He was a truly great bowler. Not just lightning fast but deadly accurate too. Imagine facing him even with all the modern-day gear let alone in the 30s with none of it! Wow!
One amazing fact, he appeared in the final Test of the 1926 Ashes series in which England won with Wilfred Rhodes, who played Test cricket in the 19th century and with W.G.Grace!
One of the greatest, admittedly; however, living on the moon you've probably not seen the bowling records of Sydney Barnes, who has a greater claim to that title.
I wish the MCC despite banning fast leg theory had retained Larwood and Jardine in the team. It'd have been glorious to see the Larwood vs Bradman contest in England during the next Ashes series. A brilliant bowler destroyed by the bureaucrats.
Andrew Guthrie I once remember reading a very old Guinness Book of Records from the early 70s and before Jeff Thompson became the record holder with a 99mph delivery. It had Larwood listed at 95mph, but obviously recording equipment was less sophisticated in those days. He was definitely a regular 90mph plus bowler and it makes you wonder just how quick he could have been with today’s modern training and fitness methods. Larwood himself admitted that he loved Aussie pitches as he could bowl considerably faster on them. Probably because most of England’s pitches would have been a lot slower with the inclement weather.
Biggest Aussie whinge ever. Not sportsmanship! Previous year 2 bowlers, MacDonald and Gregory spent all their time breaking batsmen's bones and they were applauded.
Stephen Reeds It wasn't the bouncers, it was leg side fields and the 3-4-5 behind square leg that upset the Aussies. Woodfull and Oldfield were hit then Jardine set a fast leg theory field and told Larwood to bowl to it. The English continued on with the practice in England vs West Indies and Voce and Larwood for their county. Soon every county was bowling it with the legside even when some countys didn't have the fire power to do so. With such negative cricket, MCC step in and limited the numbers behind square leg. And sacked Jardine as captain when he employed it vs India in India. As a side note Both those tours were supposed to be goodwill tours BUT Jardine deliberately sabotaged them. This is why he was especially despised in Australia. England had bankrupted Australia in the depression with the low cost of wool, and they had sent out chief of the Bank of England only for him line the England's pockets further. The Ashes tour was meant finally to be an olive branch by British government. By this time Australia was ready to leave the Empire after Jardine had toured. Finally Oldfield had been a stretcher bearer on the western front in WW1. He had survived an artillery explosion and had a metal plate inserted in his brain to stop him dying. The bouncer missed the plate by millimeters hence death. everyone was concerned for a war vet except Jardine again.
@@richardhall4830 um My 2nd paragraph states that point. The batsmen were hit then Jardine seized upon the moment and then employed bodyline fields throughout the series. They had faced Larwood in 3 previous series. If they struggled in 1933, why didn't they struggle in 1926, 28, 30. Larwood was dealt with throughout those series because he didn't bowl short all the time, be bowled conventionally As for his sacking.... MCC had wanted to sack Jardine but the lone descending vote was Lord Harris, MCC head. No doubt out of loyalty. Jardine would had seen the writing in the wall and took more time off for his business interests than play cricket in 1934. But he was all but sacked with only the most influential man on the board vetoing the move.
@@richardhall4830 I think u miss the point, it was employment of 3-5 people behind square leg was not good for cricket long term viability. I agree leg theory had been used before, usually when to slow scoring rates and by spinners/slow medium pace bowlers. Short pitch bowling had been used before by speedsters McDonald and Gregory but never with so many behind square. It was combination of the two which was seen as detriment of vibrant cricket. That's y the Australian Cricket Council kicked up a fuss. The use of bowling the ball at the body/head was legit as we both agree. However after Woodfull was hit over the heart and an over of respite with Bradman facing Allen, Jardine set his bodyline field for Woodfull's next ball. This was "unsportsmanlike" behaviour to Australian Cricket captain and board of control. The paying public had come to watch an elegant cover drive or delicate late cut not batsmen weaving. Once MCC had seen the tactics and then prevalence through the county's even with the lack of speed bowlers, they thought it the same way as the Australians. Something had to be done. As for Thompson and Lillee, they didn't have 3-5 behind square or 3 short legs and 2 on the hook as Jardine had used. They usually had a ridiculous amount of slips/gullys
yeah massive whinge, bit like England pushing through the max 2 bouncer rule with the ICC after being massacred by the WI year after year. The issue with this series was not the fast bowling, it was the field set and the intent to aim at the batsman. There are plenty of testimonies from journalists and players astounded at how even when a player was batting outside leg stump the short pitched deliveries were aimed at him. This was considered wrong by the standards of the game at the time. And was also considered wrong by Eng a few years after the 32/33 Ashes when they were on the end of the same tactic from the WI fast bowlers - an early warning of what would happen under Lloyd, Richards and Richardson may years later!
It's funny isn't it, but Australia welcomed him with open arms when he emigrated, after being largely shunned in his own country. Swallow your pride England (My country). But it took Australia to remind us of one of our own greats. And boy was he great. 32 Wickets in Bodyline at an average of 18. One of Cricket's great injustices what we did to Harold Larwood.
He set a telegram to Jack Fingleton saying he was on a boat, coming to live in Australia with his family aand asked Jack to arrange accomodation and jobs for him and his son in law. Jack quickly contacted a leading politician and it was arranged straight away.
Larwood was treated disgracefully by the MCC and the establishment. They didn't have the guts to blame "gentleman" Jardine so they sacrificed "player" Larwood. In his prime, Larwood had the reputation of being the most accurate bowler (not just fast and hostile) of his generation. Without him (and perhaps Voce) leg theory would not have worked.
#PhilipR: Jardine wasn't treated gracefully by the establishment either. And after the shameful way the MCC treated Larwood, Jardine did try to help him as much as he could.
Bhanu K - That's a fair point. The MCC kept Jardine as captain for two more test series - possibly partly to save face, but to be fair Jardine was a very effective batsman and captain - then he resigned the captaincy. I have no idea how much pressure the MCC put on him but I suspect they were very relieved to see him go!
#PhilipR: I read somewhere that the Australians, captained by Woodfull and with Bradman as Vice-Captain, had made it clear to the MCC that they will not tour England unless both Jardine and Larwood were removed from the team. Poor Larwood was asked to apologise and Jardine seeing the writing on the wall, resigned. (And yes, as you say, they must have been very relieved to see him go:) Jardine, thru his newspaper columns though, did bat for Larwood's inclusion in the team. A sorry affair all around.
@@bhanuk1543 Not quite. Jardine refused to play in the 1934 series according to ESPN cricinfo; when the controversy hit Eng, and they were on the end of the same tactic and hated it, Larwood was asked to sign an apology by the English authorities, not by the Australians. Quite rightly he refused, and notably was well liked and respected here, emigrating to Sydney of course.
From the opening slo-mo frames of his action at the crease, it’s quite obvious that Larwood was seriously quick. Remarkable interview with Fred. Plum Warner and Jardine might have apologised. Maybe Plum did. I respected Plum. Ambiguous about the Scot DJ. Harold was plying his trade at the instructions of his so-called ‘betters’. Harold came from Notts. I joined the British Army in 1978. Infantry. Due to economic socio-political circumstances, a lot of redundant ex-Nottinghamshire miners in my intake. Magnificent, tough, hard men but rarely mouthy or full of their own piss and importance. Harold seems from that mould.
I never hated sir Harold Larwood but i despised Douglas Jardine for making him bowl in that style but in that final test of that bodyline Series in Brisbane 1933 and my Grandmother was a young nurse at Royal Brisbane hospital and had to treat Eddie Painter one of a England middle order and he collapsed on the field due to illness and heat exposure and Jardine tried to sneak him out of the hospital when the matron the Doctor and my Grandmother order Jardine to go across the road back to the game Eddie Painter was batting the next day.
I'm a 'Nuncar lad' he was down t'pit with me dad & Grandad. Met him 4 times when he visited my club Kirkby Portland. What a lovely man, glad he never bowled at me in his prime. We had a 'Do' for him& Bill Voce in the local (Cricketers Arms), the breeze blew the curtain behind Lol and Bill said "Bogger me, he's still got the bloody wind behind him". True.
He lived opposite my Grandma and Grandad in Nuncargate. My parents had the Christmas cards he sent to the family and we donated them to Trent bridge cricket ground.
The ball has a spin on delivery n his leg wz outside the line so umpire has rejected the fact of accusation why larwood did question infront of board? He could hv saved douglas
A controversial figure of his time but who did his job and demonstrated what it takes to be a great fast bowler. And they talk about "whinging Poms"! But fair's fair to the Aussies who treated him royally on his decision to live down under. A comment elsewhere about the behaviour of the UK Establishment of the time seems eminently justified.
Without his participation I wonder if Jardine would have ever dared use Bodyline. And had DRJ done so without Larwood, I wonder if DGB's average would ever have dipped below 110.
Greatest fast bowler of all time, Evidence - check out Bradman's stats against him and what his peers and next generation say. Love that the Australians so excepted him later in his life after the English had sacrificed him.
@@Muesliman467 You're misrepresenting a well known anecdote about Bradman showing film of Larwood reversed to make him look left-handed as a means of showing that the debate around chuckers was difficult & nuanced. He wasn't 'smearing him' & nobody who went to see the film at the time said so. Indeed, Bradman was complimentary about Larwood's technique & ability but obviously clashed with him about his approach.
@@sentimentalbloke185 It is fact on the record that Bradman accused Larwood of being a chucker. An act very much in keeping with a man who was a world class batman but one that didn't command any great love from teammates.
@@Muesliman467 It's not on record at all, you've been sucked in to believing a modern reinterpretation (by people who weren't there) of something that occurred in the early 1960s. As for commanding love among teammates, there's no doubt a section of players didn't like him but many more did & thought it a privilege to play with him. Plenty of great players have polarized their teammates over the journey.
But then again, none of those four was as good as Lohman or Syd Barnes. Or Malcolm Marshall or Imran Khan or Wasim Akram... Lillee was pretty good all the same. I'll grant you that. I'm surprised you didn't mention Warnie, though. Or were you only thinking of the quicks?
Certainly wouldn't be considered quick by today's standards, the game has moved on in every way since those days, but he was definitely a fearsome fast bowler in his day! He might have been the first bowler to break the 80 mph barrier.
First bowler to bowl at 80mph ! He was way quicker than that , have a look at where the wicket keeper is standing might give you a better idea . 85 to 95 mph bowler especially in Australia a true fast bowler. There's a video on TH-cam which examines his bowling speed and it's comparable to Brett Lee . Also remember the lbw law was different back then the ball had to pitch in line with the stumps for a batsman to be given out
He was a truly great bowler. Not just lightning fast but deadly accurate too. Imagine facing him even with all the modern-day gear let alone in the 30s with none of it! Wow!
On uncovered pitches...
One amazing fact, he appeared in the final Test of the 1926 Ashes series in which England won with Wilfred Rhodes, who played Test cricket in the 19th century and with W.G.Grace!
That's my great great uncle (:
Why not?
He was a legend, one of cricket's greatest bowlers
Fastest bowler to every live. Does he still have the sweet shop in Sydney australoa
Wonderful to see a Larwood here. Your uncle will forever shine among stars of all time sporting greats.
proud to be related to him
I've never seen anything like what he sent down at 1:20, that snap; what an action. So unique.
Fantastic bowling action.
the greatest fast bowler ever..
One of the greatest, admittedly; however, living on the moon you've probably not seen the bowling records of Sydney Barnes, who has a greater claim to that title.
lol you could be right Mr. B.
@@alangeorgebarstow good one 😂😂
I wish the MCC despite banning fast leg theory had retained Larwood and Jardine in the team. It'd have been glorious to see the Larwood vs Bradman contest in England during the next Ashes series. A brilliant bowler destroyed by the bureaucrats.
Actually the injury suffered in the last Test of the series restricted him and he rarely, if ever, bowled as fast again.
@@graemestarkey7524 Because Jardine insisted he kept on going, wrecked his future career. Hard to understand why Larwood was so fond of jardine.
Sunil gavaskar, don bradman, sachin tandulkar, vivian richards, garry sobers, imran khan, adam gilchrist, wasim akram, malcolm marshall, sydney barnes, shane warne...
I would add Virender Sehwag to that list…
how fast was Larwood? looks incredible on these videos
I keep thinking the same. But hard to tell from old footage.
It must be possible to calculate from the frame rate.
Andrew Guthrie I once remember reading a very old Guinness Book of Records from the early 70s and before Jeff Thompson became the record holder with a 99mph delivery. It had Larwood listed at 95mph, but obviously recording equipment was less sophisticated in those days.
He was definitely a regular 90mph plus bowler and it makes you wonder just how quick he could have been with today’s modern training and fitness methods.
Larwood himself admitted that he loved Aussie pitches as he could bowl considerably faster on them. Probably because most of England’s pitches would have been a lot slower with the inclement weather.
Around 96mph.
@Hoa Tattis he worked in coal mines thats why he is that strong
He suffered appalling treatment from the MCC , making him look a scapegoat
Sad what happened to him, deserved better from the English authorities
He was my great great great grandads cousin 😂
Biggest Aussie whinge ever. Not sportsmanship! Previous year 2 bowlers, MacDonald and Gregory spent all their time breaking batsmen's bones and they were applauded.
Stephen Reeds
It wasn't the bouncers, it was leg side fields and the 3-4-5 behind square leg that upset the Aussies.
Woodfull and Oldfield were hit then Jardine set a fast leg theory field and told Larwood to bowl to it.
The English continued on with the practice in England vs West Indies and Voce and Larwood for their county. Soon every county was bowling it with the legside even when some countys didn't have the fire power to do so.
With such negative cricket, MCC step in and limited the numbers behind square leg. And sacked Jardine as captain when he employed it vs India in India.
As a side note
Both those tours were supposed to be goodwill tours BUT Jardine deliberately sabotaged them. This is why he was especially despised in Australia.
England had bankrupted Australia in the depression with the low cost of wool, and they had sent out chief of the Bank of England only for him line the England's pockets further. The Ashes tour was meant finally to be an olive branch by British government. By this time Australia was ready to leave the Empire after Jardine had toured.
Finally Oldfield had been a stretcher bearer on the western front in WW1. He had survived an artillery explosion and had a metal plate inserted in his brain to stop him dying. The bouncer missed the plate by millimeters hence death. everyone was concerned for a war vet except Jardine again.
#WO J: Jardine wasn't sacked, he resigned from captainship.
@@richardhall4830 um
My 2nd paragraph states that point. The batsmen were hit then Jardine seized upon the moment and then employed bodyline fields throughout the series.
They had faced Larwood in 3 previous series. If they struggled in 1933, why didn't they struggle in 1926, 28, 30. Larwood was dealt with throughout those series because he didn't bowl short all the time, be bowled conventionally
As for his sacking....
MCC had wanted to sack Jardine but the lone descending vote was Lord Harris, MCC head. No doubt out of loyalty.
Jardine would had seen the writing in the wall and took more time off for his business interests than play cricket in 1934. But he was all but sacked with only the most influential man on the board vetoing the move.
@@richardhall4830
I think u miss the point, it was employment of 3-5 people behind square leg was not good for cricket long term viability. I agree leg theory had been used before, usually when to slow scoring rates and by spinners/slow medium pace bowlers.
Short pitch bowling had been used before by speedsters McDonald and Gregory but never with so many behind square. It was combination of the two which was seen as detriment of vibrant cricket.
That's y the Australian Cricket Council kicked up a fuss.
The use of bowling the ball at the body/head was legit as we both agree. However after Woodfull was hit over the heart and an over of respite with Bradman facing Allen, Jardine set his bodyline field for Woodfull's next ball. This was "unsportsmanlike" behaviour to Australian Cricket captain and board of control.
The paying public had come to watch an elegant cover drive or delicate late cut not batsmen weaving. Once MCC had seen the tactics and then prevalence through the county's even with the lack of speed bowlers, they thought it the same way as the Australians. Something had to be done.
As for Thompson and Lillee, they didn't have 3-5 behind square or 3 short legs and 2 on the hook as Jardine had used. They usually had a ridiculous amount of slips/gullys
yeah massive whinge, bit like England pushing through the max 2 bouncer rule with the ICC after being massacred by the WI year after year.
The issue with this series was not the fast bowling, it was the field set and the intent to aim at the batsman. There are plenty of testimonies from journalists and players astounded at how even when a player was batting outside leg stump the short pitched deliveries were aimed at him. This was considered wrong by the standards of the game at the time. And was also considered wrong by Eng a few years after the 32/33 Ashes when they were on the end of the same tactic from the WI fast bowlers - an early warning of what would happen under Lloyd, Richards and Richardson may years later!
It's funny isn't it, but Australia welcomed him with open arms when he emigrated, after being largely shunned in his own country.
Swallow your pride England (My country). But it took Australia to remind us of one of our own greats.
And boy was he great. 32 Wickets in Bodyline at an average of 18.
One of Cricket's great injustices what we did to Harold Larwood.
He set a telegram to Jack Fingleton saying he was on a boat, coming to live in Australia with his family aand asked Jack to arrange accomodation and jobs for him and his son in law.
Jack quickly contacted a leading politician and it was arranged straight away.
Larwood was treated disgracefully by the MCC and the establishment. They didn't have the guts to blame "gentleman" Jardine so they sacrificed "player" Larwood. In his prime, Larwood had the reputation of being the most accurate bowler (not just fast and hostile) of his generation. Without him (and perhaps Voce) leg theory would not have worked.
Yes, he was treated shabbily. Jardine was greatful for what he did in that series
#PhilipR: Jardine wasn't treated gracefully by the establishment either. And after the shameful way the MCC treated Larwood, Jardine did try to help him as much as he could.
Bhanu K - That's a fair point. The MCC kept Jardine as captain for two more test series - possibly partly to save face, but to be fair Jardine was a very effective batsman and captain - then he resigned the captaincy. I have no idea how much pressure the MCC put on him but I suspect they were very relieved to see him go!
#PhilipR: I read somewhere that the Australians, captained by Woodfull and with Bradman as Vice-Captain, had made it clear to the MCC that they will not tour England unless both Jardine and Larwood were removed from the team. Poor Larwood was asked to apologise and Jardine seeing the writing on the wall, resigned. (And yes, as you say, they must have been very relieved to see him go:) Jardine, thru his newspaper columns though, did bat for Larwood's inclusion in the team. A sorry affair all around.
@@bhanuk1543 Not quite. Jardine refused to play in the 1934 series according to ESPN cricinfo; when the controversy hit Eng, and they were on the end of the same tactic and hated it, Larwood was asked to sign an apology by the English authorities, not by the Australians. Quite rightly he refused, and notably was well liked and respected here, emigrating to Sydney of course.
The greatest fast bowler ever
Yes he is a Legend in fast bowling
One of the greats indeed! Truly vicious,no matter what the field settings!
From the opening slo-mo frames of his action at the crease, it’s quite obvious that Larwood was seriously quick.
Remarkable interview with Fred. Plum Warner and Jardine might have apologised. Maybe Plum did. I respected Plum. Ambiguous about the Scot DJ. Harold was plying his trade at the instructions of his so-called ‘betters’.
Harold came from Notts. I joined the British Army in 1978. Infantry. Due to economic socio-political circumstances, a lot of redundant ex-Nottinghamshire miners in my intake. Magnificent, tough, hard men but rarely mouthy or full of their own piss and importance.
Harold seems from that mould.
I never hated sir Harold Larwood but i despised Douglas Jardine for making him bowl in that style but in that final test of that bodyline Series in Brisbane 1933 and my Grandmother was a young nurse at Royal Brisbane hospital and had to treat Eddie Painter one of a England middle order and he collapsed on the field due to illness and heat exposure and Jardine tried to sneak him out of the hospital when the matron the Doctor and my Grandmother order Jardine to go across the road back to the game Eddie Painter was batting the next day.
Paynter.
He saved the match batting twice in that match when ill. Also was the only player to get a duck when England scored 903/7.
Douglas Jardine was probably as good a captain as England as ever had.
#Christopher Dale: Well, Eddie Painter has become legendary because of that test innings so Jardine did the right thing.
I've an idea that Larwood got 98 in that Test but I may be wrong.
I wrote this before hearing the Benaud interview.
I'm a 'Nuncar lad' he was down t'pit with me dad & Grandad. Met him 4 times when he visited my club Kirkby Portland. What a lovely man, glad he never bowled at me in his prime. We had a 'Do' for him& Bill Voce in the local (Cricketers Arms), the breeze blew the curtain behind Lol and Bill said "Bogger me, he's still got the bloody wind behind him". True.
cobblers
He lived opposite my Grandma and Grandad in Nuncargate. My parents had the Christmas cards he sent to the family and we donated them to Trent bridge cricket ground.
Nice sir g Sami samtia Pakistan miss u all time
The ball has a spin on delivery n his leg wz outside the line so umpire has rejected the fact of accusation why larwood did question infront of board? He could hv saved douglas
A controversial figure of his time but who did his job and demonstrated what it takes to be a
great fast bowler. And they talk about "whinging Poms"! But fair's fair to the Aussies who
treated him royally on his decision to live down under. A comment elsewhere about the
behaviour of the UK Establishment of the time seems eminently justified.
Telling MCC that the English captain was unsportsmanlike in those days, I bet they had to scrape that orf the walls in the long room 😂
Without his participation I wonder if Jardine would have ever dared use Bodyline. And had DRJ done so without Larwood, I wonder if DGB's average would ever have dipped below 110.
I would have emigrated too if I would have been treated in that fashion by the MCC
Bradman was out many times playing terrible shots.
Real gentlemen of cricket and Richie benaud the voice if summer dayz
Greatest fast bowler of all time, Evidence - check out Bradman's stats against him and what his peers and next generation say. Love that the Australians so excepted him later in his life after the English had sacrificed him.
Bradman hammered him in 1928-29 & 1930 hence why Larwood turned to bowling bouncers at him. Your assertion doesn't stack up.
Unbelievable pace ....A true great .
Man could bowl
Bradman said he never had any resentment towards Larwood for his bowling. Not quite true. He tried to smear him as a 'chucker'.
No he didn't. Don't talk bollocks.
@@sentimentalbloke185 Absolutely true, even presented footage to try and 'prove'it.
@@Muesliman467 You're misrepresenting a well known anecdote about Bradman showing film of Larwood reversed to make him look left-handed as a means of showing that the debate around chuckers was difficult & nuanced. He wasn't 'smearing him' & nobody who went to see the film at the time said so. Indeed, Bradman was complimentary about Larwood's technique & ability but obviously clashed with him about his approach.
@@sentimentalbloke185 It is fact on the record that Bradman accused Larwood of being a chucker. An act very much in keeping with a man who was a world class batman but one that didn't command any great love from teammates.
@@Muesliman467 It's not on record at all, you've been sucked in to believing a modern reinterpretation (by people who weren't there) of something that occurred in the early 1960s. As for commanding love among teammates, there's no doubt a section of players didn't like him but many more did & thought it a privilege to play with him. Plenty of great players have polarized their teammates over the journey.
He may of been England's greatest bowler,but not as good as Miller, Lillie, Thompson,Lee.
Better than at least 3 of those.
But then again, none of those four was as good as Lohman or Syd Barnes.
Or Malcolm Marshall or Imran Khan or Wasim Akram...
Lillee was pretty good all the same. I'll grant you that. I'm surprised you didn't mention Warnie, though. Or were you only thinking of the quicks?
Certainly wouldn't be considered quick by today's standards, the game has moved on in every way since those days, but he was definitely a fearsome fast bowler in his day! He might have been the first bowler to break the 80 mph barrier.
First bowler to bowl at 80mph ! He was way quicker than that , have a look at where the wicket keeper is standing might give you a better idea . 85 to 95 mph bowler especially in Australia a true fast bowler. There's a video on TH-cam which examines his bowling speed and it's comparable to Brett Lee . Also remember the lbw law was different back then the ball had to pitch in line with the stumps for a batsman to be given out