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Samuel John Everett "Sam" Loxton, OBE (29 March 19213 December 2011) was an Australian cricketer, footballer and politician. Among these three pursuits, his greatest achievements were attained on the cricket field; he played in 12 Tests for Australia from 1948 to 1951. A right-handed all-rounder, Loxton was part of Don Bradman's ''Invincibles'', who went through the 1948 tour of England undefeated, an unprecedented achievement that has never been matched. As well as being a hard-hitting middle-order batsman, Loxton was a right-arm fast-medium swing bowler who liked to aim at the upper bodies of the opposition, and an outfielder with an accurate and powerful throw. After being dropped from the national team, Loxton represented Victoria for seven more seasons before retiring from first-class cricket. He served as an administrator after his playing days were over and spent 24 years as a Liberal Party member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly. Up until 1946, Loxton also played in the Victorian Football League (VFL) for St Kilda as a forward. In all three arenas, he was known for his energetic approach. Educated at Wesley College, Melbourne, Loxton first gained prominence as an Australian rules football player. After debuting in 1942, he played 41 games in the VFL for St Kilda as a forward, kicking a total of 114 goals before retiring at the end of the 1946 season to concentrate on his cricket career. In 1944, he headed St Kilda's goal-kicking aggregate with 52 goals and placed second in the club's Best and Fairest. Loxton served in a tank division during World War II and made his first-class cricket debut in 1946–47. He scored 232 not out, which remains a record for any Australian player on his first-class debut. After a strong first season, Loxton was selected to make his Test debut in the final match of the 1947–48 home series against India. Australia had already won the series and used the last match to trial their young talent. Loxton seized his opportunity, scoring 80 and taking three wickets, securing himself a position on the 1948 England tour. After a slow start to the historic campaign, Loxton struck form midway through the English summer and forced his way into the team for the last three Tests. He played a prominent role in the Fourth Test, scoring an aggressive and counterattacking 93 that helped Australia pry the initiative from England; the tourists eventually won the match. In 1949–50, Loxton cemented his position in the national team, playing in all five Tests in South Africa and scoring his only century at international level. He remained a regular member of the Test team until a form slump during the 1950–51 home season; he was dropped after three Tests against England and never played for Australia again. Loxton continued to play for Victoria in domestic competition until retiring at the end of the 1957–58 season. A member of the Liberal Party, Loxton entered politics and was a member of Victorian Legislative Assembly, representing the electoral district of Prahran from 1955 to 1979. During this time, Loxton was also active in cricket administration at club, state and international level. He was a state selector for over two decades, and served at national level for ten years, starting in 1970–71. He was also the team manager for Australia's tour of the subcontinent in 1959–60, overseeing a successful campaign despite a spate of serious illnesses to personnel. Loxton had to deal with a variety of tumultuous events on and off the field during his tenure, often relating to player misconduct, and retired from cricket administration in 1981 following the underarm incident. ==Early and war years== Loxton was born in March 1921 at Albert Park, Victoria, the son of Sam Sr. and Annie.〔 The elder Sam Loxton was an electrician who played second grade cricket for Collingwood.〔 The younger Sam started his education at Yarra Park State School, where he learned to bat, using a pine tree in the schoolyard as the stumps; the same tree was used for the same purpose years earlier by Test players Vernon Ransford and Ernie McCormick, and long-serving Victorian batsman Jack Ledward.〔 The family moved to Armadale, and young Loxton attended Armadale Public School before completing his secondary education at Wesley College, Melbourne, an elite private boys’ school. One of his colleagues at Wesley College was Ian Johnson, a future teammate for Victoria and Australia.〔 The boys’ school coach was P. L. Williams, a renowned mentor of teenagers who had earlier coached Ross Gregory and future Test captain Lindsay Hassett.〔Coleman, pp. 544–545.〕 Away from his sporting commitments at school, Loxton played district cricket for Prahran's third grade team when he was just 12.〔〔Coleman, pp. 543–549〕 The young cricketer's parents were stalwarts of the club; Sam Sr. was the scorer and served as a transport man, driving the matting and equipment to matches, while Annie made cucumber sandwiches for 25 years〔〔—due to the economic difficulties caused by the Great Depression and World War II, meat catering for players was a luxury even at first-class and international matches.〔 The elder Sam was a member of the club committee from 1941 until his death in 1974, and was a vice-president for the last 17 years of his life.〔 At the age of 16, the younger Loxton was selected in the Victorian Cricket Association Colts team that played in the first grade competition in 1937–38; he played three seasons with the outfit, which was effectively a state youth team.〔 The squad was coached by Bert Cohen and former Test batsman and captain Jack Ryder,〔Coleman, p. 545.〕 and Loxton credited the latter as the biggest influence on his career, saying Loxton improved significantly in his third season with the Colts, scoring his first century and taking 21 wickets, having managed only seven scalps in the two previous summers.〔 In 1940–41, aged 19, he moved back to Prahran to play in their first grade team after the Colts were disbanded, and he became more productive over the next few years, taking 46 wickets in one season.〔〔 Loxton also played Australian rules football, and in 1942, he made his debut in the Victorian Football League (VFL)—the highest tier of competition at the time—playing for St Kilda.〔 One of his teammates was Keith Miller, a future ''Invincibles'' colleague. Loxton played as both a forward and a defender, and the pair sometimes played together in attack.〔Perry, p. 51.〕 The recruit from Prahran played in only six matches in his first year, kicking 15 goals.〔 Debuting in round six, he started his career brightly, kicking five and four goals in his first two matches against Melbourne and Collingwood respectively, helping his team to two victories. However, the goals and victories began to dry up and Loxton managed only six goals and one win in the remaining four matches.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://stats.afl.com.au/public/statistics/player_roundbyround/1942/12/player_roundbyround_12_1942.shtml?club_idIndex=13&club_idValue=12&season_idIndex=67&AFLstatisticMenu=1 )〕 St Kilda came second to last and did not make the finals.〔Perry, p. 52.〕 During World War II, Loxton served with the 2nd Armoured Division.〔 He enlisted on 31 July 1942 at Oakleigh, Victoria and was discharged on 7 November 1945 with the rank of sergeant, having spent most of his time at the division headquarters. The war ended Loxton and Miller’s partnership at St Kilda. Miller was deployed to South Australia for training before becoming a fighter pilot in England,〔Perry, pp. 50–55.〕〔Whitington, p. 53.〕 while his St Kilda colleague served in a reserve unit in Melbourne,〔 enabling him to continue his football career when granted leave. In 1943, Loxton played in only the last four matches of the season, all of which were lost, kicking seven goals,〔 and St Kilda finished last with a solitary victory from ten games. He managed three goals each against Essendon and South Melbourne but was held goal-less against Melbourne.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://stats.afl.com.au/public/statistics/player_roundbyround/1943/12/player_roundbyround_12_1943.shtml?club_idIndex=13&club_idValue=12&season_idIndex=66&AFLstatisticMenu=1 )〕 The following year, Loxton played in all 18 matches and topped St Kilda’s goal-kicking aggregates with 52.〔 After making a slow start to the season, aggregating only four goals in the first four matches, including two goal-less outings, he began to score more heavily. The St Kilda forward registered a six-goal haul against Geelong in round eight, helping to secure an away win, and scored 23 goals in the last six matches, including five in each of the last three matches. However, St Kilda won only one of these three matches.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://stats.afl.com.au/public/statistics/player_roundbyround/1944/12/player_roundbyround_12_1944.shtml?club_idIndex=13&club_idValue=12&season_idIndex=65&AFLstatisticMenu=1 )〕 Loxton's efforts helped his club to finish ninth out of 12 teams, and he came second in the club Best and Fairest.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=Gold Coast Sporting Hall of Fame )〕 He played a solitary match in 1945, which St Kilda lost, and went goal-less.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://stats.afl.com.au/public/statistics/player_roundbyround/1945/12/player_roundbyround_12_1945.shtml?club_idIndex=13&club_idValue=12&season_idIndex=64&AFLstatisticMenu=1 )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sam Loxton」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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