Message Board Archives

I'm sure many here have heard mention of Easton McMorris when discussing good FC players who didn't cut it at Test level.

I myself never saw him play, but I remember hearing about him scoring heavily in Shell Shield cricket. Of course by then his test career was long past. I took a look at his numbers on Cricinfo and found:

Numbers

Funny enough his numbers would not have been out of place today, but tback in those days of Sobers, Butcher Kanhai, Lloyd et al, there's no way he could have forced his way into a WI team.

However, as you read the narrative of his career, he really only struggled in England on the green pitches there, and was good enough to count 1 ton and three 50's in 13 tests.

What do the cricket watchers from that era say? Was Easton McMorris a mere FC bully or someone who just never got the chance to establish a career at the highest level?

In reply to Larr Pullo

In reply to StumpCam

Good one!!



You must have seen him, anything to add about Easton?

In reply to Larr Pullo

Nope! Like you, that was before my time!
You have to send out an APB for the Dukester and Spudz!

McMorris, Peter Lashley,and Devon Smith, were all FC bullies.

In reply to CALI-WESTINDIAN

Devon is still very much a FC bully

There was no greater FC bully than one Sheik Faoud Ahamul Fasiel Bacchus!!

True Lol

In reply to Larr Pullo

I heard he was christened as LEASTton shortly after he retired.

In reply to Larr Pullo

He was nick-named the Strokeless Wonder.

In reply to Larr Pullo

my recollection of Easton McMorris was that he was the original fc bully and got run out off a no-ball.

In reply to CALI-WESTINDIAN

Pete only had 4 test matches, bajans called Pete 'left handed Frankie' and prefer him to Nurse

In reply to Larr Pullo

u think KB is slow , the the man all week to make 25, on 2 tours to UK, He scored 1500 plus runs on each occasion.

In reply to Larr Pullo
I have seen McMorris and Peter Lashley, the era at that time was to score from day one.
Easton and Peter may have dominated local club cricket, so fan knew about them at the local level, they both went on to be very, very good regional cricketers, who failed to get it going like many others, during that time.
Everton Weekes alway speak of Seymoure batting for seven days, in preparation for Australia, he went on to score 233 runs.
Both Easton and Peter were nervous, and one test match failure got them replace.
I remember a runout for backing up to far, that was the end of Easton's test career.

In reply to tc1

In reply to openning

In reply to Larr Pullo
He could had, but he was so nervous, playing test.
I would like to compare Easton social and economic background and invoriment, to that of Basil Butcher and Seymoure Nurse.
Peter Lashley only played four tests

In reply to openning/ Larro

the run out was in 1960, off a no-ball , Hunte straight drive Trueman and he deflected on to the stumps and poor Easton was out by a mile.

my recollection of him was that he was 5 times slower than KB.he took 2 days to scored a ton

The other opener was Cammie Smith, he scored heavily against fast and straight bowlers, he could scored 40 in 10 mins, spinners like Gibbs would eat him up.

Peter Lashley was a batsman, even those he played for the wrong team,


which team was the wrong team Spartan

Bad timing...batting was very strong at that time. If Lashley and McMorris had come at a different time and got more chances they may have stuck. I remember Gomes struggling initially but got more chances and became a stalwart in the middle. Maurice Foster also fits the bill of a very good regional player who did not make it at test level.

In reply to Oilah
Two of my favourite are Larry Gomes and Joe Solomon, these two knew their role.
Mcmorris era distake, he had to hit the road running
Larr is on a Witch hunt.

In reply to openning


Larr is not o a witch hunt, Mc Morris was a fc bully, the man scored over 1500 runs each on 2 trips to England and could not buy a run in test , 2 days before the test match he scored a almost a double ton


Trueman and Statham waiting for a free wicket

In reply to tc1

You mean John Snow....

In reply to Oilah

Mc Morris was given a free ride in tests, Cammie Smith had 5 test , Glendon Gibbs had 1, Teddy Griffith had 0, Robin Bynoe 1 test at 18, the 2nd when he was 28.

he had a god father

In reply to Larr Pullo

you have to have some luck. Gomes was lucky to get another chance. I always heard about MCmorris and was around for the end of Foster. I saw Baichan. Baichan was in the mode of Balkaram Seagram and Kenrick Bainey but he was a cut above.

In reply to Larr Pullo


1963 was still Trueman and Statham , Snow was 66, you boy Easton did last as long as a snow ball in summer, he melted.

Man so scared of Trueman and Statham he rather get runout off a noball

In reply to StumpCam








//

In reply to tc1


Once.


And that was a lesson for thousands of cricketers who did not know the rule.


But he was savagely derided for that immortal blunder at Sabina Park.


//

In reply to Ewart

no, it was in Barbados in 1960 with the no ball,did he happen twice? Did he played local cricket with Sir Frank.

In reply to Larr Pullo

McMorris is one of a long line of West Indian opening batsmen who failed at Test cricket. His partner Hunte couldn't find someone to open the batting with him. Hunte's successor, Roy Fredericks, had the same problem. In recent times, Chris Gayle, has searched for a partner as well. So the million dollar question is why do we have a hard time producing quality opening batsmen in Test cricket?

In reply to Larr Pullo

Dwayne Smith looks like that picture of McMorris

I remember him from 60's radio commentaries. Him and Renford Pinnock were my favorite Jamaican players of that era. And I'm not Jamaican but they were good at the regional level and caught my attention..

In reply to Fivestar

In reply to tc1

I don't know what you saw in Barbados or read about in Barbados.

But I know what I saw at Sabina. I was there.





//

In reply to Ewart

In reply to tc1

In reply to TheTrail

Conrad straight drive Trueman and Trueman deflect the ball to the stumps at the non striker end and ran out McMorris off a no ball.

the oval was mad , man got run out off a noball



man if u doubt me ask any of the old timers when u go back to Bim, it a favorite topic

In reply to Drapsey

You must be joking! Lawrence Rowe was once the star batsman on the West Indies team coming in at number 3. He opened with Fredericks in one series because at the time we had too many middle order batsmen. There was Rowe, Kallicharan, Lloyd, Kanhai and Sobers to fill four spots. They decided Rowe would open based on his temperament and technique.

I never watched him bat, but I had more than one clash with him when I was a sports journalist and he was a cricket administrator....

Remember that Sabina Park abandoned pitch?

In reply to TheTrail


Memory is a Caribbean beach.


//

In reply to mikesiva

What was that clash like?

Bull said he got paid 5 pounds for the '63 tour!

In reply to camos

You serious? Even in that economy did 5 Pounds even meet their expenses?

In reply to Larr Pullo

Lester King told me he and Valentine gave some guys two tickets to Lords and they used those tickets to bring in about 300 folks.

In reply to Fivestar

In reply to Larr Pullo

Like M Foster , R Pinnock and Desmond Lewis .. or even the late Basil Williams ... Easton McMorris was far better than just first class

cricket. However, all of these batsmen played very few test matches ... Pinnock didn't even get one game.

In reply to Yadi

amazing how these batters are all better than their stats!!!

In reply to Larr Pullo

It's probably unfair of me to comment on it...let's just say that we didn't see eye to eye on how I wrote a story or two, and leave it at that.

In reply to Drapsey

In reply to Tagwa1

L G Rowe while opening with Fredricks:

In reply to Drapsey

That's what happen when you take a ting from a book.

The point is that Fredericks didnt have a settled partner. Comacho, baichan,the two greenidges, Richards, lewis even Bernard Julien opened with Fredo.

These 4 or 5 innings does not make him a consistent partner.

That is the point.