Bill Rainbird

William Gerald Rainbird (9 April 1916 – 27 September 1997) was a New Zealand cricketer who played first-class cricket for Wellington from 1935 to 1946.

Bill Rainbird

Personal information
Full name	William Gerald Rainbird
Born	(1916-04-09)9 April 1916 Wellington, New Zealand
Died	27 September 1997(1997-09-27) (aged 81) Kenepuru, Porirua, New Zealand
Batting	Right-handed
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1934-35 to 1946-47	Wellington
Career statistics
Competition First-class Matches 10 Runs scored 492 Batting average 25.89 100s/50s 1/2 Top score 102 Balls bowled 30 Wickets 0 Bowling average – 5 wickets in innings – 10 wickets in match – Best bowling – Catches/stumpings 5/–
Source: Cricinfo, 7 December 2017

Bill Rainbird was a right-handed batsman. He was the second-highest run-scorer in the Plunket Shield in 1938-39, with 280 runs at an average of 56.00, including his only first-class century, 102 against Otago.^[1][2] He was in the New Zealand squad to play the touring Sir Julien Cahn’s XI at the end of the season, in what proved to be New Zealand’s last match before World War II, but he was made twelfth man.^[3]

He served in the New Zealand Army during World War II.^[4]