The Vault: 'Hogan' hero with first century

This article on Martin Crowe's first test century appeared in the Herald on 24 January 1984.

"Hogan" was the hero as New Zealand battled to save the first cricket test against England at the Bain Reserve in Wellington yesterday.

About 12 years ago an Auckland youngster sat glued to the seat in front of a television set watching the United States prisoner-of-war programme Hogan's Heroes. The youngster never missed the programme, and took the nickname "Hogan" after the hero who in every programme foiled the Germans.

Yesterday, that youngster, grown to the 21-year-old Martin Crowe, foiled the rampant England cricket team for 276 minutes as he scored his first test century, 100 of the eventual New Zealand total of 335 for seven wickets, giving New Zealand a slender lead of 91 going into the last day today.

Crowe's century came in a face-saving 114-run stand with Jeremy Coney (76 not out) which took New Zealand past the indignity of an innings defeat.

As Crowe straight-drove the three for the magic number, 5498 spectators stood and cheered. The two others just sat.

Dave Crowe, the father of Martin (and of his team-mate Jeff), had a set, almost solemn face, only his eyes showing a gleam of utter satisfaction.

Audrey, the mother, did what all proud mothers usually do at such a time. She put her hands over her face and cried.

Six minutes later many others felt like a small cry too, for Crowe, after 270 minutes of nerve-racking toil and concentration, was caught from a spare-time bowler, Mike Gatting, who thus took his first test wicket.

A weary and subdued Crowe said in the dressing room afterwards: "I guess I had a good feeling when that century came, but getting out so quickly was a disappointment - only half the job was done.

"It was hard work, but I tried to keep my concentration and when I got bogged down tried to keep my feet moving.

"But I should not have got out. I thought I still had my concentration going OK. There was still a lot more work to do."

Crowe, playing in his eighth test and with a previous test high of 43, is the second youngest New Zealander (after the late Giff Vivian at 19) to score a test century.

He is now a man of cricket, compared with the jumpy youngster who started his test career two years ago on the same ground against Lillee, Thomson and other Australians, and compared with the young eager-beaver at Auckland Grammar School who gathered about him a bunch of mates who were inevtiably called "Hogan's heroes".