Hampshire centurion McCorkell passes away

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Former Hampshire wicketkeeper Neil McCorkell, who played for his only county from 1932 to 1951, has died aged 100.

McCorkell, who would have been 101 on March 23, never played Test cricket but did represent an England XI led by Lord Tennyson, his Hampshire captain, on an unofficial tour to India in 1937 and was selected twice for the Players in the Gentlemen v Players fixture.

McCorkell claimed 532 catches and 185 stumpings in his 396 first-class games. He averaged 25.60 with the bat, with 17 centuries and a high score of 203.
He made his Hampshire debut against Somerset in the summer of 1932, aged 20, and quickly became a regular in the side, scoring more than 1,000 runs in a season nine times.

At his retirement, he was Hampshire's most successful wicketkeeper in first-class cricket - although Bobby Parks subsequently overtook him - and was appointed captain for his final match, which was ruined by rain.

After a career interrupted by war - McCorkell was a firefighter at Vickers factory in Newbury during World War II - he emigrated to South Africa and worked as cricket coach at Parktown Boys' High School in Johannesburg for 30 years. The McCorkell Oval is named after him.

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