Bertie Buse
Encyclopedia
Herbert Francis Thomas "Bertie" Buse, born at Ashley Down
, Bristol
, on 5 August 1910 and died at Bath on 23 February 1992, was a cricketer
who played 304 first-class
matches for Somerset
before and after the Second World War.
Buse's first complete season was 1938 and, according to Wisden
, he "seized his chance in great style". In his first season he scored 1067 runs and took 61 wickets, and his 132 against Northamptonshire
at Kettering
was to remain his highest first-class score. Wisden noted that he often batted best when Somerset were in trouble.
That first full season set the pattern for the next nine: the 1939 season before the Second World War and the first eight seasons from 1946 after the war. Buse made 1,000 runs in five seasons in all, and more than 900 runs in three others; his batting average never exceeded 27 and never fell below 19; and he scored seven centuries in all. As a bowler, his best season was 1939, when he took 81 first-class wickets, including his career best eight for 41 in an innings against Derbyshire
at Taunton. In eight seasons in all he took more than 50 wickets, and though his average was, for his time, rather high – usually around 30 runs per wicket – he again with his bowling seemed often to do well when others were struggling.
said Buse's run-up was like a butler bringing in the tea. He could bowl both outswingers and inswingers. As a batsman, Buse also had a distinctive style that involved a strange dabbing stroke that steered the ball through the slips or gully towards third man. "There was rather too much posterior," says one book.
by Somerset in his final first-class season, 1953, and picked the three-day County Championship
game against Lancashire
at Bath
. The match was a sensation, though not to Buse's gain. At the root of the sensation was a newly-laid pitch, which took vicious spin from the start of play. Lancashire's acting captain, the England
Test
batsman Cyril Washbrook
, said later that Lancashire would have refused to play had it not been a benefit match.
Somerset batted first and were all out in around 90 minutes for just 55. Off-spin bowler Roy Tattersall
unusually opened the bowling, and took seven for 25. No Somerset batsman reached double figures, and Buse made just five. When Lancashire batted, Buse himself proved almost as deadly, taking four of the first five wickets that fell for just 46 runs. But then Peter Marner
and Alan Wharton
decided to hit out, and put on a stand of 70 in 25 minutes for the sixth wicket. In all, Lancashire totalled 158, made off just 32 overs, with Buse taking six for 41 and the innings finishing by teatime on the first day. Somerset's second innings then proved no better than the first, with Brian Statham
joining Tattersall in the wickets. Only a last-wicket partnership of 35 by Jim Redman
and the debutant Brian Langford
delayed matters at all. Somerset were all out for 79, losing by an innings and 24 runs, with Tattersall having match figures of 13 wickets for 69 runs. The game was over by six o'clock on the evening of the first day.
With the beneficiary responsible for outgoings as well as income from a benefit match, Buse faced financial disaster from the match. But Somerset waived the match costs and a fund was set up to recompense Buse which raised around £2,800, the kind of sum he might have expected from a game that ran the intended three days.
Buse and Somerset returned to Bath for the second match of the cricket festival later that same week. This time, playing against Kent
, two innings were completed on the first day, but then Somerset posted a total of more than 400 in their second innings, with both Buse and Harold Gimblett
making centuries.
. He was employed as a solicitor's clerk in the city: Bath solicitors provided Somerset's cricket captains from 1932 to 1946.
Outside cricket, he was an all-round sportsman, appearing for Bath rugby club
at full-back and also playing table tennis and billiards to high standard. After retiring from cricket, he coached in South Africa and ran a pub for a while before returning to Bath to work on the local evening newspaper.
Ashley Down
Ashley is one of thirty-five council wards in the city of Bristol in the United Kingdom. The ward contains the areas of Ashley Down, Baptist Mills, Montpelier, St Andrew's, St Paul's and St Werburghs.-Politics:...
, Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, on 5 August 1910 and died at Bath on 23 February 1992, was a cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
who played 304 first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
matches for Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
before and after the Second World War.
Cricket career
Buse was an all-rounder: a dogged right-handed batsman who, in the mobile Somerset batting line-up of the mid 20th century, batted anywhere from No 3 to No 8, and a medium-paced swing bowler who often opened the bowling for the county side. He first played for Somerset in 1929, and then played occasional matches as a professional almost every season through to 1937. In 1938, he went on to the county's staff as a full professional contracted for all matches, and from then until he retired at the end of the 1953 season he was a regular in the county team.Buse's first complete season was 1938 and, according to Wisden
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom...
, he "seized his chance in great style". In his first season he scored 1067 runs and took 61 wickets, and his 132 against Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Northamptonshire. Its limited overs team is called the Northants Steelbacks. The traditional club colour is Maroon. During the...
at Kettering
Kettering
Kettering is a market town in the Borough of Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. It is situated about from London. Kettering is mainly situated on the west side of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene which meets at Wellingborough...
was to remain his highest first-class score. Wisden noted that he often batted best when Somerset were in trouble.
That first full season set the pattern for the next nine: the 1939 season before the Second World War and the first eight seasons from 1946 after the war. Buse made 1,000 runs in five seasons in all, and more than 900 runs in three others; his batting average never exceeded 27 and never fell below 19; and he scored seven centuries in all. As a bowler, his best season was 1939, when he took 81 first-class wickets, including his career best eight for 41 in an innings against Derbyshire
Derbyshire County Cricket Club
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the England and Wales domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Derbyshire...
at Taunton. In eight seasons in all he took more than 50 wickets, and though his average was, for his time, rather high – usually around 30 runs per wicket – he again with his bowling seemed often to do well when others were struggling.
Cricket style
Buse was one of the distinctive characters in a Somerset side full of characters. In appearance and manner, he was bustling and rather prim, with a clipped moustache and always-neat hair. As a bowler, he went through a variety of fussy mannerisms before delivering the ball, all of which served only to endear him to Somerset cricket crowds. "There was his studious contemplation, his stuttering approach, the touch of acceleration and the undisguised smile when the batsman failed to counter the late swing," is one description. John ArlottJohn Arlott
Leslie Thomas John Arlott OBE was an English journalist, author and cricket commentator for the BBC's Test Match Special. He was also a poet, wine connoisseur and former police officer in Hampshire...
said Buse's run-up was like a butler bringing in the tea. He could bowl both outswingers and inswingers. As a batsman, Buse also had a distinctive style that involved a strange dabbing stroke that steered the ball through the slips or gully towards third man. "There was rather too much posterior," says one book.
Benefit match
Buse was accorded a benefit matchBenefit season
A benefit season is a method of financially rewarding professional cricketers that is used by English county cricket teams to compensate long serving players....
by Somerset in his final first-class season, 1953, and picked the three-day County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
game against Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
at Bath
Recreation Ground (Bath)
The Recreation Ground is a large open space in the centre of Bath, England, next to the River Avon, used for recreational purposes by Bath residents and the public generally....
. The match was a sensation, though not to Buse's gain. At the root of the sensation was a newly-laid pitch, which took vicious spin from the start of play. Lancashire's acting captain, the England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
batsman Cyril Washbrook
Cyril Washbrook
Cyril Washbrook was an English cricketer, who played for Lancashire and England. He had a long career, split by World War II, and ending when he was aged 44. Washbrook, who is most famous for opening the batting for England with Len Hutton, which he did fifty one times, played a total of 592...
, said later that Lancashire would have refused to play had it not been a benefit match.
Somerset batted first and were all out in around 90 minutes for just 55. Off-spin bowler Roy Tattersall
Roy Tattersall
Roy Tattersall is an English former Lancashire cricketer, who played sixteen Tests for England as a specialist off spin bowler....
unusually opened the bowling, and took seven for 25. No Somerset batsman reached double figures, and Buse made just five. When Lancashire batted, Buse himself proved almost as deadly, taking four of the first five wickets that fell for just 46 runs. But then Peter Marner
Peter Marner
Peter Thomas Marner was an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Lancashire and then Leicestershire. He was rated by Trevor Bailey as the most formidable English batsman without a Test cricket cap....
and Alan Wharton
Alan Wharton
Alan Wharton was an English cricketer, who played for Lancashire, Leicestershire and England.-Life and career:Wharton was born in Heywood, Lancashire, England....
decided to hit out, and put on a stand of 70 in 25 minutes for the sixth wicket. In all, Lancashire totalled 158, made off just 32 overs, with Buse taking six for 41 and the innings finishing by teatime on the first day. Somerset's second innings then proved no better than the first, with Brian Statham
Brian Statham
John Brian "George" Statham, CBE was one of the leading English fast bowlers in 20th-century English cricket. Initially a bowler of a brisk fast-medium pace, Statham was able to remodel his action to generate enough speed to become genuinely fast...
joining Tattersall in the wickets. Only a last-wicket partnership of 35 by Jim Redman
Jim Redman (cricketer)
James Redman, born at Bath, Somerset on 1 March 1926 and died at Salisbury, Wiltshire, on 24 September 1981, played first-class cricket for Somerset as a fast-medium bowler between 1948 and 1953.-First-class cricket career:...
and the debutant Brian Langford
Brian Langford
Brian Anthony Langford , is a former English first-class cricketer who played as an off-spin bowler for Somerset...
delayed matters at all. Somerset were all out for 79, losing by an innings and 24 runs, with Tattersall having match figures of 13 wickets for 69 runs. The game was over by six o'clock on the evening of the first day.
With the beneficiary responsible for outgoings as well as income from a benefit match, Buse faced financial disaster from the match. But Somerset waived the match costs and a fund was set up to recompense Buse which raised around £2,800, the kind of sum he might have expected from a game that ran the intended three days.
Buse and Somerset returned to Bath for the second match of the cricket festival later that same week. This time, playing against Kent
Kent County Cricket Club
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...
, two innings were completed on the first day, but then Somerset posted a total of more than 400 in their second innings, with both Buse and Harold Gimblett
Harold Gimblett
Harold Gimblett was a cricketer who played for Somerset and England. He was known for his fast scoring as an opening batsman and for the much-repeated story of his debut...
making centuries.
Outside cricket
Though born in Bristol, most of Buse's life was spent in Bath, where he played club cricket for Bath Cricket ClubBath Cricket Club
Bath Cricket Club is an English amateur cricket club based in the city of Bath, Somerset. The club was founded in 1859 and competes in the West of England Premier League, which is an accredited ECB Premier League, the highest level for recreational club cricket in England and Wales.Home matches...
. He was employed as a solicitor's clerk in the city: Bath solicitors provided Somerset's cricket captains from 1932 to 1946.
Outside cricket, he was an all-round sportsman, appearing for Bath rugby club
Bath Rugby
Bath Rugby is an English professional rugby union club that is based in the city of Bath. They play in the Aviva Premiership league...
at full-back and also playing table tennis and billiards to high standard. After retiring from cricket, he coached in South Africa and ran a pub for a while before returning to Bath to work on the local evening newspaper.
See also
- Bertie Buse at www.cricketarchive.com