THE WAY WE WERE

SPORTING FLASHBACK: Leanne Day, daughter of Bill and Dawn Lord, who grew up in Toowoomba and attended Harristown State High School, sent in this photo of Roger Hartigan’s Touring Cricket Team in 1950. Roger Hartigan, an Australian Test Cricket Player, is pictured in the centre.He was Australia’s 92nd Test debutant on January 10, 1908 for the Third Test of the 1907-08 Test series against England. He also served on the Board of Cricket Control - forerunner of today’s Cricket Australia - for 35 years. This photo is of particular interest to Leanne as it belongs to her father, William (Bill) Lord who is in the back row at the far left of the photo. Roger Hartigan selected an Australian Test International Cricket Team to tour Western Queensland in 1950, and this photo is that team. Members were selected from all over Australia, and so represented the most skilled young cricketers in the country. Bill was 18 at that time, so it was quite an achievement. He attended the Toowoomba Grammar School where he was a member of the School’s First Cricket Team in 1947/48 and the First Tennis Team in 1948. He was also a member of the Queensland Country Cricket team. While attended the Toowoomba Prep School, he won every event at the yearly sports day Sprints, 100 yards, 200 yards, 440 yards, 880 yards, mile, hurdles and long jump. The only event he didn’t win was the high jump - where he came second. Considering he suffered polio and meningitis as a child, these sporting achievements are even more outstanding. The other photos are of the Toowoomba Grammar School’s First Cricket (Bill is seated in front row on the far left) and Tennis team (Bill is seated on the far right). Mr Lord is now 86 and he and Dawn have just last month celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary.