Eric Hollies has done it again. Two weeks after he was voted the Greatest Ever Bears Spinner by Bears fans, the famous son of Old Hill has made it a double with the Greatest Ever Bears Bowling Performance accolade.
Hollies’ 20.4-4-49-10 v Nottinghamshire at Edgbaston in 1946 took 44 per cent of the vote to see off the challenge of Chris Woakes in second and Bob Willis in third.
One of only three all-ten’s taken for the Bears in first-class cricket, Hollies’ feat was even more rare as it did not involved a single catch. Seven bowled and three lbw did the trick.
“I was particularly pleased for two reasons,” recalled Hollies in his autobiography I’ll Spin You A Tale. “It was achieved on a good wicket with the ball hardly turning at all, and I believe I am the first man to take all ten wickets in an innings without the help of a fielder.
“When the last man came in I was so excited that I completely forgot that a hat-trick was ‘on.’ In fact, everyone did, and the close-in ring of ten men usually employed a hat-trick candidate was not used. Curiously enough, I never had three in a row in first-class cricket.”
