Brian Jackson (cricketer)

Albert Brian Jackson (born August 21, 1933) was an English cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler who played for Derbyshire.

Jackson started his career in the Derbyshire Second XI in the 1961 season, debuting in an innings-victory against Nottinghamshire in Epperstone. After two years of service in the Second XI, Jackson made his debut first-class appearance in May 1963, in an innings defeat by Somerset, though he was absent hurt for the match. He saw action in his next game, against Glamorgan, and was a regular member of the side for the rest of the season. He bowled steadily, and in one match against Hampshire he took eleven wickets for eighty runs. He received his Derbyshire cap and with his unrelated namesake Leslie Jackson retiring, was viewed as a future spearhead of the Derbyshire bowling. Like Leslie, Brian Jackson was no batsman: he never reached 30 in a first-class innings and his runs exceeded his wickets by no more than 190 for his whole career.

This was confirmed in 1964, when with 79 Championship wickets he was by far the best bowler in the team, but no one could have been prepared for the advance made in 1965. With Harold Rhodes he formed an immensely powerful opening attack: the two bowlers were first and second in the national averages, yet Derbyshire's appalling batting meant they only finished mid-table! Jackson's superb outswinger and extremely accurate length made him an extremely formidable opponent on the damp pitches of that summer, and he was never mastered even on the better pitches.

With such a rise, an immense amount was expected of Jackson even though at 33 he was very old for a pace bowler. However, despite a few superb performances under helpful conditions, such as eight for 18 in the first innings and twelve for 49 in the match against Warwickshire at Coventry and eleven for 69 against the same county at Edgbaston a year later, 1966 and 1967 were on the whole disappointing. Late in 1967, he was dropped from the Derbyshire eleven, and he was never to return: he bowled so poorly in 1968 that he was not re-engaged for 1969. One match for MCC in 1967 was his only first-class match for a team other than Derbyshire.

After he was not re-engaged, Jackson represented Cheshire in the Minor Counties Championship between 1969 and 1970.

External links

* [http://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/30/30554/30554.html Brian Jackson] at Cricket Archive
* [http://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/30/30554/f_Bowling_by_Season.html First-class bowling]