Tour of West Indies   1947-48            Captain : Gubby Allen
	England’s 37th Test tour (December 1947 - March 1948)     Third Test playing tour of West Indies by England   (previous tour  1934-35)	As in 1934-35 M.C.C. sent an understrength team, which West Indies beat by two matches to nil. Many leading players were resting before the visit of the 1948 Australians, so Bedser, Compton, Edrich and others were not available. Eventually, injuries dictated that Hutton would have to be brought over to reinforce the touring party. He was the first player to fly out to support an English team on tour. His fellow opener Jack Robertson scored 390 runs in the Test matches but his invaluable role tends to be overlooked because of the part played by Billy Griffith in an emergency when England had only eleven fit players at Port of Spain. Griffith opened the innings and scored his maiden century,140, to save England from collapse. England saved the first two Test matches but West Indies always held the initiative and won the next two to repeat their series victory of 1934-35 . With an opening bowling attack of Allen (aged 45) and Butler (34), neither properly fit, Jim Laker, capturing 18 wickets in the Tests, soon became the principal bowler.	Other England tours   Previous Test tour Australia & NZ 1946-47   Next Test tour South Africa 1948-49   Next tour of West Indies 1953-54
	Members of the Test tour party (15  + 1)     Opening batsmen:  Winston Place, Jack Robertson plus  Len Hutton (reinforcement) Middle-order batsmen Denis Brookes, Joe Hardstaff, Jack Ikin, Gerald Smithson Wicket-keepers: Godfrey Evans, Billy Griffith Slow bowlers: Dick Howorth, Jim Laker, Johnny Wardle. Fast bowlers:  Harold Butler, Gubby Allen, Ken Cranston, Maurice Tremlett.	G O B Allen Mx  45  RHB            RFM       captain   Brookes, D Nth  32  RHB   Butler, H J Nt  34  RFM   K Cranston La 30  RFM    vice-captain   Evans, T G Kt 27  WK   S C Griffith Sx 33  RHB         second WK   Hardstaff,  J Nt 36  RHB   Howorth,  R Wo 38  SLA   Ikin,  J T La 29  RHB               LBG   Laker,  J C Sy 25  OB   Place,  W La 33  LHB opener   Robertson,  J D B Mx 30  RHB opener   Smithson,  G A Yo 21  LHB   Tremlett,  M F Sm 24  RFM   Wardle,  J H Yo 24  SLA	County representation:   Kt - Kent (1) La - Lancashire (3) Mx - Middlesex (2) Nth - Northamptonshire (1) Nt - Nottinghamshire (2) Sm - Somerset (1) Sy - Surrey (1) Sx - Sussex (1) Wo - Worcestershire (1) Yo - Yorkshire (2)        Average age of  team at time of first Test match (21 January 1948) :    30 yrs 0 months
	Test Appearances made before the tour	Hutton 26,  Allen 21,  Hardstaff 19,  Evans 11,  Ikin 8,  Cranston 3,  Butler 1,  Howorth 1,  Robertson 1,  Brookes 0,  Griffith 0,  Laker 0,  Place 0,  Smithson 0,  Tremlett 0,  Wardle 0.
	Tour Officials	G O ‘Gubby’ Allen Player-Manager S.C.’Billy’ Griffith Assistant manager   'Plum' Warner accompanied the team throughout the tour.
	Selectors	A J ‘Jack’ Holmes (chair),  John Clay,  Walter Robins.
	Selection	Unavailable : Trevor Bailey (declined his invitation because of his Cambridge examinations), Alec Bedser (business reasons);  Denis Compton (operation on right knee);  Bill Edrich (business reasons);  Len.Hutton;  Cyril Washbrook; Doug Wright;  Norman Yardley (business). In early October 1947 the Ministry of Labour decideded that Gerald Smithson, a 'Bevin Boy' called to serve his national service in the mines, would not be available to tour because he was not due for release from Askern Colliery near Doncaster until January 1948.  M.C.C. then investigated whether he could fly out and catch the team up but meanwhile Mr George Isaacs, the Minister of Labour, stated in a written answer to the House of Commons that the the National Coal Board was prepared to grant leave on condition that Smithson would complete his national service obligation immediately on return.   On 25 August the names of the first thirteen invited were given out. On 14 September Hardstaff’s inclusion was announced.; on 8 October Laker and Tremlett;  on 21 October Wardle ; on 30 October Smithson. Tour party completed :  30 October 1947.	Time between selection and departure from England    54 days  (30 October -  23 December)
	Travel   Liverpool   T    Bridgetown               ‘Tetela’	The southern county players (Allen, Robertson, Griffith, Evans, Laker, Tremlett and Smithson, who was staying at Abingdon) took the train up to Liverpool from Euston Station. The team sailed from Liverpool on the ss 'Tetela' on 23 December 1947 (whereas today the ECB try to ensure the players are at home for Christmas):  “….. Allen and his under-strength party set out for the Caribbean in a poorly-ballasted banana boat in late 1947.  With the ship pitching and rolling violently in the Atlantic storms, it was a ghastly voyage…..” Tim Quelch Bent Arms and Dodgy Wickets (2012) …. to Bridgetown, arriving on 6 January 1948. 'Plum' Warner travelled with the team. “The MCC party boarded an empty banana boat called the Tetela at Liverpool on a raw grey afternoon a few days before Christmas 1947, bound for the West Indies. It was a small ship, only 2500 tons, and it looked as if it would bob up and down on the great seas of the Atlantic like a rowing boat on the Serpentine… we tried to keep fit on that banana boat. Gubby Allen, the captain, aged forty-five, took his exercise skipping on the deck of the Tetela as it bobbed up and down on the Atlantic. And then it happened: he strained his back.”       Godfrey Evans The Gloves are Off (1960)	Time spent in West Indies     95 days (6 January -  10 April)
	On-tour selection panel	Gubby Allen (captain),  Ken Cranston (vice-captain),  Billy Griffith (assistant manager),  Joe Hardstaff (senior professional).
	Reinforcements	On the boat journey out Gubby Allen pulled a calf muscle while skipping to get fit (Allen was second only to W G Grace as England’s oldest Test skipper).  Harold Butler tore a muscle in his leg in the first match and could not play at all in the latter part of the tour because of malaria.  Joe Hardstaff missed a month with a pulled hamstring.   Hutton,  L Yo 31  RHB opener   Len Hutton replaced Denis Brookes (broken finger).  Allen had cabled for a reinforcement on 2 February. On behalf of Compton and Edrich, Middlesex declined, as did Yorkshire on Hutton's behalf, because of the strenuous 1948 season coming up.  M.C.C. had also sounded out Charles Barnett and Cyril Washbrook.  When the Yorkshire club changed its mind, Hutton was rushed down to London Airport (Heathrow) He stepped off the plane in Georgetown on Sunday 15 February after three days of travelling. Meanwhile Crawford White, a fast bowler for Lancashire 2nd XI in the 1930s, now touring as a journalist for the News Chronicle, was standing by to play in the British Guiana match. He and E W Swanton of The Daily Telegraph had already played in the match against South Trinidad on 1 February.
	Fixtures/Results	a Bridgetown  Barbados Drawn b Bridgetown  Barbados Drawn c BRIDGETOWN  WEST INDIES  First Test DRAWN d Port of Spain  Trinidad Drawn e † Pointe-a-Pierre  South Trinidad  (1-day) Drawn f Port-of-Spain  Trinidad Drawn g PORT-OF-SPAIN  WEST INDIES  Second Test DRAWN h Georgetown  British Guiana Drawn i Georgetown  British Guiana abandoned j GEORGETOWN  WEST INDIES  Third Test LOST 7 w k Kingston  Jamaica Drawn l Kingston  Jamaica Drawn m KINGSTON  WEST INDIES  Fourth Test LOST 10 w n † Montego Bay  Combined Parishes Won inns 24	† not first-class         Time spent in West Indies before First Test:    15 days (6 January  - 21 January)
	Test appearances on tour (v West Indies 1947-48)	4 -  Cranston,  Evans,  Howorth,  Ikin,  Laker,  Robertson. 3 -  Allen,  Hardstaff,  Place,  Tremlett. 2 -  Hutton,  Smithson. 1 -  Brookes,  Butler,  Griffith,  Wardle.
	Match appearances         T  Test match x other match  ∙  played for opposition     W won  L lost  D drawn   N no result   A abandoned   u unknown result             The last tour match was 12-a-side	a b c d e f g h i j k l m n G O Allen       x x x T     T   x T x D Brookes x x T                       H J Butler x       x x T x             K Cranston x x T x x x T x   T x   T x G Evans x   T x x x T x   T x   T x S C Griffith   x   x x x T x       x     J Hardstaff x x T x x         T x x T x R Howorth x x T x   x T x   T x x T x L Hutton               x   T x x T   J Ikin x x T x   x T     T x x T x J Laker   x T       T x   T x x T x W Place x x T   x x       T x x T x J Robertson x x T x   x T x   T x x T x G Smithson x   T x x x T x     x     x M Tremlett x x T x       x   T x x T x J Wardle   x   x x x T x       x   x J Swanton         x                   C White         x                     R E S U L T S D D D D D D D D A L D D L W
	Highlights	•   Jim Laker tore through the West Indies’ batting with 6-25 on the second morning of the opening Test. •   Dick Howorth then captured six wickets for 124 in the second innings at Bridgetown. •   Joe Hardstaff (98) fell just short of his century in the first Test match. •   Billy Griffith, called upon to open the innings, scored his maiden century in the second Test at Port of Spain •   Jack Robertson defended (133 in nearly six hours) to hold off the West Indies’ attack in the same match •   In the final Test at Sabina Park Len Hutton scored 56 and 60, and Winston Place his only Test hundred (107). •
	Tour Summary	F W L  D Aban Test Matches   4 0 2   2 - Other first-class matches   8 0 0   7 1 †Minor matches   2 1 0   1 - All Matches 14 1 2 10 1	F  Fixtures   W  Won   L  Lost   D Drawn   T  Tied  Canc  Cancelled  Aban  abandoned
	Return to England     Port Antonio    T   Avonmouth                      ‘Cavina’	Dennis Brookes (who was at first expected to sail home on the oil tanker 'Niso') flew back from Trinidad. Crawford White, E W Swanton and fellow journalist Brian Chapman left on Monday 5 April flying to New York where they embarked on the ‘Queen Mary’ to cross the Atlantic. Len Hutton and Harold Butler flew out on the same day to Bermuda where they changed to a BOAC plane to New York and thence to London. Because M.C.C. would be waiting ten days for their ship home, the Jamaican cricket authorities suggested a fifth Test Match, which M.C.C. rejected, and then a minor match against St James XII at Montego Bay.  'Billy' Griffith wound up the final matters of the tour in Kingston. The team sailed from Port Antonio in the ss 'Cavina' on 10 April 1948.	Time away from England   ? days   (23 December  - late April )
	Finances
	Accounts of the tour	“A record of the MCC tour to the West Indies in 1948” published by Shell Leasehold Distributing Co and Petroleum Marketing Co (West Indies) 1948
	Postscript	The

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