Famous Cricketers No 88 - Herbert Wilfred Taylor

1911/12 The Currie Cup was not contested this year and only three first-class matches were played Taylor appearing for the Rest of South Africa and P.T.Lewis’s eleven. M.W.Luckin for some reason omitted these matches from his history but they were played presumably as trial matches for the English tour. Taylor made two decent scores and was picked for the tour. Own Team O M R W Opp Ct Total Total 9. Rest of South Africa v Transvaal, Johannesburg, December 26, 27 (Match drawn) b H.V.Baumgartner 32 246 197 c T.A.Ward b F.L.Le Roux 4 278-4d 229-7 10. P.T.Lewis’s XI v L.J.Tancred’s XI, Johannesburg, December 30, January 1 (L.J.Tancred’s XI won by an innings and 71 runs) c S.J.Snooke b A.E.E.Vogler 49 174 453 b A.E.E.Vogler 13 208 SEASON’S AVERAGES Batting and Fielding M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct Other matches 2 4 0 98 49 24.50 - - - Career 10 20 0 712 173 35.60 1 2 4 1912 - South Africa in England The South African team arrived in England on the S.S. Balmoral Castle and for the first time in his short career Taylor found himself playing on turf wickets but so sound was his technique that it hardly mattered even though the season was ruined by rain and the relative weakness of the South African team. M.W.Luckin reflected that here was a batsmen of rare promise and he finished second to Nourse in the batting averages for all matches. A quiet start against Derbyshire and his first ‘duck’ against Yorkshire was followed by another small score in the first innings at Oxford. However in his second knock he made 55 and followed this with 83 against Worcestershire. The first test was an ignominious defeat by Australia by an innings and he had a couple of thirties before the second test where he only made 6 and a seventy against Somerset. After three more single figures he came good against Australia in the second test with 93 made out of 263 and afterwards put Kent to the sword with 96 and 46 following this up in Ireland with 71 against Woodbrook Club and Ground and 61 against Ireland. He dropped down the order against Lancashire but was soon opening again and with 63 against Hampshire and 67 against the Gentlemen of England he brought his first tour to a close with over thirteen hundred runs which included nine fifties. At the end of the tour the players departed on two ships. Taylor travelled with Ward, Pegler, Tancred, Cox, Nourse and White on the S.S. Kildonan Castle which departed on the 21 September while Stricker, Hartigan, Alsopp (Manager), Campbell and Carter departed on the S.S. Walmer Castle two days later. Own Team O M R W Opp Ct Total Total 11. South Africans v Derbyshire, Derby, May 6, 7, 8 (South Africans won by seven wickets) b A.Morton 7 136 143 did not bat - 138-3 129 1 12. South Africans v Yorkshire, Huddersfield, May 16, 17, 18 (Match drawn) b G.H.Hirst 0 170 317 c J.Tasker b W.Rhodes 40 288 10-1 13. South Africans v Oxford University, Christ Church Ground, Oxford, May 20, 21, 22 (Match drawn) lbw b A.J.Evans 2 179 278 c F.H.Knott b J.L.S.Vidler 55 138-3 2 0 9 0 244-5d 14. South Africans v Worcestershire, Worcester, May 23, 24, 25 (South Africans won by an innings and 42 runs) b F.A.Pearson 83 298 50 206 7