David Hourn - "cracker"
Bob Wilson | June 24, 2024
I have known David “Cracker “Hourn since I played AW Green Shield for Waverley as a 14 year old and also while scoring for 1st Grade at the same age which was a wonderful experience both on and off the field.
I got to watch Cracker at a young age bamboozle batsman with his left arm “chinaman” leg spin bowling. He was, as many suggest, the best bowler to not to wear the Baggy Green and play Test cricket for Australia.
In 44 first class games for New South Wales Cracker took 164 wickets at an average of 28.71 with best figures of 9 for 77. He took 5 wickets in an innings on 11 occasions and two 10 wickets match hauls.
In Sydney Grade Cricket Cracker took 655 wickets at an average of 19.39 from 1967 to 1992 and on 42 occasions he took 5 or more wickets in an innings.
Cracker is one of the most popular figures in Cricket.
Welcome David,
What year were you born?
1949
Where did you go the high school?
Waverley College
Do you remember your first ever game of cricket?
My first serious game was for Waverley Crick club Green Shield at 13 years of age. From memory I got 2 for 39 against West’s at Waverley Oval
Where did you play your junior cricket?
All junior cricket for Waverley (now Easts) Cricket Club
Which clubs have you played for?
Only ever played for Waverley (now Easts)
How old were you when you first played grade cricket?
Played 4th Grade at Merrylands Oval at the age of 14
What age did you make your first grade debut?
I was 18 when I played my first game in Ist Grade
What was your best bowling figures in first grade?
8/69 against UNNSW at Village Green
Who were the best three batsman you played against in Grade cricket during your career?
Bob Simpson dominated attacks and had great footwork against spinners
John Benaud hit the ball as hard as anyone and never let the bowler settle
Peter Toohey, best player of spinners in grade cricket as well as up there with the best in First Class Cricket.
Who were the three bowlers you admired most in terms of skill and competitive spirit in Grade cricket during your career?
Dave Chardon who should have played years of First Class Cricket was quick, had great outswinger and never gave up.
Dick Guy accurate legs pinner whose record on Chatswood Oval is incredible.
Greg Matthews massive spinner for an off spinner and incredibly accurate.
When did you make your first class debut for NSW and what can you remember about the game?
January 1971 against South Australia at the SCG. The great Barry Richards played and he scored 178. I had him dropped which would have been a good first wicket. I remember Richards sitting on the pitch for at least 5 minutes refusing to continue batting until the crowd in the Sheridan Stand stopped heckling. The crowd was close to 10,000 something you wouldn’t see these days.
Who were the best 3 batsman in first class cricket you came up against and why?
Kim Hughes - was really hard to bowl to due to his footwork and variety of shots
Ian Chappell - great player of spinners who never gave his wicket away.
Allan Border - great backfoot player who was a great sweeper.
How many different variations did you have in your repertoire?
I had probably 5 variations. leg spinner, quicker leg spinner mainly used on turning decks, top spinner, wrong ‘un, zooter bowled out the bottom of the hand rather than the front and a flipper.
You played 44 first class games for NSW and more than many regard you as the best spinner not to play Test cricket, how do you look back on your first class career?
I really enjoyed my First Class Career and would have continued on for a few more years but for a very bad knee which caused me to retire at 31. I had a poorly advised knee operation at 26 that never came good which meant for 6 seasons I played on virtually one leg and in considerable pain.
What’s been your most memorable moment in cricket?
My most memorable moment in cricket would be the 3 day celebrations we had after winning the 1st Grade premiership in 1975/76 under Tony Greig.
Back Row – John Rheinberger, Dave Gibson, Peter Carlisle, Tom McCaffery (Scorer), Greg Besomo, Robert Rheinberger, Mick Benningfield
Front Row – Chris Walton (President), Len Richardson, Bruce Francis, Tony Greig (captain), Dick Rowland, Ron Crippin, John Chapman (Secretary)
Inserts – Dennis Hourn, David Hourn
Who’s been the biggest influence in your cricket career?
The biggest influence would be Peter Philpott. Percy added 3-4 variations to my bowling which I had never used before. These variations accounted for at least half my wickets in Grade and Shield Cricket. Up till I met Percy I had 2 deliveries only, a leg break and wrong ‘un.
Who was the funniest cricketing team mate?
Gus Gilmour
Who was your most annoying team mate?
Most annoying teammate would also be Gus as having roomed with him on several occasions, sleep wasn’t a priority.
Who is your favourite all time cricketer?
Viv Richards
What was the best win you were involved in?
Best win would be the first Shield game of the season in 1979/80 against Western Australia when we chased down 320 on last day. Trevor Chappell made 150 and Ross Edwards 91 against Dennis Lillee, Terry Alderman and Mick Malone.
What did you enjoy most about playing Premier/Grade Cricket in Sydney?
I loved playing Grade Cricket for the competitiveness and the friendships that I still have today.
Was there a particular team you really looked forward to playing and why?
I loved playing against Petersham because it was like a final every time. It was full on, sledging but not nasty and I was great mates with a number of their players so we enjoyed the after match celebrations no matter who won.
If you’re in the middle seat of the middle row of Qantas QF1flight to London which team mates would you choose to on your left and right?
I’d have Jason Swift to keep me amused and Stuart Webster to advise me on my golf game.
Did you have any cricketing superstitions?
No superstitions except, I didn’t like players geeing me up every ball as it affected my concentration.
Which ground in Sydney club cricket did you enjoy playing at the most?
My favourite away ground was Coogee Oval
What’s the best advice you ever received?
The best advice I ever received was from a very well credentialed NSW Country batsman Ian Canney.
He scored 70 at the SCG against me and he said I was so much harder to play when I pushed the ball through at pace. Before that I bowled very slow and copped a lot of stick. His advice prompted me to bowl at a much faster pace for the rest of my career.
Are you still involved in Cricket and if so, in what capacity?
I’m not involved in cricket, all though I am a regular at Waverley Oval to watch our club side play
Do you like the modern game and what can the game do to make it better?
I’m not a fan of Twenty20 as it does not show the true ability of a cricketer. Cricket is overexposed on Foxsports these days. We need to try and make each game mean something
What advice would you offer a young 13 year old who has the ambition of playing test cricket?
My advice is not to take the game too seriously and train hard, enjoy the game but have options
What are your hobbies?
I love golf, travel, mainly cruising the seas and watching the Sydney Roosters
What did you do for a living?
I worked in the printing game as a Sales Rep and Sales Manager for 15 years. Before that I was in the Public Service
Are there any lessons from your time in cricket that you take into work or life in general?
The main thing Cricket has taught me is to do your best at everything you attempt to do.
Lastly, Waverley Oval was famous for its back room for many years, what was it like?
It was great, we used to kick on and we were the only club to serve keg beer and everyone loved playing at Waverley Oval for that reason.
Tony Greig organized for Kerry Packer to donate a temperate in about 1975 and it lasted until they pulled down the old grandstand to build the new one several years ago.
We never had a liquor licence in all that time but it didn’t matter as a lot of the local police used to drink there anyway. Great times
