William Caffyn
Encyclopedia
William "Billy" Caffyn (2 February 1828 in Reigate
, Surrey
– 28 August 1919 in Reigate) was a famous English cricket
er who played for Surrey CCC
and the All-England Eleven
.
Caffyn's known first-class career spanned the 1849
to 1873 seasons
. He took 602 wickets in 200 matches at an average of 13.47 runs each with a best analysis of 9/29. He took five wickets in an innings 49 times and 10 wickets in an innings 11 times. He scored 5885 runs at an average of 17.99 with a highest score of 103, making 2 centuries. He took 149 catches.
At the end of the 1859 English cricket season
, Caffyn was one of the 12 players who took part in cricket's first-ever overseas tour when an England cricket team led by George Parr
visited North America.
.
After a term in Melbourne, he moved to Sydney where he started a hairdressing business with his wife and coached at the Warwick Club. During this time he was closely associated with fellow ex-Surrey professional cricketer Charles Lawrence
who coached at the Albert Cricket Club in Sydney.
In his book Seventy-one Not Out he wrote:
Caffyn has the distinction of bowling the first ball in the first match between a team from England and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
which took place on New Year's Day in 1862 in which his visiting England XI were up against a Victorian XVIII. He also played in the first Anglo-Australian first-class cricket
match, played from 1 March 1862 and dubbed The World v Surrey, also at the MCG.
The first Test match
was not played until 15 years later in March 1877.
He returned to England in May 1871 and died at his home in Surrey at the age of 91. His house still remains at 'Sydneyville' 20 Parkgate Road, Reigate, unaltered from the time he resided there, the name a testament to his time in Australia.
rated highly his book of reminiscences Seventy-one Not out, edited by "Mid-On". Arlott wrote: "...despite its literary limitations, Seventy-one Not out is an essential book for anyone who wants to understand the history of cricket."
Reigate
Reigate is a historic market town in Surrey, England, at the foot of the North Downs, and in the London commuter belt. It is one of the main constituents of the Borough of Reigate and Banstead...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
– 28 August 1919 in Reigate) was a famous English cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who played for Surrey CCC
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
and the All-England Eleven
William Clarke's All-England Eleven
The All-England Eleven was an itinerant all-professional first-class cricket team created in 1846 by Nottinghamshire cricketer William Clarke. Widely known by its acronym AEE, it took advantage of opportunities offered by the newly developed railways to play against local teams throughout Great...
.
Surrey and All-England
Caffyn was a genuine all-rounder being a sound middle order right-handed batsman and a very effective rightarm medium fast roundarm bowler. He played a major part in the success of Surrey during the 1850s.Caffyn's known first-class career spanned the 1849
1849 English cricket season
-Events:23, 24 & 25 July: Yorkshire v Lancashire at the Hyde Park Ground in Sheffield.It was the first match to involve both Yorkshire and Lancashire county teams and therefore, the first Roses match...
to 1873 seasons
1873 English cricket season
In the 1873 English cricket season, in only their fourth season as a first-class team, Gloucestershire was proclaimed joint Champion County by the media and went on to claim the still unofficial title four times in five seasons ....
. He took 602 wickets in 200 matches at an average of 13.47 runs each with a best analysis of 9/29. He took five wickets in an innings 49 times and 10 wickets in an innings 11 times. He scored 5885 runs at an average of 17.99 with a highest score of 103, making 2 centuries. He took 149 catches.
1859 English cricket season
The 1859 English cricket season saw one of the sport's most remarkable all-round performances by V E Walker.-First-class matches:* -Events:* 1 March. Formation of the present Kent CCC.* 21, 22 & 23 July...
, Caffyn was one of the 12 players who took part in cricket's first-ever overseas tour when an England cricket team led by George Parr
George Parr (cricketer)
George Parr was an English cricketer, whose first-class career lasted from 1844 to 1870....
visited North America.
Australia
Caffyn was instrumental in the early development of Australian cricket and the establishment of Anglo-Australian competition. Known in England as the Surrey Pet, he came to Australia with a sponsored 1861/62 team which consisted of mainly Surrey cricketers, and again in 1864 after which he stayed on as coach of the Melbourne Cricket ClubMelbourne Cricket Club
The Melbourne Cricket Club is a sporting club based in Melbourne, Australia. It was founded in 1838 and is regarded as the oldest sporting club in Australia....
.
After a term in Melbourne, he moved to Sydney where he started a hairdressing business with his wife and coached at the Warwick Club. During this time he was closely associated with fellow ex-Surrey professional cricketer Charles Lawrence
Charles Lawrence (cricketer)
Charles Lawrence was a Surrey cricketer, represented England but is most notable as the captain-coach of the Aborigine cricket team that toured England in 1868, the first ever tour of England by an Australian team....
who coached at the Albert Cricket Club in Sydney.
In his book Seventy-one Not Out he wrote:
- The cricket out there in the ten years that have elapsed between the first visit of an English eleven and my leaving the country had made phenomenal improvement... It is a source of the greatest satisfaction to me that I have in some measure contributed to the successful state of things.
Caffyn has the distinction of bowling the first ball in the first match between a team from England and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
which took place on New Year's Day in 1862 in which his visiting England XI were up against a Victorian XVIII. He also played in the first Anglo-Australian first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
match, played from 1 March 1862 and dubbed The World v Surrey, also at the MCG.
The first Test match
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
was not played until 15 years later in March 1877.
He returned to England in May 1871 and died at his home in Surrey at the age of 91. His house still remains at 'Sydneyville' 20 Parkgate Road, Reigate, unaltered from the time he resided there, the name a testament to his time in Australia.
His book
John ArlottJohn Arlott
Leslie Thomas John Arlott OBE was an English journalist, author and cricket commentator for the BBC's Test Match Special. He was also a poet, wine connoisseur and former police officer in Hampshire...
rated highly his book of reminiscences Seventy-one Not out, edited by "Mid-On". Arlott wrote: "...despite its literary limitations, Seventy-one Not out is an essential book for anyone who wants to understand the history of cricket."
Further reading
- William Caffyn, Seventy-one not out: the reminiscences of William Caffyn, edited by "Mid-on" (Richard DaftRichard DaftRichard Daft was an English cricketer. He was one of the best batsmen of his day, the peak of his first-class career being the 1860s and early 1870s...
), Blackwood, 1899
- H S AlthamHarry AlthamHarry Surtees Altham, CBE, DSO, MC was an English cricketer who became an important figure in the game as an administrator, historian and coach. His Wisden obituary described him as "among the best known personalities in the world of cricket"...
, A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914), George Allen & Unwin, 1926 - Derek BirleyDerek BirleySir Derek Birley was an English educator and writer who had a strong interest in sport, especially cricket.He was educated at grammar school in Hemsworth, West Yorkshire, and at Queens' College, Cambridge University....
, A Social History of English Cricket, Aurum, 1999 - Rowland BowenRowland BowenMajor Rowland Francis Bowen was a cricket researcher, historian and writer....
, Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development, Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1970 - Arthur HaygarthArthur HaygarthArthur Haygarth was a noted amateur cricketer who became one of cricket's most significant historians....
, Scores & Biographies, Volumes 3-9 (1841-1866), Lillywhite, 1862–1867 - John MajorJohn MajorSir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
, More Than A Game, HarperCollins, 2007 – includes the famous 1859 touring team photo taken on board ship at Liverpool - Chris Harte, A History of Australian Cricket, Andre Deutsch, 1993
- Jack Egan, The Story of Cricket in Australia, Macmillan Australia, 1987