Clarence Edgar "Mick" Harvey (17 March 1921 – 6 October 2016) was a first-class cricketer and Australian Test cricket umpire. He was the brother of Test batsmen Merv and Neil Harvey. He was born in Newcastle, New South Wales, and died in Brisbane, Queensland.
Harvey made his first-class debut in 1948–49, playing in the first three matches of the season for Victoria as an opening batsman. However, he scored only 91 runs at a batting average of 15.16, and was dropped. He moved to Queensland the following season in search of more opportunities and was selected in one match.
Harvey had his best first-class season in 1950–51, scoring 490 runs at 37.69, including his maiden first-class century against a full-strength New South Wales team with several Test bowlers. However, he struggled the following season and was dropped, and did not play a single first-class match in 1952–53. Recalled the following season, he overcame a slow start to score two centuries later in the summer to end with 421 runs at 38.27 for the summer. After a poor season, Harvey was dropped late in the 1955–56 season.
He was dropped after two matches in 1956–57, ending his first-class career. After his playing career was over, Harvey took up umpiring, and made his first-class debut in 1974–75. He regularly umpired in first-class matches over the next few seasons and then broke into international umpiring in 1978–79. In that summer, Harvey stood in two One Day Internationals (ODIs) and one Test. The following season he made his final appearances at international level, presiding over another Test and four ODIs. His last season of top-level domestic umpiring was in 1981–82 during which he officiated in two matches. He finished his career having presided over 31 first-class and 13 List A matches.
Early years
Mick's father Horace "Horry" Harvey moved to Broken Hill, New South Wales, where he worked for BHP driving horse-drawn trailers.Coleman, p. 552. In 1914, he married Elsie May Bitmead and their first two children, daughter Rita and son Merv, were born in the mining town. The family relocated to Newcastle, a mining town and harbour in New South Wales, where Clarence Edgar Harvey—always known as Mick, as he was born on Saint Patrick's Day—and Harold were born. In 1926, the Harveys shifted to the inner-Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, a staunchly working-class, industrial area. During their relocation, Ray was born in Sydney. Horace secured a job at the confectionery company Life Savers, located next door to their house at 198 Argyle Street. The 19th century two-storey house was owned by the firm and was used as lodgings for the workers’ families. It no longer exists, having been demolished to make way for a textile factory. The two youngest sons Neil and Brian were born in Fitzroy. The Cornish-descended Horry raised his family as strict Methodists, disallowing gambling, alcohol, tobacco and profanity in his household. An ardent cricketer, he encouraged his children to play sport. He himself played for the Rita Social Club after moving to Fitzroy.
As recreational facilities and grass ovals were sparse in densely populated Fitzroy, the boys took to playing cricket in a cobblestone laneway between their terraced house.Coleman, p. 553. Here they played cricket with a tennis ball, home made cricket bat and a kerosene tin for a wicket. They were usually joined by other local children, two of whom became elite sportsmen: Allan Ruthven (an Australian rules footballer) and Harold Shillinglaw (both an Australian rules footballer and first-class cricketer)—the group also played Australian rules football, kicking around rolled up cardboard and newspaper. Much of the batting skill displayed by the Harvey brothers has been attributed to these games played on the unpredictable bounce of the bumpy laneway. The surface also had a V-shaped slope inwards towards the centre of the lane, causing balls to deviate sideways after bouncing.Coleman, p. 551. As the laneway meant that the playing area was long and narrow, the young boys also had to learn to play the ball straight in accordance with orthodox cricket technique. The Harveys played another form of cricket in their concreted backyard using a marble instead of a ball that sharpened their reflexes,Coleman, p. 553. and a miniature bat.Harvey, p. 26. All were right-handed batsmen with the exception of Neil.Harvey, p. 25.
All of the children attended the nearby George Street State School and, one by one, the brothers joined the Fitzroy Cricket Club as they reached their early teens. The club had a program whereby they gave a medal for every local school to award to the best cricketer in their ranks in that year. The successful student would then be given access to all of the club's facilities.Harvey, pp. 26–27. All of the Harvey brothers were recipients were of this medal.Harvey, p. 27. At Fitzroy, they came under the influence of former Victorian all-rounder Arthur Liddicut and the club's veteran captain Joe Plant.Coleman, pp. 555–556. The Harveys had no formal coaching,Coleman, p. 555. and their father, although a regular presence at the club, chose to stay in the background as their respective careers developed.Coleman, p. 555. Horace did not advise his sons on how to bat, allowing them to formulate their own style and technique.Harvey, p. 29. According to the Harvey brothers, it was their mother who was vocal and extroverted, in contrast to their reserved father. The boys who failed to score runs were given kitchen duty, and according to them, their parents never showed favouritism.
During the winter, they played baseball for Fitzroy, often competing in matches played as curtain raisers to the elite Australian rules football competition, the Victorian Football League. Saturday night entertainment for the family typically consisted of dinner after the day's cricket matches for Fitzroy, and Plant, Liddicut and other cricket club personnel were often invited. Under the influence of Plant and Liddicut, the boys were taught to adopt an aggressive approach, using fast feet movement to attack spin bowling in particular.Coleman, p. 556.
World War II and first-class debut A printer by trade, Harvey first played in the Fitzroy First XI in 1938–39. Mick opened the batting with Merv, and in 1942–43, when Neil broke into the First XI, the family occupied the first four batting positions for the team; Merv and Mick opened and Ray and Neil came in after them.Harvey, pp. 30–31. During World War II, Harvey enlisted in the Second Australian Imperial Force at Fitzroy on 4 March 1943 and was a member of the 39th Infantry Battalion and went on to serve in Kokoda. He was discharged on 29 March 1946 with the rank of private. He resumed cricket with Fitzroy after the war's end and made enough runs to be selected for Victoria's first three Sheffield Shield matches of the 1948–49 season. Playing as an opening batsman, he made 10 and 13 on debut against Queensland, and was trapped leg before wicket (lbw) in both innings in an eight-wicket win. In the next match against New South Wales, who boasted Australia's new ball opening bowlers Ray Lindwall and Keith Miller, Harvey made 19 and 33 in a drawn match. In the subsequent match against South Australia, he made 4 and 12, again being trapped lbw in both innings. The 1948–49 season was purely domestic with no touring Test team, so all of Australia's international representatives were available for the whole season. Having scored only 91 runs at a batting average of 15.16, Harvey was dropped from the team. He did not play alongside Ray, who was dropped, and Merv, who had retired. It was Harvey's last season for Fitzroy, and in 90 first-grade matches, he scored 2,601 runs at an average of 30.24.Coleman, p. 564.
Move to Queensland At the time, Queensland were the least successful team in the Sheffield Shield, and Harvey moved north to Brisbane the following season to try to get more opportunities to play Sheffield Shield cricket. Harvey joined the Toombul grade club, and made his first-class debut for Queensland against Victoria late in the season, although none of his brothers played for Victoria in this match; Merv had already retired, Neil was representing Australia, and Ray had been dropped. In his only match for the summer, he scored 1 and 13 and took two catches in each innings as an opener. He was dropped after the match.
In 1950–51, his most prolific first-class season, he hit 490 runs at 37.69 for Queensland. The season started with consecutive matches against a full-strength New South Wales, who had an attack including Lindwall, Miller, Alan Walker and Alan Davidson. In the first match, in Brisbane, Harvey made 40 and 19 batting at No. 7 before being dismissed by Davidson and Lindwall respectively. The visitors won by an innings.
In the return match at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Harvey was promoted to bat at No. 3. He made 38 in the first innings before being dismissed by Walker. Harvey broke through for his maiden first-class century in the second innings, scoring an unbeaten 100. Queensland declared at 4/237 as soon as he reached his milestone, only to see the hosts reach the victory target of 225 with all ten wickets intact.
Harvey played against an international outfit for the first time in the following match against the touring England cricket team, but made only three in his solitary innings. However, he continued to score consistently, making a half-century in each of the next three matches. From the third of these matches—against South Australia—onwards, he generally opened the batting for Queensland. On his first innings back as an opener, he narrowly missed a century, being dismissed for 95 by Geff Noblet. However, it was enough for the Queenslanders to take a 162-run first innings lead in a low-scoring match in which only one team surpassed 240 once, and set up an eight-wicket victory, the only time his state won a match for the season. Harvey's performance tapered away in the last two matches of the season. He made only 0 and 2 in the last match against Victoria, and 48 runs in his last four innings.
Harvey started the 1951–52 season poorly, scoring 9 and 5 against a full-strength New South Wales team. In the following match, he made 90 in the first innings as Queensland defeated the touring West Indies by ten wickets. Harvey was sidelined for six weeks before returning in late December against Victoria. He struggled in this match and the next against New South Wales, scoring 9, 20, 9 and 3. In the next match, he made 46 in the first innings before managing only five in the second, against South Australia. Nor did Queensland have success in these three matches. They were one wicket away from victory in the first match when time ran out, and lost the other two. Harvey was dropped for the remainder of the season, ending with 196 runs at 21.77.
Harvey was overlooked for Queensland selection for the whole 1952–53 season. He was recalled at the start of the 1953–54 campaign and made 26 and 20 in the first match against New South Wales, failing to convert his starts into big scores. He was retained despite making 15 and 0 in the next match against Victoria, but scored only 1 in the first innings of the match against South Australia starting on Christmas Day. Victoria were set 329 for victory, and having made only 62 runs in five innings for the season so far, he was the mainstay of the innings, scoring 102, but his team were all out for 245.