Martin Thursfield

{{short description|English cricketer}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2016}}

{{Use British English|date=March 2016}}

{{Infobox cricketer

| name = Martin Thursfield

| image =

| country = England

| fullname = Martin John Thursfield

| nickname =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1971|12|14|df=yes}}

| birth_place = South Shields, County Durham, England

| heightft =

| heightinch =

| batting = Right-handed

| bowling = Right-arm medium

| club1 = Middlesex

| year1 = 1990

| club2 = Hampshire

| year2 = {{nowrap|1992–1996}}

| club3 = Sussex

| year3 = 1997

| columns = 2

| column1 = First-class

| matches1 = 24

| runs1 = 309

| bat avg1 = 15.45

| 100s/50s1 = –/–

| top score1 = 47

| deliveries1 = 2.844

| wickets1 = 38

| bowl avg1 = 40.50

| fivefor1 = 1

| tenfor1 = –

| best bowling1 = 6/130

| catches/stumpings1 = 2/–

| column2 = List A

| matches2 = 33

| runs2 = 60

| bat avg2 = 6.00

| 100s/50s2 = –/–

| top score2 = 19

| deliveries2 = 1,434

| wickets2 = 25

| bowl avg2 = 46.96

| fivefor2 = –

| tenfor2 = –

| best bowling2 = 3/31

| catches/stumpings2 = 6/–

| date = 11 December

| year = 2009

| source = http://www.cricinfo.com/ci/content/player/21541.html Cricinfo

}}

Martin John Thursfield (born 14 December 1971) is an English former cricketer who played first-class cricket as a medium pace bowler for Hampshire, Middlesex, and Sussex.

Thursfield was born in December 1971 at South Shields, County Durham. A club cricketer for Boldon Cricket Club,{{cite news|url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0005105/19880118/227/0016|title=Robson signs|work=Shields Daily Gazette|location=South Tyneside|page=16|date=18 January 1988|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription|via=British Newspaper Archive}} he initially had trials with Worcestershire in 1988.{{cite news|url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000641/19880121/417/0039|title=Cricket hopefuls|work=Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette|page=39|date=21 January 1988|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription|via=British Newspaper Archive}} In April 1989, he joined the staff at Middlesex.{{cite news|url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000641/19890427/497/0049|title=Senior league|work=Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette|page=49|date=27 April 1989|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription|via=British Newspaper Archive}} He made his debut in first-class cricket for Middlesex against the touring New Zealanders at Lord's in 1990. He made a further first-class appearance for Middlesex in the 1990 County Championship against Essex at Ilford.{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/4/4691/First-Class_Matches.html|title=First-Class Matches played by Martin Thursfield|publisher=CricketArchive|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription}} Thursfield was deemed enough of a pace bowling prospect to be selected to tour New Zealand with Young England Cricketers in the winter which followed the 1990 season.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket-gatting-going-in-the-right-direction-1486891.html|title=Cricket: Gatting going in the right direction|first=Rob|last=Steen|work=The Independent|location=London|date=23 July 1993|access-date=14 July 2024}} During the tour, he made a single Youth One Day International appearance against the New Zealand Young Cricketers at Hamilton.{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/4/4691/Under-19_ODI_Matches.html|title=Under-19 ODI Matches played by Martin Thursfield|publisher=CricketArchive|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription}} Thursfield broke his leg during a match on tour, but only left the field of play after he had insisted on bowling two more deliveries. This injury had the impact of severely stunting his development as a bowler.

He left Middlesex following the 1990 season, joining Hampshire for 1991.{{cite news|url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0002488/19910510/666/0061|title=Great to be back|work=Sandwell Evening Mail|page=61|date=16 May 1991|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription|via=British Newspaper Archive}} He returned to action four months after breaking his leg. With the presence of bowlers such as Malcolm Marshall in the Hampshire side, Thursfield found his first team opportunities limited. His first team debut would not come until 1993, when he played a first-class match against Oxford University. He subsequently made two appearances in the 1993 County Championship, alongside six List A one-day appearances in the 1993 Axa Equity & Law League.{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/4/4691/List_A_Matches.html|title=List A Matches played by Martin Thursfield|publisher=CricketArchive|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription}} The following season he made seven appearances in the County Championship, alongside appearing in first-class matches against Oxford University and the touring South Africans; in first-class matches that season, he took 17 wickets at an average of 30.82,{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/4/4691/f_Bowling_by_Season.html|title=First-Class Bowling in Each Season by Martin Thursfield|publisher=CricketArchive|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription}} taking his only five wicket haul with figures of 6 for 130 against Middlesex.{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/58/58867.html|title=Hampshire v Middlesex, Britannic Assurance County Championship 1994|publisher=CricketArchive|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription}} He made six further one-day appearances in the 1994 Axa Equity & Law League. After the 1994 season, Thursfield found his first-class opportunities limited and was mostly utilised in one-day cricket, before being released by Hampshire following the 1996 season.{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket-1997-countybycounty-guide-1267859.html|title=Cricket 1997: County-by-county guide|work=The Independent|location=London|date=17 April 1997|access-date=14 July 2024}} In twenty first-class matches for Hampshire, he took 33 wickets at an average of 39.42.{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/4/4691/f_Bowling_by_Team.html|title=First-Class Bowling For Each Team by Martin Thursfield|publisher=CricketArchive|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription}} In 31 one-day matches, he took 23 wickets at an average of 48.91, with best figures of 3 for 31.{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/4/4691/a_Bowling_by_Team.html|title=List A Bowling For Each Team by Martin Thursfield|publisher=CricketArchive|access-date=14 July 2024|url-access=subscription}}

Thursfield signed a one-year deal for Sussex for the 1997 season,{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/sussex-start-their-clearout-of-players-1250117.html|title=Sussex start their clear-out of players|work=The Independent|location=London|date=10 July 1997|access-date=14 July 2024}} making two first-class and one-day appearances. He was released by Sussex just three months into his one-year contract, with their chief executive Tony Pigott opining that he felt Thursfield was never going to be a regular in the Sussex side. After the end of his cricket career, Thursfield became a police officer with Durham Constabulary, where he served alongside former cricketer Gary Brown.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.thepca.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/BTB-issue-3.pdf|title=Career in Focus – Police Force|magazine=Beyond the Boundaries|page=16|edition=3|date=July 2017|language=en}}