The tale of an English team in Germany 1937
Phil Mackie and Ed Ram, writing for BBC, shed light on the story of a Worcestershire side who arrived in Berlin in 1937 to compete in three games organised by members of the German hierarchy who had developed an interest in the sport
03-May-2014
Phil Mackie and Ed Ram, writing for BBC, shed light on the story of a Worcestershire side who arrived in Berlin in 1937 to compete in three games organised by members of the German hierarchy who had developed an interest in the sport.
The Gentlemen were too good for the Germans and won all three games comfortably. But what went on off the pitch was more remarkable. The team arrived in Berlin as the city was celebrating its 700th anniversary in an event manufactured by Nazi propagandists as another excuse to show off military might in a series of parades. The Gents were asked to give the Nazi salute before their first match. As dutiful guests, they obliged. "I think they were just being polite" says Waddell, who tracked down diaries and scrapbooks handed down by the players to their relatives. "They would have hated to have been seen to be impolite, or snubbing their hosts."