A Shield-winning Redbacks team who played 14 Tests or fewer

Firstly, an apology. I apologise to the players, fans and officials of the champion South Australian Sheffield Shield team.

I should have done this article the instant they claimed the 2024/25 Sheffield Shield trophy. I’ve been slack. No excuses.

South Australia are Shield champions for 2024/25. How good is it?

The Redbacks are indeed the Great Australian Bite. The boys down south are finally back on top for their 14th title. They previously won in 1893-94, 1909–10, 1912–13, 1926–27, 1935–36, 1938–39, 1952–53, 1963–64, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1975–76, 1981–82 and 1995–96. The title they won in 81-82 was the last Shield season before the final was introduced.

Now, Roar legend Matth has already done an article on the Best Ever SA XI. This is, as always a great read from Matth. But it covers all the greats from SA, both Test and non-Test players.

So, inspired by the mighty Redbacks, their 14th title and conspiracy theories, this is the best ever SA XIV of players who played between one and 14 Tests or fewer, and were involved in one or more Sheffield Shield victories for/with SA.

From Matth’s team we get:

1. Clayvel Lindsay “Jack” Badcock: Two Tests, two Shield titles with SA. Born in 1914, there’s 14 letters in Clayvel Lindsay/Clayvel Badcock/Lindsay Badcock/South Australia, which is true patriotism. In first-class matches he either scored a century or a duck 14 times. His Test batting average was rounded down to 14 and he scored a total of 14 Test runs in two drawn matches he played in where Australia fielded first.

2. David Sincock: Three Tests, one Shield title with SA. I can think of at least 14 reasons why it would be inappropriate to open the batting with Badcock and Sincock.

3. Barry Richards: Four Tests, one Shield title with SA (South Australia, not South Africa). Moved to three to make it at least a little bit fair to the opposition teams. Take 14 minutes out of your day to read this ripper from Sheek.

4. Edgar Richard “Ernie”” (or “Joyce”) Mayne: Four Tests, two Shield titles with SA. According to at least 14 internet sources “Joyce” (not his real nickname) led an Australian team to America in 1914, but I can’t find any more info about this. Perhaps he was leading a squad of 14 to fight the Americans? In the 4th innings of his last Test, “Joyce” took two catches off the bowling of Arthur Mailey who bowled 14 overs.

5. Peter Sleep: 14 Tests, one Shield title with SA. Sounda’s 14th Test wicket was Martin Crowe. He also scored over 14000 first-class runs and used 14 litres of zinc cream to cover 14% of his nose/cheeks for his 14-year List A career.

6. Joseph Patrick Francis “Ike” Travers: One Test, one Shield title with SA. Harry Houdini’s doppelganger. No idea how he got the nickname Ike. In his only Test Australia was dismissed for 144 in their first innings and with 1/14, Ike averaged 14 with the ball.

7. Philip Keith ‘Perka/Perker’ Lee: Two Tests, one Shield title with SA. Ike was born on 14 September. First Ike? Now Perka? Where do South Australians come up with these nicknames? But one of the 14 perks for Perka in this team is he will get to be the keeper.

8. Terry Jenner: Nine Tests, three Shield titles with SA. In first-class cricket, TJ took a five-for 14 times, played List A matches for 14 seasons, and could spin his googly 14 centimetres. In his only ODI, he put on 14 runs with Doug Walters after Rod Marsh was dismissed for 14. TJ was the only player on this list to win three titles under Chappelli (who scored 14 Test centuries). Rowdy has mentioned on at least 14 Roar articles that Chappelli is the greatest Test captain ever over at least 14 centuries.

9. Frank Ward: One Test, one Shield title with SA. At least 14 of you thought Frank Ward was an infamous South Aussie bushranger.

10. Geff Noblet: Three Tests, one Shield title with SA. Born on 14 September, he was asked 14 times a day why his name was spelled as Geffrey or Geff until his passing in 2006. His batting average in 71 first-class Games was 14, his bowling average in 52/53 was 14, he scored 14 runs in Tests against South Africa at an average of 14 and he also scored 14 Test runs batting at 11.

11. Eric “Fritzy” Freeman: 11 Tests, two Shield titles with SA. He bowled over 14,000 deliveries in first-class cricket while leading the Port Adelaide Magpies’ goal kicking for five seasons and wining a SANFL premiership in 1965. In 1970, he kicked 14 goals against Woodville. He sadly passed away on 14 December 2020.

Umpires

12. Arthur Richardson (Two Tests as an umpire, one title): Arthur umpired in 14 first-class matches, including Windies v England at Georgetown 14 Feb 1935. In this Test there were 14 extras in the first innings, 14 extras in the fourth innings, and Richardson called stumps with 14 overs left on day five. His last Test as a player started on 14 August 1926, and his last Test as an Umpire started on 14 February 1935. Arthur made 14 fewer first-class hundreds than the unrelated Victor. He’s even further unrelated to Jhye, who has faced 14 deliveries so far in Test cricket.

13. Second umpire: Blocker Wilson (Eight Tests as an umpire, one title): A controversial selection given he wasn’t selected in the 95/96 final team, but that season he played three matches and took seven wickets. Blocker was on the National Umpire Panel for 14 years. As a player, in the first innings of his only Test, Blocker carried his bat in an innings which included 14 extras and a partnership of 14 between SA legend Greg Blewett and Mark Waugh. The last wicket taken in that innings was by opening bowler, Saurav Ganguly (3-28) in his 14th over. The Indians replied by batting for 14 hours. Blocker could only bowl 20 overs in this innings due to osteitis pubis, which has a recovery time of 14 weeks.

I’m so disappointed Matth didn’t pick 52/53 Shield Champion Jack “”Chucker” Wilson in his team. Then I would have been able to pick an SA XIV with Blocker and Chucker Wilson.

14th Man: Nip Pellew: Still today he is ranked in the top 14 fielders of all time. Nip hit 14 fours in Tests when he batted at number four. He would have batted more than 14 innings in Tests had he not enlisted in the 27th Battalion in 1915. After the war, Nip was one of the 14 players selected for the Australian Imperial Forces touring squad to England in 1920.

McShamelessly overlooked

Nathan McSweeney: Three Tests, one title in 24/25. Having led the current Shield champions and having the advantage of still being alive, he should have been the obvious choice as captain. N-Mac averages 14 batting in Tests and has scored 14 runs batting in the second innings. McSweeney scored a total of 14 runs in the recent Shield final. Amazingly, that includes 14 runs in SA’s second innings. After SA’s recent Shield victory, McSweeney quite possibly celebrated by consuming 14 beverages per hour for 14 hours over 14 days.

Non-Matth Notables (non-Matth means some non-14 related stats)

JJ Ferris: Played a single match for SA. Did not win a Shield title with the yet-to-be-named Redbacks.

Algy Gehrs: Six Tests, one title. “Blue Green” Algy faced 14 deliveries (Australia’s second innings) in cricket’s 114th Test. He also finished third in the Stawell Gift in 1904 (1+9+4).

Walter Giffen: Two Tests, first-class batting average 15.83, which was 14 runs more than he averaged in Tests. The Bulletin wrote 14 articles bagging Walter, in one calling him “one of the worst Test batsmen of all time” and he was only selected to play because brother George threatened to pull out if he wasn’t.

Affie Jarvis: 11 Tests, retired the season before SOA won their first comp in 1893/94.

Jack Reedman: One Test, one title. SA have 14 champion wicketkeepers, and he also bowled, so he’s 14 times too good for just one Test. And he was way too good at AFL, anyway.

Kevin Wright: One Test, one title in 1981/82 where he averaged 49 with the bat as wicketkeeper.

Rick Darling: 14 Tests. How can he not make this team? Great-uncle Joe was considered 14-times the player of Rick.

Peter McIntyre: Two Tests, one title. Dismissed Tendulkar in his first match as captain with the second delivery he bowled to him.

Jack Crawford: “FBI Director” was ruled completely ineligible due to being English and letting Hannibal Lecter escape.

Jeff Hammond: Five Tests, one title. Would have loved to have Jeff/Geff take the new ball, but them’s the rules.

Chucker Wilson: One Test, one title. Adding Chucker gives us an SA all-time under-14 Tests bowling attack of Jeff, Geff, Blocker and Chucker.

Jack O’Connor: Four Tests, one title. Pros – his two middle names of Denis Alphonsus have 14 letters. Cons – he played three seasons with NSW. This team dislikes the imported-from-NSW-types like Bradman and prefers pure bloods, like Brad Young.

Brad Young: Six ODIs. He debuted the season after SA won the title in 95/96. Still a more worthy entrant to the SA XIV than BradMan.