for Gloucestershire. He made up for that by playing copious amounts of club cricket and, latterly, golf. Martin Williamson