Watch: At Christchurch in 1979/80, Colin Croft ran in to bowl at Richard Hadlee. En route, he crashed into umpire Fred Goodall.
Between the two series against Australia (1975/76 against Australia and 1994/95 at home), the mighty West Indies team lost only once in a Test series . That was him in New Zealand from 1979 to his 1980.
The Black Caps won by one wicket in Dunedin and drew in Christchurch and Auckland to advance to the series. It was also one of his most intense Test contests in his cricketing history.
The series was marred by controversy, particularly over West Indian complaints against the New Zealand umpires. If we follow the Wisden Almanack‘s report, there is some truth to that. “There is no doubt that more was directed against the West Indies than against New Zealand, even though both sides suffered from the controversial decisions.”
Michael Holding was not happy when referee John Hastie ruled out John Parker for being caught from behind. He knocked two tree stumps straight off the ground. Chasing 104 points, New Zealand won despite being reduced to 73-8 by Joel Garner, Holding and Croft.
In the second Test match, umpire Goodall rejected further appeals from New Zealand captain Geoff Howarth, who had fallen behind due to Garner’s bowling. The West Indies team refused to take to the field after tea in protest.
When play resumed, Holding claimed a further goal from Howarth. This was also refused and Holding responded by firing at his bodyguard. After being stymied, New Zealand made 248 for 4 in their first innings, giving them a 20-run lead.
On their day off, the West Indies cricketers announced that they wanted to cancel the tour. Their board insisted they stay there. On the fourth day, an angry West Indies team took to the field.
It didn’t take long for the drama to begin. Croft bowled short, Hadley tried, wicketkeeper Derrick Murray held the catch and appealed, but Goodall again rejected the appeal. Croft responded with a profanity and then a bouncer. On his way back to his destination, he knocked the bracket off.
He ran in again and attacked referee Goodall. The umpires wanted to speak to captain Clive Lloyd, who let him run until he slipped. Lloyd removed Croft after it was over, perhaps more because the score was 15 than to try to calm the situation down.
Hadley scored 92 balls and 103 as New Zealand scored 460. Gordon Greenidge (97), Desmond Haynes (122), Lawrence Law (100) and Coris King (100 not out) all scored and the match ended in a draw.
After the Test match, Lloyd and West Indies team manager Willie Rodriguez advocated for neutral umpires in the future of Test cricket. It would take nearly another decade for that to happen, but that’s another story.
Recently, Tom Curran was involved in a similar incident in the Big Bash League. He received a four-match suspension for threatening a referee during his run-up training session.
Watch the Colin Croft-Fred Goodall incident here:
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