BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY George Alphonso Headley OD 30 May 1909 – 30 November 1983 was a West Indian cricketer who played 22 Test matches, mostly before the Second World War. Considered one of the best batsmen to play for West Indies and one of the greatest cricketers of all time, Headley also represented Jamaica and played professional club cricket in England. West Indies had a weak cricket team through most of Headley's playing career; as their one world-class player, he carried a heavy responsibility and the side depended on his batting. He batted at number three, scoring 2,190 runs in Tests at an average of 60.83, and 9,921 runs in all first-class matches at an average of 69.86. He was chosen as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1934.
Headley was born in Panama but raised in Jamaica where he quickly established a cricketing reputation as a batsman. He soon gained his place in the Jamaican cricket team, and narrowly missed selection for the West Indies tour of England in 1928. He made his Test debut in 1930, against England in Barbados, and was instantly successful. Further successes followed in series against Australia and in three more against England, as Headley dominated the West Indian batting of the period. Following his tour of England in 1933, Headley signed as a professional at Haslingden in the Lancashire League, where he played until the outbreak of war in 1939.
The war interrupted Headley's career; although he returned to Tests in 1948 he was hampered by injuries and did not achieve his previous levels of success. Even so, he was chosen as West Indies captain in 1948 against England, the first black player to be appointed to the position, although a combination of injuries and politics meant he only led his team for one Test match. He did not play Tests between 1949 and 1953, but resumed his career in English league cricket, first in Lancashire and later in the Birmingham League. His playing career ended in 1954 on his return to Jamaica, after a public subscription paid his fare from England. After retiring as a player, Headley was employed as a cricket coach by the Jamaican government until 1962. He lived until 1983; his son Ron and his grandson Dean each played Test match cricket, for West Indies and England respectively.
Early life
Headley was born in Colón, Panama on 30 May 1909, the son of DeCourcy Headley and Irene Roberts. Neither of Headley's parents was from Panama; his father was from Barbados and his mother from Jamaica, but they had moved to Panama while DeCourcey worked on the construction of the Panama Canal. By the time Headley was five years old the Canal was complete, and the family moved to Cuba in search of further employment. In 1919, concerned by the amount of Spanish being spoken by her son, Headley's mother took him to Jamaica so he could be educated in an English-speaking school.
Headley moved in with his mother's sister-in-law Mrs Clarence Smith, in Rae Town, Kingston, and remained with her until her death in 1933. His mother returned to Cuba, but regularly exchanged letters with her son. He attended Calabar Elementary School, where he played for the school cricket team as a wicket-keeper, although a meagre sporting budget meant he had to do so without gloves. Later, he continued his education at Kingston High School. Taking part in all-day cricket matches at the local Crabhole Park, Headley began to attract local attention, and aged 16, he joined Raetown Cricket Club. In 1925 he scored his first century, batting at number three in the batting order in a match for Raetown against Clovelly.
On leaving school, Headley was appointed as a temporary clerk in a magistrate's court; this enabled him to play competitive cricket for the St Andrew's Police side in 1926, in a cup competition. Some impressive performances for the club earned him an invitation to practice with the Jamaica Colts team. However, his job made it impossible to attend, and he was not considered for the Jamaican side against Lord Tennyson's English touring side in 1927. That year, Headley began working for Keeling–Lindo Estates, in St Catherine. The firm were enthusiastic cricket patrons, allowing employees time off to play in matches, so that Headley was able to attend practice with the Jamaica team on a regular basis. He also moved to the St Catherine Cricket Club, captained by his immediate superior in Keeling–Lindo.[8] To generate more income, Headley took a second job, working for the Jamaica Fruit and Shipping Company, but he wanted a secure profession. To this end, he planned to move to America to pursue a career in dentistry. However, he was now on the verge of the Jamaica team and a delay in the arrival of the application forms for his American work permit allowed him to make his first-class debut for Jamaica against another touring team led by Lord Tennyson.
Early career
Headley made his Jamaica debut against Lord Tennyson's XI at Sabina Park on 9 February 1928, in a match won easily by the home team. Batting at number three, his first innings yielded 16 runs, but in the second innings, he scored 71, reaching fifty runs in as many minutes. In the second game against Lord Tennyson's XI which began in Kingston on 18 February, Headley scored his maiden first-class century. Having scored 22 not out after the first day's play, he reached 50 runs by playing very carefully but subsequently played more adventurous shots. He hit the bowling of Alan Hilder for four consecutive fours and twice hit Lord Tennyson for three fours in a row. At one point, thirteen of his scoring shots in a row went for four. He was finally out for 211, the highest score at the time by a West Indian batsman against an English team. After the innings, Tennyson compared Headley to Victor Trumper and Charlie Macartney, batsmen considered among the best who ever played. Headley concluded the series against Tennyson's team with innings of 40 and 71, to give him an aggregate of 409 runs at an average of 81.80. He also took his maiden first class wicket.
Following his success, Headley abandoned his prospective career in dentistry. Although some critics expected his selection for the West Indies tour of England in 1928, Headley was not chosen. While West Indies played their inaugural Test series during that tour, Headley continued to play for St Catherine's. He had another opportunity against English opposition in 1929, when a team led by Julien Cahn arrived to play two first-class games. Jamaica's distance from other Caribbean islands made it difficult for their cricketers to gain good-quality playing experience, so the frequent visits by English sides were important to the development of Jamaican cricket. These tours also served to build Headley's reputation. In the first match, Headley played a slow, defensive innings of 57, but he did not reach fifty in his other three innings. Even so, he was chosen by the Jamaican selectors for a West Indies XI, which included players from other islands, to play Cahn's team in their final tour match.[15] The home side lost the toss and had to bat in very difficult conditions following rain. Headley found the fast bowlers difficult, but survived the period when the pitch was most difficult to bat on before he was out for 44. In the second innings, he attacked from the start and used a wide range of shots to reach 143 before he was run out. In three matches against the tourists, Headley scored 326 runs, averaging 54.33.
A change in the location of his job meant that Headley moved to the Lucas Cricket Club in 1929. He visited America and played some exhibition matches for the Jamaican Athletic Club in New York, scoring a century against a touring team from Bermuda; his parents had moved to America by then, which enabled Headley to combine the cricket with his first visit to his parents in ten years.
Test match career
Debut and first Test series
In 1930 the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) undertook a tour of the West Indies which included four Test matches—the first Tests to be played in the West Indies. The MCC side was not at full international strength; it included players who were either just beginning or just ending their international careers, and several star English bowlers were missing.[note The first Test was played in Barbados and Headley was selected, making his debut for the West Indies on 11 February 1930—to the disapproval of some Barbadians who thought his place should have gone to a local player. Batting at number three, he played aggressively in the first innings but the crowd barracked him and he was bowled for 21. However, in the second innings he scored 176, becoming the first West Indian to score a century on his Test debut and only their second centurion overall. He shared century partnerships with both Clifford Roach and Frank de Caires, but these were insufficient to force victory, and the match was drawn. Headley remained in the Test side for the rest of the series, the only home player other than Roach to appear in all four Tests. In Trinidad, during the second Test, Headley found the unfamiliar conditions difficult—Trinidad was the only Test match ground in the Caribbean which was played on a pitch made from matting instead of grass. Headley scored eight and 39 as West Indies lost the match. The home side levelled the series with their first ever Test victory in the third match of the series, played in British Guiana. In this match Headley became the first West Indian, and only the fifth cricketer of any nation, to score two separate hundreds in a Test match. His first innings of 114 was played mainly in support of Roach, who scored a double century. In the second innings, Headley scored 112 as West Indies batted with a big first innings lead, attacking defensive English bowling.
While en route to the final Test in Jamaica, the West Indies team stopped in Panama and Costa Rica where official functions were held in Headley's honour. In Jamaica, where there was widespread jubilation, Headley attended several receptions and celebrations. When the cricket resumed, Headley scored 64, 72 and 55 in three innings against MCC for Jamaica.[9] With the Test series level, it was agreed that the final match of the series would be played until one team won, regardless of how long it took—the other Tests had been limited to four days each. On the first three days, England scored 849. In reply West Indies could only manage 286, with Headley out for ten runs. England batted again, to set West Indies an eventual victory target of 836. This time, Headley batted for 390 minutes, faced 385 balls and hit 28 fours while scoring 223. He and Karl Nunes added 227 for the second wicket. Headley played the hook very effectively and hit many short deliveries for runs. When Headley was stumped, he had made what was at the time the fourth highest individual score in all Test cricket and the highest in a second innings. When West Indies still needed 428 runs, rain fell for two days and the match had to be abandoned after its ninth scheduled day. Headley ended the series with 703 runs at an average of 87.87
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