Cackyhander 

Archie Mac | 9:45am GMT 24 December 2023

Published: 2022
Pages: 188
Author: Cashman, Richard
Publisher: Walla Walla Press
Rating: 3 stars

Professor Richard Cashman is a Sports Historian. Cashman has authored, co-authored and edited numerous books on all things sport. He is probably the most authoritative Australian on the Olympic Games, having lectured, consulted and advised several cities on how to host a successful and ‘green’ Olympic Games.

Thankfully, Cashman’s other main sporting love appears to be cricket for which he has written a number of award winning books. These include some excellent biographies on Fred Spofforth and with Ric Sissons – William Murdoch. Both these books, as well as ‘Ave a Go, Yer Mug!, won the Jack Pollard award for Australian cricket book of the year.

Cackyhander tells the Cashman story from his childhood in Sydney to his eventual role as a sports historian. Cashman was from a working class family and was able to continue his studies in both India and the USA through scholarships. His studies took him away from Australia for six years, before he returned with his American wife to teach at the University of NSW (UNSW).

Initially, Cashman’s expertise was around Indian political history before he made the transition to be a sports historian. Cashman takes us through some of the snobbery he encountered from other academics, who looked down on sport as a truly historic subject worthy of study. This snobbery, eventually even saw UNSW reduce their sporting subjects despite them being the most popular on the UNSW curriculum.

While Cackyhander doesn’t have enough cricket content to keep the cricket fan fully sated, Cashman still includes some quality cricketing anecdotes.

Cashman tells the story of cricket historian Major Rowland Bowen whose book – Cricket: A History of Its Growth and Development throughout the World – is still considered a great work. Apart from cricket, Bowen also had a fascination for amputation which led him to amputate his own healthy leg. Bowen was surprised by the media attention his actions generated. The other colourful cricket author Cashman knew was Chris Harte who, in between writing some quality books, was a conman and fraudster. At one point he absconded with the memorabilia of a very ill former Australian fast bowler Neil Hawke. Harte had convinced Hawke he could secure a better price for the memorabilia, however he attempted to sell it all and keep the proceeds.

All in all, Cackyhander is an interesting read although for a cricket tragic it probably doesn’t have quite enough cricket content.