| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John Wallace Allen | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 17 April 1921 Cullion, Ireland | ||||||||||||||
| Died | 10 September 1987 (aged 66) Derry, Northern Ireland | ||||||||||||||
| Nickname | Waldo[1] | ||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm slow | ||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||
| 1948 | Ireland | ||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Source: Cricinfo, 18 March 2021 | |||||||||||||||
John Wallace Allen (17 February 1921 – 10 September 1987) was an Irish first-class cricketer.
Allen was born at Cullion near Derry in February 1921, and was educated in the city at Foyle College.[1] A prominent all-rounder in club cricket in the north-west of Ireland,[2] he recorded the first century in the final of the Faughan Valley Cup Final, making an unbeaten 176 for City of Derry against Waterside in 1946.[1] In addition to powerful batting, Allen was also a slow bowler, often deployed when the principal bowlers were not taking wickets.[1] Following success in club cricket, he later made a single appearance in first-class cricket for Ireland against the touring Marylebone Cricket Club at Dublin in 1948;[3] however, he was not originally selected for the match, but was brought into the team as a replacement for George Wilson five days before the start.[4] Allen's only appearance for Ireland was not a successful one, with him batting once in Ireland's first innings, where he was dismissed without scoring by Michael Wrigley. The match, which was curtailed by rain,[1] resulted in a draw.[5] Allen later died at Derry in September 1987.