Cricket

[AussieMick]

I was going to try this as the basis of a trivia question but it became too obscure ...

Anyway, the next time you meet an Englishman, Australian, or New Zealander and you're stumped as to what to say try this ...

" Do you know the nationality of the first International Cricketer to die in wartime?"

Chances are they will guess at British (Boer War) or maybe New Zealander (Maori Wars).
It was in fact an American.

https://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/...ime-210665

I've emailed this information to the editor of Wisden. He responded with a brief "Thanks ... intriguing ." Wisden is the official sporting update of cricket.

Whether he decides to include the information in future editions of Wisden remains to be seen.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisden_Cri...'_Almanack

As to cricket in the USA, currently there are a few clubs but prior to the Civil War it was very popular especially in the Philadelphia area.

The Newhall family were keen cricketers and several of the brothers played for the US against England.

"The Young America Cricket Club (YACC) was founded on 19 November 1855 at the house of William Wister after the Germantown Cricket Club team refused to allow young players to gain cricket experience through match participation. Owen Wister, the nephew of William, wrote what is considered the first true Western novel ever written, The Virginian, the prototype for the first movie Western which came out as a silent movie in 1914 and has been filmed many times since.

The Newhall family joined with the Wister family founding the club in 1855 with the first games played on the Wisters' Belfield estate. The YACC team was largely responsible for keeping cricket going in Philadelphia during the Civil War. The YACC played at the Turnpike Bridge ground from 1858 to 1877 before moving to their new Stenton ground in 1879. The Germantown Cricket Club allowed YACC to share their Nicetown ground while their new ground was being prepared.

Walter and Charles Newhall became famous YACC players. Walter Newhall scored his first century aged 12. Charles was the most successful bowler against the 1872 England team earning the respect W. G. Grace, England's greatest batsman. Before Bob Newhall captained Philadelphia's first touring team in England the YACC played the Toronto Cricket Club in Canada. Three generations (ten members) of the Newhall family played on the YACC from its founding in 1854 to its merging with the Germantown CC in 1890. The Newhalls also helped administer cricket in Philadelphia. George Newhall became editor of the American Cricketer which had a 52-year publication history from 1877 to 1929.

YACC won the Halifax Cup in 1880, 1883 and 1885. The Halifax Cup won by a Philadelphia team in 1874 at Halifax in Nova Scotia became the social event of the year in Philadelphia from 1880 to 1926 by which time it was eclipsed by golf and tennis tournaments."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Amer...icket_Club

I had thought that the Newhall brothers were connected to the Newhall who was mentioned in connection with the Bixby letter to Lincoln. But I think thats incorrect.

[RJNorton]

"When Chicago hosted Milwaukee in a 1859 cricket match, Abraham Lincoln was among the spectators."

https://www.dreamcricket.com/articles/hi...ii--1850s/

[AussieMick]

(10-17-2021 05:36 AM)RJNorton Wrote:  "When Chicago hosted Milwaukee in a 1859 cricket match, Abraham Lincoln was among the spectators."

https://www.dreamcricket.com/articles/hi...ii--1850s/

Argh! So there was a potential trivia question if only I had pursued it enough. What , I wonder, did Lincoln think of the game .... no doubt he itched to take a bat and whack the ball over silly mid off.

Thanks, Roger , for the link. I didnt realise cricket still held the interest of so many Americans. It can be , i admit , a very boring game. But so can other sports. At least with cricket a person doesnt need to be supremely fit or strong or fast.

Women have taken up the game. And of course Sri Lanka, India, and the West Indies love cricket.

These days there is a shorter version of the game which is ideal for television and betting. ... I saw on that link of American history of cricket that in the 1850s betting was common.

I recall that the French regard cricket with disdain. .... enough said.