Lives in Cricket No 13 - AP Lucas

in Wallands Crescent. Presumably present at the dance was her 21-year-old daughter Bessie, who four years later married Lucas. A year later, ‘Florence’ wrote in An Intercepted Letter from a Lady Rover that ‘Mr Lucas is such a good young man, and so sweet tempered. I believe he is in love, for I once saw him scratching a name on the ground with the point of a stump – you see I know all the proper cricket terms.’ Certainly among the opposition at the match were the Hon Ivo Bligh, of Ashes fame, and Herbert Whitfeld, who was the brother of another Rover and best man at the wedding. On the field, ‘Rain robbed us of another victory but perhaps a wet day was more in harmony with our feelings, for the breaking up of our merry band was a trial to us all.’ The chronicler summarised Lucas’s outstanding contribution to a memorable season, in which he played all ten matches: ‘A.P.Lucas is far ahead in batting. With an average of 66.5 in the three weeks he has made 599 runs … . In getting all those runs he displayed all his well-known patience, his defence was superb and he punished any loose bowling with great vigour.’ He also took 35 wickets for 419 runs, an average of 11.97. In 1882 The Rhyming Rover took his inspiration from The Captain’s Song in H.M.S Pinafore : If you look down the list of Rovers I wist Many good bats you will find First of all the famous Bunny is the man for our money The best bat in England to my mind … … Of bowlers fast and slow we have plenty to show And jolly good bowlers too There’s Herbert and there’s Sandy and Bunny too is handy With the style called ‘Cock-a-doodle-do.’ The Rovers’ chronicler in 1881, and perhaps earlier, was ‘H.G.’ (Henry Gibson). He did not play for them in 1882, and The Doings only have brief factual reports of that season’s matches. At the start of their tour Lucas was ‘rather out of form’, but against Bedfordshire he made 51 not out and had match figures of eight for 65. Against his future county he ‘hit well for 65’, and Essex lost by an innings. In 1883 the normal style of reporting was resumed by Gibson or someone else writing in a similar vein, and a ‘poet’ rather less talented than The Rhyming Rover. Inspired by Lucas’s remarkable record against Northamptonshire, he wrote: He gets a century a year, he’ll do it again I fear, Be it medium fast or slow, he gives them all the go, and makes the fields all blow … But this time the Rovers found a sticky wicket rather than the usual fast and true one: Lucas could manage only 17 out of 43 all out, and the Rovers had the worst of a draw. Against Lancashire at Old Trafford he was ‘up to 30 Uppingham Rovers, 1874-1913