Lives in Cricket No 25 - Tom Richardson

18 for Mitcham against Surrey Club and Ground, but took no wickets, then the following week, probably 27 for Mitcham again against Surrey Colts and had three for 39. Such coaching as he had came from Arthur Woodcock, himself a fast bowler, later to distinguish himself with Leicestershire, who was associated with Mitcham in the late 1880s and reported to a local journalist that, at this development stage of Richardson’s career, he preferred six hours of hard work in the nets to an hour’s ordinary work elsewhere. 28 The stamina he developed and the appetite for hard work were to remain with him throughout most of his career. In 1891, the year he reached his twenty-first birthday, Tom took 102 wickets at 7 each and contributed to an outstanding season for his club in which they won twenty and drew nine of thirty matches played. One of their more significant victories was against Surrey Club and Ground. Richardson played for Mitcham and took five wickets in the first innings and six in the second. No analysis is given, but it must have been a satisfactory victory for Mitcham - by an innings and 3 runs. In the same season, playing this time for, rather than against, the Club and Ground, against Fourteen Colts he had 18-9-20-8 and 9-3-10-2. 29 In his Chats on the Cricket Field , 30 W.A.Bettesworth ascribes the following anecdote to O.R.Borradaile, Secretary of Essex. It is not absolutely certain that it relates to Richardson, but the likelihood is that it does – and it’s a good story anyway: In April 1902 Mr Borradaile attended the dinner of the Stoics CC of which he was honorary secretary for many years and was then captain. In the course of the evening he told the following story. “It was in a match down Mitcham way,” he said, “and the bowler – I think it was Richardson – pitched a very fast ball right on the batsman’s instep, and appealed for leg-before-wicket. Without a shadow of doubt the man was plumb in front, and the umpire unhesitatingly gave him out. But he took no notice of the decision, and still went on rubbing his instep. Presently the wicket-keeper … said ‘I’m afraid, Sir, you’ll have to go. The umpire has given you out leg-before-wicket!’ To which the batsman gave the unexpected reply, ‘That’s all right, I’m going as soon as ever as I can move.” Tom had been on the Surrey staff from 1890. 31 It was two years later that he first played for the First XI, but he was appearing regularly for the Colts and made occasional appearances for the Second Eleven, including one against Fifteen of Dorking and another against Fifteen of Guildford, but without success. 32 His entry in the Census of Population for the following 27 The Surrey Yearbook says ‘J’ Richardson, probably a misprint. It may have been one of his brothers, though none of them was ‘J’. 28 Richmond Herald 6 July 1912 29 Surrey Yearbook 1892 30 p 68. It appeared originally in the Cricket Field on 25 August 1894 31 Tom Higgs, Mitcham Cricket Club historian. Mitcham Cricket Club Yearbook 1989 32 Surrey Yearbook 1890 Mitcham