Ruth Dow – SA all time cricket

IN an era where more than half her teammates were confined to “home duties” while not playing, Ouyen cricketer Ruth Dow stood out in more ways than one.

The South Australian Cricket Association recently announced their all-time best teams, including all eras from their 152-year timeline, and Dow among many household names was selected.

At just the age of 22, Dow captained the South Australian team as an all rounder, while she studied medicine at Adelaide University.

The year was 1947 and after the devastation of World War II, women’s cricket was slowly starting to increase in popularity after previously gaining traction in the 1930s.

Playing as an all-rounder known for her pace with the ball and steadiness with the bat, Dow debuted for the Australian test team in January 1957 against New Zealand.

In three matches for the national team, Dow averaged 30 runs and claimed 10 wickets at an average of 11.42, her best figures 5/39.

Although her impact was felt at the highest level, it was playing for South Australia where she really established herself.

A captain for majority of her first-class career, Dow played between 1947 and 1958 for the state team.

As a middle to lower order batter, she averaged 28.31 runs and scored two centuries, with a high score of 114 not out.

However, it was with the ball that Dow was particularly damaging.

At an average of 11.75, the Ouyen native claimed a five-wicket haul on seven occasions and had career best figures of 7/7.

While somewhat modern players Karen Rolton, Shelley Nitschke and Megan Schutt were all included in the team of 12, another that featured was Faith Thomas, a former teammate of Dow’s.

Thomas, formerly known as Coulthard was the first Indigenous woman to represent Australia in any sport and up until 2019 (following the selection of Ashleigh Gardiner) was also the only Indigenous woman to play test cricket for the country.

Originally from Nepabunna, Thomas debuted for the South Australian team in 1956, in the latter stage of Dow’s career.

Perhaps the greatest athlete to ever come out of Ouyen, Dow also went on to have a respectable career in medicine before she passed away in 1989.