The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club the First 20 Years; 1894 to 1914
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THE CRICKETERS OF Hampstead and HAMPSTEAD Westminster Hockey Club HOCKEY CLUB The Men of the Eyre Arms and the first 20 years 1894 to 1914 The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club The first 20 years; 1894 to 1914 The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club The first 20 years; 1894 to 1914 Written and Produced for Hampstead and Westminster Hockey Club 2015 by Ian Smith The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club The first 20 years; 1894 to 1914 Note This account is an attempt to throw light, predominantly from a cricketing perspective, on the circumstances in which Hampstead Hockey Club evolved and the key individuals who oversaw its transformation from a hockey-playing section of Hampstead Cricket Club into a leading hockey club in England within a little more than a decade. It is certainly not intended as a record of the first twenty years of the club, as that has been covered more skilfully by club historian, Colin Greenhalgh. More is known of some of these individuals than others. The contents may therefore appear out of balance. Much is taken up with the exploits of Andrew Stoddart but without apology, as his was a remarkable sporting record that has remained virtually unparalleled and was a life that, like several of his sporting contemporaries, ended in tragic circumstances. His story was itself recorded in part in his own albums of cuttings that were thought to be preparatory to a memoir. That never materialised but the contents were taken up by his biographer, David Frith, who felt compelled to write because “here was a wonderful cricketer who has been piteously neglected by historians”. In some cases short records of the lives or contributions of others not directly related to Hampstead Cricket Club or Hampstead Hockey Club had been added where it is hoped they may be of interest. Further to put matters into context some aspects of the development of rugby, cricket and hockey have been incorporated too, as the period covered by this account was one of significant change that in many ways led to the ways in which rugby and cricket are played today. By contrast, hockey has perhaps proved more radical and latterly rugby has taken confidence from that to introduce change itself. Owing to the superior way in which cricket has maintained its historical records, much of this account has been based upon cricketing data. Access to the minute books of Hampstead Hockey Club from inception to the outbreak of World War One has also proved invaluable. The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club The first 20 years; 1894 to 1914 Preface The inspiration for this account is an after-dinner speech to the Vice Presidents and Friends of Hampstead and Westminster Hockey Club by Colin Greenhalgh, the former Secretary of Hampstead Hockey Club, revealing the background to the innings of Andrew Stoddart of Hampstead Cricket Club, in which he scored a record 485 in a one day club match. A number of chapters cover elements of the sporting life of Stodd or Drewy (whichever was your particular game) covered in far greater detail in his biography, My Dear Victorious Stod, written by David Frith, which he has subsequently augmented in Stoddy: England’s Finest Sportsman, published in 2015. It coincides with the celebration by Hampstead Cricket Club of its 150th anniversary. It was also a little more than 120 years ago when Hampstead Hockey Club was formed. It also reflects upon the outbreak of World War One that led to an abandonment of club hockey, at least in the London area, until resumption in 1919 and in which six club members sadly lost their lives: G Bagnall P Collins H P Davis C H Eiloart G F Farmiloe R A Hill The aim is to add some detail to the lives of those who established Hampstead Hockey Club or who were more prominent members up to 1914. In its early years Hampstead Hockey Club quickly gained a reputation as a leading club in the land. This was assisted by its successful Olympians in the 1908 games and the four club members who were to win gold medals at the slightly more taxing Olympic Games of 1920 in Antwerp. There then came the appreciation that many of the leading hockey players were cricketers and that several played first class cricket (in addition to representing Hampstead Cricket Club at a time when it was equally strong in reputation). This review was also prompted by the scorecard for the game at Lord’s on 18 and 19 June 1900 against MCC. The batting line up for Hampstead comprised at least eight members of the Hockey Club. And in 1901, all the players in the usual line up of the Hampstead Hockey Club’s 1st XI were also members of Hampstead Cricket Club. Only three did not play regularly for the Cricket Club. Much of this account relies heavily on the History of Hampstead Cricket Club written by F R D’O Monro, another who played for both teams. Detailed information has also been discovered by access to statistical websites that do the world of cricket proud. The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club The first 20 years; 1894 to 1914 Introduction It is beyond argument that Hampstead Hockey Club owes its origins to Hampstead Cricket Club. The Cricket Club is reported to have formed a section for hockey players in 1890 and to have established a sub-Committee to run hockey affairs. Some reports suggest that there may have been a hockey section even earlier. The Richmond and Twickenham Times contains a report in its edition of 29 December 1874 (made available by research for Teddington Hockey Club) of a return match between Richmond and Hampstead that resulted in a “decided victory for Hampstead, as they obtained four goals… to nothing.” The newspaper added that whilst the Hampstead team was a strong one, Richmond “suffered from three good players not turning up”. Richmond had played what was thought to be the first competitive hockey match on 7 November 1874 against Teddington that ended in a 1-1 draw. Later in 1875 at Richmond HC’s prompting, seven clubs joined to form the first Hockey Association. The hockey playing section of Hampstead seceded from the Cricket Club in 1894 owing to waterlogged pitches in the winter but perhaps in part also prompted by friction in the preceding year. Some non-members had represented the hockey section when there were insufficient cricketers to fulfil a fixture list containing two matches each week that the Cricket Club had previously agreed to. But not all cricketers who played for Hampstead Hockey Club emanated from Hampstead Cricket Club. There are at least two others who played until the outbreak of war in 1914 and represented England and Great Britain. They played for other cricket clubs and deserve inclusion in this brief review. However, as Colin Greenhalgh mentions in his Short History of Hampstead Hockey Club from 1894 to 1969, much of the credit for the great playing days of the Hockey Club in the early 1900’s “must go to the very fine cricketers who continued to join from Hampstead Cricket Club.” Several represented Middlesex when such representation, in hockey terms at least, was more significant than perhaps it is today. Cricket has a significant advantage when it comes to record keeping and statistics, given its longer recorded history and playing analyses that concentrate on individual performance far more than in hockey. Cricket has been more widely researched and, for example, can lay claim to websites that specialise in arcane detail of matches long ago that hockey cannot match. This makes more easy access to information about individual players and their clubs. 1 The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club The first 20 years; 1894 to 1914 As stated earlier, this review draws in large measure upon F R D’O Monro’s book first published in 1949. Not all this was of course available to Freddie Monro, who, as mentioned, was another cricketer who also joined Hampstead Hockey Club. He relied upon the library at Lord’s and publications such as Lillywhites, The Guide to Cricketers, MCC Scores and Biographies and Wisden’s Almanac, as well as the files of the Hampstead and Highgate Express, without access to which, he states, “it would be difficult to write any book dealing with Hampstead affairs”. 2 The Cricketers of Hampstead Hockey Club The first 20 years; 1894 to 1914 The Cricket Club also produced a Hampstead Year Book in the latter part of the 1800’s. In 1894, it mentioned that the issue of such an annual record “may possibly seem to some an expense unessential to the need of a cricket club.” But it added that on reflection, members would appreciate that they were privileged “in sharing a period certainly unique in our own history, probably without parallel in the record of any other cricket club.” Results then showed, for the past three years, 107 matches won against 28 losses. Sadly despite expressed sentiments of possessing “a tangible reminiscence which our children and our grandchildren may dwell upon with pride” prophetically this appears to have been the last such publication. However, there is much detail left to allow a study into the players and their records to sit alongside the exploits of Hampstead Hockey Club, whose values and traditions remained much the same in those early years. When in a preface to his History, Freddie Monro mentions that cricket may well be “a game that attracts good fellows or it may be that the playing of this game makes men into good fellows, however that may be, I have never met better fellows than the members of Hampstead Cricket Club.” He was glad to say that this was as true then as ever it was throughout his many years as a member.