Neil Smith
England
Full Name
Neil Smith
Born
April 01, 1949, Ossett, Yorkshire
Died
March 03, 2003, Dewsbury, Yorkshire, England, (aged 53y 336d)
Batting Style
Right hand Bat
Fielding Position
Wicketkeeper
Neil Smith died of cancer on March 3, 2003, aged 53. Smith served a fouryear apprenticeship as Yorkshire's Second Eleven wicket-keeper and seemed the natural successor to the long-serving Jimmy Binks in 1970 but, after a shaky start, was usurped in mid-season by 18-year-old David Bairstow, who took his A-Levels at 7 a.m. so he could play. Bairstow established himself, and Smith moved to Essex to succeed Brian Taylor in 1973 and spent the next eight years as a stalwart of that famously perky dressing-room. Technically, many thought him a better gloveman than Bairstow, but he was on the large side, and irritated Graham Gooch by eating a lot and getting larger. This helped his often beefy batting, which had minimal backlift but considerable power: Essex occasionally used him as a pinchhitter long before the term was ever used. In 1981, he lost form and was again ousted in mid-season, this time by David East. Smith captained the second team for a season then went back north to go into business.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
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