Sammy Woods
Encyclopedia
Samuel Moses James "Sammy" Woods (13 April 1867 – 30 April 1931) was an Australia
n sportsman who represented both Australia and England at Test cricket
, and appeared thirteen times for England
at rugby union
, including five times as captain. He also played at county level in England at both soccer and hockey
. At cricket—his primary sport—he played over four hundred first-class
matches in a twenty-four year career. The majority of these matches were for his county side, Somerset
, whom he captained
from 1894 to 1906. A.A. Thomson described him thus: "Sammy... radiated such elemental force in hard hitting, fast bowling and electrical fielding that he might have been the forerunner of Sir Learie Constantine
."
Having moved to England at the age of sixteen to complete his education, Woods became entrenched in English sport. Having already played cricket and rugby growing up in Australia, at Brighton College
he began playing soccer, and while still at the college, represented Sussex at the sport. Woods was also part of a strong cricket team at the college; in the 23 matches he played for them, only two were lost. He made his first-class cricket debut shortly after leaving Brighton College, in August 1886, playing for GN Wyatt's XI against the touring Australians. Later in the same month he made his first appearance for Somerset, a second-class match against Warwickshire
. At Cambridge University he achieved blues in both cricket and rugby.
Woods played the first three of his six Test cricket matches during his first year at Cambridge, called up to the Australian squad to face England in 1888 after Sammy Jones
contracted smallpox
. During this early part of his career, Woods was considered among the finest bowlers in England, and was named as one of the 'Six Great Bowlers of the Year' (later to form the inaugural Wisden Cricketers of the Year
) in 1889. He twice claimed in excess of a hundred first-class wickets in an English season, and averaged
under twenty in five consecutive seasons from 1888. In a 1890 match for Cambridge University, Woods claimed all ten of the opposition's wickets in the second-innings. However, by the time he was selected as part of the England Test squad to tour South Africa
in 1895–96, his bowling was beginning to lose its potency. Additionally curtailed by injuries, Woods claimed five wickets on the tour, thirty less than the leading wicket-taker George Lohmann
.
While his bowling worsened, his batting improved; in 133 first-class matches up to the end of 1894, Woods scored one century
, while in his next 129 matches he passed a hundred on fourteen occasions. Primarily an aggressive batsman, Woods had fast footwork and was capable of powerful strokes all around the ground, though he favoured the square cut. His twelve-year Somerset captaincy is the longest at the county. He was an attacking captain, once observing: "Draws? They're only for bathing in." He also served the club as secretary
from 1920 to 1922.
, had emigrated to Australia in 1853 shortly after their wedding. At the time of their wedding, John Woods was described as a 'labourer', but by the birth of Samuel Woods, he was listed as a 'gentleman', having carried out various contracts in the development of Sydney
, and served as the city's mayor for a term in 1865. Sammy Woods was one of five boys all of whom were athletic, and at the age of ten he played a match for an under-16s team captained by one of his elder brothers. A boy short for the match, Sammy was enlisted; he scored a few runs in each innings and claimed three wickets, and was afterwards presented with a cap by his brother, which he later claimed to prize more than even his international caps. Woods was educated at Royston College and Sydney Grammar School
, and while at Royston once claimed seven wickets in seven balls. One school season, he claimed seventy wickets at an average
of five runs.
Woods often missed school
to watch cricket, and recounts that on more than one occasion he "got a jolly good caning". On one such occasion when he was 14, during the English tour of Australia of 1881–82, after buying a couple of the England team drinks, he bowled at George Ulyett
in the nets
. He played a number of matches for the Manly cricket club, taking part in challenge matches which on occasion included famous cricketers of the day such as Fred Spofforth
and Billy Murdoch
.
, Kent
, a preparatory school. While at the school, Woods played for the town cricket club, and by the end of the season he was seventh in the published batting averages, with a top-score of 42 not out
. He joined Brighton College
in August 1884, and after playing a couple of cricket matches, the weather turned and the football season began. For Woods, whose Australian upbringing had consisted of cricket in the summer and rugby
in the winter, the realisation that 'soccer' was played at the school was one made with some dismay. After only a few weeks though, he was playing in goal for both the school and the Sussex
county football team.
His newly discovered prowess at soccer did not detract from his cricketing skills. The two summers in which Woods played for Brighton College were strong ones for the school, of the 23 matches they played, only 2 were lost. Alongside the Woods brothers were a number of other players who would go on to appear in county cricket
; George Cotterill
and George Wilson both played for Sussex
, while Leslie Gay
made one Test appearance for England in addition to representing Hampshire
and Somerset. Woods topped the bowling averages in both his years at the school; in the first he claimed 59 wickets at an average just over eight, figures which he improved upon during his second year when he took 78 wickets at an average of 7.3. His college reports commented much more favourably on his sporting achievements than his academic ones, praising his batting, bowling and fielding alike.
The highlight of Woods' time at Brighton College was during a schools match against Lancing College
. Playing away from home at the West Sussex
school, Woods claimed 8 wickets for 17 in the first-innings, with all his victims being bowled
, and followed this with 6 for 10 in the second-innings, five of the wickets bowled, and the other caught and bowled
. On another occasion playing for the College's first eleven, Woods hit the stumps eight times in eight balls, but only claimed three wickets. After three successive no ball
s hit, he bowled an opponent with the fourth ball (the first legal ball of the over), hit the leg stump without dislodging a bail
with the fifth, took successive wickets with the sixth and seventh, and then once again hit the stumps without disturbing the bails with the eighth. This was not the only time on which Woods hit the stumps without removing the bails: in an interview a few years later, he recalls a match against Dulwich College
in which he "[hit] the leg stump – and [hit] it hard – three times in one over, without knocking the bails off", each ball then went for four byes
.
During his time at the college, Woods developed a slower ball after watching George Lohmann
bowling against Sussex. Woods claimed that after practising the delivery for hours, he took a wicket with the first one he ever bowled, dismissing GG Hearne
caught and bowled in a match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
and Ground. Woods left Brighton College in 1886, aged 19, and shortly after, in August of the same year, he made his first-class cricket
debut. Playing for GN Wyatt
's XI against the touring Australians
, Woods opened the bowling in both innings for the English side which was termed a 'South of England XI'. Woods made scores of 21 and 11 with the bat, and took 2/45 and 0/40 bowling. He claimed that he strained his side trying to bowl too fast, and would have done better otherwise.
where a friend of his father's helped to find him a job as a bank clerk. Woods reflected in his reminiscences that his father wanted him to "learn business habits" before he went to university. He soon became a key figure in the town's sport, playing for both the cricket and rugby teams. His performances on the cricket field drew the attention of the county club, and late during the 1886 season, Woods made his first appearance for Somerset County Cricket Club
. Somerset were not at the time a first-class
county, and Woods travelled up to Edgbaston
, Birmingham
to play Warwickshire
, who similarly lacked first-class status. He failed in both batting innings, collecting a pair, but claimed twelve wickets; 7/23 in the first-innings and 5/34 in the second. His performance was praised in the Somerset County Gazette
and in the Sussex Daily News; the latter publication noting that many had "anticipated or hoped that he would ultimately render good service to Sussex
."
He continued to play for Somerset in 1887, generally batting as part of the lower order. He collected ten wickets against the Marylebone Cricket Club
during this time. His work experience at the bank ended when an inspector noticed that the books were not balancing; which Woods was happy to explain was due to him taking a sovereign from time to time to buy stamps. After losing this job, he paid a surveyor
to teach him the trade, but after an afternoon of the training, his teacher ran off with the money and soon committed suicide, bringing that to a halt.
Woods entered Jesus College, Cambridge
in 1888 and soon became a vibrant part of the social community. He joined port wine
and oyster
clubs, (known as Rhadegund and the Natives respectively) and played both cricket and rugby during his time at the university. He had also applied to Oxford University, who had turned him down, not realising his sporting abilities. He made his debut for the university at Fenner's
in May 1888, claiming his first five-wicket haul in first-class cricket when he bowled
four members of CI Thornton
's XI, and had another one caught
. Despite his wickets, he was relatively expensive, and the visiting side beat Cambridge easily. A week later, Woods improved on his performance against a 'Gentlemen of England' side which was also captained
by Thornton, and claimed seven wickets in the first innings and another five in the second innings, top-scoring with the bat for Cambridge in-between, to help the university to a six wicket victory. This match also saw Woods take the only first-class hat-trick of his career.
He continued to bowl effectively for the university side, claiming another twelve wickets during a match against Yorkshire
, nine of the twelve being bowled. He topped both the batting and the bowling averages for Cambridge during his first year, and gained his Blue in cricket, claiming six wickets in Oxford University
's only innings of a match that was drawn, due to rain, with Cambridge the better of the two sides. In Geoffrey Bolton's History of the O.U.C.C., the author offers the opinion that the Cambridge side relied on the bowling of Woods, and although the rain initially softened the ground too much for his fast bowling, "when it had dried, he was irresistible." He also gained a Blue in rugby union, despite breaking his collarbone in an early game for the university. He also gained colours for Jesus College in both rugby and soccer. During his first year at Cambridge, Woods made his first appearances in the Gentlemen v Players
fixture, representing the Gentlemen at both Lord's
and The Oval
in early July. In the first of the two matches, he claimed five wickets in each innings to help secure the Gentlemen a narrow five run victory. He collected another five wickets in the first innings of the match at The Oval, but could not prevent the Players achieving an innings victory, scoring a duck in the first innings and six runs in the second.
to contest three Tests and over 30 first-class matches. The squad was considered to be relatively weak, particularly in the batting, where only four players had any experience of English conditions. H.S Altham
described them as leaving Australia "amid a chorus of gloomy prophecy". In his reminiscences, W. G. Grace
expressed his at George Giffen
and Harry Moses, who he rated as Australia's best players, not travelling with the team, and also noted that they missed the bowling of Fred Spofforth
. Sammy Jones
, an all-rounder
from Sydney, fell ill with smallpox
early during the tour, and due to the Australians only having a thirteen man squad, Woods was invited into the tourists squad. His debut for Australia was made just two days after the conclusion of the second of his appearances for the Gentlemen, and was in the first Test of the series. Woods scored 18 and 3 batting from number six, and claimed one wicket during the first innings; the only wicket taken by Australia that did not fall to either Charlie Turner
or John Ferris during the match. The match was notable for having the lowest aggregate number of runs scored in a Test match; Australia scored 116 and 60, while England made 53 and 62, totalling 291 runs. The record stood until 1932 when South Africa and Australia totalled less, but remains the second lowest aggregate.
Woods appeared against the Australians shortly thereafter, playing for 'Cambridge University Past and Present', but rejoined them for matches against Yorkshire and Surrey
, the latter of which drew his best performance for the Australians, when he claimed four wickets, over a third of his total for the side. He claimed two wickets in each of the other two Test matches, but failed to reach double figures when batting in any innings. Australia lost both matches, granting England a 2–1 series victory. Grace observed that "neither with bat nor ball did Mr. S. M. J. Woods give promise of the sterling qualities of which he proved himself the possessor as years went on. Woods, in his reminiscences, only provides a paragraph on his time playing for the Australians, and concentrates mainly on the first-ball duck he made in the match at Old Trafford, Manchester
. These three Test appearances for Australia were the only he made for his native country; he was invited to play for them again when they toured England in 1890, but had to decline due to injury. In 1889, Woods was named by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack as one of the "Six Great Bowlers of the Year" due to his performances for Cambridge and Australia. His bowling is described in the piece as being "very fast right-hand, now and then sending in a good yorker."
Gregor MacGregor. Cambridge opening batsman Henry Mordaunt
scored 127 in the match, and they secured an innings victory, requiring just two of the three allocated days.
The partnership which MacGregor and Woods forged during their time at Cambridge was noted by Bolton, who commented that "the two most successful Cambridge bowlers, Steel and Woods, were partnered by their two greatest wicket-keepers, Alfred Lyttelton
and MacGregor." The pair shared a room together at Jesus College for two years, and on the field MacGregor proved himself capable of standing up to the wicket against Woods' bowling. Team-mate Digby Jephson
described their partnership as having "machine-like precision ... the faster Sam bowled, the nearer the sticks stood Mac."
After the conclusion of the university term, Woods played five further five-class fixtures, as well as a number of matches for Somerset. He performed well, but without much note in the two Gentlemen v Players fixtures in London, claiming three wickets in an innings twice, but both games resulted in victories for the Players. Four appearances for Somerset in August brought him more wickets, although the cricket was not first-class; he took five wickets in an innings three times, and totalled 33 wickets in the matches. He continued this wicket-taking form into his next two matches, both first-class, taking seven wickets in the second innings against I Zingari
for the Gentlemen of England, aggregating eleven wickets in the match, and a few days later he claimed ten wickets in a match for the Marylebone Cricket Club against Yorkshire. He completed his second full season of first-class cricket with 74 wickets, at a bowling average
of 16.74, roughly equivalent to his figure from the previous season.
. When he did bowl, he was still effective, claiming 59 wickets at an average of 13.13, his best during an English season. In the matches leading up to the fixture against Oxford, Woods' Cambridge side won three, loss three and drew one of their seven games, and were considered to be a stronger side than their rivals. Rain prevented any play on the first day, and the soft conditions did not favour Woods' bowling. He picked up four wickets in each innings, but more significantly, Oxford were restricted to 42 in their first innings. Cambridge did not manage to score any quicker in their reply, but did bat for longer open up a lead of 55 runs. An improved display from Oxford in the second innings left Cambridge requiring 54 runs to win, which they reached with an hour of the match remaining.
During 1890
, Somerset played thirteen 'second-class' fixtures, and remained undefeated for the whole season. Woods, due to his commitments at Cambridge and his injuries, only appeared in three of these matches. In the matches in which he did play, Woods made a significant impact: he claimed seven wickets in the first innings against Leicestershire
, and in total in the three matches for the county, he took 24 wickets. In late August, playing for the Gentlemen of England against I Zingari
at the Scarborough Festival
, Woods claimed 12 wickets in the match, opening the bowling alongside W. G. Grace.
took the majority of wickets for Cambridge during the year, with Woods at his deadliest against Surrey in a two day match in the middle of June. Though he bowled typically expensively, he claimed seven wickets in each innings, bowling nine men, helping Cambridge to a 19 run victory. He also top-scored with the bat for Cambridge in their second innings, hitting 27 runs. According to Bolton, Cambridge once again had a superior side in the University Match, but despite this strength, they very nearly lost the contest. Their strong batting line-up reached 210, which Bolton claims "could not be called a formidable score." In Oxford's innings, Woods bowled at what is claimed to be the quickest of his career, collecting seven wickets. Oxford were all out for 108, and MacGregor, captaining Cambridge, enforced the follow on. Oxford batted better in their second innings, but Cambridge only required 90 runs to win to match. A combination of nerves and poor light resulted in Cambridge collapsing, and when MacGregor was dismissed, only two wickets remained with the scores level. Woods, who had not been ready to bat, ran to the wicket without pads or gloves
, and hit the first ball he was delivered for a boundary to long-on. Woods led the Cambridge bowling averages in each of the four seasons that he played at the university, and in 28 first-class matches for the side he claimed 190 wickets at an average of 14.93, taking five wickets in an innings on 19 occasions, and ten wickets in a match seven times. In contrast to his sporting excellence, he struggled academically, and left Cambridge without a degree
.
in 1891. This resulted in Woods playing more first-class cricket than in any previous season. He continued to bowl well throughout the season, and finished as Somerset's leading wicket taker in the Championship in 1891, claiming 72 of his 134 wickets for the county. He took ten wickets, and scored a half-century in the match against Yorkshire at Park Avenue
, Bradford
, and in so doing reached 100 first-class wickets in a season for the first time. Later in the same month, Woods opened the Somerset bowling alongside Ted Tyler
against Gloucestershire. The pair claimed five wickets each, bowling Somerset's local rivals out for 25 runs from just 14.2 overs. The total was the lowest score Gloucestershire had made in an innings to that point, and remains their third lowest total. Woods claimed a further three wickets in Gloucestershire's second innings, and Somerset completed an innings victory on day two of the match.
Lord Hawke
led the first of his cricketing tours following the conclusion of the 1891 English cricket season
, taking a small party of English amateurs to play eight matches in North America
. The first match of the trip was a first-class contest against the Gentlemen of Philadelphia, and the tourists lost by eight wickets. Woods blamed the defeat on being too soon after arriving, claiming the team "had hardly found our land-legs." The loss was considered something of an embarrassment to English cricket, and prompted a number of letters to be written to Lord Hawke expressing dismay at the result. Wisden primarily attributed the loss to the poor performance of Woods, whose four wickets came at an expense of 124. He fared significantly better in the second match, having apparently found his 'land-legs'. He collected 15 wickets for 86 runs against the same opponents, and the visitors won by four wickets. A third, deciding, match was proposed between the two sides, but could not be fit into the schedule. The remainder of the matches on the tour were not first-class, and were rarely eleven-a-side contests. Woods collected numerous wickets during these matches, and made significant totals with the bat on a couple of occasions, scoring 92 against 'All New York', and 54 in the last match, against 'Eastern Ontario'.
to Woods' reminiscences, Pelham Warner described Woods as being "at that time one of the great fast bowlers of the world." Warner was referring to a match playing in 1890, when Woods was near the peak of his bowling. Warner was not the only one to rate Woods so highly, he was selected as one of the "Six Great Bowlers of the Year
" by Wisden in 1889 for his performances in the previous season. He did not spend long at this peak though; he averaged
below twenty in each of his first five full seasons, from 1888 until 1892, but did not manage the feat again during an English season. When he was at his best, C. B. Fry described Woods as "one of the best fast bowlers of all time". During his early years of first-class cricket, Woods focussed on bowling as quickly as possible, often sacrificing accuracy to achieve this. He soon developed into a more accurate and tactical bowler, including variety intentionally. The slower ball that Woods developed after watching George Lohmann
became a vital part of his attack, and Warner believed it was this ball, and his ability to disguise it, that was "what made him a really great bowler". Wisden praised his yorker
, while he was also known to bowl occasional bouncers
, and even a beamer
, and though some claimed these were intentional, Warner insisted otherwise. Woods was described by Grace as having "a high action". During the mid-1890s, Woods lost some of his pace, most likely burnt out from bowling long spells at his quickest during his years at Cambridge University.
in 1886 after completing his time at Brighton College
, he almost immediately began playing for the town's rugby team. He described his first two seasons with the club as being wonderful, especially 1887, in which Bridgwater only lost one match, the last of the season against Exeter
. He began his time at the club as a three-quarters back, and was soon called into the Somerset side for their first tour of the north of England. He recounts that during their match against Lancashire, he started at fullback, but after making a number of mistakes, moved to three-quarters. From this position he scored a dropped goal which helped to turn the match around, and thanks to two tries
from his team-mates, Somerset won. He selected to play for the South in 1888, and although England did not compete internationally that year due to disputes between the national boards, Woods was disappointed not to be chosen as part of the "imaginary XV". At Cambridge, he gained his Blue, competing in the Varsity Match
in each of 1888, 1889 and 1900.
Woods played over 30 times for Somerset, and captained
the county between 1893 and 1896. Woods was often a guest of the Hancock family, and appeared a number of times for Wiveliscombe, for whom seven of the ten Hancock brothers also appeared. One of these brothers, Froude Hancock
, played for Blackheath, travelling up to London and back each weekend to appear for them. Woods joined him on occasion, and soon became an irregular player, appearing for the side throughout the early 1890s. Around the same time, Woods became one of the founding members of the Barbarians
, and served on the club's committee for some time.
His England debut came in 1890, appearing against Wales
at Dewsbury
. Woods was one of eight England debutants in the match, in which he played as a forward. Wales won the match by a single try. He played in both of England's other two 1890 Home Nations Championship
matches, both of which were won by England, who shared the championship with Scotland. He played all three matches again in 1891
. He captained England for the first time in 1892, leading his adopted country to a 7–0 victory over Ireland
, kicking a conversion. He captained them again in 1893, but took on the captaincy on a more permanent basis in 1895, taking charge of the team for all three Home Nations matches. He scored his only international try in England's opening match of the 1895 competition
, during a 14–6 victory over Wales. England won the second match, against Ireland at Lansdowne Road
, but lost the final match of the tournament against Scotland
– England's only loss with Woods as captain.
, part of the game which he felt should be utilised more often, especially by the pack during a ruck, or following a scrum
. Woods was described by W. G. Grace
as being "not a good scrimmager", but the England pack during his captaincy was considered one of the country's greatest for decades after. He was known for his strong tackling, described by an 1892 publication, Football, the Rugby Union Game, as "exceedingly severe", while Gilbert Jessop
joked that an opponent may prefer to be hit by a motor-car than tackled by Woods in a close match.
. He was forced to resign his commission on 14 March 1919 due to ill-health and was given the substantive rank of captain.
was in a state of mourning. R. C. Robertson-Glasgow
wrote of him: "If you wanted to know Taunton, you walked round it with Sam Woods on a summer morning before the match. Sam was Somerset's godfather."
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...
n sportsman who represented both Australia and England at Test cricket
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
, and appeared thirteen times for England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
at 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...
, including five times as captain. He also played at county level in England at both soccer and hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
. At cricket—his primary sport—he played over four hundred 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 in a twenty-four year career. The majority of these matches were for his county side, Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset 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 Somerset...
, whom he captained
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...
from 1894 to 1906. A.A. Thomson described him thus: "Sammy... radiated such elemental force in hard hitting, fast bowling and electrical fielding that he might have been the forerunner of Sir Learie Constantine
Learie Constantine
Learie Nicholas Constantine, Baron Constantine MBE was a West Indian cricketer who played 18 Test matches before the Second World War. He took West Indies' first wicket in Test cricket and was the team's leading all-rounder and opening bowler for the entirety of his career...
."
Having moved to England at the age of sixteen to complete his education, Woods became entrenched in English sport. Having already played cricket and rugby growing up in Australia, at Brighton College
Brighton College
Brighton College is an institution divided between a Senior School known simply as Brighton College, the Prep School and the Pre-Prep School. All of these schools are co-educational independent schools in Brighton, England, sited immediately next to each another. The Senior School caters for...
he began playing soccer, and while still at the college, represented Sussex at the sport. Woods was also part of a strong cricket team at the college; in the 23 matches he played for them, only two were lost. He made his first-class cricket debut shortly after leaving Brighton College, in August 1886, playing for GN Wyatt's XI against the touring Australians. Later in the same month he made his first appearance for Somerset, a second-class match 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...
. At Cambridge University he achieved blues in both cricket and rugby.
Woods played the first three of his six Test cricket matches during his first year at Cambridge, called up to the Australian squad to face England in 1888 after Sammy Jones
Sammy Jones
Samuel Percy "Sammy" Jones was an Australian cricketer who played twelve Tests between 1882 and 1888....
contracted smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
. During this early part of his career, Woods was considered among the finest bowlers in England, and was named as one of the 'Six Great Bowlers of the Year' (later to form the inaugural Wisden Cricketers of the Year
Wisden Cricketers of the Year
The Wisden Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season"...
) in 1889. He twice claimed in excess of a hundred first-class wickets in an English season, and averaged
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
under twenty in five consecutive seasons from 1888. In a 1890 match for Cambridge University, Woods claimed all ten of the opposition's wickets in the second-innings. However, by the time he was selected as part of the England Test squad to tour South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
in 1895–96, his bowling was beginning to lose its potency. Additionally curtailed by injuries, Woods claimed five wickets on the tour, thirty less than the leading wicket-taker George Lohmann
George Lohmann
George Alfred Lohmann is regarded as one of the greatest bowlers of all time...
.
While his bowling worsened, his batting improved; in 133 first-class matches up to the end of 1894, Woods scored one century
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...
, while in his next 129 matches he passed a hundred on fourteen occasions. Primarily an aggressive batsman, Woods had fast footwork and was capable of powerful strokes all around the ground, though he favoured the square cut. His twelve-year Somerset captaincy is the longest at the county. He was an attacking captain, once observing: "Draws? They're only for bathing in." He also served the club as secretary
Secretary (club)
Secretary is a title commonly held by a member of an organization, club, or society. Common duties of the Secretary include taking minutes, notifying members of meetings, contacting various persons in relation to the society, administrating the day to day activities of the organization and...
from 1920 to 1922.
Growing up in Australia
Samuel Moses James, or Sammy as he commonly came to be known, was born to John Woods and Margaret Ewing on 13 April 1867. His parents, both born and raised in IrelandIreland
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...
, had emigrated to Australia in 1853 shortly after their wedding. At the time of their wedding, John Woods was described as a 'labourer', but by the birth of Samuel Woods, he was listed as a 'gentleman', having carried out various contracts in the development of Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, and served as the city's mayor for a term in 1865. Sammy Woods was one of five boys all of whom were athletic, and at the age of ten he played a match for an under-16s team captained by one of his elder brothers. A boy short for the match, Sammy was enlisted; he scored a few runs in each innings and claimed three wickets, and was afterwards presented with a cap by his brother, which he later claimed to prize more than even his international caps. Woods was educated at Royston College and Sydney Grammar School
Sydney Grammar School
Sydney Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, selective, day school for boys, located in Darlinghurst, Edgecliff and St Ives, all suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
, and while at Royston once claimed seven wickets in seven balls. One school season, he claimed seventy wickets at an average
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
of five runs.
Woods often missed school
Truancy
Truancy is any intentional unauthorized absence from compulsory schooling. The term typically describes absences caused by students of their own free will, and usually does not refer to legitimate "excused" absences, such as ones related to medical conditions...
to watch cricket, and recounts that on more than one occasion he "got a jolly good caning". On one such occasion when he was 14, during the English tour of Australia of 1881–82, after buying a couple of the England team drinks, he bowled at George Ulyett
George Ulyett
George Ulyett was an English all-round cricketer, noted particularly for his very-aggressive batsmanship. A well-liked man , Ulyett was popularly known as "Happy Jack", once musing memorably that Yorkshire played him only for his good behaviour and his whistling...
in the nets
Cricket nets
Cricket nets are practice nets used by batsmen and bowlers to warm up and/or improve their cricketing techniques. Cricket nets consist of a cricket pitch which is enclosed by cricket nets on either side, to the rear and optionally the roof. The bowling end of the net is left open...
. He played a number of matches for the Manly cricket club, taking part in challenge matches which on occasion included famous cricketers of the day such as Fred Spofforth
Fred Spofforth
Frederick Robert "Fred" Spofforth , also known as "The Demon Bowler", was arguably the Australian cricket team's finest pace bowler of the nineteenth century and was the first bowler to take 50 Test wickets, and the first to take a test hat-trick in 1879...
and Billy Murdoch
Billy Murdoch
William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890...
.
Brighton College
When he was aged 16, Woods' father decided to send him and his younger brother, Harris, to complete their education in England. Both boys were sent to Silwood House in Tunbridge WellsRoyal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, a preparatory school. While at the school, Woods played for the town cricket club, and by the end of the season he was seventh in the published batting averages, with a top-score of 42 not out
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
. He joined Brighton College
Brighton College
Brighton College is an institution divided between a Senior School known simply as Brighton College, the Prep School and the Pre-Prep School. All of these schools are co-educational independent schools in Brighton, England, sited immediately next to each another. The Senior School caters for...
in August 1884, and after playing a couple of cricket matches, the weather turned and the football season began. For Woods, whose Australian upbringing had consisted of cricket in the summer and rugby
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...
in the winter, the realisation that 'soccer' was played at the school was one made with some dismay. After only a few weeks though, he was playing in goal for both the school and the 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...
county football team.
His newly discovered prowess at soccer did not detract from his cricketing skills. The two summers in which Woods played for Brighton College were strong ones for the school, of the 23 matches they played, only 2 were lost. Alongside the Woods brothers were a number of other players who would go on to appear in county cricket
County cricket
County cricket is the highest level of domestic cricket in England and Wales. For the 2010 season, see 2010 English cricket season.-First-class counties:...
; George Cotterill
George Cotterill
George Huth Cotterill was an English amateur footballer who made four appearances for England as a forward in the 1890s, captaining the side on his last two appearances.-Education:...
and George Wilson both played for Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
, while Leslie Gay
Leslie Gay
Leslie Hewitt Gay, born at Brighton on 24 March 1871 and died at Sidmouth, Devon, on 1 November 1949, was a cricketer who played for Cambridge University, Hampshire, Somerset and England. As a footballer, he played for Cambridge University, the Corinthians and England.Leslie Gay was educated at...
made one Test appearance for England in addition to representing 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...
and Somerset. Woods topped the bowling averages in both his years at the school; in the first he claimed 59 wickets at an average just over eight, figures which he improved upon during his second year when he took 78 wickets at an average of 7.3. His college reports commented much more favourably on his sporting achievements than his academic ones, praising his batting, bowling and fielding alike.
The highlight of Woods' time at Brighton College was during a schools match against Lancing College
Lancing College
Lancing College is a co-educational English independent school in the British public school tradition, founded in 1848 by Nathaniel Woodard. Woodard's aim was to provide education "based on sound principle and sound knowledge, firmly grounded in the Christian faith." Lancing was the first of a...
. Playing away from home at the West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
school, Woods claimed 8 wickets for 17 in the first-innings, with all his victims being bowled
Bowled
Bowled is a method of dismissing a batsman in the sport of cricket. This method of dismissal is covered by Law 30 of the Laws of cricket.A batsman is out bowled if his wicket is put down by a ball delivered by the bowler...
, and followed this with 6 for 10 in the second-innings, five of the wickets bowled, and the other caught and bowled
Caught
Caught is a method of dismissing a batsman in the sport of cricket. Being caught out is the most common method of dismissal at higher levels of competition...
. On another occasion playing for the College's first eleven, Woods hit the stumps eight times in eight balls, but only claimed three wickets. After three successive no ball
No ball
In the sport of cricket a no ball is a penalty against the fielding team, usually as a result of an illegal delivery by the bowler. The delivery of a no ball results in one run to be added to the batting team's score, and an additional ball must be bowled...
s hit, he bowled an opponent with the fourth ball (the first legal ball of the over), hit the leg stump without dislodging a bail
Bail (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a bail is one of the two smaller sticks placed on top of the three stumps to form a wicket. The bails are used to determine when the wicket is broken, which in turn is one of the critical factors in determining whether a batsman is out bowled, stumped, run out or hit wicket...
with the fifth, took successive wickets with the sixth and seventh, and then once again hit the stumps without disturbing the bails with the eighth. This was not the only time on which Woods hit the stumps without removing the bails: in an interview a few years later, he recalls a match against Dulwich College
Dulwich College
Dulwich College is an independent school for boys in Dulwich, southeast London, England. The college was founded in 1619 by Edward Alleyn, a successful Elizabethan actor, with the original purpose of educating 12 poor scholars as the foundation of "God's Gift". It currently has about 1,600 boys,...
in which he "[hit] the leg stump – and [hit] it hard – three times in one over, without knocking the bails off", each ball then went for four byes
Bye (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a bye is a run scored by the batting team when the ball has not been hit by the batsman and the ball has not hit the batsman's body.-Scoring byes:...
.
During his time at the college, Woods developed a slower ball after watching George Lohmann
George Lohmann
George Alfred Lohmann is regarded as one of the greatest bowlers of all time...
bowling against Sussex. Woods claimed that after practising the delivery for hours, he took a wicket with the first one he ever bowled, dismissing GG Hearne
George Gibbons Hearne
George Gibbons Hearne was a cricketer who played first-class cricket for Kent between 1875 and 1895. He also played in one Test match for England against South Africa in 1891-92. Hearne was part of the famous cricketing Hearne family...
caught and bowled in a match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
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...
and Ground. Woods left Brighton College in 1886, aged 19, and shortly after, in August of the same year, he made his 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...
debut. Playing for GN Wyatt
George Wyatt
George Wyatt may refer to:*George Wyatt , writer on Anne Boleyn, son of rebel Thomas Wyatt* George Harry Wyatt, VC recipient* Greg Wyatt, American sculptor...
's XI against the touring Australians
Australian cricket team in England in 1886
The Australian cricket team in England in 1886 played 27 first-class matches including 3 Tests which were all won by England:* – England won by 4 wickets* – England won by an innings and 106 runs...
, Woods opened the bowling in both innings for the English side which was termed a 'South of England XI'. Woods made scores of 21 and 11 with the bat, and took 2/45 and 0/40 bowling. He claimed that he strained his side trying to bowl too fast, and would have done better otherwise.
Somerset: Learning business habits
After completing his time at Brighton College, Woods moved to BridgwaterBridgwater
Bridgwater is a market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and a major industrial centre. Bridgwater is located on the major communication routes through South West England...
where a friend of his father's helped to find him a job as a bank clerk. Woods reflected in his reminiscences that his father wanted him to "learn business habits" before he went to university. He soon became a key figure in the town's sport, playing for both the cricket and rugby teams. His performances on the cricket field drew the attention of the county club, and late during the 1886 season, Woods made his first appearance for Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset 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 Somerset...
. Somerset were not at the time a 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...
county, and Woods travelled up to Edgbaston
Edgbaston Cricket Ground
Edgbaston Cricket Ground, also known as the County Ground or Edgbaston Stadium, is a cricket ground in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham, England...
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
to play 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...
, who similarly lacked first-class status. He failed in both batting innings, collecting a pair, but claimed twelve wickets; 7/23 in the first-innings and 5/34 in the second. His performance was praised in the Somerset County Gazette
Somerset County Gazette
The Somerset County Gazette is a weekly tabloid newspaper in Somerset, England.It is published in a tabloid format on a weekly basis and has a circulation of between 25,000 and 50,000.It was founded in 1836, and is now owned by Newsquest....
and in the Sussex Daily News; the latter publication noting that many had "anticipated or hoped that he would ultimately render good service to Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
."
He continued to play for Somerset in 1887, generally batting as part of the lower order. He collected ten wickets against the Marylebone Cricket Club
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...
during this time. His work experience at the bank ended when an inspector noticed that the books were not balancing; which Woods was happy to explain was due to him taking a sovereign from time to time to buy stamps. After losing this job, he paid a surveyor
Surveying
See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
to teach him the trade, but after an afternoon of the training, his teacher ran off with the money and soon committed suicide, bringing that to a halt.
First year
Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The College was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely...
in 1888 and soon became a vibrant part of the social community. He joined port wine
Port wine
Port wine is a Portuguese fortified wine produced exclusively in the Douro Valley in the northern provinces of Portugal. It is typically a sweet, red wine, often served as a dessert wine, and comes in dry, semi-dry, and white varieties...
and oyster
Oyster
The word oyster is used as a common name for a number of distinct groups of bivalve molluscs which live in marine or brackish habitats. The valves are highly calcified....
clubs, (known as Rhadegund and the Natives respectively) and played both cricket and rugby during his time at the university. He had also applied to Oxford University, who had turned him down, not realising his sporting abilities. He made his debut for the university at Fenner's
Fenner's
Fenner's is the University of Cambridge's cricket ground.-History:Fenner's has hosted first-class cricket since 1848, and many of the world's great players have graced the wicket. The ground was established on land leased for the purpose by Francis Fenner, after whom the ground is named.Playing for...
in May 1888, claiming his first five-wicket haul in first-class cricket when he bowled
Bowled
Bowled is a method of dismissing a batsman in the sport of cricket. This method of dismissal is covered by Law 30 of the Laws of cricket.A batsman is out bowled if his wicket is put down by a ball delivered by the bowler...
four members of CI Thornton
Charles Thornton (cricketer)
Charles Inglis Thornton , nicknamed "Buns", was an English cricketer who played more than 200 first-class matches in the later 19th century, for no fewer than 22 different teams....
's XI, and had another one caught
Caught
Caught is a method of dismissing a batsman in the sport of cricket. Being caught out is the most common method of dismissal at higher levels of competition...
. Despite his wickets, he was relatively expensive, and the visiting side beat Cambridge easily. A week later, Woods improved on his performance against a 'Gentlemen of England' side which was also captained
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...
by Thornton, and claimed seven wickets in the first innings and another five in the second innings, top-scoring with the bat for Cambridge in-between, to help the university to a six wicket victory. This match also saw Woods take the only first-class hat-trick of his career.
He continued to bowl effectively for the university side, claiming another twelve wickets during a match 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....
, nine of the twelve being bowled. He topped both the batting and the bowling averages for Cambridge during his first year, and gained his Blue in cricket, claiming six wickets in 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...
's only innings of a match that was drawn, due to rain, with Cambridge the better of the two sides. In Geoffrey Bolton's History of the O.U.C.C., the author offers the opinion that the Cambridge side relied on the bowling of Woods, and although the rain initially softened the ground too much for his fast bowling, "when it had dried, he was irresistible." He also gained a Blue in rugby union, despite breaking his collarbone in an early game for the university. He also gained colours for Jesus College in both rugby and soccer. During his first year at Cambridge, Woods made his first appearances in the 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...
fixture, representing the Gentlemen at both 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...
and 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...
in early July. In the first of the two matches, he claimed five wickets in each innings to help secure the Gentlemen a narrow five run victory. He collected another five wickets in the first innings of the match at The Oval, but could not prevent the Players achieving an innings victory, scoring a duck in the first innings and six runs in the second.
Test debut
During 1888, the sixth Australian team formed and travelled to EnglandAustralian cricket team in England in 1888
The Australian cricket team in England in 1888 played 37 first-class matches including 3 Tests.-First Test:Australian captain Percy McDonnell won the toss and chose to bat first. The visitors scored 116 runs in their innings, during which only Percy McDonnell, Jack Blackham and Test debutant Jack...
to contest three Tests and over 30 first-class matches. The squad was considered to be relatively weak, particularly in the batting, where only four players had any experience of English conditions. H.S Altham
Harry Altham
Harry Surtees Altham, CBE, DSO, MC was an English cricketer who became an important figure in the game as an administrator, historian and coach. His Wisden obituary described him as "among the best known personalities in the world of cricket"...
described them as leaving Australia "amid a chorus of gloomy prophecy". In his reminiscences, W. G. Grace
W. G. Grace
William Gilbert Grace, MRCS, LRCP was an English amateur cricketer who is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest players of all time, having a special significance in terms of his importance to the development of the sport...
expressed his at George Giffen
George Giffen
George Giffen was a cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia. An all-rounder who batted in the middle order and often opened the bowling with medium-paced off-spin, Giffen captained Australia during the 1894–95 Ashes series and was the first Australian to score 10,000 runs and...
and Harry Moses, who he rated as Australia's best players, not travelling with the team, and also noted that they missed the bowling of Fred Spofforth
Fred Spofforth
Frederick Robert "Fred" Spofforth , also known as "The Demon Bowler", was arguably the Australian cricket team's finest pace bowler of the nineteenth century and was the first bowler to take 50 Test wickets, and the first to take a test hat-trick in 1879...
. Sammy Jones
Sammy Jones
Samuel Percy "Sammy" Jones was an Australian cricketer who played twelve Tests between 1882 and 1888....
, 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...
from Sydney, fell ill with smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
early during the tour, and due to the Australians only having a thirteen man squad, Woods was invited into the tourists squad. His debut for Australia was made just two days after the conclusion of the second of his appearances for the Gentlemen, and was in the first Test of the series. Woods scored 18 and 3 batting from number six, and claimed one wicket during the first innings; the only wicket taken by Australia that did not fall to either Charlie Turner
Charles Turner (cricketer)
Charles Thomas Biass Turner was a bowler who is regarded as one of the finest ever produced by Australia....
or John Ferris during the match. The match was notable for having the lowest aggregate number of runs scored in a Test match; Australia scored 116 and 60, while England made 53 and 62, totalling 291 runs. The record stood until 1932 when South Africa and Australia totalled less, but remains the second lowest aggregate.
Woods appeared against the Australians shortly thereafter, playing for 'Cambridge University Past and Present', but rejoined them for matches against Yorkshire and 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...
, the latter of which drew his best performance for the Australians, when he claimed four wickets, over a third of his total for the side. He claimed two wickets in each of the other two Test matches, but failed to reach double figures when batting in any innings. Australia lost both matches, granting England a 2–1 series victory. Grace observed that "neither with bat nor ball did Mr. S. M. J. Woods give promise of the sterling qualities of which he proved himself the possessor as years went on. Woods, in his reminiscences, only provides a paragraph on his time playing for the Australians, and concentrates mainly on the first-ball duck he made in the match at Old Trafford, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. These three Test appearances for Australia were the only he made for his native country; he was invited to play for them again when they toured England in 1890, but had to decline due to injury. In 1889, Woods was named by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack as one of the "Six Great Bowlers of the Year" due to his performances for Cambridge and Australia. His bowling is described in the piece as being "very fast right-hand, now and then sending in a good yorker."
Second year
In his second year at Cambridge, Woods continued his good bowling form from the previous season. He picked up five first innings wickets in his second match of the year, against the Marylebone Cricket Club, and in his next match a couple of day later, achieved his best bowling analysis in an innings to that point, claiming eight wickets against AJ Webbe's XI. He claimed another eleven wickets in the match against Yorkshire, taking five in the first innings and six in the second. Despite his wicket taking, Cambridge only won three of their seven first-class encounters in the run-up to facing Oxford, and the last of those came without Woods in the side. Nevertheless, the entered the fixture with better results than Oxford, who had lost six of their seven matches. Woods proved one of the deciding factors, claiming eleven wickets in the match, of which seven were bowled, and two were in combination with wicket-keeperWicket-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...
Gregor MacGregor. Cambridge opening batsman Henry Mordaunt
Sir Henry Mordaunt, 12th Baronet
Sir Henry John Mordaunt, 12th Baronet was an English baronet and cricketer. Mordaunt was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm fast.-Cricket career:...
scored 127 in the match, and they secured an innings victory, requiring just two of the three allocated days.
The partnership which MacGregor and Woods forged during their time at Cambridge was noted by Bolton, who commented that "the two most successful Cambridge bowlers, Steel and Woods, were partnered by their two greatest wicket-keepers, Alfred Lyttelton
Alfred Lyttelton
Alfred Lyttelton QC was a British politician and sportsman who excelled at both football and cricket. During his time at university he participated in Varsity Matches in five sports: cricket , football , athletics , rackets and real tennis , displaying an ability that made him...
and MacGregor." The pair shared a room together at Jesus College for two years, and on the field MacGregor proved himself capable of standing up to the wicket against Woods' bowling. Team-mate Digby Jephson
Digby Jephson
Digby Loder Armeroid Jephson was a cricketer who played for Cambridge University and Surrey. Jephson was a right-handed middle order batsman. But his enduring fame rests on his reputation as one of the last lob bowlers, bowling slow right-arm underarm lobs...
described their partnership as having "machine-like precision ... the faster Sam bowled, the nearer the sticks stood Mac."
After the conclusion of the university term, Woods played five further five-class fixtures, as well as a number of matches for Somerset. He performed well, but without much note in the two Gentlemen v Players fixtures in London, claiming three wickets in an innings twice, but both games resulted in victories for the Players. Four appearances for Somerset in August brought him more wickets, although the cricket was not first-class; he took five wickets in an innings three times, and totalled 33 wickets in the matches. He continued this wicket-taking form into his next two matches, both first-class, taking seven wickets in the second innings against I Zingari
I Zingari
I Zingari are English and Australian amateur cricket clubs.-History:...
for the Gentlemen of England, aggregating eleven wickets in the match, and a few days later he claimed ten wickets in a match for the Marylebone Cricket Club against Yorkshire. He completed his second full season of first-class cricket with 74 wickets, at a bowling average
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
of 16.74, roughly equivalent to his figure from the previous season.
Third year
Woods took on the captaincy of the university side during his third year, a role he had taken up twice before in 1889. In the first match of the season, he put in the best bowling display of his career; in his third annual match against CI Thornton's XI, Woods took five wickets in the first innings, and after his team-mates had built a 62 run lead, he then proceeded to claim all ten of the opposition's wickets in the second innings, bowling seven of them. His figures of ten wickets for 69 runs were his career best in an innings. Woods was troubled by strains throughout the summer of 1890, and so despite playing as many matches as the previous season, he bowled over 30% fewer deliveriesDelivery (cricket)
A delivery or ball in cricket is a single action of bowling a cricket ball towards the batsman.During play of the game, a member of the fielding team is designated as the bowler, and bowls deliveries towards the batsman...
. When he did bowl, he was still effective, claiming 59 wickets at an average of 13.13, his best during an English season. In the matches leading up to the fixture against Oxford, Woods' Cambridge side won three, loss three and drew one of their seven games, and were considered to be a stronger side than their rivals. Rain prevented any play on the first day, and the soft conditions did not favour Woods' bowling. He picked up four wickets in each innings, but more significantly, Oxford were restricted to 42 in their first innings. Cambridge did not manage to score any quicker in their reply, but did bat for longer open up a lead of 55 runs. An improved display from Oxford in the second innings left Cambridge requiring 54 runs to win, which they reached with an hour of the match remaining.
During 1890
Somerset County Cricket Club in 1890
The 1890 season saw Somerset County Cricket Club playing thirteen fixtures against other county teams. These matches were not considered first-class, after Somerset had five years earlier been removed from the County Championship due to playing too few matches against other first-class counties...
, Somerset played thirteen 'second-class' fixtures, and remained undefeated for the whole season. Woods, due to his commitments at Cambridge and his injuries, only appeared in three of these matches. In the matches in which he did play, Woods made a significant impact: he claimed seven wickets in the first innings 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....
, and in total in the three matches for the county, he took 24 wickets. In late August, playing for the Gentlemen of England against I Zingari
I Zingari
I Zingari are English and Australian amateur cricket clubs.-History:...
at the Scarborough Festival
Scarborough Festival
The Scarborough Festival is an end of season series of cricket matches featuring Yorkshire County Cricket Club which has been held in Scarborough, on the east coast of Yorkshire, since 1876. The ground, at North Marine Road, sees large crowds of holiday makers watching a mixture of first class...
, Woods claimed 12 wickets in the match, opening the bowling alongside W. G. Grace.
Fourth year
Woods and Stanley JacksonStanley Jackson
Sir Francis Stanley Jackson, GCSI, GCIE, PC, KStJ , known as the Honourable Stanley Jackson during his playing career, was an English cricketer, soldier and Conservative Party politician.-Early life:...
took the majority of wickets for Cambridge during the year, with Woods at his deadliest against Surrey in a two day match in the middle of June. Though he bowled typically expensively, he claimed seven wickets in each innings, bowling nine men, helping Cambridge to a 19 run victory. He also top-scored with the bat for Cambridge in their second innings, hitting 27 runs. According to Bolton, Cambridge once again had a superior side in the University Match, but despite this strength, they very nearly lost the contest. Their strong batting line-up reached 210, which Bolton claims "could not be called a formidable score." In Oxford's innings, Woods bowled at what is claimed to be the quickest of his career, collecting seven wickets. Oxford were all out for 108, and MacGregor, captaining Cambridge, enforced the follow on. Oxford batted better in their second innings, but Cambridge only required 90 runs to win to match. A combination of nerves and poor light resulted in Cambridge collapsing, and when MacGregor was dismissed, only two wickets remained with the scores level. Woods, who had not been ready to bat, ran to the wicket without pads or gloves
Cricket clothing and equipment
Cricket is traced back to 1550. It was first played in Guildford, Surrey. Later in 1598, cricket was cited in an Italian English dictionary written by Florio. In the year 1676, British residents in Aleppo played cricket abroad for the first time....
, and hit the first ball he was delivered for a boundary to long-on. Woods led the Cambridge bowling averages in each of the four seasons that he played at the university, and in 28 first-class matches for the side he claimed 190 wickets at an average of 14.93, taking five wickets in an innings on 19 occasions, and ten wickets in a match seven times. In contrast to his sporting excellence, he struggled academically, and left Cambridge without a degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
.
Entry into County Championship
After Somerset's achievements in the previous season, they were granted first-class status and admission to the County ChampionshipCounty Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
in 1891. This resulted in Woods playing more first-class cricket than in any previous season. He continued to bowl well throughout the season, and finished as Somerset's leading wicket taker in the Championship in 1891, claiming 72 of his 134 wickets for the county. He took ten wickets, and scored a half-century in the match against Yorkshire at Park Avenue
Park Avenue (stadium)
Park Avenue is a sports ground on Horton Park Avenue in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. It was used for both cricket and football. It held 306 first class and 48 list A cricket matches between 1881 and 1996, and was home to former Football League club Bradford Park Avenue, to which it lent its...
, Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
, and in so doing reached 100 first-class wickets in a season for the first time. Later in the same month, Woods opened the Somerset bowling alongside Ted Tyler
Ted Tyler
Edwin James Tyler was a cricketer who played first-class cricket for Somerset County Cricket Club between 1891 and 1907...
against Gloucestershire. The pair claimed five wickets each, bowling Somerset's local rivals out for 25 runs from just 14.2 overs. The total was the lowest score Gloucestershire had made in an innings to that point, and remains their third lowest total. Woods claimed a further three wickets in Gloucestershire's second innings, and Somerset completed an innings victory on day two of the match.
Lord Hawke
Martin Hawke, 7th Baron Hawke
Martin Bladen Hawke, 7th Baron Hawke of Towton , generally known as Lord Hawke, was an English amateur cricketer who played major roles in the sport's administration....
led the first of his cricketing tours following the conclusion of the 1891 English cricket season
1891 English cricket season
The 1891 English cricket season featured no international tours, but the County Championship went into its second season. Surrey won in even more dominant fashion before, winning 12 of 16 games, while debutants Somerset finished fifth out of the nine teams....
, taking a small party of English amateurs to play eight matches in North America
Lord Hawke's XI cricket team in North America in 1891–92
In the English winter of 1891–92, Lord Hawke led a touring party of English amateur cricketers on a tour of North America. During their tour they played eight matches, six in the United States of America and two in Canada. The tour contained two first-class fixtures, both contested against the...
. The first match of the trip was a first-class contest against the Gentlemen of Philadelphia, and the tourists lost by eight wickets. Woods blamed the defeat on being too soon after arriving, claiming the team "had hardly found our land-legs." The loss was considered something of an embarrassment to English cricket, and prompted a number of letters to be written to Lord Hawke expressing dismay at the result. Wisden primarily attributed the loss to the poor performance of Woods, whose four wickets came at an expense of 124. He fared significantly better in the second match, having apparently found his 'land-legs'. He collected 15 wickets for 86 runs against the same opponents, and the visitors won by four wickets. A third, deciding, match was proposed between the two sides, but could not be fit into the schedule. The remainder of the matches on the tour were not first-class, and were rarely eleven-a-side contests. Woods collected numerous wickets during these matches, and made significant totals with the bat on a couple of occasions, scoring 92 against 'All New York', and 54 in the last match, against 'Eastern Ontario'.
- Leading wicket-taker in 1892
Captaincy
- Became captain in 1894 following resignation of Hewett.
- Longest serving captain, staying in the role until 1906.
Bowling
In an appreciation included as a forewordForeword
A foreword is a piece of writing sometimes placed at the beginning of a book or other piece of literature. Written by someone other than the primary author of the work, it often tells of some interaction between the writer of the foreword and the book's primary author or the story the book tells...
to Woods' reminiscences, Pelham Warner described Woods as being "at that time one of the great fast bowlers of the world." Warner was referring to a match playing in 1890, when Woods was near the peak of his bowling. Warner was not the only one to rate Woods so highly, he was selected as one of the "Six Great Bowlers of the Year
Wisden Cricketers of the Year
The Wisden Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season"...
" by Wisden in 1889 for his performances in the previous season. He did not spend long at this peak though; he averaged
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
below twenty in each of his first five full seasons, from 1888 until 1892, but did not manage the feat again during an English season. When he was at his best, C. B. Fry described Woods as "one of the best fast bowlers of all time". During his early years of first-class cricket, Woods focussed on bowling as quickly as possible, often sacrificing accuracy to achieve this. He soon developed into a more accurate and tactical bowler, including variety intentionally. The slower ball that Woods developed after watching George Lohmann
George Lohmann
George Alfred Lohmann is regarded as one of the greatest bowlers of all time...
became a vital part of his attack, and Warner believed it was this ball, and his ability to disguise it, that was "what made him a really great bowler". Wisden praised his yorker
Yorker
Yorker is a term used in cricket that describes a ball bowled which hits the cricket pitch around the batsman's feet. When a batsman assumes a normal stance this generally means that the cricket ball bounces on the cricket pitch on or near the batsman's popping crease...
, while he was also known to bowl occasional bouncers
Bouncer (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a bouncer is a type of delivery, usually bowled by a fast bowler. It is pitched short so that it bounces on the pitch well short of the batsman and rears up to chest or head height as it reaches the batsman.Bouncers are used tactically to drive the batsman back on to his...
, and even a beamer
Beamer (cricket)
In the terminology of the game of cricket, a beamer is a type of delivery in which the ball , without bouncing, passes above the batsman's waist height. Such a ball is often dangerously close to the batsman's head, due to the lack of control a bowler has over high full tosses...
, and though some claimed these were intentional, Warner insisted otherwise. Woods was described by Grace as having "a high action". During the mid-1890s, Woods lost some of his pace, most likely burnt out from bowling long spells at his quickest during his years at Cambridge University.
Rugby career
When Woods moved to BridgwaterBridgwater
Bridgwater is a market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and a major industrial centre. Bridgwater is located on the major communication routes through South West England...
in 1886 after completing his time at Brighton College
Brighton College
Brighton College is an institution divided between a Senior School known simply as Brighton College, the Prep School and the Pre-Prep School. All of these schools are co-educational independent schools in Brighton, England, sited immediately next to each another. The Senior School caters for...
, he almost immediately began playing for the town's rugby team. He described his first two seasons with the club as being wonderful, especially 1887, in which Bridgwater only lost one match, the last of the season against Exeter
Exeter Chiefs
Exeter Rugby Club are a rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon.The Exeter club was formed around 1871 and played its first match in 1873. The first team has been rebranded as the Exeter Chiefs and play in a strip of Black , White ....
. He began his time at the club as a three-quarters back, and was soon called into the Somerset side for their first tour of the north of England. He recounts that during their match against Lancashire, he started at fullback, but after making a number of mistakes, moved to three-quarters. From this position he scored a dropped goal which helped to turn the match around, and thanks to two tries
Try
A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...
from his team-mates, Somerset won. He selected to play for the South in 1888, and although England did not compete internationally that year due to disputes between the national boards, Woods was disappointed not to be chosen as part of the "imaginary XV". At Cambridge, he gained his Blue, competing in the Varsity Match
The Varsity Match
The Varsity Match is an annual rugby union fixture played between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge in England. By tradition, the match is held on the second Tuesday of December. In 2005, however, this changed, and the match was on Tuesday 6 December. In 2007, it was held on a Thursday for...
in each of 1888, 1889 and 1900.
Woods played over 30 times for Somerset, and captained
Captain (sports)
In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field...
the county between 1893 and 1896. Woods was often a guest of the Hancock family, and appeared a number of times for Wiveliscombe, for whom seven of the ten Hancock brothers also appeared. One of these brothers, Froude Hancock
Froude Hancock
Philip Froude Hancock universally known as Froude Hancock was an English rugby union forward who played international rugby for the British Isles XV on two tours, the 1891 and 1896 tour of South Africa.-Personal life:...
, played for Blackheath, travelling up to London and back each weekend to appear for them. Woods joined him on occasion, and soon became an irregular player, appearing for the side throughout the early 1890s. Around the same time, Woods became one of the founding members of the Barbarians
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
, and served on the club's committee for some time.
His England debut came in 1890, appearing against 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...
at Dewsbury
Dewsbury
Dewsbury is a minster town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Huddersfield and south of Leeds...
. Woods was one of eight England debutants in the match, in which he played as a forward. Wales won the match by a single try. He played in both of England's other two 1890 Home Nations Championship
1890 Home Nations Championship
The 1890 Home Nations Championship was the eighth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 1 February and 15 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.-Table:-Results:...
matches, both of which were won by England, who shared the championship with Scotland. He played all three matches again in 1891
1891 Home Nations Championship
The 1891 Home Nations Championship was the ninth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 3 January and 7 March...
. He captained England for the first time in 1892, leading his adopted country to a 7–0 victory over Ireland
Ireland 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...
, kicking a conversion. He captained them again in 1893, but took on the captaincy on a more permanent basis in 1895, taking charge of the team for all three Home Nations matches. He scored his only international try in England's opening match of the 1895 competition
1895 Home Nations Championship
The 1895 Home Nations Championship was the thirteenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 5 January and 16 March...
, during a 14–6 victory over Wales. England won the second match, against Ireland at Lansdowne Road
Lansdowne Road
Lansdowne Road was a stadium in Dublin owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union that has been the location of a number of sports stadiums. It was used primarily for rugby union and for association football matches as well as some music concerts...
, but lost the final match of the tournament 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...
– England's only loss with Woods as captain.
Style of play
Playing as either a back or a forward, Woods was praised primarily for his dribblingDribbling
In sports, dribbling refers to the maneuvering of a ball around a defender through short skillful taps or kicks with either the legs , hands , stick or swimming strokes...
, part of the game which he felt should be utilised more often, especially by the pack during a ruck, or following a scrum
Scrum (rugby)
Scrum , in the sports of rugby union and rugby league, is a way of restarting the game, either after an accidental infringement or when the ball has gone out of play...
. Woods was described by W. G. Grace
W. G. Grace
William Gilbert Grace, MRCS, LRCP was an English amateur cricketer who is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest players of all time, having a special significance in terms of his importance to the development of the sport...
as being "not a good scrimmager", but the England pack during his captaincy was considered one of the country's greatest for decades after. He was known for his strong tackling, described by an 1892 publication, Football, the Rugby Union Game, as "exceedingly severe", while Gilbert Jessop
Gilbert Jessop
Gilbert Laird Jessop was an English cricket player, often reckoned to have been the fastest run-scorer cricket has ever known, he was Wisden Cricketer of the Year for 1898.Relations...
joked that an opponent may prefer to be hit by a motor-car than tackled by Woods in a close match.
World War I
Woods served initially as a temporary lieutenant in the Royal Warwickshire Fusiliers before transferring to the Devon Regiment in 1916. In 1917 he was transferred to the Labour CorpsLabour corps
Labour Corps may be:*A forerunner of the British Royal Pioneer Corps*Solomon Islands Labour Corps, a Second World War organisation in the British Solomon Islands*Chinese Labour Corps, a British corps in the First World War...
. He was forced to resign his commission on 14 March 1919 due to ill-health and was given the substantive rank of captain.
Later life
He remained a very popular and well-known figure in Somerset even after his cricket-playing days were long over. When he died, TauntonTaunton
Taunton is the county town of Somerset, England. The town, including its suburbs, had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. It is the largest town in the shire county of Somerset....
was in a state of mourning. R. C. Robertson-Glasgow
R. C. Robertson-Glasgow
Raymond Charles 'Crusoe' Robertson-Glasgow was a British cricketer and cricket writer....
wrote of him: "If you wanted to know Taunton, you walked round it with Sam Woods on a summer morning before the match. Sam was Somerset's godfather."