John arrived at Wonga Park in 1943 as a 13 year old boy and has rarely been away from the club since. John played in our premierships in 1950-51 and 1956-57, and went on to play in our first Chandler Shield premiership team in 1974-75. He continued to play until retiring in 1984. John was one of our greatest batsmen and a very good bowler. He played over 300 games for the Club and, with his son Jack, became the first two Wonga players to achieve this amazing milestone.
During his time John:
– score over 5,000 runs and won the batting average on six occasions – took over 300 wickets and won the bowling average on two occasions
In recognition of his contribution to cricket at Wonga, the “John Knee Club Champion Award” was established in 1970-71 which is now awarded to our best performed First 11 cricketer each year.
John’s exceptional on field efforts were matched by his massive contribution to the Club off field. Just one example is that he would often mow the ground during practice on Thursday evenings during the 60s.
John’s off field contribution was acknowledged in 1974 when he was awarded Life Membership of WPCC, our ultimate award.
Since retiring from the game John would be the dedicated dad watching Jack and Rod every Saturday, and even in the last couple of years with his health failing, John would still go and watch his boys playing on Goldy’s vets team.
During our Centenary Ball in February 2011, John was announced one of the 10 inaugural inductees into the “WPCC Hall of Fame” (awarded to our best performed First 11 cricketers).
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John passed away peacefully Thursday morning 4th July 2013 after a battle with illness; he was 83 years old. Our sympathies and best wishes in these difficult times go to Marg and his sons Warren (Jack), Russ, Rod and of course the extended Knee family.
The Knees have made a massive contribution to our great club and John played a major part. John arrived at Wonga Park in 1943 as a 13 year old boy and has rarely been away from the club since. John played in our premierships in 1950-51 and 1956-57, and went on to play in our first Chandler Shield premiership team in 1974-75. He continued to play until retiring in 1984.
John was one of our greatest batsmen and a very good bowler. He played over 300 games for the Club and, with his son Jack, became the first two Wonga players to achieve this amazing milestone. During his time John: – score over 5,000 runs and won the batting average on six occasions – took over 300 wickets and won the bowling average on two occasions In recognition of his contribution to cricket at Wonga, the “John Knee Club Champion Award” was established in 1970-71 which is now awarded to our best performed First 11 cricketer each year.
John’s exceptional on field efforts were matched by his massive contribution to the Club off field. Just one example is that he would often mow the ground during practice on Thursday evenings during the 60s. John’s off field contribution was acknowledged in 1974 when he was awarded Life Membership of WPCC, our ultimate award. Since retiring from the game John would be the dedicated dad watching Jack and Rod every Saturday, and even in the last couple of years with his health failing, John would still go and watch his boys playing on Goldy’s vets team.
During our Centenary Ball in February 2011, John was announced one of the 10 inaugural inductees into the “WPCC Hall of Fame” (awarded to our best performed First 11 cricketers). Many of our current members (Seniors and Juniors) wn’t know John Knee but his dedication to family and Club is an inspiration to all of us at Wonga.