Roger Knight was a throwback to the amateur era of schoolmaster cricketers, although he managed to juggle a fulltime teaching career with playing professional cricket. He was a good allrounder, and worse players have certainly appeared for England. A tall, upright and technically correct left-hander who could hit the ball hard when the occasion demanded, and a nagging right-arm seamer, he won Blues for Cambridge in four years from 1967 to 1970 (all games were drawn) and at the same time appeared for Surrey. In 1971 he switched to Gloucestershire, and in 1974 appeared in the Test Trial, but he moved again in 1976 to Sussex where he played two season before being lured back to The Oval to take over as captain. He led them for seven seasons, winning the NatWest Trophy in 1982. He passed 1000 runs in 13 seasons, including his last four summers when his teaching commitments were at their height. After retiring he coached at Cranleigh School and in 1990 became headmaster of Worksop College. Four years later he was lured away to become secretary of MCC, a post he held until his retirement in 2006.
Martin Williamson