Famous Cricketers No 60 - Ernest Tyldesley

began his career with Roe Green C.C. and later represented Worsley Cricket Club; no mean performer at table tennis in the upper room of the old Roe Green Sunday School, he was also a useful enough footballer for an approach to be made by Everton via Jack Sharp the double international, whom “J.T.” would often bring back to stay over in Roe Green when playing at Old Trafford. The family, however, advised Ernest to concentrate on just one sport and there was never any doubt that it could only be cricket. On leaving school the young Tyldesley initially attended Salford Technical College, with a view to becoming a draughtsman; but this was not to be. In August 1906 he made his Minor Counties debut for Lancashire Second XI and opened his account with a “pair” against Durham at Wearmouth. The next season he was given a further second eleven chance in the May “Roses” match, following a resolute knock of 59 for Worsley against a bowling attack which included Walter Brearley; the latter - currently in dispute with the Lancashire Committee and taking a season off from the first-class game - took eight wickets in the innings. Further appearances followed at intervals until, after scoring an impressive 55 in the second innings of the second eleven “Roses” match at Rotherham in June 1909, Jimmy Heap’s injury availed him of a first team place against Warwickshire at Aigburth, an opportunity which he seized with both hands. Therafter he played only four more second eleven games - all against Yorkshire - the final one coming in June 1911 at Rotherham. Oddly his overall record in this class of cricket was distinctly poor; with just two innings over fifty (the 55 and a 71 not out in 1910) he totalled only 279 runs in 28 innings for an average of 11.16 which was moderate by any standards. During the First World War he saw service in the Army, acting as a driver in the Royal Army Service Corps. He was stationed in the U.K. for the entire duration, his Commanding Officer being too keen on cricket to let him go overseas! On his return from the forces he resumed with Lancashire and, on Wednesday, September 8th, 1920 he married Ellen “Nellie” Fothergill; they were both aged 31. Within a week he was turning out for the Rest of England in the match against Middlesex, the Champion County, at The Oval; it was his first representative match. Throughout his playing career he continued to live in Roe Green. The family had moved to 71, Lumber Lane, one of a pair of houses built by his brother Frank shortly before the First World War. This house was given the name “Aigburth” after the ground at which Ernest made his first-class debut. After his marriage he and his wife moved in with his in-laws at “Woodend” on the corner of Greenleach Lane and Alfred Street and there they remained for the next twenty or so years. Both houses are still standing and happily have retained their original names. In 1929 he took a job with the Cryselco Light Bulb Company, initially through the winter months only, later full-time, as a sales representative. He used to get a new Morris 12 car each year to drive around in on business and it is rumoured that one of his first orders was a somewhat lucrative one for the Blackpool illuminations! When his career eventually came to an end in 1936, following the rather unfortunate business over the captaincy issue, he went back to Roe Green and captained them up to the start of the Second World War, bowling for them as well as batting. He was planning to do some writing for either the Manchester Evening News or Evening Chronicle but following objections from the Lancashire Committee he did not pursue the matter. In fact, by the summer of 1939 he had become the first former county professional to be elected to serve on the Lancashire C.C.C. Committee, a considerable honour. 9