OBITUARY: Mark Carrington
Former Gisborne Boys’ High School, Poverty Bay and Northern Districts cricketer Mark Carrington has died, aged 64.
Carrington, described on the Northern Districts Cricket Association Facebook page as a right-arm medium-fast bowler, represented Northern Districts in 38 first-class and 27 List A matches from the 1981/82 season to 1986/87. In that time, he took 102 first-class wickets, with best figures of 5-69.
His achievements were listed on the Northern Districts Cricket Association Facebook page.
At the start of his senior career, Carrington travelled to England as part of a young cricketer programme at Lords.
In the 1982/83 season, he was selected for the North Island team to play the touring Australian side, and for the Rest of New Zealand side to play the national team.
Carrington was later chosen to tour Australia with New Zealand, where he played a first-class match against Queensland and a one-day game against New South Wales.
He played representative cricket for Poverty Bay (1977–83), Hamilton (1983–86) and Thames Valley (1987–91).
Carrington and fellow Gisborne cricketer (the late) Roger Broughton were among the first players of Māori descent to represent Northern Districts.
Gisborne Boys’ High School principal Tom Cairns said Carrington was one of his heroes.
“I was a kid ... he was 12 years older than me. He was big and he was fast.”
Cairns took issue with the description of Carrington as “medium-fast”.
“He was pretty rapid. He gave a few guys a hurry-up round here.”
Carrington also played in the First XV as a flanker, but he was fast enough to play on the wing, Cairns said.
“He had a nephew, Lennon [Carrington], who was in the national champion Boys’ High team in 2007, and Scott and Carl Baistow were also his nephews. When we played in Hamilton, he would come along and watch. He obviously followed the school.
“He was a big man, quiet, and a very nice bloke ... a very prominent old boy.”
Posted 24 April, 2026 in the Gisborne Herald
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