Bodyline
In memory of Geocacher - Dillon the Dog , who helped me set it
As a good chunk of my family are Australian then there are few things I like better than getting one over the Aussies. One of the key battle grounds between the two nations is the game of cricket. There have been many Ashes series and recently the Aussies have got the better of things. This cache is all about an Ashes series where England won. It was the most contraversial Ashes test ever. It caused such bad blood that it led to a full blown diplomatic row between the two nations, the 1932-33 series which became known as the "Bodyline" tour. Whats this got to do with geocaching? Well the whole thing can be traced to the village of Moore! Read on.
George Duckworth and Donald Bradman
The previous test series to Bodyline was in 1930 when the Australians toured England. Australia were in good form and won the series 2-1 with batsman Donald Bradman being in particulalry fine form and setting a record (which still stands to this day) number of aggregate runs in one series. However the England wicket keeper George Duckworth thought that he noticed a chink in Bradman's armour. This lead to a new tactic, bowl the ball straight for the batsman causing him to take evasive action or bat away in a certain way in order to provide a more easier catch for the fielder. The English called this "Fast Leg Theory".
The BodyLine Tour
The English players first tried their tactic in a first-class tour match against an Australian XI in Melbourne on 18-22 November,seeing the bruising balls hit the Australian batsmen on several occasions in this game and the next angered the spectators. The English players and management were consistent in referring to their tactic as fast leg theory because most of them considered it to be a variant of the established - and relatively harmless - leg theory tactic. The Australian press came up with the far more evocative and inflammatory term, Bodyline.
In the Test matches, Bradman managed to just about cope with the barrage and he managed a fairly respectable batting average (though much lower than his usual). He only got struck by the ball once. His team mates fared much worse in terms of runs and injuries. Matters came to a head in the Third Test at Adelaide, when English bowler Harold Larwood struck Australian captain Bill Woodfull above the heart, and fractured wicket-keeper Bert Oldfield's skull. Tension and feelings ran so high that a riot was narrowly averted as police stationed themselves between the players and enraged spectators.
Diplomatic Row
At the end of the fourth day's play the Australian Board of Control for Cricket sent the following cable to the MCC in London: " Bodyline bowling has assumed such proportions as to menace the best interests of the game, making protection of the body by the batsman the main consideration. This is causing intensely bitter feeling between the players, as well as injury. In our opinion it is unsportsmanlike. Unless stopped at once it is likely to upset the friendly relations existing between Australia and England." Douglas Jardine the England captain however insisted his tactic was not designed to cause injury and that he was leading his team in a sportsmanlike and gentlemanly manner, arguing that it was up to the Australian batsmen to play their way out of trouble. He also secretly sent a telegram of sympathy to Bert Oldfield's wife and arranged for presents to be given to his young daughters. The situation escalated into a diplomatic incident between the countries as the MCC - supported by the British public and still of the opinion that their fast leg theory tactic was harmless - took serious offence at being branded "unsportsmanlike" and demanded a retraction. With World War I still fresh in people's memories and the first rumblings of World War II beginning, many people saw Bodyline as fracturing an international relationship that needed to remain strong. Jardine, and by extension the entire English team, threatened to withdraw from the fourth and fifth Tests unless the Australian Board withdrew the accusation of unsporting behaviour. Public reaction in both England and Australia was outrage directed at the other nation. The Governor of South Australia, Alexander Hore-Ruthven, who was in England at the time, expressed his concern to British Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs James Henry Thomas that this would cause a significant impact on trade between the nations. The standoff was settled only when Australian Prime Minister Joseph Lyons met with members of the Australian Board and outlined to them the severe economic hardships that could be caused in Australia if the British public boycotted Australian trade. Given this understanding, the Board withdrew the allegation of unsportsmanlike behaviour two days before the fourth Test, thus saving the tour. The English team continued to bowl Bodyline in the remaining two Tests, but slower pitches meant the Australians, although frequently bruised, sustained no further serious injuries. England won the series 4-1 and the Ashes "came home".
Legacy
There were significant consequences for Anglo-Australian relations, which remained strained, until the outbreak of World War II made cooperation paramount. Business between the two countries was adversely affected as citizens of each country displayed a preference for not buying goods manufactured in the other. Australian commerce also suffered in British colonies in Asia: the North China Daily News published a pro-Bodyline editorial, denouncing Australians as sore losers. An Australian journalist reported that several business deals in Hong Kong and Shanghai were lost by Australians because of local reactions. Over the next two decades, several of the Laws of Cricket were changed to prevent this tactic being repeated. Law 42 includes: "The bowling of fast short pitched balls is dangerous and unfair if the umpire at the bowler's end considers that by their repetition and taking into account their length, height and direction they are likely to inflict physical injury on the striker.." English immigrants in Australia found themselves shunned and persecuted by locals, and Australian visitors to England were treated similarly. Some years later a statue of Prince Albert in Sydney was vandalised, with an ear being knocked off and the word "BODYLINE" painted on it. To this day, the Bodyline tour remains one of the most significant events in the history of cricket, and strong in the consciousness of many cricket followers. In a poll of cricket journalists, commentators, and players in 2004, the Bodyline tour was ranked the most important event in cricket history.
Whats this got to do with Geocaching/Moore ?
Assuming you have read this far. Here it is. I have always been fascintated by the Bodyline story. What I didn't know is that the person who you could say started it all (George Duckworth) was born in the village of Moore (where this cache is). I found this out recently (and I am grateful to Jean a.ka. Geocacher Dillon The Dog for telling me this)!. George was born in the cottage opposite the Red Lion pub. When I did my North West Monthly meet in this very pub I tried to fill the page with trivia about Runcorn but it was in short supply. All that time I had a titbit like this and I didn't know. So I thought George deserves a special mention and a special cache. George probably played cricket in these fields once.
Practicalities
There is only room for one car at the 1st parking coordinates. However the 2nd one has much more room (and you get to see George's house!). Of course its a private residence so no poking around! I put a child friendly icon on because Moore has a brand new children's play area which I have given the coordiantes for.
