Sid O'Linn was an obdurate opening batsman, a capable stand-in wicketkeeper, and a good fielder in any position. He was picked to tour England in 1960 aged 32 after a good domestic season in which he had scored 619 runs at 68.78 for Transvaal. He played in all five Tests, batting at No. 6, making 261 runs at 32.62 with a best of 98 (made in almost six hours) in the third Test at Trent Bridge. He kept his place for the first two Tests against New Zealand in 1961-62 but was dropped after two poor performances. Between 1951 and 1954 he was deputy to Godfrey Evans at Kent, making 26 appearances for them. He also played top-flight football for Charlton Athletic, one of several South Africans who represented for the club in that period. He made one full international appearance at football for South Africa in 1947.
Martin Williamson