Craven was born in Ilford,
Essex on 25 September 1915. He had a trial for
Norwich Stars in 1937 but was rejected by
Max Grosskreutz. After practising at the Dagenham track he was spotted by his childhood hero, the former
Wembley Lions rider
Colin Watson, who took him to Wembley for a trial, after which he was signed by Alec Jackson. He was part of the England teams that toured Australia in the 1951-1952 Test series. In 1952 he captained the England team against Scotland. ==Personal life==