List of Sussex first-class cricketers to 1838

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This is a list of cricketers who played for Sussex county cricket teams in first-class cricket matches before the formation of Sussex County Cricket Club in March 1839.

Contents

Cricket is generally believed to have originated out of children's bat and ball games in the areas of the Weald and North and South Downs in Kent and Sussex. [1] [2] The two counties and Surrey were the first centres of the game, [3] [4] and matches played by teams using the name Sussex are found as early as 1734. [a] [5] [6] Matches by the side have been considered first-class from 1815, although Brighton Cricket Club played seven first-class matches between 1791 and 1814 [b] and are sometimes considered to be representative of Sussex during this period. [c] [7] [9] [10]

Sussex sides played 58 matches which are considered first-class before Sussex County Cricket Club was founded in March 1839, [11] [12] the first county cricket club to be formed in England. [13] A Sussex Cricket Fund had been established at Brighton in 1836 and this led to the formation of the county club three years later. The club played its first first-class match later the same year, with MCC the opponents at Lord's. [11]

This list includes those who played for Sussex sides in matches which have been given first-class status before the 1839 season. Many players appeared for other teams, but only those who played for Sussex sides have been included here.

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

R

S

T

U

V

W

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Before this date matches had been played between teams organised by Sussex patrons such as the Duke of Richmond or William Gage against teams organised by patrons from other counties, including Kent, Middlesex and Surrey. [5]
  2. ↑ Six of these matches were played in 1791 and 1792 with the last played in 1814. There is no detailed scorecard available for the 1814 match but it has still be classified as first-class. [7] [8]
  3. ↑ More complete scorecards for cricket matches only reliably exist from 1772 and this is considered the date from which matches can be classified as first-class.
  4. ↑ Ayling played three first-class matches for Sussex, one in 1825 against a Hampshire side and two in 1826, both against combined Hampshire and Surrey sides. He scored a total of 21 runs with a highest score of eight not out. Other than a surname and initial no biographical details are known. A William Ayling, who was born at Cocking in Sussex in 1766, played in 22 first-class matches between 1800 and 1810 and died in October 1826 aged 59 or 60, but there is no known relationship between the men. [14] [15] [16]

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References

  1. ↑ Underdown, p. 4.
  2. ↑ Early Cricket (Pre 1799), International Cricket Council. Retrieved 2018-03-24.
  3. ↑ A brief history of cricket, CricInfo. Retrieved 2018-05-31.
  4. ↑ McCann, p. xxx.
  5. 1 2 McCann, p. lxiii.
  6. ↑ Miscellaneous-class matches played by Sussex (pre county club), CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
  7. 1 2 Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians (1981) A Guide to Important Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles 1709–1863, p. 15. Nottingham: Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. (Available online. Retrieved 2022-04-02.)
  8. ↑ First-class matches played by Brighton (Sussex), CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
  9. ↑ Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians (1982) A Guide to First Class Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles, second edition, pp. 4–5. Nottingham: Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. (Available online. Retrieved 2022-04-02.)
  10. ↑ Birley, p. 65.
  11. 1 2 A brief history of Susses, CricInfo. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
  12. ↑ First-class matches played by Sussex, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
  13. ↑ 19th Century Cricket, International Cricket Council. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
  14. ↑ W Ayling, CricInfo. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
  15. ↑ W Ayling, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
  16. ↑ Carlaw, pp. 33–34.

Bibliography

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