Brun Smith

Who was Brun Smith?

Frank Brunton Smith was a New Zealand cricketer who played in four Tests from 1947 to 1952. His father Frank played for Canterbury in the 1920s; Brun's son Geoff played for Canterbury in the 1970s.

An aggressive middle-order batsman, Brun Smith played for Canterbury in the Plunket Shield from 1946-47 to 1952-53. After scoring 106 out of a Canterbury total of 194 against Auckland in January 1947, he made his Test debut against England a few weeks later, scoring 18. His highest first-class score was 153 for Canterbury against Otago in Christchurch in the 1948-49 season, when his 392 runs at 56.00 helped Canterbury to win the Plunket Shield.

He toured England in 1949, scoring 1008 runs at 28.00, and playing two Tests. In the First Test at Headingley he scored 96 in two hours in the first innings and 54 in the second. He made 23 in the Second Test, and was then replaced by John Reid, making his Test debut, for the Third and Fourth Tests.

He played in the First Test against the West Indies at Christchurch in 1951-52, top-scoring in the second innings with 37 despite a strained leg muscle. It was his last Test. His Test average of 47.40 places him third among New Zealanders with 200 or more Test runs.