Lives in Cricket No 5 - Rockley Wilson

standards. Certainly it was his batting rather than his bowling that caught Wisden ’s eye. In its review of Cambridge’s season, Wisden observed: “For E.R.Wilson it is quite safe to predict an excellent future. A young batsman who plays so perfectly straight and possesses such defence and patience is bound to do well.” In July 1899, after his first year as an undergraduate and with only nine first-class matches behind him, Rockley Wilson had the immense satisfaction of being chosen to play for Yorkshire in the Championship match against Somerset at Hull. It was not unusual of course for talented cricketers at the ancient universities to appear for county sides at this time and the powers-that-be at Yorkshire would have been well aware of Wilson’s potential. But it was a rapid rise. The opportunity to blood the young undergraduate arose because a number of Yorkshire’s regular side were involved in the Gentlemen v Players match at Lord’s, namely F.S.Jackson for the Gentlemen and J.T.Brown, George Hirst and Wilfred Rhodes for the Players. Rockley’s pleasure would have been increased by the fact that Clem was also selected – it is a rare occurrence for brothers to appear in a Yorkshire side in a Championship match – but Clem damaged his hand when fielding soon after Somerset began their innings and the Somerset captain agreed that he could be replaced by Yorkshire’s twelfth man, T.H.Hirst. Batting at No.4, Rockley Wilson scored 55 in Yorkshire’s first innings, figuring in a useful stand with Denton, but he was dismissed for a duck in the second innings. He bowled competently in both innings taking one for 39 off 16 overs in Somerset’s first innings and two for 11 off 14 overs in the second. The match was drawn, a ferocious thunderstorm ending play prematurely with Yorkshire in sight of victory. There was momentary embarrassment for Rockley at the start of his Yorkshire career. On opening his cricket bag in the Yorkshire dressing room, he uncovered a number of items of female underwear, put there by team-mates after a previous country house match near Liverpool. Lord Hawke, in his patrician way, remarked, “By Gad, you’re a pretty brisk fellow”, which in the sense intended, Rockley certainly was not. 23 School and University 26 23 Presumably distaste for his feminine-sounding first name explains why E.R.Wilson was always known as Rockley. He once received a summons to report for jury service addressed to Miss Evelyn R.Wilson, containing the note “If you are in an advanced state of pregnancy or suffering from any other feminine ailment, you may apply for an exemption”, which he had framed and hung in his house.