Lives in Cricket No 17 - Fuller Pilch

replaced etc according to usual custom) under the superintendence and at the expense of Pilch. 6 The expense of enclosing the field for matches shall be defrayed by the Club. 7 Should Pilch’s services be requested for any match unconnected with the B.C.C., there will be no general objection to his playing except when such match shall interfere with the B.C.C. as to time or when such match shall detract from the interest of any proposed match of the B.C.C. In all cases the manager or managing committee shall be consulted on this point. 8 That Pilch will play in no match of any kind IN KENT either in the neighbourhood of Canterbury or elsewhere in the county for the benefit of any Publican or for any person or Club whatever except the Beverley. 9 9 All gate money to belong to the B.C.C. That Pilch will during the season give all reasonable time to practise with the members of the B.C.C. 10 Should illness or accident prevent Pilch from fulfilling his agreement that some new arrangement be entered upon from the time of such calamity not affecting any previous payments and that some equitable and proportionate allowance be made for any proved expenses incurred by Pilch. NB This agreement is for the mutual advantage of both parties that they both may be out of all doubt as to that is expected each of the other. It was signed by Fuller Pilch and by four members of the Beverley Club committee, John Bayley, W.Augustus Munn, Wm Baldock and I.G.A.Baker. Eventually, responsibilities at Canterbury would restrict Fuller’s freedom to accept most of the engagements he was offered outside the county. Until then, he would continue to go as often as he could to where the money was on offer, as he had done every year since arriving in Town Malling in 1836. So he resumed his usual round of matches two weeks later at Leicester, playing for MCC against the North who had Alfred Mynn in their side to balance the odds. He then moved across to Nottingham, taking five players from the MCC team with him, Dean, Lillywhite, Ponsonby, Sewell and Hillyer, plus Mynn, to meet a team put together by the ambitious William Clarke on 22, 23 and 24 August. Initially, Clarke had thrown out a challenge to MCC to bring an England team to play Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge for the first time. Marylebone were not interested, so Fuller, seeing an opportunity to put some extra cash in his pocket, had stepped up and said he could bring a team of his own good enough to represent England, and also arranged for Box, Wenman, Hawkins and Dorrinton to join the side. Clarke and his team were put firmly in their place by England winning by The birth of Canterbury Cricket Week 79 9 One of the signatories, I.G.A.Baker, noted on the document at this point, ‘This wants explaining I think.’