Charlie Taylor, who played both cricket and hockey for Barbados in a sporting career that lasted more than 30 years, died in Oakville, Canada

05-Jan-2010Charlie Taylor, who played both cricket and hockey for Barbadosin a sporting career that lasted more than 30 years, died onTuesday in Oakville, Canada. He was 82. Christened AlfredMcDonald and son of a well-known Bridgetown entrepreneur, A.E.Taylor, Charlie first made his mark in both sports at PickwickClub.He was a quick-scoring batsman, wicket-keeper and fleet-footedfielder and the most solid defender in Barbados hockey at thetime, representing the island in the Caribbean championships inTrinidad in 1960 as a still fit and fast 42-year-old.Taylor made his cricket debut just short of his 20th birthdayagainst Trinidad at the Queen’s Park Oval in 1942. He batted downthe order, was out cheaply and wasn’t chosen again until fiveyears later.In his second match on return, against British Guiana at Bourda,he scored the first of his four hundreds, 101 not out in a totalof 601 for 9 declared, going in at No. 9 and adding 125 withE.A.V. ‘Foffie’ Williams for the ninth wicket.It gained him a promotion as an opener for the rest of hiscareer, sharing partnerships with Teddy Hoad jnr., George Carew,Roy Marshall and Conrad Hunte until he bowed out against Jamaicaat Kensington, aged 33.His two major innings were both at Kensington 168 againstTrinidad and Tobago in 1949, when he and Marshall put on 278 forthe first wicket in an eventual total of 698, and 161 against thetouring M.C.C. (England) team in 1948 that was followed by ClydeWalcott’s 120 and Everton Weekes’ unbeaten 118 in a total of 514for 4 declared.In 16 first-class matches for Barbados Taylor scored 860 runs atan average of 34.4, took nine catches and made three stumpings.His son, Alfred, also played four matches for Barbados as abatsman/wicket-keeper in the 1960s.Charlie was one of the pioneers in the Barbados hotel industry asproprietor of the Royal Hotel in Hastings, Christ Church, now theRegency Cove. He leaves to mourn his wife, Sylvia, sons Alfred,Tony and Allan (the calypsonian, the Mighty Whitey) and daughterPatricia. Another son, Christopher, predeceased him