Leslie Hancock (cricketer)
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Leslie Frank Hancock | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | 25 October 1899 Jamnagar, Bombay Presidency, British India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 12 July 1944 Maupertus-sur-Mer, Normandy, France | (aged 44)||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bowling | Right-arm medium-fast | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1926 | Marylebone Cricket Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: Cricinfo, 19 January 2021 |
Leslie Frank Hancock OBE (25 October 1899 – 12 July 1944) was an English first-class cricketer and British Army officer.
Hancock was born at Jamnagar in British India to a British Indian Army major. He was educated in England at Cheltenham College, deciding upon the completion of his education to take a career in the military.[1] Going up to the Royal Military College, he graduated into the Royal Engineers as a second lieutenant in July 1921,[2] before gaining the rank of lieutenant in July 1923.[3] He played first-class cricket twice for the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in 1926 against Wales and Cambridge University, with both matches played at Lord's.[4] He scored 24 runs in his two matches,[5] in addition to taking a single wicket with his right-arm medium-fast bowling, that of Wales' Cyril Rowland.[6]
He was granted the temporary rank of captain while serving as an adjutant with the Territorial Army in October 1929,[7] later gaining the rank in full in July 1932.[8] Hancock later served in the Second World War with the Royal Engineers, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel.[1] In the aftermath of the Normandy Landings in June 1944, Hancock commanded engineers constructing advanced landing grounds (ALG). While overseeing the construction of the Royal Air Force ALG B-12 at Ellon, Hancock was killed when the jeep he was travelling in struck a landmine near Maupertus-sur-Mer on 12 July.[9] His body was buried shortly thereafter at the Bayeux war cemetery.[10] He was survived by his wife, the actress Ellen Pollock, with whom he had one son.[11] He was posthumously made an OBE in the 1945 New Year Honours for his services during the war.[1]
References
- ^ a b c McCrery, Nigel (2011). The Coming Storm: Test and First-Class Cricketers Killed in World War Two. Vol. 2nd. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1526706980.
- ^ "No. 32404". The London Gazette. 26 July 1921. p. 6000.
- ^ "No. 32844". The London Gazette. 13 July 1923. p. 4885.
- ^ "First-Class Matches played by Donald Ray". CricketArchive. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ "First-Class Batting and Fielding For Each Team by Leslie Hancock". CricketArchive. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ "Marylebone Cricket Club v Wales, 1926". CricketArchive. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ "No. 33551". The London Gazette. 12 November 1929. p. 7307.
- ^ "No. 33845". The London Gazette. 12 July 1932. p. 4559.
- ^ "ALG B-12 – Ellon". www.dday-overlord.com. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ "Lieutenant Colonel Leslie Frank Hancock". www.cwgc.org. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
- ^ The World Who's who of Women. Vol. 10. Melrose Press. 1900. p. 666.