Remembering Collie Smith

Oh God, Collie Smith’s story is really sad, he passed so young, he was only 26. I can’t help but wonder how fantastic his career would’ve been if that accident never happened. He was a great batsman and spin bowler. Thank you for sharing the article, it’s pretty good and what a picture of the great Collie Smith you posted there. It truly resembles how talented he was.

It's good to hear from you Cally. I hope all is well with you.

I was hoping I could find some old video footage of Collie but all the usual outlets, including the British Pathe, which is a great resource for old West Indian footage, came up emptyhanded.

I did, however, find some footage from Collie's Test debut - the first Test between Australia and West Indies in 1955 at Sabina Park.

www.theguardian.com/sport/1999/sep/06/cricket

Michael Manley's definitive History of West Indies Cricket (Deutsch, 1988) logs poignantly:

"Smith was both a student of the game and a cheerful spirit. He had immense character.

In team meetings he was always in the middle of the analysis, obviously abreast of every nuance, full of ideas about

what might be done and that which ought not to be done. In short, he was a born leader.

Even more importantly, he was the kind of leader that Sobers would have cheerfully accepted when the time came."

www.espncricinfo.com/westindies/content/player/51647.html

"Dewdney, with facial cuts and some lost teeth, remained unconscious "

Current age 81 years 324 days

Wonder how Dewdney life went all these years ...