ABSTRACT
Risking possible rebuke from the Australian Board of Control, Bert Oldfield and Charlie Macartney organised an extensive cricketing tour to Singapore and Malaya in 1927. Taking a strong team, including three other test players, the tour was an opportunity to enjoy a working holiday near the Equator. Singapore was a thriving trading centre for products such as tin and rubber from its hinterland — Peninsula Malaya. For the hosts the visit was heartily welcomed. It was an opportunity for merchants, planters and administrators to challenge some of the great names in cricket and to reinforce colonial connections through the medium of the game. No payment was anticipated by the tourists, just the assurance of effusive hospitality. The impact of the tour was short-lived. The entertainment value was immediate and substantial, but the opportunity to encourage greater Asian involvement in the game was overlooked. The Australians were full of praise for their hosts and, despite a packed itinerary, took pleasant memories away with them. However, this was to be the last of the ‘unapproved’ tours. In Singapore and Malaya the local cricketers basked briefly in the glow of moderate success achieved on the field, but tiiey were unable to spark any significant interest in the game from an Asian population of predominantly Chinese and Malay origins.
