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使用者:RuiyuShen/基思·米勒的早年生活

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一個穿着白色的開領襯衫和白色的毛衣的黑色中分頭的年輕人正在咧着嘴笑。
40年代早期的基思米勒

這篇文章是澳大利亞板球運動員基思·米勒（Keith Miller）從1919年11月28日出生到1940年8月20日第二次世界大戰期間放棄平民生活參加澳大利亞陸軍預備隊（Australian Army Reserve）的編年史。出生在墨爾本郊區桑夏恩（Sunshine,Victora）的米勒從小就十分重視運動。米勒是家中四個蘇格蘭血統的孩子中最小的一個。和他的兄弟姐妹一樣，米勒從小就受父親的影響熱愛體育，於是練就了冬季踢足球、夏季玩蟋蟀的本領。米勒的父親是一個工程師與體育愛好者，他常常強調技術在權力之上。由於其瘦小的身材，米勒無法使用蠻力。米勒渴望做一個賽馬手，因為他認為自己的體格不足以在板球或足球上有所建樹。

米勒就讀的中學是在學術為主的墨爾本高中（Melbourne High School），在那裡他的數學老師是在職澳大利亞板球球隊隊長比爾·伍德富爾。他缺乏學術天分，忽視了學習，但運動是他的強項。米勒十四歲就進入了學校的首選板球隊，並因其可與伍德富爾比肩的出色的技術和防禦能力引起了人們的注意。米勒被聖基爾達板球俱樂部（St Kilda Cricket Club）拒絕，故其在地區鬥爭中選擇了卡西南墨爾本板球俱樂部（Casey-South Melbourne Cricket Club），而後在1935-36賽季板球比賽中以僅僅162 cm（5英尺4英寸）的身高登場。在這場比賽中，他收穫了61跑，從而在低分的情況下扭轉了對抗伍爾富德所在隊伍卡爾頓板球俱樂部（Carlton Cricket Club）的比賽局勢，並因此促使老師在數學課上為米勒頒發了一個銀蛋獎盃。這個獎盃一直是米勒最珍貴的財產之一。

在接下來的一年裡，米勒長高了28 cm（11英寸），並開始嘗試憑藉自己的能力打板球和踢足球。米勒於學業第十年離開學校，以僅十七歲的年齡為維多利亞小馬隊打了兩個賽季的板球，而後在1937-38賽季被一流板球隊選中登場亮相。此後米勒又零星地打過幾場比賽，並在1939-40賽季首次亮相謝菲爾德盾牌球隊（Sheffield Shield）。這段時間他僅以擊球手上場，還未成為為人熟知的快速投球手（Pace bowling）。1937年開始，米勒在維多利亞足球協會（Victorian Football Association）為布萊特足球俱樂部（Brighton Football Club）踢了三年球。這段時間他主要作為後衛參加比賽。在第四個賽季的開始，米勒擋住了當時被認為最好的前鋒鮑勃·普拉特（Bob Pratt），這場比賽的一分被評為最佳實戰。他立刻與聖基爾達板球俱樂部簽約參加1940年的維多利亞足球聯賽（Victorian Football League (1897–1989)）。在這場比賽中他的團隊排行倒數第二。

出生

編輯

1919年11月28日，基思·羅斯·米勒出生在墨爾本西部郊區的桑夏恩，是萊斯利夫婦的四個孩子中最年輕的。[1][2][3] 他有兩個哥哥和一個姐姐。[2]  當米勒出生時，姐姐格拉迪斯12歲，哥哥小萊斯和瑞恩分別是9歲和7歲。[4] 米勒的名字源於澳大利亞開拓者飛行員兄弟基思·史密斯和羅斯·史密斯，[5]在他出生時他們正在他們的歷史性從英格蘭到澳大利亞的飛行的中途。[1][2][6]米勒的兩個基督教名字反映出了他的蘇格蘭歷史特色。他父親的家庭來自愛丁堡和鄧迪的碼頭。[1][3] 他慈父般的祖父在1849年四月到達澳大利亞。[1] 他們的家庭居住在一個一層的排屋中。桑夏恩在當時是一個有900名居民的獨立村莊，在墨爾本市中心西邊11千米（6.8英里）。那裡一直是工人階級居住區。這個小城鎮的經濟命脈是農業機械製作商休·維克托·麥凱，他僱傭了大量的勞動人口。米勒的父親一開始在沃勒克納比爾村擔任老師，在有一名運輸員把他送到了桑夏恩之後，[4]他成為了巴拉瑞特的休·維克托·麥凱的工程師。

早期教育

編輯

米勒家的三個男孩很快就喜歡上了喜歡在陽光明媚的田野上運動。在冬天他們踢澳式足球，在夏季他們打板球。他們的父親曾為沃勒克納比爾（Warracknabeal）打比賽，並打贏了當地1900年的英超聯賽。萊斯強調正統擊球技術的重要性，教男孩們要站在正面立場擊球，[4]時刻保持所擊出球軌道的彎度。[4]在父親的諄諄教誨下，男孩們學會了像那個時代澳大利亞和維多利亞的測試擊球手那樣比爾·龐斯福德依賴堅固的防禦、專注和自我控制。[7]米勒在桑夏恩開始上學。他是學校里身高最矮的學生，[7]並因此聞名整個中學。[2] At the age of seven, Miller moved to the inner-eastern middle-class Melbourne suburb of Elsternwick,[2][8] where his parents had purchased a two-storey house with a spacious garden that allowed the children to play sport. By this time, his elder brothers had given him the derisive nickname Weedy.[7] Miller's small size and age deficit meant that he conceded a strength advantage to his brothers in backyard cricket matches. This forced him to develop his technique rather than rely on power, which held him in good stead for his future career. Whenever Miller managed to dismiss his brothers and earn himself some batting time, he typically played with a straight bat in a watchful manner, as it was difficult for him to remove his brothers, meaning that his opportunities with the bat were rare. Miller and his friends would loiter outside Ponsford's home, just 400米（440 yd） away, in the hope of catching a glimpse of their hero.[9][10] Like Miller in his backyard, Ponsford was known for his powers of concentration and was the first person to score two quadruple centuries in first-class cricket.[11] Miller often practised for hours by himself; he put a tennis ball inside a stocking, before suspending it from a clothes line and hitting it back and forth.[8][12] Indoors, Miller developed a lifelong love of classical music through a cousin who liked to play Mozart. He played flute in the Elsternwick school band but could not read music.[2]

As a small child, Miller's major sporting aspiration was to be a jockey,[13][14] but he continued to play cricket and Australian football.[15] At the age of 12, he played for an under-15 Victorian schoolboys cricket team that toured Queensland under the captaincy of future Test batsman Merv Harvey.[2] At the time, Miller stood only 150 cm（4英尺11英寸） and wielded a sawn-off bat.[12] His shots did not travel far, but he impressed observers with the manner in which he moved his feet and stroked the ball.[12] Miller's small stature in a contact sport such as football forced him to rely on physical courage, something for which he became famed.[16] However, his lack of height prompted him to turn to horseracing. Miller saw his first Melbourne Cup in 1926 at the age of seven and had been fascinated ever since.[2] Caulfield Racecourse was only a short distance from the family home, and Miller spent many early mornings watching the trainers and jockeys go through their routines. He eventually persuaded his father to let him take horseriding lessons.[16] Aside from being attracted to the racing culture, Miller felt that as he appeared destined to be a small person, he was more likely to have a successful career as a jockey than in cricket or football.[14][17]

墨爾本高校

編輯
 
The Melbourne High School cricket team. Miller is standing at right. Truscott is seated with shield.

Miller went to the local state school before transferring to Melbourne High School—a selective government institution that accepted students through an academic exam—at the start of 1934.[17] The school's emphasis on scholastic and sporting excellence and its culture was more in line with that of a private school than a standard government school.[18] Australian Test captain Bill Woodfull was on the teaching staff as Miller's mathematics teacher.[2] Because he did little study and focused his energy on sport, Miller was a mediocre student.[18] In addition to cricket and football, Miller played baseball and competed in swimming. This disappointed Woodfull, a disciplined man who invoked the school's motto Honour the Work in exhorting his students to work hard as Australia was attempting to emerge from the depths of the Great Depression.[18] Despite being Australia's captain, Woodfull refused to involve himself in the coaching of the school's cricket teams, feeling that it would intrude on the responsibilities of the sports teachers.[2] Despite this, Woodfull watched the students at cricket training and quickly noticed Miller's skills.[19] Aged 14 and still under 153 cm（5英尺0英寸）, Miller was selected in the school's First XI. With his pads flapping against his stomach and sporting a sawn-down bat, Miller batted at No. 6 and scored 44 on his senior debut. Although his lack of power was obvious, Miller's control and solidity prompted the spectators to call him the Unbowlable, the same nickname that was accorded to Woodfull, who had a similarly strong defensive style. Melbourne went on to win the match,[20] and Miller impressed his captain Keith Truscott, who fought for his selection and took him under his wing.[20] Truscott later became an ace fighter pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force,[14] and Miller would follow in his footsteps. Truscott's social influence compounded the distractions from Miller's study. Miller failed all eight of his subjects at the end of 1934, and with an average mark of 25%, was the class dunce. He scored zero in his final exam for Woodfull's geometry class,[21] and was forced to repeat year 9.[22]

板球俱樂部

編輯
 
Keith Truscott, Miller's schoolboy cricket captain and mentor.

At the start of the 1934–35 season, Truscott took Miller to a try out with St Kilda Cricket Club, but his protege could not find a place in any of the club's five teams.[2][21][23] Joining the local sub-district cricket club Elsternwick, Miller did not get to bat or bowl on debut, and was then dropped to the Second XI after his first match for poor fielding.[2][21][23] Nevertheless, the former Victorian state player Hughie Carroll spotted Miller's talent and lured him to the rival South Melbourne club.[22][23] However, Elsternwick used the competition rules to prevent Miller from playing for Souths, so he continued to play in the former's second-choice team.[2][22] In the meantime, Miller continued to play for his school with steady results, scoring 30 and 25 in two matches against Melbourne's main rival, University High School. A loosening of the zoning rules allowed Miller to start competing for South Melbourne in the following season.[22] However, the rules required South Melbourne to play Miller in their First XI, else St Kilda could reclaim him, so he made his district cricket debut for South at the start of the 1935–36 season after a trial in the nets.[2][24] At this stage, Miller was just 162 cm（5英尺4英寸） tall—the Test batsman Keith Rigg recalled his first encounter with the diminutive youngster in a district match:

He was so small he came in to bat with pads flapping around up near his waist. Hans Ebeling was bowling and Keith hit him through the covers for four. I thought, 'Crikey, who's this kid?'[2][12]

It was at South Melbourne that Miller met Ian Johnson and Lindsay Hassett, his future Australia teammates and captains. On debut against St Kilda, Miller scored only 11 not out after batting for 62 minutes at No. 7, but observers felt the young batsman would succeed if he physically grew.[2][24] Miller passed his exams at the end of 1935 and continued his development on the field. He began to develop a leg break and googly and represented his school against a visiting schoolboy team from Ceylon. Miller scored an unbeaten 28 to prevent a loss and later cited the experience as helping to broaden his horizons towards other cultures.[25] Assisted by cross-training in baseball, his improved fielding skills saw him placed in the slips and he was named as Melbourne High School's cricket sports champion for 1936.[25] Miller averaged 86 with the bat and took 13 wickets at an average of 9.23, including innings figures of seven wickets for 29 runs against St Kevin's and 3/5 against University High.[26] These performances prompted Woodfull to write in the school magazine that "Miller has Test possibilities".[27] In March, Miller played for South Melbourne against Carlton, who were captained by Woodfull. South Melbourne batted first and collapsed to 5/6.[27][28] The sixth wicket fell at 32, bringing Miller to the crease. He guided his team to 141, and was the last man out for 61 after putting on a stand of 65 in 95 minutes with the No. 11. Miller struck four boundaries in a 147-minute innings.[29][30] The crowd of 14,000—the largest of the season—gave Miller a standing ovation, and newspapers compared him to Ponsford and Alan Kippax.[31] Carlton went on to win the game, and when it was obvious that this would be the case, Miller's captain let him bowl for the first time. The small batsman took his first wicket in district cricket when Test paceman Laurie Nash took a high-leaping catch.[31] Miller's performance prompted Carlton to donate a silver eggcup as a memento "for sterling performance". Woodfull presented Miller with the trophy during algebra class.[30][31] It was one of the few sports trophies that Miller kept in later life.[2][32]

During 1936, Miller underwent a sudden growth spurt, including a three-month period during which he added 10 cm（3.9英寸） to his height.[27] He began to play football with more physical aggression and developed the ability to leap high and take airborne marks.[33] The increase in size allowed Miller to become the longest kicker in the school team. Having grown 28 cm（11英寸） in a year,[30][34] Miller was unrecognisable to Hassett upon his return to South Melbourne the following season.[2][34] Eventually, Miller reached 185 cm（6英尺1英寸） in height, thwarting his ambition to be a jockey, although he never lost his love for the racetrack.[2][13][30]

代表性的開端

編輯

At the start of the 1936–37 season, Miller was selected for the Colts, a state under-21 team that played at district level.[2][34] At the end of the 1936 school year, Miller completed year 10 by passing five of his eight subjects. Disinclined towards university studies, he left school without finishing his leaving year and began working as a clerk for a car business. Miller felt confident that he could make a career out of sport and therefore felt that further education was unnecessary.[35]

Miller spent the 1937–38 season with the Colts and won the team's batting trophy for having the best average; he made 340 runs at 42.50. Across the entire competition, Miller had the eighth highest average.[2][35] He scored three half-centuries and a 102 against Northcote.[36] At this stage, Miller was a solid, slow and steady batsman, who accumulated his runs gradually, but The Age predicted that his physical growth would open his horizons, opining "Once he fills out—he is rather tall for his weight—Miller should become a brilliant, aggressive batsman".[37] In early February 1938, late in the summer, he made his first-class debut for Victoria as an 18-year-old and hit 181 in 289 minutes against Tasmania at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.[30][38] With his increased power, Miller began to loft the ball over the infield and struck five fours.[36] During the 1938–39 season, he rejoined South Melbourne and played four first-class matches for Victoria, scoring 125 runs at an average of 25.00. However, Miller was yet to play in the Sheffield Shield competition, only taking to the field in one-off matches against other teams.[39][40] In the two matches against Tasmania in December 1938, Miller took his first catch, but managed only four, seven not out and three, and he spent a period of time outside the team.[41] Miller was recalled in March 1939—late in the season—for two matches against Western Australia in Perth, scoring 111 runs at 37.00,[39] notching his first first-class fifty of the season in the second innings of the first match.[41]

Miller achieved more success as a footballer. In 1937, he followed his brothers Les and Ray and joined the Brighton Football Club in the Victorian Football Association (VFA).[2] The VFA was the second tier of Australian rules football below the Victorian Football League (VFL). A defender, Miller played his first two seasons on the flanks; he was yet to reach his physical peak and lacked the power required to play in central defensive positions until his third season, in 1939.[39] At this stage, he was unable to hip and shoulder his opponents and relied on his running ability and accurate kicking.[39]

 
Miller plays a cover drive at the age of 18.

During the 1939–40 season, Miller was selected to make his Sheffield Shield debut in a match against South Australia at Adelaide Oval.[42] Batting at No. 4, Miller came to the crease at 2/9 after a top-order collapse, but managed only four runs before being caught by Richard Whitington—with whom he later wrote cricket books—from the bowling of Harold Cotton.[30][43][44] When Victoria fielded, Miller ran out his future Invincibles captain Don Bradman; it was the first time that Bradman had been caught short of his ground in first-class cricket.[43][45] Miller also took his first catch at Shield level, that of Mervyn Waite.[44] In the second innings, he managed seven before being bowled by leg spinner Clarrie Grimmett,[46] one of the leading bowlers in the world in the 1930s.[42] One of Miller's teammates was Percy Beames, who also happened to be his manager at Vacuum Oil, where he had moved from his first job.[47] Miller made 41 and 47 not out in his second match against Queensland, top-scoring in the second innings as his team completed a seven-wicket victory.[48] Miller retained his place for the match against New South Wales, but was out for 14 in both innings. He had difficulties against leg spin, falling to Bill O'Reilly and Cec Pepper.[47] In the return match against South Australia, Miller decided to take the initiative against Grimmett, charging down the wicket to drive the leg spinner. He featured in a 165-run partnership with Hassett, and at times bluffed Grimmett by moving forward before leaning back after the bowler had adjusted his length. Miller reached 108 to complete his first century in Shield competition.[45] He was given out caught by Bradman from Garth Burton, after an appeal for a disputed catch; Miller asked the umpires if Bradman had caught a bump ball.[49][50] Nevertheless, Bradman praised Miller's innings,[51] and Clem Hill predicted a bright future for the Victorian.[45] Apart from the century, Miller had an average season, making 37, 1 and 24 in his remaining innings to end the campaign with 298 runs at 29.80.[41] He did not bowl during the season.[52]

突破維多利亞足球聯盟（VFL）

編輯

In 1940, Miller started his fourth season in the VFA. In a match against Coburg, regarded as one of the strongest teams in the competition, he was assigned to man Bob Pratt, who was regarded as the greatest forward of the era.[53] Pratt had scored 678 goals in ten seasons for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL), the top tier of football, and had scored more than 100 goals in each of his last three seasons.[54] Miller restricted Pratt to one goal for the match and was named as the best on ground. In the third quarter, Miller restricted Pratt to two marks, and in the fourth quarter, he prevented the forward from getting a single kick. Scouts from the VFL club St Kilda signed Miller on the spot.[55] Reacting to Miller's signing, The Age opined that he "is one of the most promising players ever to enter league ranks, and can be played anywhere in defence. It was he who kept Bob Pratt to one goal in last week's Association match."[55]

At the time, World War II had broken out and by mid-1940, France, Belgium and the Netherlands had fallen to Nazi Germany. Australia had declared war on Germany and Miller wanted to join the military, but St Kilda told him that if he was deployed outside Victoria, his career would be in jeopardy. As a result, Miller postponed his enlistment until the end of the season.[56]

Playing as a defender, Miller debuted for St Kilda in their fifth round home game against Carlton, at the Junction Oval on 25 May, playing on the half-back flank. At the start of the game, Miller's opponent Ron Cooper king hit and concussed him. Miller said of the experience, "I learnt more in a second or two than I would have in a year".[56][57] When St Kilda met Carlton in the return match at Princes Park, Miller shoulder bumped Cooper in the first minute of the match, forcing his opponent to leave the field.[58] In a match against Richmond, Miller was physically targeted by renowned enforcer Jack Dyer, known as Captain Blood. However, Dyer slipped and missed Miller.[58] In one game, Miller was reported for showing dissent to a goal umpire, but was let off without punishment. St Kilda came second to last, so they did not make the finals.[59]

資料來源

編輯
  1. ^ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Perry, p. 10.
  2. ^ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 Coleman, Robert. Seasons In the Sun: The Story of the Victorian Cricket Association. Melbourne: Hargreen Publishing. 1993: 473–478, 522–529. ISBN 0-949905-59-3. 
  3. ^ 3.0 3.1 Whitington, p. 42.
  4. ^ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Perry, p. 11.
  5. ^ Mallett, p. 61.
  6. ^ Pollard, Jack. Australian Cricket:The Game and the Players. Sydney: Angus & Robertson. 1988: 755–759. ISBN 0-207-15269-1. 
  7. ^ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Perry, p. 12.
  8. ^ 8.0 8.1 Whitington, p. 43.
  9. ^ Perry, p. 13.
  10. ^ Whitington, p. 45.
  11. ^ Perry, p. 14.
  12. ^ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Perry, p. 15.
  13. ^ 13.0 13.1 Mallett, p. 64.
  14. ^ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Whitington, p. 47.
  15. ^ Baum, Greg. Death of a hero. Sydney Morning Herald. 12 October 2004 [9 December 2008]. 
  16. ^ 16.0 16.1 Perry, p. 16.
  17. ^ 17.0 17.1 Perry, p. 17.
  18. ^ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Perry, p. 18.
  19. ^ Perry, p. 19.
  20. ^ 20.0 20.1 Perry, p. 20.
  21. ^ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Perry, p. 21.
  22. ^ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 Perry, p. 22.
  23. ^ 23.0 23.1 23.2 Whitington, p. 48.
  24. ^ 24.0 24.1 Perry, p. 23.
  25. ^ 25.0 25.1 Perry, p. 24.
  26. ^ 7/29 means that the bowler took seven wickets but conceded 29 runs in doing so.
  27. ^ 27.0 27.1 27.2 Perry, p. 25.
  28. ^ 5/6 means that the batting team has lost five wickets in the process of scoring six runs.
  29. ^ Perry, p. 26.
  30. ^ 30.0 30.1 30.2 30.3 30.4 30.5 Whitington, p. 49.
  31. ^ 31.0 31.1 31.2 Perry, p. 27.
  32. ^ Fab farewell for cricket legend Keith Miller. The Age. 20 October 2004 [22 December 2007]. 
  33. ^ Perry, p. 28.
  34. ^ 34.0 34.1 34.2 Perry, p. 29.
  35. ^ 35.0 35.1 Perry, p. 30.
  36. ^ 36.0 36.1 Perry, p. 32.
  37. ^ Perry, p. 31.
  38. ^ Victoria v Tasmania Other First-Class matches in Australia 1937/38. CricketArchive. [9 December 2008]. 
  39. ^ 39.0 39.1 39.2 39.3 Perry, p. 33.
  40. ^ First-class batting and fielding in each season by KR Miller. CricketArchive. [9 December 2008]. 
  41. ^ 41.0 41.1 41.2 Player Oracle KR Miller 1933 to 1942. CricketArchive. [9 December 2008]. 
  42. ^ 42.0 42.1 Perry, p. 35.
  43. ^ 43.0 43.1 Perry, p. 36.
  44. ^ 44.0 44.1 South Australia v Victoria Sheffield Shield 1939/40. CricketArchive. [9 December 2008]. 
  45. ^ 45.0 45.1 45.2 Whitington, p. 50.
  46. ^ Perry, p. 37.
  47. ^ 47.0 47.1 Perry, p. 38.
  48. ^ Victoria v Queensland Sheffield Shield 1939/40. CricketArchive. [9 December 2008]. 
  49. ^ Perry, p. 39.
  50. ^ Victoria v South Australia Sheffield Shield 1939/40. CricketArchive. [9 December 2008]. 
  51. ^ Perry, p. 40.
  52. ^ Perry, p. 43.
  53. ^ Perry, p. 44.
  54. ^ Perry, p. 45.
  55. ^ 55.0 55.1 Perry, p. 46.
  56. ^ 56.0 56.1 Perry, p. 47.
  57. ^ Main, Jim; Holmesby, Russell. The encyclopedia of league footballers. Melbourne: Wilkinson. 1992: 269. ISBN 1-86337-085-4. 
  58. ^ 58.0 58.1 Perry, p. 48.
  59. ^ Perry, p. 49.

參考文獻

編輯

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