Eileen Ash facts for kids
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| Full name |
Eileen May Ash (née Whelan)
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| Born | 30 October 1911 Highbury, Middlesex, England |
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| Died | 3 December 2021 (aged 110) Norwich, Norfolk, England |
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| Bowling | Right-arm medium | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Bowler | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side |
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| Test debut (cap 18) | 12 June 1937 v Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 29 March 1949 v New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1949 | Middlesex | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: CricketArchive, 26 January 2022
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Eileen May Ash (born Whelan) was an amazing English cricketer. She was born on October 30, 1911, and lived to be 110 years old! This made her the longest-living international cricketer ever.
Eileen played cricket as a right-arm medium bowler. She played for the England team in seven Test matches. Her career spanned from 1937 to 1949.
Contents
Eileen Ash's Early Life and School
Eileen May Whelan was born in Highbury, which is in Middlesex, England. She went to school at Ursuline Convent in Ilford, east London.
At school, Eileen was a talented athlete. She was the captain of her school's top hockey team. She also enjoyed playing tennis and netball.
Eileen's Cricket Journey
Eileen Ash played for several cricket clubs. These included the Ilford Wanderers and Wagtails teams. She also played for Civil Service, Middlesex, and the South of England team.
She played Test cricket both before and after World War II. Her first Test match was against Australia in June 1937. This game took place in Northampton. Her last Test match was against New Zealand in March 1949. This game was played in Auckland.
Eileen was a specialist bowler. She took ten wickets in Test matches. Her bowling average was 23.00, which is a good score for a bowler.
One of her best cricket moments happened in 1949. She scored an unbeaten century (100 runs) and took five wickets in one match. This amazing all-round performance helped England win by 170 runs.
In 1949, Eileen also met the famous Australian cricketer Don Bradman. She met him at a restaurant in Sydney. He even signed a bat for her!
Working Life and Retirement
Eileen Ash started working for the Civil Service when she was 18. During World War II, she was sent to work for MI6. This is a secret intelligence agency. She worked with MI6 for eleven years.
Later, Eileen and her husband retired and moved to Norwich. She started playing golf when she was older. She continued to play golf until she was 98 years old!
A Century of Life
In 2011, Eileen Ash reached a special milestone. She became the first female Test cricketer to live to 100 years old. To celebrate, she was made an honorary life member of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).
In July 2017, when she was 105, Eileen had a very special role. She rang the bell at Lord's cricket ground. This signaled the start of play at the 2017 Women's World Cup Final. England won that match! She rang the bell for five minutes to celebrate 80 years since her first international game.
To mark her 106th birthday, Eileen went for a flight. She flew in a Tiger Moth plane. In November 2018, a sports hall was named after her. It is at The Hewett Academy in Norwich. In 2019, the MCC showed a portrait of her at Lord's.
In January 2021, at 109 years old, Eileen received her COVID-19 vaccine. She was one of the oldest people in the UK to get it. Eileen celebrated her 110th birthday on October 30, 2021. She passed away just under five weeks later, on December 3, 2021.
