Albert Lane

Who was Albert Lane?

Albert Frederick Lane, nicknamed Spinney, was an English amateur cricketer who played more than 50 first-class games, for both Warwickshire and Worcestershire, between 1914 and 1932, as well as having earlier appeared in the Minor Counties Championship for Staffordshire.

Lane made his first-class debut for Worcestershire at Derby in May 1914. It was a chastening experience: Derbyshire won by an innings and 158 runs, and Lane took no wickets and scored 3 and 0. His next game the following month was little better: another heavy defeat, this time to Essex at Colchester, and 26 not out in the second innings could not make up for match figures of 22–1–94–0. He finally took his maiden wicket at the third attempt, when he claimed the solitary scalp of Hampshire's Phil Mead at Dudley at the end of June. He ended the season with just eight wickets at 55.50, though he did score two half-centuries.

The First World War then brought a halt to first-class cricket for five years. When Lane played again, in 1919, it was for Warwickshire.