Dave Spence played five matches for Central Districts in 1955–56, one in 1960–61, and five more in 1961–62.
A middle-order batsman and leg-spin bowler, he took his best bowling figures of 5 for 38 in a victory over Wellington in the second match of the 1955–56 Plunket Shield season,[1] then made his highest score of 61 in an innings victory over Otago in the next match 11 days later.
[2] At the time he was considered a potential Test player.
[5] He was the captain of the Nelson side that held the Hawke Cup during its record title run from 1958 to 1965, and he was named in the Hawke Cup Team of the Century in 2011.
[6] In January 2021, with the death of Doug Bowden, he became Central Districts' oldest surviving player.