win over the Australians in 1921. He was given a good reception by the crowds when he played and press reports praised his tactical awareness. The team was undefeated in matches in New Zealand. Against the full New Zealand team, MacLaren scored 200 not out in 264 minutes in his final first-class innings; the effort placed a strain on his knee and he was unable to play again on the tour. He ended his first-class career with 22,236 runs at an average of 34.15. When the team returned to play more matches in Australia, MacLaren became involved in controversy for criticising the standards of play in New Zealand and for comments made in the press there. He also queried the first-class status of Bill Ponsford's record innings of 429, scored against Tasmania. On the journey home, MacLaren sent a message to Lancashire asking for more money; the committee declined to send the sum and shortly afterwards terminated his contract as coach. Lancashire told the press that MacLaren's knee injury meant that he could not continue. Final years In the following years, MacLaren and his family struggled financially. His wife's family sometimes sent money, but MacLaren often spent extravagantly whenever he had funds. On one occasion, when paid for writing an article, he moved out of his accommodation into an expensive hotel, and threw a dinner party for his friends. He ran up many debts—including an unpaid champagne bill at Old Trafford Cricket Ground in 1923—and borrowed money from friends. He supplemented his wife's income through working as a journalist and a coach. Among other business ventures, he designed a cricket bat, showed specially shot cricket films, briefly owned a hotel and attempted to start a horse bloodstock agency. He continued to play club cricket and in 1924–25 he managed a privately organised tour of South Africa. Shortly before the Second World War, MacLaren's wife inherited a large sum of money which enabled them to live in comfort. They bought an estate at Warfield Park near Bracknell in Berkshire and the couple were able to live in the extravagant manner he had always wanted. Around this time, on a visit to America, MacLaren made a brief appearance in the Hollywood film The Four Feathers, which starred his friend, former cricketer C. Aubrey Smith. In the 1940s, his health began to fail. He was hurt in a car crash and then contracted