Cricket 1884

M AY 8,1884. CRICKET; A "WEEKLY RECORD OE THE GAME. 107 A C R IC K E T E R OF TH E OLD SCHOOL. (B y T homas K f . ywoeth .) I was tempted, to say, “ A Cricketer of the Very Old School,” for players of thirty or forty years ago are often called the old school, but the man of whom 1 am thinking had finished his public career before that time. He was born towards the close of the last century, and from about the year 1822, until 1830, he took part in most of the good matches which were played in his neighbourhood, or by his club away from home. He was about sixty years of age when I first knew him, and looked as little like a cricketer as can well be imagined; not only was he very stout, but he Was a martyr to rheumatism. His hands were swollen and shapeless, and his slow and painful walk in­ dicated that his^ other extremities suffered in like manner. It was this affliction which cut short his career in the open field, and prevented his taking a more prominent position in the game. Lillywhite’s “ Scores and Biographies ’ says: “ William Barber was born at Sheffield, July 29, 1797, height 5 feet 7 inches, and his weight 11 stone. Never played at Lord’s, but his name will be found in some of tha Sheffield matches for a few years. He was a very steady batsman, generally going in early ; and in the England v. Sheffield and Leicester match, September 4 and 5, 1826, he was at the wickets in the second innings four hours for 28 runs! In the field he was long-stop.” The writer puts his note of ixclamation after the score ; if he had put it after the word ‘ long-stop ’ it would have read like a joke. When I knew the player he was a great deal more than 11 stone in weight: he was stout and slow j but what I have said about his affliction will account for the latter peculiarity. Those four hours in the second innings for 28 runs Were not against an inferior eleven calling themselves All England. W il­ liam Lillywhite and George Brown were the principal bowlers, and among the other names were T. Beagley, J. Bowyer, W. Caldecourt, and both the Broadbridges. I remember seeing an account of this match in a newspaper sometime ago, and the writer gave the names of the eleven, and asked who knew anything about them ? Perhaps only comparatively few are familiar with the names of men whoonce were as celebrated as the most popular cricketers of to-day ; but they were good players, and they played sterling cricket in the old times when grounds were very rough, and when it was not customary for batsmen and wicket­ keepers to be protected with pads and gloves. It is a pity that nobody has done for the cricketers of the North what was done for those of the South by Nyreh,' in his “ Cricketers of My Time,” and what has a'so been done for some of the old worthies by Messrs. Pycroft and F. Gale. One by one the ancient players slip away, and leave no record behind ; and therefore the annals of early cricket north of the Trent are almost a blank. Neither Yorkshire nor Nottingham­ shire had its Hambledon, in the last century; but there were enthusiastic cricketers in both counties, and, as is well known, the score of the match botween Nottingham and Sheffield, in 1771, is next in point of antiquity to that of the Kent and England match, played in 1746. There i3 another noteworthy fact, which is contained in the accounts of the Sheffield Church Burgesses. “ In 1757,” we read, “ paid cricket players on Shrove Tuesday, to entertain the pop­ ulace, and to prevent the infamous practice of throwing at cocks, 14s. 6d.” The present headquarters of Yorkshire cricket have been its headquarters all through the history of the game. Sheffield against the rest of the county was sometimes played, and Sheffield eleven against twenty- two of Yorkshire. When county matches began to be played nearly all the eleven were from Sheffield. There was no player in the last century, or at the beginning of this century, who made a reputation beyond his fellows. Yorkshire cricket was almost, if not quite unknown in London until the present century was more than twenty years old. I have talked with old men who remem­ bered the changes which came over York­ shire cricket after a good ground had been made at Sheffield, and opportunities had been enjoyed of seeing the great players of the South. Before then the game had been played under every disadvantage. Grounds were bad, and a rough swiping style was in vogue among batsmen. William Barber was one of the first to adopt steady play. Per­ haps, if his rheumatic foe had been merciful, he might have been heard of beyond the cricket fields of Sheffield, Nottingham and Leicester. It is not likely that, under any circum­ stances, he would have rivalled Tom Mars- den, who was a star of the first magnitude William was the elder of the two by eight years, and remembered Marsden’s progress step by step until at an early age he became one of the foremost cricketers in England. But Mai sden waned early, and never played as well after he was twenty-five as he had played before. Tom Marsden was never seen at his best in the South, his great skill won him fame, and then partially for­ sook him. He did not know it, and there­ fore he went on playing single wicket matches with men like Fuller Pilch, when he was no longer at his best. Barber had many a tale about Tom Mars­ den, for they were very intimate, and often played together ; but the stories are probably forgotten and thus some good cricket lore is lost to the world. Marsden died young, and the number of those who remember him at his prime is getting less every year. I have Pierce Egan’s Book ct Sports before me, and I have been reading tue poem in which he says:— “ Next Marsden may come, though it here must be stated That his skill down at Sheffield is oft over­ rated.” I daresay it was true. Even at that time, 1832, Tom was failing ; but it is not a bad thing when the prophet receives honour in his own country, even after his prophesying has begun to lose some of its dazzling brilliancy. Tom was a fine and powerful hitter, as well as a good fast underhand- bowler, and a smart field. Barber thought they had a, very good eleven at Sheffield about sixty years ago. The new ground was opened in 1822, and every effort was made to arrange matches with the best teams witbin reasonable dis­ tance. There were no railways, of course, and tHe players from Bingham, Nottingham, or Ijeioester, had to come by coach. Iu Lillywhite’s “ Scores and Biographies ” these matches are given, but not much is said about the stakes for which they were played. We find our information on this point in local records. As Barber would say, “ Money wor on, and we did us best.” He was a close shaven old man when I knew him, with a large square faoe, and he hpd a piping, complaining sort of voice. The fact is he was always suffering, and fond as he was of cricket, I am sure he would always talk about rheumatism even in preference to that. It was an article of his creed that they were a sharp lot at Nottingham, and that Sheffield ought not to have lost as many matches as it did against the lace town. Lillywhite gives this story in a note on the match in 1827. “ About this match the Sheffield book has the following. The Nottingham umpire kept calling ‘ no ball ’ whenever a straight one was bowled.” There was another match which had a novel entry in the Sheffield score sheet. One of the players was given as “ cheated out.” Those matches for money caused hot blood and ill- feeling. Leicester was another constant rival. Barber thought Leicestershire ought to have done better as a cricketing county ; for he lived long enough to see county cricket poming to the front, and Leicester did not take the position which the skill of the players sixty years ago pointed out ts probable. The history of first-class cri ket is not a lengthy one. Barber played with Fennex, and Fennex played with David Harris, anil the old heroes who have been immortalised in the pages of Nyren. Fennex and J. Sparkes went to Sheffield to coach theplayers there. This was in 1824. Then the next year Sparkes was there again, and played for Sheffield, when 22 of them had a match with the eleven of England. The eleven won iby 28 runs; but the match was of great use to the Sheffield men, who, we are told, copied the fine batting of Sanders, Searle, Broad- bridge, and Hooker. There were no great scores made on either side. Barber made 4 and 0 ; Tom Marsden a couple of ciphers. There were 12,000 persons present at the match, which lasted either four or five days. Accounts vary on this point, 'iM Sporting Magazine said “ The fielding of the 22 was the best in the match,” Barber would say ‘ ‘ There is always hope of the team that fields well.” That is the English of it; but his speech was not conventional, he spoke the broad dialect of his district. That match and the tuition of Fennexand Sparkes, commenced a new era in Sheffield cricket. Some of the players began to be known at headquarters, and some of them afterwards played in the best matches of the time. Woolhouse, Vincent, Dearman, and Marsden became well-known cricketers. All jexcept.Woolhouse were younger than Barber, hnd the old man believed that but for his Rheumatism he would have had as good a chance as they. Perhaps he would; who can tel ? The cricket in which he was nurtured was an old fashioned kind- The bowling was underhand, and some of it very fast. The hitting was free, but he tried steady play. He never made any great scores ; but he usually went in first, and was of use in taking the sting out of the bowling. He was a very j o.hl long stop, and that was an im­ portant post in those days. His name figures in the often-quoted poem which re­ cords the match played against Nottingham when Tom Marsden scored 227 iu One inn­ ings, which at that time, though not the largest, was considered the best score ever