How many cricketers do we know that have not only scored centuries with the bat, but also in their lives? We’ve found one. Henry Albert ‘Bert’ Alderson, who turns 100 today, can boast many, many centuries during his 27 seasons of cricket, but this is probably the most special score of all.
In Sydney’s community cricket landscape, Bert is nothing short of legendary, known in his playing days as the ‘run machine’. Regarded as a ‘pretty good left-handed’ batsman, he scored over 14,000 runs in his 27 seasons of cricket, over 10,731 of them in first grade cricket.
Having played seven first grade seasons for the Sydney University Cricket Club (SUCC) and another 20 for the Parramatta (then Central Cumberland) District Cricket Club (PDCC), Bert wound up his long grade career in 1973, holding the record for many years for the most runs scored in grade cricket.
Without the availability of multi-format cricket and the ease of run-scoring from T20 or one-day matches, Bert still managed to clock over 500 runs in eight of his playing seasons, three for SUCC and the other five playing for PDCC.
Known as his club’s ‘most bankable batsman’, Bert often filled in large shoes and even acted as fill-in captain in place of Richie Benaud during the latter’s absences from his club in 1955/56. He was also Cumberland’s first grade captain for the next two seasons. He then went for a stint with Sydney University but decided to come back to play for Cumberland because “once a Cumbo, always a Cumbo.”
His achievements led to the grandstand at Merrylands Oval to be named the ‘Bert Alderson Stand’, with a plaque listing his amazing achievements through the years.
Outside of the cricket field, Bert’s achievements include working as a chief engineer for the Holroyd Shire Council for 37 years and being involved in the planning and development of many local landmarks, including the council’s administration building at Merrylands and the Central Gardens Park, and well as the construction of roads in Western Sydney.
Meanwhile, he leaves a wonderful legacy. For the last decade or so of his playing career, Bert utilised his vast cricketing experience to help with the development of young cricketers, contributing to Western Sydney’s powerful presence in cricket. His own sons Greg and Doug also played for the club, as did his brother Ken.
A life well lived, Bert’s century of cricket and life is an inspiration for everyone to play and love the game.