Barry Cumberlege

Last updated

Barry Cumberlege
Birth nameBarry Stephenson Cumberlege
Date of birth5 June 1891
Place of birth Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland
Date of death22 September 1970(1970-09-22) (aged 79)
Place of death Sandgate, Kent
Rugby union career
Position(s) Fullback
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1920–1922 England 8 (2)

Barry Stephenson Cumberlege, OBE (5 June 1891 – 22 September 1970) was an English sportsman who played international rugby union for England. He also played first-class cricket and served in the British Army in the First World War.

Contents

Early life and education

Cumberlege was born at Jesmond in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1891, the son of Esther and Charles Cumberlege. His father was a superintendent at the Bank of England and had played cricket for Northumberland and Surrey. [1] [2] [3]

He was educated at Durham School where he played both rugby union and cricket, captaining the school cricket team from 1908 to 1910. He was invited to tour South Africa with the Great Britain rugby team which he declined. [1] [4] He went on to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, graduating in 1913. [1]

Cumberlege won both cricket and rugby Blues at Cambridge. His rugby Blue was won as a freshman in 1910 and he played for the university each year, captaining the side in 1912–13. Cumberlege played as a fullback. He captained the side against the touring South African team in 1912–13. [1] Having played in the Minor Counties Championship for Durham and Northumberland between 1909 and 1912, Cumberlege made his first-class cricket debut for the university in 1913. [5] He played seven times during 1913 for the university and also made an appearance for Free Foresters against Cambridge, scoring the only century of his first-class career, an innings of 172. [1] [5]

Military service

After graduating Cumberlege became a school teacher. He enlisted five days after World War I started and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Service Corps at the beginning of September 1914. He joined the 414 Mechanical Transport Company attached to the supply column of the 3rd Cavalry Division, serving in Belgium and Northern France from 1914 to 1916. He was promoted to Lieutenant and then to Temporary Captain in May 1916 before being granted three weeks leave on medical grounds at the end of 1916. [1]

On his return to action in January 1917, Cumberlege moved to serve with the supply column of II ANZAC Corps. He served at Messines in June 1917 and later in the summer was appointed the commanding officer of the New Zealand Division supply column, serving in the Ypres area throughout the winter of 1917–18 and having his rank confirmed before being promoted to acting Major in March 1918. [1] He served until the end of the war and was mentioned in dispatches and awarded an OBE in 1918. He was demobilised in April 1919 and resigned his commission in January 1920, being granted the rank of Major. [1] During World War II Cumberlege served in the Royal Observer Corps. [6]

Post-war sporting career

After the war, Cumberlege played rugby for Blackheath and was called up to the England team for the 1920 Five Nations Championship. [4] He made his international debut at fullback against Wales in the first Five Nations Championships since the end of the war. [7] He was capped eight times by England, playing in the 1920, 1921 and 1922 championships, [8] and was described by William Wakefield as "by far the best full-back we [England] have had since the war" in 1928. [9] He was dropped after England suffered a heavy defeat to Wales in 1922 at Cardiff and retired from international rugby. [10] Cumberlege also played for the Barbarians and for Northumberland in the County Championship. After his playing career was over he became a rugby referee, officiating in 16 international matches between 1926 and 1934. [1] [11]

He played a total of six first-class cricket matches for Kent County Cricket Club in 1923 and 1924. He scored 288 runs in nine innings for the county, with a highest score of 76 against Essex at Leyton, and only failed to reach double figures once. [4] [12] These matches brought his final tally to 14 first-class matches from which he scored 763 runs at a batting average of 38.15. [13] With an "orthodox technique founded on a sound defence", he played club cricket for Blackheath and Band of Brothers. [12]

Family and professional life

Two of Cumberlege's brothers, Rutland and Royston, played cricket for Northumberland and Durham. [14] [15] Rutland also played rugby union for Cambridge University, Barbarians and Harlequins. [15] Another brother, Henry, also served in the Army Service Corps, commanding another of the Mechanical Transport Companies of the 3rd Cavalry Division before his death in September 1914. [1]

After leaving the Army at the end of World War I, Cumberlege worked as an underwriter for Lloyd's of London and wrote about rugby in the press. [5] [12] He married Louella Gillis in Kensington in June 1919, remarrying after her death in 1950. During World War II he served with the Royal Observer Corps. Cumberlege died in September 1970 aged 79. [1] [13] [12]

Related Research Articles

Harold Thomas William Hardinge, known as Wally Hardinge, was an English professional sportsman who played both cricket and association football for England. His professional cricket career lasted from 1902 to 1933 during which he played first-class cricket for Kent County Cricket Club and made one Test match appearance for England. He was described as being "for years ... one of the leading opening batsmen in England".

Wilfred Wooller was a Welsh sportsman, cricket administrator, and journalist.

Edward Wentworth Dillon was an English amateur sportsman in the early years of the 20th century. He played over 200 first-class cricket matches, mainly for Kent County Cricket Club between 1900 and 1913. Dillon captained Kent to three County Championship victories between 1909 and 1913, the only captain in the club history to lead the county to multiple championship titles. He also played rugby union for Blackheath and represented England in four international matches.

John Le Fleming was an English sportsman who played rugby union for England and first-class cricket for Kent County Cricket Club. He played rugby for Blackheath F.C. and Cambridge University R.U.F.C. and was a good all-round athlete, competing in athletics and figure skating. He was an Army tutor at Tonbridge School and served in the British Army during World War I.

Lionel Holmes Wood Troughton was an English amateur cricketer who played first-class cricket for Kent County Cricket Club either side of the First World War. Primarily a batsman, Troughton was club captain of Kent between 1914 and 1923. He served in the Rifle Brigade during the First World War, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel and being awarded the Military Cross.

Septimus Brutton was an English first-class cricketer and solicitor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lennard Stokes</span> England international rugby union player

Dr. Lennard Stokes was a rugby union international who represented England from 1875 to 1881. He also captained his country on five occasions, notably in the first ever match against Wales. Like his brother Frederick Stokes, after captaining his country he went on to become the president of the Rugby Football Union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Percy Christopherson</span> England international rugby union player

Percy Christopherson was an English sportsman who played rugby union as a threequarter for Blackheath and represented England at international level. Christopherson also played cricket, making two first-class appearances. He was employed as a teacher at Wellington College, Berkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">England Counties XV</span> Rugby team

England Counties XV is a representative rugby union team, formed in 2002, open to English players who play in the County Championship and the third tier of the English rugby union system. Players from the Premiership and RFU Championship are ineligible.

Edgar William Elliot was an English cricketer and rugby union player. In cricket, Elliot was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm medium fast, while in rugby union he played on the wing. He was born in Roker, County Durham and died in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on 23 March 1931.

James Ernest Mason was an English amateur cricketer who played one first-class cricket match for Kent County Cricket Club and later played once for Berkshire County Cricket Club. He served in the British army on the home front during World War I and rose to the rank of Lieutenant-colonel. In civilian life he worked as a solicitor.

Brigadier General Robert O'Hara Livesay was a British Army officer and English sportsman who played international rugby union for England and first-class cricket. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order and later appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George. Attached to the New Zealand Division during many of the major battles of World War I, he was mentioned in despatches three times and received the French Legion of Honour in recognition of that unit's successes.

John Garbutt Askew was an English rugby player and first-class cricketer. In rugby, Askew played as a fullback, while in cricket he played as a right-handed batsman. He was born at Gateshead, County Durham.

Colin Fairservice was an English professional cricketer. He played for Kent County Cricket Club from 1929 to 1933 and for Middlesex County Cricket Club in 1936, making a total of 74 first-class cricket appearances in his career.

The Northumberland Rugby Union is the governing body for rugby union in the historic county of Northumberland, England and one of the constituent bodies of the national Rugby Football Union having been formed in 1880. In addition, the county has won the county championship on two occasions, and finished runners-up on a further five occasions.

George Caldwell Dickins was an English soldier and amateur cricketer. He played in seven first-class cricket matches between 1848 and 1864.

Charles Farrington Cumberlege was an Indian-born English cricketer active 1872 who played in two first-class cricket matches for Surrey County Cricket Club. He was born in Karachi, Bombay Presidency, British India in 1851 and died in Ealing in 1929. His son, Barry Cumberlege, played cricket for Cambridge University and Kent and rugby union for Blackheath and England.

The Durham County Rugby Football Union is the governing body for the sport of rugby union in the historic county of Durham in England. The union is the constituent body of the Rugby Football Union (RFU) for Durham County, it administers and organises rugby union clubs, competitions and Durham county rugby representative teams.

Lieutenant-General Sir Harold Ben Fawcus was a British Army officer and an English first-class cricketer. After studying medicine at Durham University, Fawcus was commissioned into the Royal Army Medical Corps. He would serve with the corps from 1900 to 1934, serving in the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Third Anglo-Afghan War, for which he was highly decorated. He eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant-general. During his time in the military, he played first-class cricket in South Africa for Orange Free State and in England for the British Army cricket team. In retirement he served as the director-general of the British Red Cross.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Lewis P (2014) For Kent and Country, pp.141–143. Brighton: Reveille Press.
  2. ↑ Cumberlege, Mr Charles Farrington, Obituaries in 1929, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack , 1929. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  3. ↑ Charles Cumberlege, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2017-04-30. (subscription required)
  4. 1 2 3 Cumberlege, Barry Stephenson, Obituaries in 1970, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack , 1971. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  5. 1 2 3 Barry Cumberlege, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2017-04-30. (subscription required)
  6. ↑ Lewis op. cit. , p.363.
  7. ↑ Cooper S, Leonard J (2015) After the Final Whistle: The First Rugby World Cup and the First World War, p.222. The History Press. (Available online. Retrieved 2017-04-30.)
  8. ↑ Barry Cumberlege, ESPN Scrum. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  9. ↑ Wakefield W (1928) Rugger - The History, Theory and Practice of Rugby Football, Read Books Ltd, 2013 edition. (Available online. Retrieved 2017-04-30.)
  10. ↑ Wakefield W Op. cit. . (Available online. Retrieved 2017-04-30.)
  11. ↑ Jeater D (2020) County Cricket: Sundry Extras (second edition), p.41. (Available online at the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 2020-12-23.)
  12. 1 2 3 4 Carlaw D (2020) Kent County Cricketers A to Z. Part Two: 1919–1939, pp.49–50. (Available online at the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 2020-12-23.)
  13. 1 2 Barry Cumberlege, CricInfo. Retrieved 2017-04-30.
  14. ↑ Royston Cumberlege, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2017-04-30. (subscription required)
  15. 1 2 Rutland Cumberlege, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2017-04-30. (subscription required)

Barry Cumberlege  at ESPNcricinfo

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.