William Mycroft
Encyclopedia
William Mycroft was an English
cricket
er who played first class cricket for Derbyshire
and MCC between 1873 and 1886. He was a left-arm fast bowler with a great deal of spin and a dangerous yorker that was often believed to be unfair
- which may explain why he was not considered for the earliest Test Matches despite being in his prime. He took 863 first class wickets at an average of 12.09 with 87 five-wicket innings and 28 ten-wicket matches in his career. His first ten-wicket match in 1875 against Nottinghamshire
became the first of six in only nine games that season. He holds the Derbyshire record for most wickets in a single match, with figures of 17-103 against Hampshire
at the Antelope Ground
, Southampton
in July 1876.. This is one of only two times a player has taken seventeen wickets in a match and finished on the losing side - the other, by Walter Mead
in 1895 was also against Hampshire. Mycroft had no pretensions as a right-handed tail end batsman: he scored only 791 first class runs at an average of 5.34 and prior to Alf Hall and Father Marriott remained the last significant cricketer who took more wickets than he scored runs.
Mycroft was born in Brimington
, Derbyshire
, the son of George Mycroft and his first wife Sabra Allen. His father was an ironstone and coal miner who kept the Red Lion public house at Brimington. In 1861 Mycroft himself was an ironstone miner and by 1881 he was running a public house at 10 Tapton Lane, Chesterfield
.
Mycroft made his first class debut for Derbyshire in the 1873 season
against Lancashire
when he took six wickets. The club played two matches in the season and Mycroft topped the bowling count with 10 wickets. In the 1874 season
the club doubled the matches to four, and Mycroft doubled his wicket count to 20 taking three five wicket overs to become top bowler again. In the 1875 season
, Mycroft hit a phenomenal average of 7.37, and became top bowler again with 73 wickets. He managed at least one five-wicket innings in every match and took eleven altogether in the season with best figures of 9-80. As a result, Mycroft was selected for the North against the South, where he had the amazing figures of fourteen wickets for 38 runs.
Mycroft's form was to last into the 1876 season
, when he was top bowler with 62 wickets and achieved best bowling of 9-25, a record which lasted nearly fifty years before being bettered by Billy Bestwick
. He played several matches for MCC
, and also appeared for Players and the North. At this time he found himself in an assembled team of cricketers in several Gentlemen vs. Players matches, Mycroft's fellow Players including past and future England
Test representatives Arthur Shrewsbury
, George Ulyett
, John Selby
, Tom Emmett, and Fred Morley
. In the 1877 season
, Mycroft took most wickets for Derbyshire with 63 and took five wickets in an innings eight times, but did even more deadly work for the MCC with 31 wickets at the extraordinary average of 7.29, and also was deadly in one innings for England against Kent
and a powerful Gloucestershire
team with W.G. Grace in his prime. In 1878
, Mycroft played much less outside county circket, taking only fifteen wickets, but took a career best 101 for Derbyshire. In the 1879 season
he was down to 48 wickets for the club which was still the best total. He topped the wicket tally for Derbyshire in the 1880 season
with 58 and took five wickets in an innings six times.
In the following years Mycroft played for both Derbyshire and MCC on a regular but less frequent basis. In the 1885 season
, Mycroft played his penultimate game in a match between MCC and Derbyshire at Lords. His brother Thomas, who also played for both teams, was also playing one of his last games and on this occasion Thomas took a stint of bowling instead of wicket-keeping. The main bowlers on the opposing sides were Sherwin
and Shacklock
. The first Sherlock Holmes
story was published two years later and there is a suggestion that Arthur Conan Doyle
derived the name of Mycroft
the younger brother of Sherlock Holmes from William Mycroft. Conan Doyle was a first class cricketer who later played for MCC and had a respect for fast bowlers.
Mycroft played his last first-class match for MCC in 1886. He umpired four first-class matches before his retirement and later umpired two more during the 1891 season. He died of influenza at the age of 53 in Derby
. Mycroft's half-brother, Thomas
, played for Derbyshire between 1877 and 1885.
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...
cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who played first class cricket for Derbyshire
Derbyshire County Cricket Club
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the England and Wales domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Derbyshire...
and MCC between 1873 and 1886. He was a left-arm fast bowler with a great deal of spin and a dangerous yorker that was often believed to be unfair
Throwing (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, throwing, commonly referred to as chucking, is an illegal bowling action which occurs when a bowler straightens their arm when delivering the ball. The Laws of Cricket specify that a bowler's arm must be fully extended and rotated about the shoulder to impart velocity to...
- which may explain why he was not considered for the earliest Test Matches despite being in his prime. He took 863 first class wickets at an average of 12.09 with 87 five-wicket innings and 28 ten-wicket matches in his career. His first ten-wicket match in 1875 against Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
Nottinghamshire 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 Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws...
became the first of six in only nine games that season. He holds the Derbyshire record for most wickets in a single match, with figures of 17-103 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...
at the Antelope Ground
Antelope Ground
The Antelope Ground, Southampton was a sports ground that was the first home of both Hampshire County Cricket Club, who played there prior to 1884, and of Southampton Football Club, who played there from 1887 to 1896 as "Southampton St...
, Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
in July 1876.. This is one of only two times a player has taken seventeen wickets in a match and finished on the losing side - the other, by Walter Mead
Walter Mead (cricketer)
Walter Mead was the principal bowler for Essex during their first two decades as a first-class county. As a member of the Lord’s ground staff, he was also after J.T...
in 1895 was also against Hampshire. Mycroft had no pretensions as a right-handed tail end batsman: he scored only 791 first class runs at an average of 5.34 and prior to Alf Hall and Father Marriott remained the last significant cricketer who took more wickets than he scored runs.
Mycroft was born in Brimington
Brimington
Brimington is a civil parish within the borough of Chesterfield in north-east Derbyshire, England. The town of Staveley is to the east, and Hollingwood is nearby...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, the son of George Mycroft and his first wife Sabra Allen. His father was an ironstone and coal miner who kept the Red Lion public house at Brimington. In 1861 Mycroft himself was an ironstone miner and by 1881 he was running a public house at 10 Tapton Lane, Chesterfield
Chesterfield
Chesterfield is a market town and a borough of Derbyshire, England. It lies north of Derby, on a confluence of the rivers Rother and Hipper. Its population is 70,260 , making it Derbyshire's largest town...
.
Mycroft made his first class debut for Derbyshire in the 1873 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1873
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1873 was the third cricket season which the English club Derbyshire played. Officials and supporters were disappointed that they had been unable to arrange further first-class fixtures than the two against Lancashire, but they managed to arrange an extra match...
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...
when he took six wickets. The club played two matches in the season and Mycroft topped the bowling count with 10 wickets. In the 1874 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1874
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1874 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire earned the title of Champion County in their fourth year playing as a club. Kent joined Lancashire to make the second County side to play first class matches against Derbyshire in 1874...
the club doubled the matches to four, and Mycroft doubled his wicket count to 20 taking three five wicket overs to become top bowler again. In the 1875 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1875
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1875 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire played their fifth season. Nottinghamshire had played informal matches aggainst Derbyshire in previous seasons, and joined Lancashire and Kent to make a third County side playing first class matches...
, Mycroft hit a phenomenal average of 7.37, and became top bowler again with 73 wickets. He managed at least one five-wicket innings in every match and took eleven altogether in the season with best figures of 9-80. As a result, Mycroft was selected for the North against the South, where he had the amazing figures of fourteen wickets for 38 runs.
Mycroft's form was to last into the 1876 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1876
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1876 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire played their sixth season.Hampshire replaced Nottinghamshire as the third county to play Derbyshire, together with Lancashire and Kent. Derbyshire also played their first match against an MCC side, which...
, when he was top bowler with 62 wickets and achieved best bowling of 9-25, a record which lasted nearly fifty years before being bettered by Billy Bestwick
Billy Bestwick
William Bestwick was an English cricketer who played for Derbyshire between 1898 and 1926. He was a demon medium-fast bowler who took over 1400 wickets for the county, including 10 in one innings...
. He played several matches for 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...
, and also appeared for Players and the North. At this time he found himself in an assembled team of cricketers in several Gentlemen vs. Players matches, Mycroft's fellow Players including past and future England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
Test representatives Arthur Shrewsbury
Arthur Shrewsbury
Arthur Shrewsbury was an English cricketer, and rugby football administrator, who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888, and who was widely rated as competing with W. G...
, 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...
, John Selby
John Selby
John Selby played cricket professionally for Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club between 1870 and 1887...
, Tom Emmett, and Fred Morley
Fred Morley
Frederick Morley was a professional cricketer who was reckoned to be the fastest bowler in England during his prime...
. In the 1877 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1877
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1877 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire played their seventh season.Yorkshire joined Hampshire, Lancashire and Kent as the fourth county to play Derbyshire. John Platts became the first cricketer to score a century for Derbyshire.-1877...
, Mycroft took most wickets for Derbyshire with 63 and took five wickets in an innings eight times, but did even more deadly work for the MCC with 31 wickets at the extraordinary average of 7.29, and also was deadly in one innings for England against Kent
Kent County Cricket Club
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...
and a powerful Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire 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 Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
team with W.G. Grace in his prime. In 1878
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1878
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1878 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire played their eighth season.Nottinghamshire played Derbyshire again after a two year break, joining Yorkshire Hampshire, Lancashire and Kent as the fifth county to play Derbyshire-1878 season:In 1878,...
, Mycroft played much less outside county circket, taking only fifteen wickets, but took a career best 101 for Derbyshire. In the 1879 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1879
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1879 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire played their ninth season.Of the county sides Derbyshire played in the previous year they had matches against Lancashire, Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire. However they did not play Hampshire or Kent...
he was down to 48 wickets for the club which was still the best total. He topped the wicket tally for Derbyshire in the 1880 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1880
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1880 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire played their tenth season.Derbyshire played Lancashire and Yorkshire who they had played in the previous season...
with 58 and took five wickets in an innings six times.
In the following years Mycroft played for both Derbyshire and MCC on a regular but less frequent basis. In the 1885 season
Derbyshire County Cricket Club in 1885
Derbyshire Country Cricket Club in 1885 was the cricket season when the English club Derbyshire had been playing for fourteen years. They won three first class matches out of eleven.-1885 season:...
, Mycroft played his penultimate game in a match between MCC and Derbyshire at Lords. His brother Thomas, who also played for both teams, was also playing one of his last games and on this occasion Thomas took a stint of bowling instead of wicket-keeping. The main bowlers on the opposing sides were Sherwin
Mordecai Sherwin
Mordecai Sherwin was a professional footballer and cricketer who played in goal for Notts County and as a wicket-keeper for Nottinghamshire between 1878 and 1896....
and Shacklock
Frank Shacklock
Francis Joseph Shacklock was an English cricketer who played first class cricket for Nottinghamshire in 1883 and between 1886 and 1893, for Derbyshire in 1884 and 1885, for MCC between 1889 and 1893 and for Otago New Zealand from 1903 to 1905...
. The first Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
story was published two years later and there is a suggestion that Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
derived the name of Mycroft
Mycroft Holmes
Mycroft Holmes is a fictional character in the stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle. He is the elder brother of the famous detective Sherlock Holmes.- Profile :...
the younger brother of Sherlock Holmes from William Mycroft. Conan Doyle was a first class cricketer who later played for MCC and had a respect for fast bowlers.
Mycroft played his last first-class match for MCC in 1886. He umpired four first-class matches before his retirement and later umpired two more during the 1891 season. He died of influenza at the age of 53 in Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
. Mycroft's half-brother, Thomas
Thomas Mycroft
Thomas Mycroft was an English cricketer who played for Derbyshire and MCC between 1877 and 1887.Mycroft was born in Brimington, Derbyshire, the son of George Mycroft and his second wife Elizabeth Lowcock. His father was an ironstone and coal miner who kept the Red Lion public house at Brimington....
, played for Derbyshire between 1877 and 1885.
External links
- William Mycroft at Cricket Archive
- Mycroft cricketers family history - includes photograph