Ham Lambert
Encyclopedia
Noel Hamilton "Ham" Lambert (5 June 1910 in Dublin, Ireland
– 10 October 2006 in County Wicklow
) was an Irish cricketer
and rugby union
player. By profession a veterinary surgeon
, he was noted for being the first in Ireland to own a practice devoted to the care of companion animals.
He is buried in Schull
in Co Cork, Ireland. The epitaph on his gravestone reads, simply, "A Lovely Man".
, King Edward VII
and King George V
, his father ran a practice which cared for the draught horses of Dublin from the turn of the 20th century until the early 1930s when working horses became less numerous.
Ham was educated at Sandford Park School
in Dublin and at Rossall School
in Lancashire, England before entering the Veterinary College in Dublin in 1927. Following graduation he built up an extensive cattle practice, covering a huge radius from Sallins
to Malahide
to Enniskerry
, from a base in Richmond St in Dublin. In 1939 he visited America to learn more about the treatment of dogs and cats and in 1952 sold his cattle practice and opened Ireland's first small animal practice at Richmond St. His practice was a model of its kind and hundreds of veterinary students and graduates spent time there learning the art as well as the science of veterinary medicine.
His was the first practice in Ireland to employ qualified veterinary nurses
and until the early 1970s it was the only centre in Ireland recognised for the training of nurses by the RCVS
.
He was noted throughout the profession for his early adoption of aseptic technique
s and for his belief in the value of Vitamin E
in the treatment and prevention of circulatory conditions. He frequently prescribed Vitamin E not just to animals in his care but their owners also.
He was the official vet to Dublin Zoo for 25 years and later became its president. Ham retired officially from veterinary practice in 1979 at the age of 69, but was still seeing cases privately at his home well into his nineties.
He was a long time supporter and fundraiser for Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, serving on its board for many years.
matches.
debut for Ireland against the MCC
at Lord's
in July 1931, scoring 45 runs
. He made his first-class debut the following June, against Scotland. He played against Scotland again the following year, also playing three more times against the MCC between 1933 and 1935 before he began to be a more regular part of the Irish side in 1937.
In 1937, he played against Scotland, Sir Julien Cahn's XI
and the MCC before two matches against New Zealand in Dublin in September. Matches against Sir Julien Cahn's XI and Scotland were played in 1938 in addition to two matches against the touring Australian team, before World War II
interrupted his career.
After the war, Lambert played against Scotland in 1946, before his career came to an end in 1947. That year he played four matches for Ireland, including matches against Derbyshire
and Yorkshire
. The match against Derbyshire was his final match for Ireland, and also his final first-class match.
for Ireland. He never bowled when playing for Ireland.
also played for Ireland, as did his uncle Sep
and his brother Drummand.
at rugby union, playing twice for them in 1934
against Scotland
and Wales
before his playing career was ended by a bad knee injury. He later became a rugby union referee, refereeing eleven Five Nations
matches between 1948 and 1952. He was regarded as one of the best referees in the post-war era.
Following his retirement he maintained his involvement in rugby, particularly through the Leinster Branch Association of Referees, where for more than 50 years he was both trainer and mentor for generations of referees. He was still attending meetings and assisting with the training of referees well into his nineties. In 2005 he was awarded a special cap for his services as a referee by the IRFU
at a ceremony held in Dublin.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
– 10 October 2006 in County Wicklow
County Wicklow
County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county...
) was an Irish cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
and 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. By profession a veterinary surgeon
Veterinary surgeon
Veterinary surgeon is a term used to describe:*The full title of a vet, who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals, in the United Kingdom and several Commonwealth countries**See also Veterinary medicine in the United Kingdom...
, he was noted for being the first in Ireland to own a practice devoted to the care of companion animals.
He is buried in Schull
Schull
Schull or Skull is a town in County Cork, Ireland. The name derives from a medieval monastic school of which no trace remains. Located on the southwest coast, in West Cork, the village is situated in a scenic and remote location, dominated by Mount Gabriel . It has a sheltered harbour, used for...
in Co Cork, Ireland. The epitaph on his gravestone reads, simply, "A Lovely Man".
Veterinary career
Ham Lambert was born into a family of Veterinary Surgeons. His grandfather was veterinary surgeon to three reigning monarchs, Queen VictoriaVictoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
, King Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
and King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
, his father ran a practice which cared for the draught horses of Dublin from the turn of the 20th century until the early 1930s when working horses became less numerous.
Ham was educated at Sandford Park School
Sandford Park School
Sandford Park School Ltd. is a small private, non-denominational, all-boys secondary school, located in the inner suburb of Ranelagh in Dublin, Ireland, founded in 1922.-School principals:* Alfred Le Peton 1922-25* Gordon Sylvester Bradshaw Mack 1925-34...
in Dublin and at Rossall School
Rossall School
Rossall School is a British, co-educational, independent school, between Cleveleys and Fleetwood, Lancashire. Rossall was founded in 1844 by St. Vincent Beechey as a sister school to Marlborough College which had been founded the previous year...
in Lancashire, England before entering the Veterinary College in Dublin in 1927. Following graduation he built up an extensive cattle practice, covering a huge radius from Sallins
Sallins
Sallins is a suburban town in County Kildare, Ireland, situated 3.5 km north of the town centre of Naas, from which it is separated by the M7 motorway. Sallins is the anglicised name of Na Solláin which means "The Willows"....
to Malahide
Malahide
Malahide is a coastal suburban town, near Dublin city, located in the administrative county of Fingal, within the traditional County Dublin, Ireland. It has a village-like centre and extensive residential areas to the south, west and northwest.-Name:...
to Enniskerry
Enniskerry
Enniskerry is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. It had a population of 2,672 at the 2006 census.- Location :...
, from a base in Richmond St in Dublin. In 1939 he visited America to learn more about the treatment of dogs and cats and in 1952 sold his cattle practice and opened Ireland's first small animal practice at Richmond St. His practice was a model of its kind and hundreds of veterinary students and graduates spent time there learning the art as well as the science of veterinary medicine.
His was the first practice in Ireland to employ qualified veterinary nurses
Veterinary technician
In North America, the principle paraveterinary workers are called veterinary technicians or veterinary technologists-Job description:Technical skills include:...
and until the early 1970s it was the only centre in Ireland recognised for the training of nurses by the RCVS
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons is the regulatory body for veterinary surgeons in the United Kingdom. Established in 1844 by Royal Charter, its statutory duties are laid out in the 1966 Veterinary Surgeons Act.-Role:...
.
He was noted throughout the profession for his early adoption of aseptic technique
Aseptic technique
Aseptic technique refers to a procedure that is performed under sterile conditions. This includes medical and laboratory techniques, such as with microbiological cultures. It includes techniques like flame sterilization...
s and for his belief in the value of Vitamin E
Vitamin E
Vitamin E is used to refer to a group of fat-soluble compounds that include both tocopherols and tocotrienols. There are many different forms of vitamin E, of which γ-tocopherol is the most common in the North American diet. γ-Tocopherol can be found in corn oil, soybean oil, margarine and dressings...
in the treatment and prevention of circulatory conditions. He frequently prescribed Vitamin E not just to animals in his care but their owners also.
He was the official vet to Dublin Zoo for 25 years and later became its president. Ham retired officially from veterinary practice in 1979 at the age of 69, but was still seeing cases privately at his home well into his nineties.
He was a long time supporter and fundraiser for Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, serving on its board for many years.
Cricket
A right-handed batsman, Lambert played 21 times for the Ireland cricket team between 1931 and 1947, including nine first-classFirst-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...
matches.
Playing career
Lambert made his cricketCricket
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...
debut for Ireland against the MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
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...
in July 1931, scoring 45 runs
Run (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...
. He made his first-class debut the following June, against Scotland. He played against Scotland again the following year, also playing three more times against the MCC between 1933 and 1935 before he began to be a more regular part of the Irish side in 1937.
In 1937, he played against Scotland, Sir Julien Cahn's XI
Julien Cahn
Sir Julien Cahn, 1st Baronet was an entrepreneur, philanthropist and supporter of cricket.-His cricket XI:...
and the MCC before two matches against New Zealand in Dublin in September. Matches against Sir Julien Cahn's XI and Scotland were played in 1938 in addition to two matches against the touring Australian team, before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
interrupted his career.
After the war, Lambert played against Scotland in 1946, before his career came to an end in 1947. That year he played four matches for Ireland, including matches against Derbyshire
Derbyshire County Cricket Club
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the England and Wales domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Derbyshire...
and 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....
. The match against Derbyshire was his final match for Ireland, and also his final first-class match.
Statistics
In all matches for Ireland, Lambert scored 577 runs at an average of 18.03, with a top score of 103 against Sir Julien Cahn's XI in August 1938, his only centuryCentury (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...
for Ireland. He never bowled when playing for Ireland.
Family
Ham Lambert came from a cricketing family. His father BobBob Lambert
Robert James Hamilton "Bob" Lambert was an Irish cricketer. A right-handed batsman and a right-arm off spin bowler, he played 51 times for the Ireland cricket team between 1893 and 1930, including 23 first-class matches, captaining them on thirteen occasions...
also played for Ireland, as did his uncle Sep
Sep Lambert
Septimus Drummond "Sep" Lambert was an Irish cricketer. A right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper, he played 14 times for the Ireland cricket team between 1896 and 1921, including seven first-class matches.Lambert was educated at Rathmines School and Wesley College in Dublin and at St John's...
and his brother Drummand.
Rugby union
Outside of cricket, he also represented IrelandIreland national rugby union team
The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
at rugby union, playing twice for them in 1934
1934 Home Nations Championship
The 1934 Home Nations Championship was the thirtieth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Five Nations, and prior to that, the Home Nations, this was the forty-seventh series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Six matches...
against Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
and Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
before his playing career was ended by a bad knee injury. He later became a rugby union referee, refereeing eleven Five Nations
Six Nations Championship
The Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
matches between 1948 and 1952. He was regarded as one of the best referees in the post-war era.
Following his retirement he maintained his involvement in rugby, particularly through the Leinster Branch Association of Referees, where for more than 50 years he was both trainer and mentor for generations of referees. He was still attending meetings and assisting with the training of referees well into his nineties. In 2005 he was awarded a special cap for his services as a referee by the IRFU
Irish Rugby Football Union
The Irish Rugby Football Union is the body managing rugby union in Ireland. The IRFU has its head office at 10/12 Lansdowne Road and home ground at Aviva Stadium, where Irish rugby union international matches are played...
at a ceremony held in Dublin.
Other sport
In later years he was a keen and competitive golfer, playing regularly at Carrickmines Golf Club and winning the prize for the best front nine at the Lansdowne Rugby Club golf outing in his 90th year.See also
- List of Irish cricket and rugby union players