Arthur Turner (cricketer)
Encyclopedia
Arthur Jervois Turner was an English cricket
er, rugby union
player and soldier. A right-handed batsman, right-arm underarm
medium pace
bowler and occasional wicket-keeper
, he played first-class cricket
for various teams between 1897 and 1914, predominately for Essex
. He also played for the Egypt national cricket team
. His other sporting interests included Rugby Union
, and he played for Blackheath F.C. and Kent at that sport.
in 1878, Arthur Turner was the son of a JT Turner, who played cricket for Hong Kong
and died on the SS Bokhara
on the way back from playing a match for Hong Kong against Shanghai
.
His younger brother Walter also played cricket
for Essex, whilst another brother John
played first-class cricket in India
, as did his nephew Antony.
He was educated at Bedford Modern School
, gaining a place in the school's cricket team when aged 13. He played four seasons for the school, captaining
them in 1895. He died in Sussex
in 1952.
before making his first-class debut for Essex in a County Championship
match against Hampshire
in June 1897.
He played nine further County Championship matches for Essex that season
and a dozen in the 1898 season
, also playing in that year's Gentlemen v Players
match at The Oval
. He played ten County Championship matches in 1899, also playing twice against Australia - once for Essex and once for the South of England. He also played for a Home Counties team against the Rest of England and was invited to play in that year's Gentlemen v Players match at Lord's
but could not accept the invitation due to military duties.
He played no first-class cricket in 1900 or 1902, playing eight County Championship matches for Essex during the 1901 season
. His appearances for Essex became more sporadic from this point, playing just twice in 1903, seven times in 1904, five times in 1905 and just once in 1906.
After missing the 1907 season
, he played four County Championship matches for Essex in 1908, also playing for the British Army cricket team
against the Navy
at Lord's and for the Royal Artillery against Philadelphia
that season
.
He played just two County Championship matches in 1909, also playing for Essex and the South of England against Australia and for the Gentlemen of the South against the Players of the South. His final matches for Essex were in the 1910 season
, playing five times for them in the County Championship, his last match coming against Yorkshire
in August.
He still played four more first-class matches, playing for a combined Army/Navy team against a combined Oxford/Cambridge University team in 1911, for the Army against the Navy in 1913 and for the Free Foresters against Oxford University
and for the Army against Cambridge University
in 1914.
He played no more first-class cricket after World War I
, though he continued to play cricket at a minor level. He played for the Army against a Public Schools team in 1920, and for the Royal Artillery against West Kent in 1925.
In 1929, he played a match for Egypt against HM Martineau's XI
in Cairo
and his last recorded match was for the Army against the West Indies in May 1939 when he was 60.
at an average of 34.05, including eleven centuries
. His highest score was 124 for Essex against Warwickshire
in 1899. Whilst he was considered an all-rounder
at school, Turner's underarm bowling
was rarely used at first-class level. In all he took fifteen first-class wickets, with a best innings bowling performance of 3/47 for Essex against Lancashire
in 1898. After taking 14 wickets in his first three seasons, he took only one more first-class wicket in his career.
with the Royal Artillery
. He later served in France
during the First World War
and was decorated with the Croix de guerre
. He was also decorated with the Distinguished Service Order
, the Order of St Michael and St George
and the Order of the Bath
. He achieved the rank of Brigadier
.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er, rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player and soldier. A right-handed batsman, right-arm underarm
Underarm bowling
In cricket, underarm bowling is as old as the sport itself. Until the introduction of the roundarm style in the first half of the 19th century, bowling was performed in the same way as in bowls, the ball being delivered with the hand below the waist...
medium pace
Fast bowling
Fast bowling, sometimes known as pace bowling, is one of the two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket. The other is spin bowling...
bowler and occasional wicket-keeper
Wicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...
, he played first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
for various teams between 1897 and 1914, predominately for Essex
Essex County Cricket Club
Essex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Essex. Its limited overs team is called the Essex Eagles, their team colours this season are blue.The club plays most of its home games...
. He also played for the Egypt national cricket team
Egypt national cricket team
The Egypt national cricket team was the team that represented the country of Egypt in international cricket matches. They were active from 1909 until World War II.-Early years:...
. His other sporting interests included Rugby Union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, and he played for Blackheath F.C. and Kent at that sport.
Personal life
Born in the United Provinces of Agra and OudhUnited Provinces of Agra and Oudh
The United Provinces of Agra and Oudh was a province of India under the British Raj, which existed from 1902 to 1947; the official name was shortened by the Government of India Act 1935 to United Provinces, by which the province had been commonly known, and by which name it was also a province of...
in 1878, Arthur Turner was the son of a JT Turner, who played cricket for Hong Kong
Hong Kong cricket team
The Hong Kong cricket team represents Hong Kong in international cricket. It played its first match in 1866 and has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council since 1969....
and died on the SS Bokhara
SS Bokhara
The SS Bokhara was a P&O steamship which sank in a typhoon on 10 October 1892, off the coast of Sand Island in the Pescadores, Formosa. Of the 125 people who perished, eleven were members of the Hong Kong cricket team....
on the way back from playing a match for Hong Kong against Shanghai
Shanghai cricket team
The Shanghai cricket team was a cricket team that played various international matches between 1866 and 1948. With cricket in the rest of China almost non-existent, for that period they were the de facto Chinese national side.-History:...
.
His younger brother Walter also played cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
for Essex, whilst another brother John
John Turner (cricketer)
John Bernard Turner is a former English cricketer. Truner was a right-handed batsman who bowled slow left-arm orthodox. He was born in Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire....
played first-class cricket in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, as did his nephew Antony.
He was educated at Bedford Modern School
Bedford Modern School
Bedford Modern School is a British co-educational independent school in the Harpur area of Bedford, in the county of Bedfordshire, in England.Bedford Modern comprises a junior school and a senior school...
, gaining a place in the school's cricket team when aged 13. He played four seasons for the school, captaining
Captain (cricket)
The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player...
them in 1895. He died in Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
in 1952.
Cricket career
After gaining a reputation as a cricketer at school and with the Army, Turner played occasionally for BedfordshireBedfordshire County Cricket Club
Bedfordshire County Cricket Club is one of the county clubs which make up the Minor Counties in the English domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Bedfordshire and competing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy. The Minor Counties play three-day...
before making his first-class debut for Essex in a County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
match against Hampshire
Hampshire County Cricket Club
Hampshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Hampshire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1863 as a successor to the Hampshire county cricket teams and has played at the Antelope Ground from then until 1885, before moving to the County Ground where it...
in June 1897.
He played nine further County Championship matches for Essex that season
1897 English cricket season
The 1897 English cricket season saw Lancashire win the County Championship title for the first time in the official running of the Championship, thanks mainly to only three losses in twenty-six matches. Surrey won more games, and beat Lancashire twice, but one more loss than Lancashire meant that...
and a dozen in the 1898 season
1898 English cricket season
Yorkshire won the County Championship in the 1898 English cricket season, thus giving them their second title in three years, and it was an emphatic one. No one came close to their record of 16 wins in 26 games, and seven draws also helped them along to the Championship victory...
, also playing in that year's Gentlemen v Players
Gentlemen v Players
The Gentlemen v Players game was a first-class cricket match that was generally played on an annual basis between one team consisting of amateurs and one of professionals . The first two games took place in 1806 but the fixture was not revived until 1819. It was more or less annual thereafter...
match at The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
. He played ten County Championship matches in 1899, also playing twice against Australia - once for Essex and once for the South of England. He also played for a Home Counties team against the Rest of England and was invited to play in that year's Gentlemen v Players match at Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
but could not accept the invitation due to military duties.
He played no first-class cricket in 1900 or 1902, playing eight County Championship matches for Essex during the 1901 season
1901 English cricket season
Yorkshire defended their County Championship title in the 1901 English cricket season, though, unlike in 1900, they lost one game during the season, to 12th-placed Somerset....
. His appearances for Essex became more sporadic from this point, playing just twice in 1903, seven times in 1904, five times in 1905 and just once in 1906.
After missing the 1907 season
1907 English cricket season
The 1907 English cricket season gave Nottinghamshire its first-ever official County Championship title and saw the first Test matches to be held in England against South Africa.-Honours:*County Championship - Nottinghamshire...
, he played four County Championship matches for Essex in 1908, also playing for the British Army cricket team
British Army cricket team
The Army cricket team is a cricket side representing the British Army. The team played a number of first-class matches between 1912 and 1939, although a combined "Army and Navy" side had played two games against a combined Oxford and Cambridge team in 1910 and 1911...
against the Navy
Royal Navy Cricket Club
The Royal Navy Cricket Club is a cricket team representing the British Royal Navy and based at the United Services Recreation Ground, Portsmouth, Hampshire...
at Lord's and for the Royal Artillery against Philadelphia
Philadelphian cricket team
The Philadelphian cricket team was a team that represented Philadelphia in first-class cricket between 1878 and 1913. Even with the United States having played the first ever international cricket match against Canada in 1844, the sport began a slow decline in the country. This decline was...
that season
1908 English cricket season
The 1908 English cricket season was the year in which American John Barton "Bart" King topped the bowling averages as a member of the touring Philadelphian cricket team.-Honours:*County Championship - Yorkshire...
.
He played just two County Championship matches in 1909, also playing for Essex and the South of England against Australia and for the Gentlemen of the South against the Players of the South. His final matches for Essex were in the 1910 season
1910 English cricket season
-Honours:*County Championship - Kent*Minor Counties Championship - Norfolk*Wisden - Harry Foster, Alfred Hartley, Charles Llewellyn, Razor Smith, Frank Woolley-External sources:*...
, playing five times for them in the County Championship, his last match coming against Yorkshire
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
in August.
He still played four more first-class matches, playing for a combined Army/Navy team against a combined Oxford/Cambridge University team in 1911, for the Army against the Navy in 1913 and for the Free Foresters against Oxford University
Oxford University Cricket Club
Oxford University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team, representing the University of Oxford. It plays its home games at the University Parks in Oxford, England...
and for the Army against Cambridge University
Cambridge University Cricket Club
Cambridge University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team. It now plays all but one of its first-class cricket matches as part of the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence , which includes Anglia Ruskin University...
in 1914.
He played no more first-class cricket after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, though he continued to play cricket at a minor level. He played for the Army against a Public Schools team in 1920, and for the Royal Artillery against West Kent in 1925.
In 1929, he played a match for Egypt against HM Martineau's XI
Hubert Martineau
Hubert Melville Martineau was an English patron of cricket and organiser of his own team. He also played three first-class matches between 1931 and 1932...
in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
and his last recorded match was for the Army against the West Indies in May 1939 when he was 60.
Statistics
In his 77 first-class matches, Arthur Turner scored 4053 runsRun (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...
at an average of 34.05, including eleven centuries
Century (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a batsman reaches his century when he scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. The term is also included in "century partnership" which occurs when two batsmen add 100 runs to the team total when they are batting together. A century is regarded as a landmark score for...
. His highest score was 124 for Essex against Warwickshire
Warwickshire County Cricket Club
Warwickshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Warwickshire. Its limited overs team is called the Warwickshire Bears. Their kit colours are black and gold and the shirt sponsor...
in 1899. Whilst he was considered an all-rounder
All-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a few batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are considered specialists...
at school, Turner's underarm bowling
Underarm bowling
In cricket, underarm bowling is as old as the sport itself. Until the introduction of the roundarm style in the first half of the 19th century, bowling was performed in the same way as in bowls, the ball being delivered with the hand below the waist...
was rarely used at first-class level. In all he took fifteen first-class wickets, with a best innings bowling performance of 3/47 for Essex against Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
in 1898. After taking 14 wickets in his first three seasons, he took only one more first-class wicket in his career.
Military career
Turner served in the South African WarSecond Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
with the Royal Artillery
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery , is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...
. He later served in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
during the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and was decorated with the Croix de guerre
Croix de guerre
The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
. He was also decorated with the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
and the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
. He achieved the rank of Brigadier
Brigadier
Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....
.