John William Gleeson (14 March 1938 – 7 October 2016) was an Australian cricketer who played in 29 Test matches from 1967 to 1972.

He was the son of a Wiangaree dairy farmer, and attributed the finger strength required to bowl with his two-fingered grip to his childhood, which he spent milking cows.

He was one of a small number of Australians who experimented with revolutionary bowling grips in the wake of Iverson's stay in international cricket.

[4][6] Gleeson preferred to bowl downwind on a greenish surface, since pace from the wicket compensated for his not being a large spinner of the ball.

[6] Gleeson was one of the prominent debutants of the 1966–67 Australian cricket season in the Sheffield Shield, taking 23 wickets in six matches.

[8] He also peaked in his batting contributions, making his two highest scores of 42* and 45 in consecutive Tests at the Sydney Cricket Ground and the Adelaide Oval.

[12] After 40 years of service with Telecom, the Australian telecommunications company, he retired in 1995 as the New South Wales internal communications manager for the firm.