Lives in Cricket No 23 - Brief Candles

47 But if he had been, he would not hold the unique distinction that he does: that of being the only cricketer ever to be credited with an appearance in the County Championship without ever setting foot on the field of play. The absent uncle What of the other two English instances from the start of this chapter? Let’s take Percy Herbert first. He was an uncle of Percy Fender, and it was through his nephew’s offices that Herbert became a first-class cricketer, in most unusual circumstances. In his biography of Fender, Richard Streeton describes how, on Saturday, 3 July 1920, the Gentlemen of the South played the first day of a first-class match against the Players of the South at The Oval with only ten men, plus a fielding substitute. The professionals scored 551 for nine in the day’s play. Over the weekend Fender asked his uncle Percy, ‘a good club cricketer’, to make up the Gentlemen’s eleven. And so: on the Monday Percy Herbert travelled to The Oval to play. It rained, however, all day, and again on the Tuesday. There have been instances of cricketers neither batting nor bowling in their solitary first-class match; but to be credited in Wisden with playing but never actually seeing a ball bowled, or even treading on the field, must be unique. 70 As we have seen, not quite unique as far as treading on the field is concerned; but possibly so on the point of not seeing a ball bowled. We’ll explore that shortly. But either way, Herbert’s record is certainly remarkable. He was the son of Joseph Herbert, who was Gloucestershire-born but became an important name in cricket in Sussex. In 1870 Joseph was a co-founder of the Brighton Brunswick club, a midweek side with strong associations with the Sussex county side, which drew its players from all the leading clubs of the county. Percy, born in Shoreham in August 1878, is found early in the twentieth century playing as an allrounder for Brighton St James, for Hove, and in 1909, for the first time, for Brighton Brunswick. ‘A good club cricketer’ seems to be a fair description: local newspapers over the years record him scoring good, but not copious, runs – his only century for the Brunswick came in his debut season for them – and taking good wickets; and also, occasionally, playing alongside his soon-to-be-famous nephew. 71 After the First World War Herbert seems to have played a little less frequently, but no less successfully. In 1919 he scored only 67 runs for the Brunswick, but also took 11 wickets, including five for 54 against Hastings. In the following season, the earliest date when I can find him playing was 24 June. A week later he scored 58* in a game for Hove, and on Saturday 3 July he scored one and took five wickets over two innings for 70 Richard Streeton, P.G.H.Fender: A Biography , Faber and Faber, 1981. 71 He was also secretary of the Brunswick club from 1913 to 1920, and club captain, a role probably akin to that of captain of a golf club, from 1921 to 1923. Never Seen