John Holder

Who is John Holder?

John Wakefield Holder is an English former professional cricketer and first-class and Test umpire.

As a player for Hampshire County Cricket Club Holder was a brisk right arm medium pace bowler. In the 1970 season Holder took 55 wickets at 23.27 runs. His best bowling figures were 6 for 49 and 7 for 79 against Gloucestershire County Cricket Club in 1972. In 1972 Holder also took a hat-trick against Kent County Cricket Club. His career average as a bowler saw him take 139 first class wickets at 24.56. Holder stood as umpire in eleven Test matches and nineteen One Day Internationals.

Holder became a first class umpire in 1983 and was promoted to officiate his first test-match in 1988. Holder was appointed by the International Cricket Council as one of five worldwide regional umpires' performance managers and is responsible for monitoring and improving the performances of umpires in Europe, the Caribbean, America and Canada.

He co-authored the book You Are The Umpire with the illustrator Paul Trevillion.