In the Shadow of the Trumper Pavilion
Martin Chandler |Published: 2024
Pages: 105
Author: Cardwell, Ronald (editor)
Publisher: The Cricket Press Pty Ltd
Rating: 4 stars
This is the second Victor Trumper title I mentioned in this recent review, although having now read the book I have to concede that the legendary titular character would be better described as the theme of this book rather than its subject.
In truth the subject matter of this one is Trumper’s club, Gordon, their Chatswood Oval ground and the pavilion there named after their greatest player, which celebrated its centenary this year, hence the publication of this collection of writings.
Altogether there are a total of 15 essays, shared between seven contributors; editor Ronald Cardwell, James Cattlin, Matthew Nicholson, Richard Stobo, Paul Stephenson, Norman Tasker and Richard Thomas, all of them closely connected to Gordon and all of them at the very least decent cricketers in their own right.
The first contribution, naturally, deals with the creation of the club and ground and the coming into being of the pavilion. Written by Cardwell it is, as his work always is, thoroughly researched as well as being written in an engaging style.
After that the essays look largely at some of the great and the good who have played for Gordon over the years. The roll call is an impressive one. Along with Trumper the all time greats are Charlie Macartney and Neil Harvey, but there are plenty of other Test players too, Johnny Taylor , Charles Kelleway and wicketkeepers Bert Oldfield and Brian Taber amongst them.
One Gordon player who didn’t wear the Baggy Green, but undoubtedly would have done had it not been for the intervention of the Great War was AG ‘Johnny’ Moyes, a fine batsman whose name endures more because of his later career as a journalist and broadcaster. Moyes oeuvre did not include an autobiography, so Paul Stephenson’s piece on his life is a welcome one.
But my favourite contributions go back to the name in the book’s title. Sydney and Charles Trumper were Victor’s younger brothers and they each, like Victor, had a son to whom they gave their name. All four played for Gordon, and Cattlin and Cardwell tell their stories.
On a similar theme is the chapter by Cattlin on the subject of Trumper’s grandson, also Victor, who played for Gordon in the 1960s under the name of Vic Turner to avoid unrealistic expectations. There is also a striking photograph of Victor III with his own son, Victor again, taken at the Sydney Cricket Ground in 2009, the lineage obvious in their faces.
As always the publisher of this one has done an excellent job of producing this a quality commemorative item, copies of which have been signed by all of the contributors. Copies are available from Roger Page in Australia and Boundary Books in the UK.
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