Editing Gubby Allen (section)

===Last years as a cricketer===
After the war, Allen dedicated most of his time to stockbroking and was made a partner by David Bevan and Co.<ref>Swanton, p. 230.</ref> He had little time for cricket, although he appeared twice for Middlesex in 1946.<ref name=figures/><ref>Swanton, p. 231.</ref> The following season, he played once for Middlesex,<ref name=figures/> and captained their second team. He also played twice for the [[Free Foresters Cricket Club|Free Foresters]], a club of wandering amateurs, in first-class games.<ref name=figures/><ref>Swanton, p. 232.</ref> Late in the 1947 season, Allen was asked to captain and manage an MCC team which was to tour the West Indies that winter. The young and experimental team suffered badly with injuries; Allen missed several matches himself through strains.<ref>Swanton, pp. 233–34.</ref> In first-class games on the tour he scored 262 runs and took six wickets,<ref name=fcbatting/><ref name=fcbowling/> but writing in ''Wisden'', [[Norman Preston]] judged: "Allen was too old."<ref>{{Cite web| last=Preston| first= Norman| url = http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/152899.html| title = MCC in West Indies, 1947–48| work = Wisden Cricketers' Almanack  | year = 1949 | publisher = John Wisden & Co | location = London |access-date = 13 May 2013}}</ref> Allen also clashed with several members of his team; he did not get along with [[Ken Cranston]], his vice-captain, nor Joe Hardstaff, his senior professional. When Allen tried to impose discipline on the team to prevent his players staying out late to drink alcohol, neither Cranston nor Hardstaff backed him.<ref>Marshall, p. 154.</ref>

With many players indisposed and his options limited, Allen requested reinforcements and the MCC sent out [[Len Hutton]] in time for the third Test; in the meantime, Allen asked [[Billy Griffith|S. C. Griffith]], not a highly regarded batsman, to open the batting for England in the second Test. Griffith responded by batting the entire first day and scoring 140 runs in total, his maiden century in first-class cricket.<ref>Swanton, pp. 235–36.</ref> The West Indies won the last two Tests (the first two having been drawn) to win the series; the MCC team did not win a single match on the tour. Allen later regretted accepting the invitation to lead the team.<ref>Swanton, pp. 234–40.</ref> In three Tests, he scored 94 runs and took five wickets.<ref name=tbat/><ref name=tbowl/> Allen did not play any more Test cricket; in 25 matches, he scored 750 runs at an average of 24.19 and took 81 wickets at 29.37.<ref name=Cricinfo>{{cite web|title=Sir Gubby Allen (Cricinfo profile)| url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/8515.html| publisher=ESPNCricinfo|access-date=13 May 2013}}</ref>

Although Allen appeared four times for Middlesex in 1948, most of his remaining cricket was played for the Free Foresters against Cambridge University. On very good batting pitches, the matches lacked a competitive edge, but in 12 games between 1948 and his retirement, he scored four centuries and averaged over 80 with the bat. In 1948, he scored 180 in the fixture, the highest score of his career; in combination with his success in Middlesex matches, he finished on top of the English batting averages that season.<ref>Swanton, pp. 242–43.</ref> He played his final Middlesex games in 1950, captaining the team in four matches in the absence of the regular captain,<ref>Swanton, p. 248.</ref> and made his final first-class appearance for the Free Foresters in 1954.<ref name=figures/> In all first-class cricket, he scored 9,233 runs at an average of 28.67 and took 788 wickets at 22.23.<ref name=Cricinfo/>