 He had been a glider pilot for the 6th Airborne Division during the Second World War, fighting at D-Day and Arnhem and winning the Distinguished Flying Cross.He became Secretary of Sussex after the war (as well as captain in the 1946 season) and was the player-manager and reserve wicket-keeper on the tour of the West Indies in 1947–48.When used as a makeshift opener on his Test debut he made 140 in six hours and later played two Tests in South Africa, the only wicket-keeper to be used between 1946 and 1959 when the great Godfrey Evans was available.