The Gentlemen v Players first-class cricket fixture was first played in 1806 and, despite many difficulties in the early years, it had by 1840 become an established annual event in the English cricket calendar. Apart from the years of the two World Wars, it remained so until 1962. The purpose of the fixture was to match the best of the amateur cricketers (the Gentlemen) against the best of the paid professionals (the Players). The table below summarises the full career record in the fixture of everyone who made their debuts for the Gentlemen team in the matches played to 1840.
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Kent. A club representing the county was first founded in 1842 but Kent teams have played top-class cricket since the early 18th century, and the club has always held first-class status. The current Kent County Cricket Club was formed on 6 December 1870 following the merger of two representative teams. Kent have competed in the County Championship since the official start of the competition in 1890 and have played in every top-level domestic cricket competition in England. The club's limited overs team is called the Kent Spitfires after the Supermarine Spitfire.
Arthur Haygarth was a noted amateur cricketer who became one of cricket's most significant historians. He played first-class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club and Sussex between 1844 and 1861, as well as numerous other invitational and representative teams including an England XI and a pre-county Middlesex. A right-handed bat, Haygarth played 136 games now regarded as first-class, scoring 3,042 runs and taking 19 wickets with his part-time bowling. He was educated at Harrow, which had established a rich tradition as a proving ground for cricketers. He served on many MCC committees and was elected a life member in 1864.
The North of England and South of England cricket teams appeared in first-class matches between the 1836 and 1961 seasons, most often playing against each other but also individually in games against touring teams, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and others. Until international cricket became firmly established towards the end of the 19th century, the North v South match was one of the major fixtures in the cricketing calendar along with Gentlemen v Players. Indeed, North v South was really the major fixture because it could potentially showcase the best 22 players in the country, whereas Gentlemen teams in the other match were often very weak.
Cricket, and hence English amateur cricket, probably began in England during the medieval period but the earliest known reference concerns the game being played c.1550 by children on a plot of land at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, Surrey. It is generally believed that cricket was originally a children's game as it is not until the beginning of the 17th century that reports can be found of adult participation.
Neil Thomas McCorkell was an English first-class cricketer. A successor as Hampshire wicket-keeper to George Brown, McCorkell made his debut in first-class cricket in 1932. He would play for Hampshire eitherside of the Second World War, with distinction as both a wicket-keeper and opening batsman. In 396 first-class matches, he scored over 16,000 runs and made 717 dismissals behind the stumps. He was Hampshire's most successful wicket-keeper until his records were surpassed by Bobby Parks. McCorkell never played Test cricket for England, largely due to the concurrent careers of the Kent wicket-keeping duo Les Ames and Godfrey Evans.
Reginald Gervis Hargreaves was an English first-class cricketer.
Edward Mark Sprot was a Scottish first-class cricketer and British Army officer. Following a seven year commission with the King's Shropshire Light Infantry, Sprot played first-class cricket for Hampshire from 1898 to 1914, captaining the county from 1903 to 1914. As a captain, Sprot was known for his dynamic and unusual tactics, which sought to gain positive results from matches. In all, Sprot made 270 appearances in first-class cricket, scoring over 12,000 runs and making thirteen centuries. He additionally took 55 wickets, alongside taking 228 catches in the field. His first-class career came to an end with the beginning of the First World War.
Edward Murray Charles Ede was an English first-class cricketer and solicitor.
Edward Hemsted was an English first-class cricketer.
William Henry Lipscomb was an English first-class cricketer and barrister.
Alfred Henry Evans was an English first-class cricketer and educator. Considered one of the best fast bowlers in England at the time, Evans played in 44 first-class matches between 1878 and 1885, taking over 200 wickets. He would later became a schoolmaster at Winchester College and would found Horris Hill School in 1882, where he was headmaster until 1920.
Edward Hastings Buckland was an English first-class cricketer and educator.
Sir Henry John Mordaunt, 12th Baronet was an English first-class cricketer and educator. Mordaunt played first-class cricket from 1885 to 1896, largely at varsity level for Cambridge University Cricket Club. He was later involved in education, spending twenty years as the Chief Clerk of the London City Council Education Committee.
Harold Clark McDonell was an English first-class cricketer and educator. As a cricketer, he played county cricket for both Surrey and Hampshire, and varsity cricket for Cambridge University. In nearly 130 first-class appearances, he took nearly 450 wickets with his leg spin bowling, in addition to scoring over 3,000 runs. As an educator, McDonnell began his teaching career at Twyford School, where he had attended in his youth. From 1910 to 1937, he was headmaster of the school.
Charles Wilson Carpenter was an English cricketer. Carpenter was a right-handed batsman, though his bowling style is unknown. He was born at Brighton, Sussex, and was educated at Brighton College.
Francis Percy Umfreville Pickering was an English cricketer. Pickering was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm underarm fast. He was born at Shipton, Yorkshire, the son of James Henry Shipton, and was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford.
Edward Samuel Evans Hartopp was an English first-class cricketer who played for Cambridge University, Nottinghamshire and several amateur cricket teams between 1841 and 1857. He was born at Thurnby, Leicestershire and died at Pickenham Hall, near Swaffham, Norfolk.
