In the 1960s, when England had a plethora of off-spin options, David Allen emerged as their leading slow bowler. His Wisden obituary recalled a fine career.
Allen, David Arthur, died on May 24, 2014, aged 78. His obituary appeared in the 2015 edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Alamanack.
When Graeme Swann retired amid the wreckage of the 2013/14 Ashes, England’s spin resources were so threadbare that, last summer, a batting all-rounder filled the breach. When Jim Laker played his final Test at the end of the equally traumatic 1958/59 Ashes, things could hardly have been more different. Queuing up to replace him were John Mortimore, Fred Titmus, Ray Illingworth and David Allen. Jim Parks, who would keep wicket in nearly half his Tests, said: “David was the biggest spinner of the four of them.” Even so, it surprised many when Allen eventually got a look-in.
His Test debut, against West Indies at Bridgetown in 1959/60, represented an extraordinary turnaround: a year earlier he had been close to retirement. But he took his chance, going on to claim 122 wickets in 39 Tests; he also made five fifties. Until his final match in 1966, he was one of England’s most reliable performers.
For Gloucestershire, though, he was one of the post-war greats. In a 19-year career he took 882 wickets and scored 7,510 runs. When conditions were favourable, he and fellow off-spinner Mortimore operated like hired assassins. In 1969 – with Illingworth’s departure from Yorkshire having broken up his partnership with Don Wilson – Alan Gibson wrote that there was “no pair of spinners in the country so likely to bowl any side out quickly on a turning wicket”.
Allen had a classic rocking action that helped the occasional ball drift away from the right-hander, and a short run-up, but his lavish turn did not come at the expense of accuracy. Harder, bouncier Test wickets suited him, and his record on tour was better than at home. He loved “the pomp and ceremony of Test cricket” and the camaraderie of touring. “All his stories were about Barbados or Brisbane, never Peterborough or Derby,” said Gloucestershire team-mate David Green.
He went to work for Harveys, the Bristol sherry merchants, and with Parks revived the Old England XI, who played charity matches. Allen’s love of the game ran deep, and he never forgot the lessons learned on the last afternoon against Sussex at Cheltenham in his first summer. Gloucestershire’s run-chase had been stymied when David Sheppard instructed his bowlers to aim outside leg. The crowd protested, and the practice ceased after Gloucestershire captain Jack Crapp came on to the field to make his feelings known.
When Ian Thomson took three quick wickets, Allen sauntered in at No.11, ostentatiously using up time. The game was saved. Pleased with his efforts, he was stunned when Crapp grabbed him by the collar and told him his career with Gloucestershire would be over if he ever resorted to sharp practice again: “They might bend the rules, but in Gloucestershire we don’t.”
He served the club in a variety of roles, including president, a job he took on with support from his wife, Joyce. He was a familiar face at his local club side Thornbury, where his distinctive West Country tones could be heard gently encouraging generations of young players. “He was still coaching during his final illness,” his wife said. “Cricket was his life.”
