Lives in Cricket No 51 - Rev ES Carter

First-class matches 81 Australia, his credentials to be captain would be high. 14: versus MCC, at Scarborough, September 1881 15: versus I Zingari, at Scarborough, September 1881 The year 1880 had been quiet for Edmund Carter in terms of known cricket fixtures. He had, as mentioned in Chapter four been on a southern tour in June 1880 with the Gentlemen of Yorkshire playing matches in quick succession against Richmond Gentlemen, the Gentlemen of West Kent, and the Royal Artillery – but thereafter no other games are recorded and he completely missed the MCC and I Zingari matches at Scarborough where Ephraim Lockwood, not usually in the Yorkshire side for those matches, played and perhaps captained the team. But in 1881 he was back at Scarborough for two now traditional games. Yorkshire had a shocker against MCC when in miserable weather they were out for 100 (Carter 12) and then saw MCC score 188. The astonishing feature of the MCC innings was that A.G.Steel went out to bat with seven wickets down and then scored 106 not out in one hour and 20 minutes. His several batting partners scored seven runs in the same time. Yorkshire battered and bruised were then bowled out for just 53 (Carter nought). In the follow up game against I Zingari the two sides were virtually level after their first innings but whilst I Zingari rallied in their second knock, Yorkshire did not and were out for 80. Carter made two and nought and was stumped by the famous Alfred Lyttleton. Stumped for nought may have been a good summary of the way Carter played his cricket. He was not to play for Yorkshire again. An issue that had been constantly discussed in the 1870s and 1880s was whether Yorkshire were playing enough amateur players. LordLondesboroughwith his influence over Scarborough Festival matters had, using Carter as his supporter, some success in his Festival but was largely unsuccessful in his selection projects. He did though write a letter in 1882 to the Yorkshire Committee in which he said his ideal Yorkshire eleven should always include three amateurs and he named ‘Mr Forbes [who never did play for Yorkshire], Mr Carter, Mr Sims,[Reverend