Dave Lawrence

Born in Gloucester to Jamaican parents, Dave ‘Syd’ Lawrence was playing for the county of his birth aged just 17. Seven years later he became the first British-born Black man to play Test cricket for England but his international career was cut short in dramatic fashion when he shattered his kneecap playing against New Zealand in 1992. He was forced to retire from cricket aged 29, but went on to forge successful careers as both a nightclub owner and a bodybuilder. In 2024 he was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND). Shortly before his death in June 2025, he was named an MBE for his services to cricket.