Maurice Foster (English cricketer)
Encyclopedia
Maurice Kirshaw Foster was an English
cricketer
who played 170 first-class
matches. The great bulk of these (157) were for Worcestershire
, which county he captained for three seasons from 1923 to 1925. Foster also played first-class cricket for seven other teams, including the Gentlemen
and MCC
.
He was one of seven Foster brothers
to play for Worcestershire, and one of three to captain the side.
Though not a specialist wicket-keeper
, he acted as such for Worcestershire on a more than 20 occasions in the 1920s,
while his strictly occasional bowling brought him three wickets, and for Worcestershire against Surrey
in 1909 he dismissed Jack Hobbs
for 1.
After a couple of games in Worcestershire's Second XI in 1907, Foster made his first-class debut for the county in August of the following year, against Lancashire
at Worcester
, and made 20 in his only innings. He played twice more that season, and ten times in 1909, but without great success. There then followed the first of several gaps in his cricketing career as a consequence of his business commitments.
Though he played occasional minor games in Malaya
over the next few years,
he did not return to first-class cricket until 1914, in which season he played 19 matches, all in the County Championship
. In scoring 1,103 runs at 31.51
, he passed a thousand runs for the first time; he also hit two hundreds: 118 against Leicestershire
in May, and what was to remain a career-best 158 (in a losing cause) against Derbyshire
in August.
The First World War then intervened, although Foster did play one first-class game during hostilities, in India
in November 1917. This was a game staged at Calcutta
between the Bengal Governor's XI (for whom Foster appeared, scoring 0 and 14) and the Maharaja of Cooch-Behar's XI. The match was staged in aid of the "Our Day" Fund.
The Governor's side were bowled out for 33 and 59, losing by an innings to the Maharaja's team, who made 138. Unusually, only two bowlers were used in each of the three innings in the match.
Foster returned to Worcestershire action in 1920, although for three seasons his continuing overseas business meant that his appearances remained limited.
However, in 1923 he was able to play a full season, and for four years he was highly successful, scoring over 1,300 runs in each summer, making a total of ten hundreds. In the weak Worcestershire team of that era, Roy Genders
considered that he "carr[ied] the side on his shoulders".
Foster was especially productive in June 1924, when he hit three centuries, and shortly afterwards was chosen for the Gentlemen against the Players at both The Oval
and Lord's
, albeit with very little personal success.
He captained the side between 1923 and 1925, although it was the following year, after he had relinquished the role to previous incumbent Maurice Jewell
, that saw his heaviest run-scoring: 1,615 first-class runs at 32.95, with three hundreds and 12 fifties, including a hundred in each innings (141 and 106) against Hampshire
. However, this was to be his last full season of first-class cricket, and he never again made a first-class fifty. He played three games in 1927, then nothing until his final four matches for the county seven years later, although he had turned out in the 1933 Minor Counties Championship for Staffordshire
.
In 1935, Foster played for MCC against Ireland at Lord's in a minor match, then in early August 1936 played in an equivalent match, but one which did qualify as first class, at Dublin. In this, his final first-class game, Foster both captained and kept wicket, and brought off the stumping of Ireland opener Francis Connell
. He made no other dismissals, and his 18 and 47 could not prevent a heavy defeat.
He then played club cricket
for Walsall Cricket Club
until shortly before his death; the club won the Birmingham League
three times while he was there.
As mentioned above, six of his brothers played first-class cricket, as did three nephews (Christopher Foster
, Peter Foster and John Greenstock
) and his brother-in-law William Greenstock
).
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...
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"....
who played 170 first-class
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...
matches. The great bulk of these (157) were for Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire 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 Worcestershire...
, which county he captained for three seasons from 1923 to 1925. Foster also played first-class cricket for seven other teams, including the Gentlemen
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...
and 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...
.
He was one of seven Foster brothers
Fostershire
"Fostershire" was a name jocularly applied to Worcestershire County Cricket Club in the early part of the 20th century, shortly after the county had achieved first-class status and admission into the English County Championship...
to play for Worcestershire, and one of three to captain the side.
Though not a specialist 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 acted as such for Worcestershire on a more than 20 occasions in the 1920s,
while his strictly occasional bowling brought him three wickets, and for Worcestershire against Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
in 1909 he dismissed Jack Hobbs
Jack Hobbs
Sir John Berry "Jack" Hobbs was an English professional cricketer who played for Surrey from 1905 to 1934 and for England in 61 Test matches from 1908 to 1930....
for 1.
After a couple of games in Worcestershire's Second XI in 1907, Foster made his first-class debut for the county in August of the following year, 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...
at Worcester
New Road, Worcester
New Road, Worcester, England, has been the home cricket ground of Worcestershire County Cricket Club since 1896. Immediately to the northwest is a road called New Road, part of the A44, hence the name.- Overview :...
, and made 20 in his only innings. He played twice more that season, and ten times in 1909, but without great success. There then followed the first of several gaps in his cricketing career as a consequence of his business commitments.
Though he played occasional minor games in Malaya
British Malaya
British Malaya loosely described a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the Island of Singapore that were brought under British control between the 18th and the 20th centuries...
over the next few years,
he did not return to first-class cricket until 1914, in which season he played 19 matches, all in the County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
. In scoring 1,103 runs at 31.51
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
, he passed a thousand runs for the first time; he also hit two hundreds: 118 against Leicestershire
Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire 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 Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
in May, and what was to remain a career-best 158 (in a losing cause) 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 August.
The First World War then intervened, although Foster did play one first-class game during hostilities, 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...
in November 1917. This was a game staged at Calcutta
Eden Gardens
Eden Gardens is a cricket ground in Kolkata , India. It is the home of the Bengal cricket team and the Indian Premier League's Kolkata Knight Riders, as well as being a Test and One Day International ground. It is the largest cricket stadium in India by seating capacity...
between the Bengal Governor's XI (for whom Foster appeared, scoring 0 and 14) and the Maharaja of Cooch-Behar's XI. The match was staged in aid of the "Our Day" Fund.
The Governor's side were bowled out for 33 and 59, losing by an innings to the Maharaja's team, who made 138. Unusually, only two bowlers were used in each of the three innings in the match.
Foster returned to Worcestershire action in 1920, although for three seasons his continuing overseas business meant that his appearances remained limited.
However, in 1923 he was able to play a full season, and for four years he was highly successful, scoring over 1,300 runs in each summer, making a total of ten hundreds. In the weak Worcestershire team of that era, Roy Genders
Roy Genders
William Roy Genders was an English cricketer who played ten first-class games just after the Second World War...
considered that he "carr[ied] the side on his shoulders".
Foster was especially productive in June 1924, when he hit three centuries, and shortly afterwards was chosen for the Gentlemen against the Players at both 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...
and 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...
, albeit with very little personal success.
He captained the side between 1923 and 1925, although it was the following year, after he had relinquished the role to previous incumbent Maurice Jewell
Maurice Jewell
Maurice Frederick Stewart Jewell, CBE was an English cricketer: a right-handed batsman and slow left arm bowler who played the bulk of his first-class cricket for Worcestershire between the wars...
, that saw his heaviest run-scoring: 1,615 first-class runs at 32.95, with three hundreds and 12 fifties, including a hundred in each innings (141 and 106) 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...
. However, this was to be his last full season of first-class cricket, and he never again made a first-class fifty. He played three games in 1927, then nothing until his final four matches for the county seven years later, although he had turned out in the 1933 Minor Counties Championship for Staffordshire
Staffordshire County Cricket Club
Staffordshire 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 Staffordshire and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy...
.
In 1935, Foster played for MCC against Ireland at Lord's in a minor match, then in early August 1936 played in an equivalent match, but one which did qualify as first class, at Dublin. In this, his final first-class game, Foster both captained and kept wicket, and brought off the stumping of Ireland opener Francis Connell
Francis Connell
Francis Gerard Connell was an Irish cricketer. A right-handed batsman, he made his debut for Ireland in August 1934 against the MCC. He went onto play for Ireland on 11 occasions, his last match coming in July 1938, also against the MCC. Five of his matches for Ireland had first-class...
. He made no other dismissals, and his 18 and 47 could not prevent a heavy defeat.
He then played club cricket
Club cricket
Club cricket is a mainly amateur, but still formal, form of the sport of cricket, usually involving teams playing in competitions at weekends or in the evening. There is a great deal of variation in game format although the Laws of Cricket are always observed...
for Walsall Cricket Club
Walsall Cricket Club
Walsall Cricket Club is an amateur cricket club in Walsall, West Midlands, England, UK.Established in 1833, it originally trained and played games in the Chuckery area of Walsall. It then moved to one at Windmill in 1847 and remained there until around 1850. The Chuckery ground became used by...
until shortly before his death; the club won the Birmingham League
Birmingham and District Premier League
The Birmingham and District Cricket League is the oldest club cricket league in the world, formed in 1888. Arguably the strongest club competition in the country, it was also the first ECB Premier League, being designated such in 1998.- Geography :...
three times while he was there.
As mentioned above, six of his brothers played first-class cricket, as did three nephews (Christopher Foster
Christopher Foster
Christopher Knollys Foster was an English cricketer. A right-handed batsman, he played first-class cricket for Worcestershire in 1927.-Biography:...
, Peter Foster and John Greenstock
John Greenstock
John Wilfrid Greenstock was an English cricketer who played 46 first-class matches in the 1920s, the bulk of these for Oxford University and Worcestershire....
) and his brother-in-law William Greenstock
William Greenstock
William Greenstock was a cricketer. Born in Keiskammahoek, Cape Province, South Africa he nevertheless played all his cricket in England...
).
External links
- Statistical summary from CricketArchiveCricketArchiveCricketArchive is a website that aims to provide a comprehensive archive of records relating to the sport of cricket. It claims to be the most comprehensive cricket database on the internet, including scorecards for all matches of first-class cricket , List A cricket , Women's Test cricket and...
- Lists of matches and detailed statistics for Maurice Foster from CricketArchiveCricketArchiveCricketArchive is a website that aims to provide a comprehensive archive of records relating to the sport of cricket. It claims to be the most comprehensive cricket database on the internet, including scorecards for all matches of first-class cricket , List A cricket , Women's Test cricket and...