Lives in Cricket No 50 - Tom Emmett

29 by Southerton and Willsher. Looking back, the Leeds Times commented ruefully that Emmett had been ‘less effective than usual’. Emmett made only a limited contribution to the Yorkshire seven wicket victory at The Oval in August, and at Scarborough against All-England. However, he was back on form against Nottinghamshire, bowling 51 overs in the first innings and taking 5-76, and a further 38 overs, to secure 7-35. In all he delivered 46 maidens in a five-wicket win. According to one report, Emmett bowled ‘with startling effect’, particularly to Richard Daft, who succumbed to Emmett after batting for two hours. A cap was passed round the ground for the Yorkshire players who had made big contributions; £9 14s was gathered, of which Emmett received 10s. He then returned to the All-England Eleven, dismissing Chesterfield for 56 and 95 with J.C.Shaw, and taking 37-23-28-11, and 11-38 in 39.3 overs in the second innings. The reward for this startling performance was an overnight trip from Derbyshire to Glasgow to start the next morning, but the onerous travelling appeared to have little impact on Emmett, and he again took 11 wickets in the first innings (48-27-48-11), followed by 45-27- 21-3 as West of Scotland won by 9 wickets. Emmett had taken 36 wickets in less than a week. Confusion over whether he was to play for Holbeck or Stockton in a game in mid-September, as a result of miscommunication, only added to the sense that Emmett was much in demand at this time. It had been a remarkably productive end to the season with the ball, and Emmett was a key part of a very capable Yorkshire bowling line up made up of Freeman, Emmett, Greenwood, Iddison, Ullathorne, Atkinson and West. To one reporter this amounted to: an array of talent enough to test the powers of defence of the sturdiest batsman, and a phalanx of strength rarely to be found in any eleven. Yorkshire is wonderfully good, too, in the fielding department, and, when on her metal and surrounded by a ring of Brammall [sic] Lane spectators, there is scarcely anything that this eleven cannot accomplish. Such praise did not go to Emmett’s head, and in the September, he returned to his roots at Illingworth, where he demonstrated break-backs and fast bowling to admiring club members and onlookers. Now that he was one of the best-known names in English cricket, Emmett was amongst those players approached to travel to Australia to play over the winter of 1869/70. The idea was developed by Australian businessman, George Coppin, and his associate George Shoosmith. The latter was in England during the summer of 1869, authorised to make advance payments to professionals to join the team. The viability of the tour was, however, dependent on W.G.Grace being involved. Shoosmith spoke to Grace, who seemed interested, but it appears it was left too late in the year for other amateurs to arrange time away from their responsibilities, whilst the Surrey secretary, William Burrup, refused to allow four Surrey professionals to join unless there were guarantees they would be back for A man in demand (1867-1871)