Mick Malone (cricketer) - First-class Career

First-class Career

Malone made his first class debut for Western Australia on 21 February 1975 against Victoria, in the Sheffield Shield. He took five wickets in the match getting Bob Baldry twice. In his second appearance, against New South Wales he would take seven wickets in the match, including the wicket of test star batsman and Blues captain Doug Walters. Western Australia would win the Sheffield Shield that year, Malone playing in the vital final two matches of the season. In his second season of Shield cricket (1975/76) Malone would take 28 wickets at an average of just 18.75, including two 5 wicket hauls. Only Australian test players Dennis Lillee, Jeff Thomson, Ashley Mallett and Alan Hurst took more wickets although Malone's average was superior to them all. The 1976/77 Sheffield Shield season was Malone's most productive. He finished as the competitions leading wicket taker with an amazing 40 wickets in just 8 matches at an average of just 16.12, with four 5 wicket innings.

In 1979 Malone would move to England to play as professional with Haslingden Cricket Club in the Lancashire League. Dennis Lillee had played for Haslingden in 1971. Other pros in the league at the time included Pakistani's Mudassar Nazar (Burnley), Nasim-ul-Ghani (Lowerhouse), Anwar Khan (Rishton), Mohsin Khan (Accrington) and Aftab Baloch (Todmorden), fellow Aussie Peter Sleep (East Lancashire), Indians Madan Lal (Enfield) and Rakesh Shukla (Colne). The league had a reputation as being hard with many famous overseas pros having played there (including Ian Chappell).

Malone was signed to as the second overseas player for Lancashire alongside the great Clive Lloyd replacing South African Paul Robinson. In two matches he would take a remarkable 18 wickets, including his career best of 7 for 88 against Nottinghamshire at Blackpool. He dismissed star batsmen Derek Randall and Clive Rice. In his second match for Lancashire, Malone would take 6 for 60 against Leicestershire, David Gower among his wickets.

Benefiting from his spell in England, Malone returned to Shield cricket for Western Australia for the 1979/80 season. He took 32 wickets in the expanded competition at a more modest average of 28.75, in what was a poor season for the side, they won just once, at home against whipping boys Tasmania. However his form was good enough to earn a recall to the Australia party for the tour to Pakistan.

Malone returned to Lancashire for the entire 1980 season playing 15 county championship matches. He was the county's second highest wicket-taker with 45 wickets (ave. 25.88), behind Willie Hogg who had 50 (ave. 21.16). Lancashire finished a disappointing third bottom in the table winning only four games. Malone did face the touring Australians in a three-day match but did not take a wicket.

Malone would play just two more seasons of Shield cricket for Western Australia before retiring at the end of the 1981/82, playing just twelve more matches. The 1980/81 season yielded just 14 wickets while he took 13 in his final season. Although Western Australia did win the Shield again in 1980/81.