Len Creese

Who was Len Creese?

William Charles Leonard Creese was a South African born English cricketer. Creese was a left-handed batsman who bowled left-arm medium pace.

Creese made his first-class debut for Hampshire in the 1928 County Championship against Somerset. Creese represented Hampshire in 278 first-class matches from 1928 to 1939, with his first-class career with Hampshire ending due to the start of the Second World War. Creese's final appearance for the county came in the 1939 County Championship against Yorkshire at Dean Park Cricket Ground in Bournemouth.

Creese was regarded as one of the best all-rounders on the county circuit. In his 278 matches for the county, Creese scored 9,894 runs at a batting average of 24.01, with 50 half centuries, 6 centuries with a high score of 241 against Northamptonshire in 1939. Such was Creese's skill with the bat that he passed the 1,000 run mark for a season five times, with his best season being in 1933 when he scored 1,275 runs at an average of 35.41, with 5 half centuries, 2 centuries and a high score of 165*.