William Hillyer
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 5 March 1813 Leybourne, Kent, England |
| Died | 8 January 1861 (aged 47) Maidstone, Kent, England |
| Role | Bowler |
William Richard Hillyer (5 March 1813 – 8 January 1861), was a prominent 19th century English professional cricketer for Kent County Cricket Club, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and many other sides in the days before county and international cricket was organised into regular competitions.[1] He was born at Leybourne in Kent in 1813, the son of an innkeeper.[2][3]
Hillyer first played for Kent in 1834 and was the "principal bowler" for the county teams until 1853.
By the tail end of the 1830s he was already established as one of the leading bowlers in English cricket. During the 1840s he was statistically unmatched. Until the days of
He had first played for the Town Malling club and was employed as a professional by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) at Lord's between 1838 and 1851, playing regularly in Gentlemen v Players matches during the period.[2]
From 1850 onwards, Hillyer began to decline badly, suffering from rheumatism and, beginning in 1852, he began to umpire as was normal practice with professional players of the day. He fell and broke his thumb in 1855 which forced his retirement as a cricketer. He died at Maidstone in Kent in 1861, aged 47.[2]
References
- ^ Billy Hillyer, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2017-11-05. (subscription required)
- ^ CricInfo. Retrieved 2017-11-05.
- Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 2020-12-21.)
- ISBN 9781408704066
- ISBN 0712609393
- ISBN 0747222037
External links
