Gerry Chalk

Frederick Gerald Hudson Chalk (born Gerald Frederick Hudson Chalk and known professionally as Gerry Chalk) (September 7, 1910 — February 17, 1943) was an English cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman who played first-class cricket for Oxford University, Kent and Marylebone Cricket Club between 1931 and 1939.

Chalk was born in Sydenham and initially played first-class cricket while at Oxford University, making several appearances over three years, and in the latter stages of his university career, appearing simultaneously at Kent.

After his university career had finished, Chalk got his chance to appear for Kent on a more regular basis, having received his cap in his first year at the club. He appeared in the County Championship for the first time at the age of 22 in 1933, scoring a self-assured 73 runs in a partnership approaching 200 with team-mate, Kent stalwart Frank Woolley. Thanks to Chalk's persistent batting and pairing with Woolley on various occasions, Kent finished within the top three places in the 1933 table, and, while more-or-less maintaining their form over the next three years, Woolley was making continuously special performances from the upper-middle order, in spite of his youth.

While several of his performances during the mid-1930s were made outside of the County Championship, Woolley maintained his composure to bring himself back to the fore during the next three years, particularly in his last year at the club, 1939, in which Kent finished in an impressive fifth place in the table.

With the Second World War to contend with, the County Championship was not to be played again during Chalk's lifetime. Chalk was a pilot in the Royal Air Force during World War Two and perished at the age of 32 in 1943 in Louches, France [Bob Ogley. [http://books.google.com/books?id=gvh5AAAAIAAJ&q=%22Gerry+Chalk%22&dq=%22Gerry+Chalk%22&ei=xC3HSJfnFZCkjgHKten2Cw&pgis=1 "Kent: A Chronicle of the Century. Volume Two: 1925-1949."] Froglets, 1997. ISBN-13: 978-1872337845; p. 137 ] . Chalk's extended family of cricket-playing relatives included William Greenstock, Harold Prest, and the group of cricketing brothers known as Fostershire, all of whom played first-class cricket with varying degrees of success throughout their life.

References

External links

* [http://www.cricketarchive.com/Players/28/28482/28482.html Gerry Chalk] at Cricket Archive