Born in Sydney in 1906, Alan George Fairfax was a tall dark haired man. Using his reach to the best of his ability this right handed man played for Australia a surprisingly low number of times. Along with his steady batting he was also a fast medium bowler where he more often than not partnered Tim Wall on his tour of England in 1930.

His Test debut came at Melbourne for the 5th Test match in 1928/9, scoring 65 and sharing in a record 5th wicket stand with Sir Donald Bradman of 183. He carried this consistency on and during his tour of England he took 12 wickets and averaged 50 with the bat. In Australia's first ever Test Series against the West Indies the following season (at home), he averaged 48.75 in 5 matches and took 7 wickets.

Surprisingly he finished playing cricket in Australia and moved to England, setting up an indoor school in London and becoming a professional in the Lancashire league in 1932. He suffered an serious injury while serving the RAF which led to his early death in 1955 at the age of only 49.