Lives in Cricket No 17 - Fuller Pilch

at Dereham on 19 and 20 August where he helped Norfolk beat an even stronger MCC side by eight wickets. First-hand experience of the attractions south of the Thames appear to have made Fuller more aware than ever of his close family ties to Norfolk. In 1831, now 27, he moved to Norwich as the club professional and lessee of the cricket ground, with assistance from brother William. He also took over as proprietor of a nearby inn and pleasure gardens on Bracondale Hill. Right at the start of the season in May he was welcomed back to the county by his brother Nathaniel to play in the Brinton village team in home and away matches against the village team of Litcham which included their other brother William and players from Brisley switching sides after each game. Fuller made 32 out of 73 in Brinton’s first innings in the first game on 18 May and an unbeaten 41 out of 58 in Brinton’s first innings in the second on 29 May. Showing no respect for the celebrity status of his younger brother, William clean bowled Fuller in three of his four innings and Litcham won both games. Fuller spent much of June, July and the first week of August in London where he took part in six consecutive matches at Lord’s. All three Pilch brothers represented the Norwich club at Lord’s on 6, 7 and 8 June. After Fuller had top-scored with 65 out of 142 in their second innings to set MCC a target of 113, Norwich won by 45 runs with William taking six wickets. Then Fuller played in the England eleven against a team formed from players with surnames beginning with the letter ‘B’ again. It was a two-day match arranged for 13 and 14 June, but ended on the first after the ‘Bs’ were dismissed for 18 and 35, with only Beagley reaching double figures, in reply to 81. One week later he was once more engaged by Surrey to play, and lose, against England on 21 and 22 June: he then joined the Bury club at Lord’s to play MCC on 27 and 28 June where his 44 out of 66 in the first innings kept Bury in the match but with the home club running out winners by 68 runs. A week later Norfolk arrived in the capital to lose by seven wickets to MCC on 4 and 5 July, after Fuller’s major contribution of 28 in the second innings of 113 had appeared to give the county a fighting chance. On 24 and 25 July, MCC came up with another original idea in their usual attempt to make the Gentlemen v Players match more competitive. They reduced the size of the Players team to only nine, including Fuller Pilch, against a full eleven of Gentlemen. It made no difference and the Players won by five wickets with Fuller in the middle when the winning stroke was made. The following week Fuller and Lillywhite were ‘given men’ for MCC on 2 and 3 August, against a strong England eleven that won by an innings. If there were any engagements on offer from clubs in Kent during this period, Fuller had ignored them and now the season at Lord’s was over he returned to Norfolk and Suffolk to face an MCC touring team strengthened by Lillywhite, Wenman and Saunders. Norwich faced the tourists first at Norwich on 8, 9 and 10 August, where William Pilch’s 21 out of 69 in the first innings and Fuller’s 47 out of 91 in the second still left them short by Committed to East Anglia, for now 32