Patrick Higgins (cricketer)

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Pat Higgins
Personal information
Full name
Patrick Higgins
Born9 December 1860
County Mayo, Ireland
Died5 December 1925(1925-12-05) (aged 64)
Menston, Yorkshire, England
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm fast
Role All-rounder

Patrick Higgins was an Irish-born English cricketer, most notable for being a professional for Forfarshire for 33 years. Before this, he played for Guiseley Cricket Club in Yorkshire.

Contents

Early life

Higgins was born in Ballyhaunis, County Mayo in 1860. [1] His family moved to England and settled in Guiseley near Leeds. He was a stonemason by trade.

Cricket career

Recommended to Forfarshire by Higgins' Guiseley teammate and previous professional with the Broughty Ferry club, Peter Pullan, Higgins joined the club for the 1883 season. A bout of Rheumatic fever during the previous winter caused him to have a poor season, but club officials nonetheless invited him to return the following year. [2]

He struck up a batting partnership with eventual Forfarshire captain, W. R. Sharp, which would continue for 25 years until Sharp's retirement. [3]

Later years

After retiring, Higgins would still travel to Dundee to offer his services as a coach. When he was not coaching, Higgins worked at High Royds Hospital which he had helped build as a mason during the winter months in the 1880s. [4]

He died in 1925 of a heart attack at his home in Menston. [3]

References

  1. "Pat Higgins - Player Profile". CricketArchive. Retrieved 25 January 2026.
  2. "The Recollections of Pat Higgins" . Dundee Courier. 4 July 1921. p. 4. Retrieved 25 January 2026 via the British Newspaper Archive.
  3. 1 2 "Patsy Higgins Dead" . Dundee Courier. 8 December 1925. p. 5. Retrieved 25 January 2026 via the British Newspaper Archive.
  4. "Mr. Patrick Higgins. - Death of Well-known Menston Cricketer" . Shipley Times. 11 December 1925. p. 2. Retrieved 24 January 2026 via the British Newspaper Archive.