John D'Arcy was an opening batsman in a poor New Zealand side at the end of the 1950s. He made up for lack of natural ability with immense determination, but was hindered by an unorthodox grip which further restricted his already limited strokeplay. He made his debut in the first Test at Birmingham, scoring 19 and 25 (the highest and second-highest scores) and in the next Test at Lord's, despite learning of his father's death on the eve of the match, he scored 33 and 14 as again New Zealand capitulated with barely a whimper. In the remaining three Tests on the tour he could only muster 45 runs in six innings. In the whole summer he made 522 runs at 16.31 with his career-best coming against Glamorgan where he made 89. At the end of the 1959-60 season he left Canterbury and moved to Otago, drifting out of the game after two mediocre campaigns.
Martin Williamson