Matthew Wood (cricketer, born 1977)
Encyclopedia
- For another cricketer by the same name see Matthew Wood (cricketer, born 1980).
Matthew James Wood (born 6 April 1977, Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) is a former English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
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...
er who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club
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....
and Glamorgan
Glamorgan County Cricket Club
Glamorgan 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 Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County...
in a career lasting eleven years. He was a right-handed batsman
Batting (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the cricket ball with a cricket bat to score runs or prevent the loss of one's wicket. A player who is currently batting is denoted as a batsman, while the act of hitting the ball is called a shot or stroke...
and very occasional off spin
Off spin
Off spin is a type of bowling in the sport of cricket which is bowled by an off spinner, a right-handed spin bowler who uses his or her fingers and/or wrist to spin the ball from a right-handed batsman's off side to the leg side...
ner, who made his debut in first-class cricket in 1997. He played 136 first-class matches, scoring 7,052 runs with a highest score of 207, at an average of 32.80. He compiled sixteen first class 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...
, took 118 catches and snared two wickets at 21.50.
Wood played Second XI cricket for three years before notching a century in his second first-class match, 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...
in 1998, and completing the year with three more first-class tons. Two years of failure followed but, converted to an opening batsman, he starred in Yorkshire's County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
winning side in 2001, scoring four more centuries at the top of the order.
Wood was rewarded with two tours of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
with the England Academy, but another slump in 2002, saw him lose his first team place. He recovered in 2003, helping himself to 1,400 runs, five centuries and the club and players player awards at Headingley
Headingley Stadium
Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley in West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie ....
, but was left out of England's plans.
Wood deputised as captain
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...
on several occasions in 2003 and 2004, but his hopes of promotion to Yorkshire's helm were skittled by poor seasons in 2004 and 2005, and he was dropped back to the Second XI in 2006 after another run of low scores. He began 2007 as captain of Yorkshire Second XI, but was released in mid-season. Wood joined Glamorgan in October 2007. In the 2008 season, he averaged 19.00 and was dropped from the first team after seven matches and, in February 2009, he announced his retirement from the game.