Charles Robson (cricketer)
 Robson photographed in about 1905 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 20 June 1859 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 27 September 1943 (aged 84) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm slow | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: CricketArchive, 10 April 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Charles Robson (20 June 1859 – 27 September 1943) was an English first-class cricketer, who played as a wicket-keeper for Middlesex between 1881 and 1883, and for Hampshire from 1891 to 1906, for whom he served as captain for three years from 1900 to 1902.
He was also secretary to
Cricket career
Robson was born at Kilburn, (then in Middlesex) and educated at Bruce Castle School, Tottenham and at Chatham House Grammar School, Ramsgate, and was a member of the cricket eleven at both schools.
Middlesex
He made his first appearance for
Robson spent three seasons with Middlesex, during which he played twelve matches, totalling 246 runs at an average of 12.94.
Hampshire
In 1891, he made his first appearance for Hampshire, then not ranked as a first-class county. The June 1891 match lasted only two days with Essex winning by an innings and 40 runs, with Robson contributing 52 runs in his two innings.[3] He soon became the wicket-keeper for Hampshire and was often the opening batsman in partnership with Russell Bencraft.
Robson continued to play for Hampshire after they were re-instated as a First Class county in 1896, and in 1899 was a member of
He was appointed Hampshire's captain in 1900 (taking over from Teddy Wynyard), and marked this by scoring his only century in First Class cricket; this came at Edgbaston in June 1900 when he scored 101 in the second innings against Warwickshire; he shared in a stand of 180 with Edward Sprot for the second wicket in a drawn match.[5]
In June 1901, Hampshire were facing almost certain defeat against Lancashire at Aigburth, Liverpool. Hampshire were bowled out in the first innings for only 106, and Lancashire replied with 413–8 declared. When Hampshire opened the second innings, few people thought that Lancashire would need to bat again. J. G. Greig opened the batting and the score had reached 374, with one wicket remaining and Hampshire still seemingly heading for defeat. Robson came to the wicket as the last batsman in and he and Greig put on an unlikely 113 for the tenth wicket (Robson 52); Greig's innings was 249*. Lancashire's eventual target was 181 in 140 minutes; they closed at 111 for 5, rain having cut short play by almost an hour.[6][7]
He was a member of Archie MacLaren's touring party to Australia in 1901/02, playing in one match against Victoria in February 1902.[8] For the 1902 season, he passed the Hampshire captaincy to Edward Sprot, but continued to serve Hampshire for a further five seasons, although by 1906 his appearances were rather infrequent. His final match for Hampshire came at Basingstoke in May 1906 against Warwickshire.[9]
Southampton St Mary's Football Club
In the spring of 1895, Robson was appointed secretary to Southampton St Mary's Football Club, then playing in the Southern League.[10] As secretary, he was responsible for signing new players and agreeing player contracts as well as being involved in team selection – the day to day coaching and training of the players was in the hands of the trainer.
One of Robson's first acts as secretary was to accompany
The greatest excitement, however, came in the
For the match, played at the
At the end of the season, the Saints had to vacate the Antelope Ground, which had been sold for re-development, and moved to the County Ground, partly through the connections of the club's president, Robson's former Hampshire strike partner, Dr. H. W. R. Bencraft, who was also Hon. Secretary to the cricket club.[14]
During the summer of 1896, Robson resigned his position as secretary (ready for Hampshire's first season back in the first-class cricket ranks), being replaced by Alfred McMinn (having served his twelve months' suspension), with Mr. E. Arnfield as his assistant.[citation needed]
Robson was one of the founder directors when the football club was incorporated into a limited company, "Southampton Football and Athletic Company Limited" in July 1897; on the Memorandum of Association he was listed as "Charles Robson, Mineral Water Merchant and Hampshire wicket-keeper" of Hill Lane, Southampton.[15] He remained a director of the company for several years.
References
- ^ "Middlesex v Surrey (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 23 May 1881. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Middlesex v Oxford University (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 23 June 1881. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Hampshire v Essex (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 16 June 1891. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Gentlemen of Philadelphia v KS Ranjitsinhji's XI (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 6 October 1899. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Warwickshire v Hampshire (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 7 June 1900. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Cricket A Century Ago: Hampshire In 1901". Hampshire Cricket Society. February 2001. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Lancashire v Hampshire (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 10 June 1901. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Victoria v AC MacLaren's XI (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 22 February 1902. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ "Hampshire v Warwickshire (Scorecard)". www.cricketarchive.com. 21 May 1906. Retrieved 16 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d Chalk & Holley 1987, p. 18.
- ^ a b Juson & Bull 2001, pp. 36–37.
- ^ a b c d Bull & Brunskell 2000, p. 16.
- ^ Collett 2003, p. 545.
- ^ Chalk & Holley 1987, pp. 18–19.
- ^ Juson & Bull 2001, pp. 44 & 51.
Bibliography
- Bull, David; Brunskell, Bob (2000). Match of the Millennium. Hagiology Publishing. ISBN 0-9534474-1-3.
- Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan (1987). Saints – A complete record. Breedon Books. ISBN 0-907969-22-4.
- Collett, Mike (2003). The Complete Record of the FA Cup. Sports Books. ISBN 1-899807-19-5.
- Juson, Dave; Bull, David (2001). Full-Time at The Dell. Hagiology Publishing. ISBN 0-9534474-2-1.
External links
