Bert Bicknell 1887-1953
Randwick Petersham Cricket Club | August 28, 2024
Randwick Petersham is fortunate to have had so many dedicated and capable founding fathers. Petersham had Sydney Smith (60+ years), Randwick had Os Taylor (60+ years), Petersham-Marrickville had Dudley Seddon (60+) and Jack Ross (55) while Marrickville had Bert Bicknell, who was such a dedicated clubman, he virtually lived for the club in the latter part of his life.
Burbury Herbert “Bert” Bicknell originally played for Petersham joining that club in 1912-13 aged 25. He was principally a lower grade batsman playing in the 2nd and 3rd Grade teams for nine seasons totalling 2,681 runs with a top score of 114 in 1915-16. He made his 1st Grade debut in 1914-15 playing just a handful of games for 112 runs with 35 his best score. In 1920-21 he had his first taste of cricket administration by representing Petersham as a delegate to the NSW Cricket Association.
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When Marrickville was admitted to 1st Grade in 1921-22 Bert joined the new club but retired as a player. He was immediately elected to the club’s Executive Committee and appointed one of its delegates to the NSW Cricket Association. The following season he was elected Honorary Secretary, a position he was to hold for the next 29 years.
Apart from his legendary contribution to Marrickville, Bert’s record with the NSW Cricket Association was nothing short of outstanding. His term as Marrickville delegate spanned 30 years and during that time Bert took on a number of other roles. In 1923 he was elected to the Country Committee and remained on that committee until 1927 when he was elected to the Grade Committee. In 1938 he became Chairman of the Grade Committee which he retained for six years before being elected in 1944 to the Association’s top administrative body the Executive Committee (the equivalent of today’s NSW Cricket Board). A year earlier he had been elected a Life Member of the NSW Cricket Association.
What was amazing was the number of meetings Bert Bicknell attended at Association level. A search of the records of the Association has revealed that in his 30 years as a club delegate he attended 382 of 398 NSWCA monthly meetings; 560 of 572 Grade Committee meetings; 37 of 37 Country Committee meetings and 357 out of a possible 368 Executive Committee meetings. Add to that his 305 out of 305 Marrickville Management Committee meetings and his cricket meetings total 1,641 out of a possible 1,680.
To put the contribution of Bert Bicknell at club and Association level into perspective, it needs to be remembered that in those days there were no computers, no email, few telephones and even fewer cars. Communication was by more personal means such as physical presence or “snail mail” with the occasional telegram. One can only wonder how a Grade Club Secretary such as Bert Bicknell handled a late Saturday morning drop-out!
The record books show that Bert Bicknell was a rare individual with “indefatigable energy” in carrying out his duties. He spent his time with Marrickville continually urging the club on to greater heights and literally toiled night and day to achieve that object. No effort was too great for Bert if it involved the advancement of Marrickville or of some ambitious youngster as he firmly believed cricket to be the outstanding sport combining the greatest elements of the British character.
No-one had a greater love of the Marrickville District Cricket Club than Bert Bicknell. He gave his life to it. When the merger with Petersham was forced on the club in 1951, Bert was a broken man. He was devastated and immediately retired from cricket administration. The club made him a Life Member prior to the merger but the pain of it all took its toll and on 23 June 1953, the man from 11 Stoke Avenue in his beloved Marrickville, passed away. He was 66. He left a wife, Ruby and a daughter Thelma who had earlier married the great Marrickville all-rounder and Hon Solicitor, Joseph McDougall.
The regard in which Bert Bicknell was held was illustrated by the many famous cricketers such as Keith Miller, Arthur Morris, Alan Davidson, Richie Benaud, Jim Burke, Bob Simpson, Brian Booth and Peter Philpott who turned out for a match at Marrickville Oval on 24 October 1954 to raise funds for a scoreboard to be built at the ground in Bert’s memory.
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