Eddie Crush

Who was Eddie Crush?

Edmund Crush was an English cricketer playing for Kent between 1946 and 1949.

Crush was born in Dover on 25 April 1917, the youngest of seven brothers. He was educated at the Dover County School for Boys in the 30's. He served during World War II with the Royal Engineers. On D-Day, he was a Subaltern and decorated with the Military Cross for his actions during the fight for Caen by Field Marshal Montgomery. His citation read: "As a result of his courage and determined leadership, anti-tank guns, troops and an anti-tank regiment of the Royal Artillery were able to get up to the objective for consolidation at a very early stage in the battle."

Crush played First Class cricket for Kent as a right-arm fast/medium swing bowler, occasional seamer as well as a lower order batsman. The highlight of his career was dismissing Don Bradman in 1948 when Kent played the touring Australian Cricket Team. Wisden Cricketers Almanack stated “Later that month, in front of 19,000 people on the same ground, he dismissed Bradman twice in the same innings. Bradman admitted years later that he had bottom-edged a catch off Crush to Godfrey Evans, but no one appealed. Crush eventually had him caught by Brian Valentine for 65”. An interview that Godfrey Evans gave to the Sydney Morning Herald in 1991 confirms this event. Asked why he hadn’t appealed Crush said “He was my hero, thousands of people including me wanted to see him bat” adding “the last time I had seen him was in 1930 when as a 13 year old I cycled from Dover to Canterbury to watch him ... the words just wouldn’t come out” Crush retired after the 1949 season.