Book Review

ARTHUR CARR

The Rise and Fall of Nottinghamshire’s Bodyline Captain                               

The latest publication from the Nottinghamshire President

This is a must read for anybody with a great interest in Notts cricket history. Written by Trent Bridge Librarian Peter-Wynne Thomas it is published by Chequered Flag and is priced at £14.99. The author has put a great deal of time and effort into the publication; talking to a fair few of his surviving relatives to get a rounded picture of this renowned Notts cricketer.  

Arthur Carr played 416 games for Notts between 1910-1934, of which an incredible 397 involved him as Captain. Only the legendary Lord Hawke (Yorkshire) has skippered a county on more occasions. He played throughout as an amateur normally captaining 10 pros. Other than Yorkshire this situation was unusual in the inter war period; most teams fielding a mixture of amateurs and professionals. It is to Carr’s great credit he moulded a team that clearly respected him and had a team spirit second to none.

Carr was born into a rich stock broking family in Surrey in 1893 and moved with his family to Rempstone Hall in Nottinghamshire when he was 15. He therefore qualified for Notts through residence. The book chronicles Carr’s outstanding schoolboy exploits at Sherbourne School in Dorset. His sporting prowess was fictionalised in Alec Waugh’s novel, The Loom of Youth. Carr made a few appearances for Leicester Tigers RFC in 1911-12 and in 1913 won a National Hunt Race at Chelmsford. An Army Reservist, he first captained Notts in 1914 and was called to arms during the second day of the fixture against Surrey at The Oval serving as a Cavalryman in the 5^th Royal Irish Lancers.  He then returned to Notts in 1919 and captained the team for 15 years until suffering a heart attack in 1934. During this time Notts were consistent championship contenders culminating in the championship triumph in 1929; spearheaded by Larwood and Voce. The book goes into much detail about these seasons, the bonhomie amongst the team and unwavering support of their amateur captain. The Bodyline controversy is discussed in detail along with the aftermath surrounding the 1934 Notts-Australia fixture (where Voce was ordered not to bowl in the second innings) and the refusal of Lancashire to play fixtures against Notts in 1935. Carr subsequently fell out with the Notts Committee who had been gunning for him for a number of years due to his maverick nature.

Carr was more than just outstanding captain playing 11 tests for England. He was selected for England's tour of South Africa in 1922-23, and made his debut in the First Test at Johannesburg. He was named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year for 1923. For the Ashes series against Australia in 1926, Carr was named captain of England. The first Test at Trent Bridge only lasted 50 minutes, before rain prevented any more play. In the third Test at Leeds, he controversially put Australia into bat after winning the toss, and compounded it by dropping Charlie Macartney. Macartney scored a hundred before lunch and England was lucky to avoid defeat. He came down with tonsillitis during the fourth Test of the series, and although he recovered in time for the fifth Test, was replaced as captain by Percy Chapman. He was bitterly disappointed with this decision, and although he captained England twice more in his final two Tests against South Africa in 1929, from then on he put most of his effort into captaining Notts. He stands in thirteenth place in Notts highest run scores with 18855 runs(@31.95) with 43 centuries.

The book then details Carr’s life after cricket living in the Yorkshire Dales with his mistress and subsequent second wife. Carr died shovelling snow during the harsh winter of 1963.