A famous son of Maldon

Woodfull on his way out to bat

Bill Woodfull is remembered for his cricketing record and in particular his captaining of the Australian Test Team during the infamous Australia v England “Bodyline” series in 1932 - 1933.

His grandfather was a corn dealer in the Maldon area; his father, Thomas Staines Brittingham Woodfull, was born in Maldon on 28 August 1863 and Bill was born in Maldon on Sunday, 22 August 1897 at the Methodist Parsonage in Maldon.

His grandfather was a corn dealer in the Maldon area; his father, Thomas Staines Brittingham Woodfull, was born in Maldon on 28 August 1863 and Bill was born in Maldon on Sunday, 22 August 1897 at the Methodist Parsonage in Maldon.

At the time of Bill’s birth his father was the minister at the Maldon Methodist Church. In 1904 the Rev Woodfull moved to set up Melbourne’s second Methodist Mission in Gipps Street, Collingwood and it was here that Jim Ryder laid a cricket pitch for the minister in his back yard. Two boys, Bill Woodfull and Jack Ryder, played on the pitch and both went on to captain Australia.

Woodfull Memorial - Maldon

Bill Woodfull took up teaching and was posted to the country. On his return to Melbourne that his cricketing ability was fully recognised and he was picked for the Victorian team in1922. He was selected for the Australian team in 1926, appointed captain in 1930 and retired from test cricket in 1934.

His calm temperament, determination, courage and high moral principles made him one of Australia's most respected and successful captains. He captained Australia with dignity and sportsmanship through a difficult period in Australian cricket history.

On 11 August 1965, aged 68, Bill Woodfull collapsed and died while playing golf at Tweed Heads South in New South Wales.

A memorial plaque in Maldon in the grounds of the Methodist Church and Parsonage where Bill Woodfull had been born.

THE TEACHER

Bill Woodfull qualified as Bachelor of Arts with a Diploma of Education and was posted to the country, moving around the state until he achieved the top position of Principal at Melbourne High School.

The High Schools where he taught include:

In November 1934 he declined a knighthood and in later years revealed that he ould have accepted the honour as an educationalist, but under no circumstances would he accept it for playing cricket.

But in the New Year’s Honours list of 1963, he received the OBE for his services to education.

Bill Woodfull started playing for Essendon when he was 19. Moving to Maryborough to teach he played country cricket and was selected for the Victorian colts and then the Victorian Second XI. When he returned to Melbourne in 1921 he played for South Melbourne, was seen by the Victorian Sheffield Shield Team selectors and selected for the 1922 - 1923 State team. He soon made his mark as a middle-order batsman and was promoted to the top of the order. This was the start of the successful long time opening partnership with Bill Ponsford and in a match against NSW in 1926 they scored a record 375.

Rheumatic fever when he was young left him with stiffness that restricted his back lift, but his weight and strength let him score through careful placement and occasional strong drives, scoring runs at a greater rate than most orthodox batsmen. His temperament, patience, consistency and a eemingly impregnable defence resulted in nicknames such as “Worm-killer”, “Unbowlable”, “The Rock” and “Old Steadfast”.

In 1926 Woodfull was the last man picked in the Australian squad to tour England. He didn’t bat in the first Test, struggled in the middle-order in the second, but when he was promoted to opener for the third he scored 141, then 117 in the fourth and was Australia’s top scorer for the tour.

Bill Woodfull was first appointed captain for the 1930 Australia - England series played in England where the team regained the Ashes.

Bill Woodfull went on to play 35 Tests and was captain for 25 of them, including the infamous “Bodyline” Tests in 1932 - 1933. For these 35 Tests he scored 2300 runs for an average of 46.0 with a highest score of 161. On the three occasions he toured England he scored over 1000. He retired from cricket after the Australia - England Fifth Test at The Oval in 1934.

The gate in the Great Southern Stand at the MCG was dedicated as the Bill Woodfull Gate in 1992.

Sincere thanks to Maldon.org.au for use of the article. Full article can be found HERE