Sir George Oswald Browning "Gubby" Allen CBE (31 July 190229 November 1989) was a cricketer who captained England in eleven Test matches. In first-class matches, he played for Middlesex and Cambridge University. A fast bowler and hard-hitting lower-order batsman, Allen later became an influential cricket administrator who held key positions in the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), which effectively ruled English cricket at the time; he also served as chairman of the England selectors.
Allen was born in Australia and grew up in England from the age of six. After playing cricket for Eton College, he went to Cambridge University where he established a reputation as a fast bowler, albeit one who was often injured. After leaving university, Allen played mainly for Middlesex. He improved as a batsman in the following seasons until work commitments forced him to play less regularly. A change of career allowed him to play more cricket, and by the late 1920s he was on the verge of the England Test team. He made his debut in 1930, and remained in contention for a place, when he was available to play, for the rest of the decade. During the controversial Bodyline tour of 1932–33, Allen was very successful for England but refused to use the intimidatory tactics employed by his teammates.
From 1933, Allen worked in the London Stock Exchange, which limited the amount of cricket he could play. Even so, he was appointed England captain in 1936 and led the team during the 1936–37 tour of Australia, when the home team won 3–2 having lost the first two matches. He continued to play irregularly for Middlesex until 1939; after the Second World War, in which he worked in military intelligence, he played occasionally for Middlesex and other teams into the 1950s. He captained England in a final Test series in the West Indies in 1947–48. As a cricketer, Allen was affected by his lack of regular play and was at his most effective during his two tours of Australia when he was able to build up his form. At other times, his bowling was often erratic but occasionally devastating. An orthodox batsman, he often scored runs when his team were under pressure.
As Allen's first-class career came to a close, he moved into administration and held considerable influence in English and world cricket. He was instrumental in the creation of a MCC coaching manual, and worked hard to eliminate illegal bowling actions. As chairman of selectors from 1955 to 1961, he presided over a period of great success for English cricket, during which he worked closely with the Test captain Peter May. In 1963, he became MCC president, and was made the club's treasurer the following year. In this role, he was deeply involved in the D'Oliveira affair, a controversy over the potential selection of Basil D'Oliveira to tour South Africa. After Allen's gradual retirement from his administrative roles, he was knighted in 1986 and spent his later years in a flat close to Lord's, where he died, aged 87, in 1989.
Early life
Allen was born on 31 July 1902 in Bellevue Hill, Sydney, Australia, the second of three children to Walter Allen, a lawyer, and his wife Marguerite (Pearl), née Lamb, the daughter of Edward Lamb, a Queensland government minister. Later rumours suggested that Allen's real father may have been the Middlesex cricketer Pelham Warner, who supported Allen in his cricket career. Finding that they enjoyed England, the family abandoned plans to return to Australia.
After being educated by a governess, Allen joined Summer Fields School in Oxford in 1912. He began to play cricket seriously at school; by his second year, he reached the school second team, from where he progressed to the first team then the captaincy. His ability attracted the attention of Eton College, where a friend of Allen's father, C. M. Wells, was a housemaster. The family had planned to send Allen to Haileybury, but Wells persuaded Allen senior to send his son to Eton instead, although it was a considerable financial burden on the family. Allen, although not initially keen on the prospect, started there in the winter of 1915–16.
At Eton, Allen played many sports, but his academic performance was no more than respectable, In cricket, Allen played for his school house team and had reasonable success with bat and ball; by 1918 he was house cricket captain. After a trial match, and a spell in the school second team, he progressed to the Eton first team in 1919. The effects of a rib injury limited his bowling, and he achieved little with the bat. Even so, he was chosen to play in the prestigious match against Harrow School, played annually at Lord's in London. In his second innings, he scored 69 runs, the highest individual score of the game, and Eton won the match. His rib injury continued to trouble him in 1920, and caused him such pain that he considered abandoning bowling altogether. The new Eton coach George Hirst persuaded him to continue, and a few weeks later Allen took nine for 19 (nine wickets while conceding 19 runs) in an innings against Winchester. But other than this performance, Allen was ineffective. More successful in 1921, he opened the batting for a time; he also opened the bowling, topping the Eton bowling averages. He had some success at Lord's against Harrow and a particularly fast bowling spell in this match was seen by Hubert Ashton, who was to captain the Cambridge University team the following year—Allen had already been approved for a place at Trinity College, Cambridge beginning later that year. He was chosen to play in the annual matches at Lord's in which two teams representing the best public schoolboys opposed each other, but was forced to withdraw with sunstroke.
Towards the end of the 1921 season, Allen was invited to play first-class cricket as an amateur for Middlesex, for whom he qualified by residence. He played four times for Middlesex and played in two Test trial games, but did not play in the season's only Test match. His most important game of the season was the Gentlemen v Players match, in which many of those involved were potential selections for the touring team; he took eight wickets in the game, The press reaction to his inclusion was mixed, and there were several who criticised the selectors. Having been named in the team, Allen did not play again in the season. In eight first-class matches, he scored 113 runs at 11.30 and took 25 wickets at 25.36. The tactic involved bowling at leg stump or just outside it, pitching the ball short so that it reared at the batsman's body and with a ring of fielders ranged on the leg side to catch any defensive deflections from the bat. Bodyline bowling was intimidatory, and was largely designed and implemented by Douglas Jardine, the MCC captain, in an attempt to curb the prolific scoring of Bradman. Allen was one of four fast bowlers chosen for the tour, but did not go along with Jardine's instructions to "hate" the opposition. Nevertheless, the two men got along, and Allen later claimed to be Jardine's "best friend" on the tour.
Jardine did not initially plan to include Allen in the Test team, In his first game, he unsettled and dismissed Bradman with his pace; Allen later wrote to his father that Bradman was a "terrible little coward of fast bowling"; the two men later became friends, and Bradman was never made aware of what Allen wrote. but England won the remaining three matches of the series. As Voce missed the fourth Test with injury, Allen bowled more in that game and took five wickets, but suffered a side-strain in the second innings. The injury prevented Allen bowling at full pace in the final Test; he played despite his own reservations and struggled throughout. In total, Allen took 21 Test wickets at an average of 28.23 and scored 163 runs at 23.28. Jardine praised his contribution after the tour, both to Allen's family and in his official report. In all first-class matches, Allen scored 397 runs at 24.81 and took 39 wickets at 23.05. Speaking to David Frith, he denied that Bodyline was used in the first match, and when challenged, replied: "My dear chap, I was there." Frith also reports that on the first day of the second Test, Allen had up to five fielders on the leg side, and one of his deliveries struck the Australian captain Bill Woodfull on the chest. |group=notes His attitude made him popular with Australian spectators. Jardine twice tried to force the issue. Before the first Test, he asked Allen to bowl more bouncers with fielders on the leg side; Allen refused, saying he did not want to play cricket like that and that Jardine should leave him out if he was not happy. Allen threatened not to play, and to go home to relate the events of the tour to the press. Jardine did not pursue the matter. Others in the team also opposed Bodyline. The Nawab of Pataudi refused to field in the "leg trap"—the ring of fielders positioned on the leg side to catch deflections from short deliveries—during the first Test.
Allen was capable of bowling unusually quickly. Critics judged him to have an excellent bowling action, through which he achieved his pace. Robertson-Glasgow continued: "His bowling, though it varies from piercing accuracy to almost ludicrous irrelevance, has often touched greatness."
thumb|upright|left|Allen bowling in 1932|alt=A cricketer pictured just after having bowled the ball
During the early part of his career, Allen was often in competition with Larwood. Swanton suggests that, had he played regularly, Allen may have matched the achievements of Larwood. Robertson-Glasgow believed that Allen suffered from not bowling regularly. When called upon to play while lacking practice, he often "bowled wildly or inconsistently". But Woodcock and Robertson-Glasgow believed that, in this period, only Larwood was capable of more devastating spells of fast bowling among Englishmen. Wyatt rated him as a good captain, and stated: "As a captain, he was a disciplinarian but was always most considerate to the members of his side". Allen was heavily involved in an MCC drive to improve youth cricket in the early 1950s. Unlike many of the cricketing Establishment, who saw improved public school and amateur cricket as a priority, Allen wanted the MCC to focus on state schools and boys who did not have access to top-class facilities. In 1951, the club formed the MCC Youth Cricket Association, of which Allen was a member. Another part of the process was the compilation of the MCC coaching book in 1951, which aimed to improve coaching standards throughout the country. Allen worked in collaboration with Harry Altham; Allen was responsible for the technical aspects of the publication. In later years, Allen judged this work to improve youth cricket as one of his proudest achievements as an administrator. In his survey of English cricket in the 1950s, Tim Quelch states that the coaching drive, and other similar initiatives at the time, achieved little owing to the limited resources available and because the boys coached had little opportunity to play cricket. Before the 1955 season, he was nominated as the Chairman of Selectors, and as his senior partner at David Bevan had no objection, he accepted. The workload of the post brought his playing days to an end.
Allen served as chairman from 1955 to 1961; under him were three other selectors, who varied throughout his period as chairman, and the serving England captain. Among Allen's priorities were to promote attacking batsmanship, good fielding, and for the team to bowl overs more quickly. While looking for new batting talent, Allen often promoted young amateur batsmen; several emerged in this period, including Ted Dexter and Colin Cowdrey, who had successful careers and were part of a strong English batting line-up. At least one member of the England team, Jim Laker, resented the preference of amateurs, whom he believed were paid more for playing than the professionals. Many professional cricketers thought that Allen was a snob who preferred to keep them in their place; critics believed that he deliberately restricted the career of Les Jackson for reasons of class. Allen also played the role of disciplinarian. Several of the England players enjoyed a hectic social life; it was often left to Allen to issue warnings when they transgressed. He played an active role in home Test matches, generally attending at least three of the five days of every game, discussing tactics with the captain, and speaking to the press. When May was absent from the team with illness during parts of 1960 and 1961, Cowdrey replaced him.
Allen and May's first series in control resulted in a 3–2 win over South Africa. In 1956, the Australians toured England. The home team won the five-match series 2–1. The selectors made several important decisions throughout the series. In the third Test, Allen pushed for the inclusion of Cyril Washbrook, who was then 41 years old and had not played a Test for five years. Washbrook scored 98, and England won the match. In the fourth game, David Sheppard, who had barely played in 1956, was selected and scored a century, and in the final Test Denis Compton was recalled after a long-term injury and scored 94. The Wisden editor Norman Preston judged the selectors to have done a good job that season, making choices with which critics disagreed. He wrote: "I think it is appropriate, therefore, that tribute be paid to [the selectors] for the time and patience they devoted to their task last summer. Nothing was too much trouble for them." Allen was involved in one controversial episode, when the Australians accused him and other selectors of arranging for the pitches during the Test matches to give a lot of assistance to spin bowlers, which led to Laker's extraordinary success in the series. Allen denied any involvement. During the winter, Allen was part of an advisory group which looked for ways to revitalise county cricket.
England won the 1957 Test series against the West Indies 3–0 and the 1958 series against New Zealand 4–0. But despite having what was regarded as a strong team, England lost 4–0 in Australia in 1958–59. The team was more successful afterwards, beating India 5–0 in 1959, defeating West Indies 1–0 in 1959–60 and South Africa 3–0 in 1960. Allen's final series as chairman was against Australia in 1961; England lost after making tactical mistakes in the fourth Test.
Influence behind the scenes
In 1956, Allen became chairman of the MCC's Cricket Committee. The committee looked at ways to improve cricket, for example analysing whether reducing the size of the ball would help bowlers. Allen also began to pursue bowlers with illegal bowling actions; commentators were aware that this was a growing issue but no action had been taken, and Allen took the lead. Three English bowlers were no-balled for throwing in 1959 and another five in 1960. Geoff Griffin, a bowler who toured England with the South African team in 1960, was perceived to have a suspect action; when the bowler was no-balled for throwing in a Test match, the South African press suggested that Allen had played a prominent part. Later that year, Allen met Bradman, Australia's representative at the Imperial Cricket Conference (ICC); the pair wanted to ensure that bowling actions would be fair in future, and the ICC agreed to take action. When Australia toured England in 1961, no bowlers whose actions had been questioned were included in either team. Allen later took the lead in re-drafting the law on throwing. making all cricketers paid professionals, Allen opposed the change. In 1963, he was appointed as MCC President. When his one-year term of office ended in late 1964, he was appointed to the influential role of MCC Treasurer, a position he filled until 1976. He was heavily involved in a change in the relationship between the MCC and English cricket in 1968. The newly formed Sports Council required that, to receive financial support from the government, cricket be more democratically organised and not run by a private members' club. Allen and S. C. Griffith, the MCC secretary, liaised with the Minister of Sport to set up a new Cricket Council, comprising representatives from the MCC, the new Test and County Cricket Board and the National Cricket Association. This move significantly reduced the influence of the MCC, and at Allen's suggestion, the club's influence within the Cricket Council was further reduced in 1974.
Allen was prosperous by this stage of his life. An inheritance from his mother, his earnings on the Stock Exchange and the success of investments he had made in Australia left him affluent—his knowledge of Australian markets was respected in the City. In 1965, Allen underwent the first of four hip operations spread over the following 14 years; he believed that his fast bowling may have brought about his hip problems.
D'Oliveira affair
In 1968, the MCC was involved in controversy over the non-selection of the mixed-race cricketer Basil D'Oliveira to tour South Africa, which was then under apartheid. The South African government did not want D'Oliveira, himself South African-born, in the England team because of his colour. The MCC were aware that there was opposition to a tour taking place, and that D'Oliveira's place in the team would be an issue, but wanted the tour to go ahead. The Shadow Foreign Secretary and former MCC President Sir Alec Douglas-Home visited South Africa in January 1968 and met the South African Prime Minister B. J. Vorster, Vorster suggested to Douglas-Home that the MCC should not explicitly ask whether D'Oliveira's selection would be acceptable, but that it was likely no protest would be made. Douglas-Home passed this information to the MCC and advised them not to push for an answer. but their change of strategy meant that when the official reply arrived Allen refused to take receipt of it. In his biography of D'Oliveira, Peter Oborne writes that Allen and the MCC secretary Billy Griffith wished to hide any South African reply from the full MCC Committee to avoid raising awkward questions over Vorster's intentions.
In March 1968, Lord Cobham, an MCC member who wanted the tour to go ahead, met Vorster, who told him that D'Oliveira would not be an acceptable selection to the South African government. Cobham communicated this information to an MCC Committee member, whose identity has never been made public, by private letter. Other than the recipient, only Allen, Griffith and the then-President Arthur Gilligan were aware of the letter, but they chose to keep its contents from the rest of the committee. Oborne suggests that Douglas-Home's advice was made redundant by Cobham's letter, and that Allen's supposed desire to protect the other selectors was "preposterous" as the tour would have been cancelled.
When the English selectors met to choose the team, Allen, Griffith and Gilligan were present to represent the MCC; they had no official say in the selection, but Oborne suggests that Allen made it clear that he considered D'Oliveira unworthy of a place on the team on cricketing grounds. D'Oliveira was eventually left out, to considerable anger and controversy. When he was later added to the team following an injury to another player, Vorster said that the MCC would not be welcome and the tour was cancelled. Some of the events leading up to D'Oliveira's exclusion became public knowledge the following year; the MCC came under heavy public pressure, and the press called for Allen to resign. Oborne suggests that Allen, although not a supporter of apartheid, wished to maintain the traditional links between England and South Africa; he regarded opponents of apartheid as enemies of the MCC and the Establishment.
In 1970, the proposed visit of a South African team to England was subject of widespread public opposition. The MCC was no longer solely responsible for any decisions, being only a part of the Cricket Council, but Allen pressed the government to intervene and decide whether the tour should go ahead. He believed it was a political matter outside the scope of cricket authorities; the government eventually became involved and the tour was cancelled.
Final years
Allen retired from the Stock Exchange in 1972, resigned as MCC Treasurer in 1976 and left the Cricket Council in 1982. where he lived until his death.