Billy Stelling

Known as something of a rebel in his younger days, Billy Stelling, a Cape Town-born allrounder, mellowed after a spate of injuries threatened to derail his career altogether. He played for Western Province and the Boland, but from the mid 1990s his career was based in Europe. He had a spell with Leicestershire, making only one first-class outing when he took 5 for 49 against Kent in 2000. He turned out for Berkshire in the Minor Counties Championship and also had spells with East Lancashire and Rawtenstall in the Lancashire League.

He first played for Netherlands in 1995 and was on the fringes of the one-day side for much of the next decade, never quite able to hold down a regular place. A good finisher in the one day game, coming in at No. 6 or 7, he was considered a placer of the ball but was capable of playing big innings.

He announced his retirement from the first-class game after the 2007 World Cup - hardly earth-shattering news as he had played only one such match in seven years - but while he expressed a desire to continue playing ODIs, at 38, time appeared to be against him.
Alan Curr May 2007