Lives in Cricket No 26 - HV Hesketh-Prichard

22 From the summer of 1895, practically as soon as he arrived, Hex played cricket for Horsham Cricket Club. Interestingly, an M.Dewing also made his first appearance for Horsham in this game, though he only seems to have played a couple of matches: was this Hex’s boss inveigled into playing by him (since he was 33 at the time) or possibly helping the young man to fit in? The Horsham club was long established, with David Boorman’s book 10 telling us that the first recorded local game was in 1771 and the Horsham Cricket Club website claiming formation in 1806, moving to the present ground in 1851. The first score recorded on CricketArchive is for 1879. Boorman tells us too that the 1880s and 1890s were a golden age for Horsham cricket, with frequent appearances by first-class players both for and against the town. Of the Horsham side at this time, E.H. (‘Tim’) Killick, at 20, was already playing for the county, and George Cox (only 21, so not yet ‘Old George’) made his county debut during the year. Charles Etheridge, one of the regular bowlers, would also play the odd game for the county in the next few years. So Hex was joining a pretty impressive attack for a club side, and would have to prove himself. Hex made his debut on 21 May against the village side from Ockley. Boorman calls him a ‘tearaway fast bowler’ and at this time, straight out of school, he probably was. Ockley were not the best side Horsham played and in their first innings were bowled out by Killick and Etheridge for 59 without Hex getting a bowl. Horsham scored 164 and Hex got on in 10 David Boorman, A History of the Horsham County Cricket Festival , Roger Heavens, 2008. Horsham to Haiti Hurst Road, Horsham in 2012. Hex and Kate leased this house from 1895 to 1901, undertaking much of their early writing here.