Dirk Wellham
Encyclopedia
Dr Dirk MacDonald Wellham (born 13 March 1959) is a former Australian cricket
er who played in 6 Tests
and 17 ODIs from 1981 to 1987. Dirk Wellham is one of two players to score a century
in both his first class
and Test
debuts. He was the first player to captain three Australian states having captained New South Wales
, Tasmania
and Queensland
during his career. As NSW captain, he won the Sheffield Shield
in 1984–85 and 1985–86 and the McDonald's Cup in 1984–85.He is the nephew of New South Wales first-class cricketer Walter Wellham.
and attended Ashfield Boys High School
.
in the 1980–81 Sheffield Shield, including 100 against Victoria
on his first-class debut, Wellham was selected for the Australian
team to tour England
in 1981. On tour, Wellham scored 135 not out against Northamptonshire
and was chosen to make his Test debut in the sixth Test at the The Oval
.
Wellham scored 24 and 103, thus becoming the 12th Australian batsman to score a century on Test debut. Wellham's century was criticised by some commentators for being too slow and costing Australia a chance of victory. After scoring his first 80 runs in under 90 balls, Kim Hughes
sent a runner onto the field to tell Wellham to take his time as the series had already been lost and the result didn't matter. Wellham's 103 took 221 balls and he was on 99 for 25 minutes.
He was dropped from both the Test and state teams in the next season, but returned in 1983–84 as captain of New South Wales, winning the first of two consecutive Sheffield Shields that year and a McDonald's Cup in 1984–85. Wellham was recalled to the Australian team for the final Test of the 1985 Ashes tour and again for the final Test of the 1986–87 Ashes series scoring just 36 runs in these two matches. Wellham played 9 of his 17 one day international matches in the 1986–87 World Series Cup, the highlight being 97 against England at Sydney in a match more famous for batsman Allan Lamb
hitting Bruce Reid
for 18 runs in the final over to win the match.
At first-class level, Wellham scored 8662 runs at an average of 42.25 and scored 16 centuries. In 1987–88, Wellham moved to Tasmania
for the 1988–89 season and captained the side for three seasons. In 32 matches for Tasmania, Wellham scored 1629 runs at an average of 39.73 scoring 15 fifties but no centuries.
At the start of the 1991–92 season, Wellham moved to Brisbane to take up a teaching position with the Anglican Church Grammar School. He joined the Eastern Suburbs club and was selected for Queensland
. Wellham scored 873 runs at 58.20 including two centuries, his best run-scoring season since 1982–83.
On 11 December 1992, Wellham captained Queensland for the first time, thus becoming the first player to captain three Australian states. He captained Queensland in 8 first-class matches that season including their loss to NSW in the Sheffield Shield final. Wellham played three more matches for Queensland in 1993–94 before retiring from first-class cricket.
Wellham was involved in an incident at the Junction Oval
in Melbourne when, after discussing with the Victorian Coach and on the way out to bat after lunch, that the coach should not stand next to the sight-screen during an over, in a Sheffield Shield match, he swiped his bat at the players gate. A piece of the gate broke off and injured a bystander. Wellham apologised for the incident.
. He received a PhD
from Deakin University in 2009.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who played in 6 Tests
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...
and 17 ODIs from 1981 to 1987. Dirk Wellham is one of two players to score a century
Century (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a batsman reaches his century when he scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. The term is also included in "century partnership" which occurs when two batsmen add 100 runs to the team total when they are batting together. A century is regarded as a landmark score for...
in both his 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...
and 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...
debuts. He was the first player to captain three Australian states having captained New South Wales
New South Wales Blues
The New South Wales cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales...
, Tasmania
Tasmanian Tigers
The Tasmanian cricket team, nicknamed the Tigers, represents the Australian state of Tasmania in cricket tournaments. They compete annually in the Australian domestic senior men's cricket season, which currently consists of the first-class Sheffield Shield, the limited overs Ford Ranger Cup, and...
and Queensland
Queensland Bulls
The Queensland cricket team, nicknamed the Bulls, are the Brisbane-based Queensland representative cricket team in Australia's domestic cricket tournaments:*Sheffield Shield, 4-day matches with first-class status, since the 1926/27 season...
during his career. As NSW captain, he won the Sheffield Shield
Pura Cup
The Sheffield Shield is the domestic cricket competition of Australia. The tournament is contested between teams from the six states of Australia. Prior to the Shield being established, a number of intercolonial matches were played. The Shield, donated by Lord Sheffield, was first contested during...
in 1984–85 and 1985–86 and the McDonald's Cup in 1984–85.He is the nephew of New South Wales first-class cricketer Walter Wellham.
Early life
Welham was born in Marrickville, New South WalesMarrickville, New South Wales
Marrickville, a suburb of Sydney's Inner West is located 7 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district in the state of New South Wales, Australia and is the largest suburb in the Marrickville Council local government area...
and attended Ashfield Boys High School
Ashfield Boys High School
Ashfield Boys' High School is a Public, Secondary school for boys', located in Ashfield, an Inner West suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It can be found on Liverpool Road, just off Parramatta Road.-History:...
.
Career
After scoring two centuries for New South WalesNew South Wales Blues
The New South Wales cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales...
in the 1980–81 Sheffield Shield, including 100 against Victoria
Victorian Bushrangers
The Victorian cricket team, nicknamed the Bushrangers, is an Australian cricket team based in Melbourne, that represents the state of Victoria. It is administered by Cricket Victoria and draws its players from Melbourne's Premier Cricket competition...
on his first-class debut, Wellham was selected for the Australian
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
team to tour 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...
in 1981. On tour, Wellham scored 135 not out 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...
and was chosen to make his Test debut in the sixth Test at the The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
.
Wellham scored 24 and 103, thus becoming the 12th Australian batsman to score a century on Test debut. Wellham's century was criticised by some commentators for being too slow and costing Australia a chance of victory. After scoring his first 80 runs in under 90 balls, Kim Hughes
Kim Hughes
Kimberley John Hughes is a former cricketer who played for Western Australia, Natal and Australia. He captained Australia in 28 Tests between 1979 and 1984 before captaining a "rebel" Australian team in a tour of South Africa, who at the time were subject to a sporting boycott.A right-handed...
sent a runner onto the field to tell Wellham to take his time as the series had already been lost and the result didn't matter. Wellham's 103 took 221 balls and he was on 99 for 25 minutes.
He was dropped from both the Test and state teams in the next season, but returned in 1983–84 as captain of New South Wales, winning the first of two consecutive Sheffield Shields that year and a McDonald's Cup in 1984–85. Wellham was recalled to the Australian team for the final Test of the 1985 Ashes tour and again for the final Test of the 1986–87 Ashes series scoring just 36 runs in these two matches. Wellham played 9 of his 17 one day international matches in the 1986–87 World Series Cup, the highlight being 97 against England at Sydney in a match more famous for batsman Allan Lamb
Allan Lamb
Allan Joseph Lamb is a former England cricketer and captain who played for the first class teams of Western Province and Northamptonshire, the latter as an Overseas player...
hitting Bruce Reid
Bruce Reid
Bruce Anthony Reid is an Australian cricketer and bowling coach of the Indian national cricket team on their 2003-04 tour to Australia....
for 18 runs in the final over to win the match.
At first-class level, Wellham scored 8662 runs at an average of 42.25 and scored 16 centuries. In 1987–88, Wellham moved to Tasmania
Tasmanian Tigers
The Tasmanian cricket team, nicknamed the Tigers, represents the Australian state of Tasmania in cricket tournaments. They compete annually in the Australian domestic senior men's cricket season, which currently consists of the first-class Sheffield Shield, the limited overs Ford Ranger Cup, and...
for the 1988–89 season and captained the side for three seasons. In 32 matches for Tasmania, Wellham scored 1629 runs at an average of 39.73 scoring 15 fifties but no centuries.
At the start of the 1991–92 season, Wellham moved to Brisbane to take up a teaching position with the Anglican Church Grammar School. He joined the Eastern Suburbs club and was selected for Queensland
Queensland Bulls
The Queensland cricket team, nicknamed the Bulls, are the Brisbane-based Queensland representative cricket team in Australia's domestic cricket tournaments:*Sheffield Shield, 4-day matches with first-class status, since the 1926/27 season...
. Wellham scored 873 runs at 58.20 including two centuries, his best run-scoring season since 1982–83.
On 11 December 1992, Wellham captained Queensland for the first time, thus becoming the first player to captain three Australian states. He captained Queensland in 8 first-class matches that season including their loss to NSW in the Sheffield Shield final. Wellham played three more matches for Queensland in 1993–94 before retiring from first-class cricket.
Character
Wellham had a reputation as an astute captain, having led NSW to consecutive Sheffield Shields in the 1980s.Wellham was involved in an incident at the Junction Oval
Junction Oval
The Junction Oval is an historic sports ground in the suburb of St Kilda in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its location near the St Kilda Junction gave rise to its nickname...
in Melbourne when, after discussing with the Victorian Coach and on the way out to bat after lunch, that the coach should not stand next to the sight-screen during an over, in a Sheffield Shield match, he swiped his bat at the players gate. A piece of the gate broke off and injured a bystander. Wellham apologised for the incident.
Post-cricket career
Wellham has since retired and now serves as Deputy Principal (Academic) at Anglican Church Grammar SchoolAnglican Church Grammar School
The Anglican Church Grammar School , is an independent, Anglican, day and boarding school for boys, located in East Brisbane, an inner suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.Founded in 1912 by Canon William Perry French Morris, Churchie has a non-selective...
. He received a PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from Deakin University in 2009.