if his tactics were not always dictated by accepted principles they certainly proved very successful. Those who attributed so much of the England captain's success to good luck were inclined to overlook the many stratagems exploited by him". In the Test series, he scored 150 runs at 18.75 and took 17 wickets at 30.94. During the tour, Allen struck up a friendship with Bradman and encouraged his team to fraternise with the Australian team. He clashed over tactics with one of his team, Joe Hardstaff; the pair never got along thereafter. The team played three games in New Zealand before returning home via America; Allen left the team early and spent time in Hollywood. In all first-class games, he scored 380 runs at 25.33 and took 38 wickets at 26.23. Later career Before the war A combination of fatigue from the Australian tour and his need to return to work reduced the amount of cricket Allen played in 1937, and he announced his unavailability for the summer's Test series against New Zealand. He played just four first-class games that season, scored 161 runs and took 15 wickets. When the following season began, he remained in contention for the England captaincy for the 1938 Ashes series. Wally Hammond, formerly a professional, became an amateur before the season, immediately making him another candidate. Allen played several times in the early season for Middlesex and performed well with bat and ball, but injured his back. Even so, he was selected to captain "the Rest" against England in a Test trial, but was annoyed that Hammond was preferred as captain of the England team, particularly as Warner had not discussed the matter with him. In the event, Allen withdrew on the grounds of fitness, and did not play again for over a month. When he returned, his form was good but a succession of injuries plagued him for the rest of the season. In 13 first-class games, Allen scored 431 runs, with a highest score of 64, at an average of 26.93. He also took 23 wickets at 25.00. In July 1938, Allen was commissioned into the Territorial Army as a second lieutenant. He joined the City of London Yeomanry along with several friends and colleagues, and this took up much of his time in 1938 and 1939. He had time for five first-class games in 1939, scoring 164 runs and taking 16 wickets,