catches by sub fielders - not counted in overall stats

This post is provoked by Jackson Bird's performance here ... he's taken 4 catches in the match, 3 of them very good close to the wicket grabs, but none will go to his overall stats, which show that he has only taken two catches at Test level.

I wonder how good the records are for Tests taken by sub fielders, i.e. the identities of those fielders.

Suspect he has at least shown that he fields better than Mennie ...

I have noticed that the names of the sub fielders are now shown on the scorecards, as are those involved in run outs.

I suspect that historical records are poor but possibly could be recreated from match reports.

As twelfth man, he is still part of the team & therefore his performances should be recognised imho.

Big Dog wrote:As twelfth man, he is still part of the team & therefore his performances should be recognised imho.

Yes, but sometimes the sub fielder is not the official twelfth man. How do you recognise the performance of someone who has not been capped?

taipan wrote:

Big Dog wrote:As twelfth man, he is still part of the team & therefore his performances should be recognised imho.

Yes, but sometimes the sub fielder is not the official twelfth man. How do you recognise the performance of someone who has not been capped?

Well, you can't. I'm suggesting that only the official twelfth man be recognised.

They've never been counted in a player's overall stats in the past.

I'm not sure this is ideal; however it would be difficult to deal with the catches taken by those sub fielders who never played in a Test eleven, and there have been a few of them in modern times.

Big Dog wrote:

taipan wrote:

Big Dog wrote:As twelfth man, he is still part of the team & therefore his performances should be recognised imho.

Yes, but sometimes the sub fielder is not the official twelfth man. How do you recognise the performance of someone who has not been capped?

Well, you can't. I'm suggesting that only the official twelfth man be recognised.

In principle I agree with you, but there are a number of grey areas.

Given that the WSC stats are not even counted as first class, this seems a minor issue.

There has been so much 'test'' cricket since those days that inflates player records.

Recognition for Gary Pratt at last!

And Peter Cantwell (?), the Queenslander who took two blinding catches in the gully on the Sunday morning on the Brisbane Test in 90-91. At least he was a regular first-class cricketer, unlike Gary 'Where the hell's MY MBE?' Pratt

Peter Cantrell.

taipan wrote:I have noticed that the names of the sub fielders are now shown on the scorecards, as are those involved in run outs.

I suspect that historical records are poor but possibly could be recreated from match reports.

I'm not so sure. That would be quite a project ...

Apparently the first catch ever taken by a sub fielder in a Test was by Murdoch, then Australian captain, acting as a sub fielder for England against his own side!

I think I recall John Hampshire taking at least one catch in the 1970-71 series v Australia, here, as a sub fielder, towards the end of that series.

Some more recent local examples include Cantrell (two catches in 1999), Marcus Labuschagne, Chris Sabburg (who caught Kevin Pietersen in an Ashes Test), and perhaps even Ryan Broad.

Peter Cantrell was (allegedly) out until 3am at The Underground nightclub before taking two outstanding catches at gully during the Australia v England Test in 1999.

At present Jackson Bird has taken more uncredited catches in one match (as sub fielder) than he has otherwise in his whole Test career.

Gideon Haigh tells the story: In 1986 former England keeper Bob Taylor, who by this stage was 45 years old and had not played any competitive cricket for three years, was at Trent Bridge doing the corporate catering when the home team keeper broke a finger and had to be replaced. Using borrowed kit and gloves which didn't fit him properly, he kept spotlessly for more than two sessions and took a catch, then the designated second England keeper arrived and took over. Taylor was given a standing ovation as he left the field, absolutely appropriately for a good bloke and dedicated craftsman who had uncomplainingly been a sub keeper for the first two-thirds of his career.

In Adelaide in Jan 82, the local Shield team were practising next door when team management was asked to release FOUR players for subbing duties after Greg Chappell and Rod Marsh busted fingers, Dennis Lillee's back started acting up again and another player also reported ill. From the team which won the last non-final Sheffield Shield, but provided a grand total of zero spots in the Test team for the summer, Rick Darling, Peter Sleep, David Hookes and Wayne Phillips all subbed all day....with Marsh's spot filled not by 'Wayne Bloody', but by Hookes. The four subs at once has to be close to a record.

India must have had a few in that West Indian test where half the team didn't bat in the last innings.

Most catches by a sub in one test.

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/records/283623.html

aye, saw that list

found this when looking for anything we'd ever done on dropped catches ... interesting thread