| Jack Doig | |
| Fullname: | John Allen Doig |
| Birth Date: | 24 March 1872 |
| Birth Place: | Beechworth, Victoria, Australia |
| Death Place: | Invercargill, Southland, New Zealand |
| Club1: | Southland |
| Columns: | 1 |
| Column1: | First-class |
| Matches1: | 7 |
| Runs1: | 118 |
| Bat Avg1: | 9.07 |
| 100S/50S1: | 0/0 |
| Top Score1: | 29 |
| Deliveries1: | 1,469 |
| Wickets1: | 38 |
| Bowl Avg1: | 15.78 |
| Fivefor1: | 5 |
| Tenfor1: | 1 |
| Best Bowling1: | 7/46 |
| Catches/Stumpings1: | 5/– |
| Date: | 4 May |
| Year: | 2014 |
| Source: | https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/21/21782/21782.html CricketArchive |
John Allen Doig (24 March 1872 – 24 November 1951) was an Australian-born cricketer who played first-class cricket in New Zealand for Southland between the 1914–15 and 1920–21 seasons.[1]
Doig's family moved from Australia to New Zealand when he was a small boy. Doig and his first wife Alexandra (née Broome) had two daughters. She died in 1906 and he married Alice (née Hast) in 1907; they had a son and a daughter. He worked at various times as a blacksmith, insurance agent and sports store owner. He lived most of his life in Invercargill.[2]
Doig opened the bowling for Southland in March 1911 and took six wickets when Southland beat Rangitikei to become the first winners of the Hawke Cup.[3] Along with Hugh Bannerman and Don Hamilton he was nominated by the Southland Cricket Association for the tour to Australia in 1913–14.[4] But they were not playing for one of the four major teams, and they were not selected.
When Southland had first-class status from 1914–15 to 1920–21, Doig played in seven of their eight matches, taking 38 wickets at 15.78. Southland's first-class debut came in the match against Otago at Rugby Park, Invercargill, in February 1915. At the age of 42 Doig made his own first-class debut, along with nine of his team-mates. He opened the bowling and took 7 for 46 in the first innings, but Otago won comfortably.[5] In the match against Otago at Rugby Park in March 1919 he bowled unchanged through both innings, taking 5 for 43 off 24 eight-ball overs in the first innings, and 5 for 41 off 32.3 overs in the second, but Otago won again.[6]
In Southland's only first-class victory, against Otago at Rugby Park in March 1920, Doig took 2 for 74 and 6 for 21, he and his opening partner Dan McBeath taking 19 wickets in the match.[7] In his last first-class match, in March 1921, a few days before his 49th birthday, he took 5 for 102 for Southland against the touring Australians at Rugby Park, including the wickets of Vic Richardson and Alan Kippax.[8] In his five first-class matches at Rugby Park he took 31 wickets at an average of 12.70.[9]
Doig was still opening the bowling for Southland at the age of 50 in 1923 when they played MCC.[10] He organised Invercargill teams to tour the surrounding country districts annually in the 1920s and 1930s.[11] [12] He was a member of the Invercargill Cricket Club for forty-six years, and he was also prominent in Southland in playing or administering Rugby football, hockey, athletics, basketball, boxing and golf.[13]