First class cricketers who were killed in World War 1.

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Another gem from Edward Liddle.
http://www.cricketeurope4.net/DATABASE/ARTICLES7/articles/000046/004661.shtml

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GF Macnamara - one of 290 first class cricketers to die in WW1

Edward Liddle
4 August 2014

Most cricket archives record 289 first class cricketers who were
killed in World War 1. However research over the last year has
confirmed the identity of GF Macnamara who is, of course, the 290th.

George Frederick Macnamara

Born: June 1893 Dublin
Died: 18 August 1916 near Loos France
Educated: The Oratory School; New College, Oxford
Occupation: Army officer at time of death
Debut: 10 July 1913 Raeburn Place, Edinburgh
Cap Number: 290
Right hand batsman, medium pace hand unknown
Teams: New College Oxford, Leinster

NB: This player has, previously, been incorrectly identified as SF
Macnamara (1880-1913). There is no doubt that this was incorrect and
that the cricketer whose details follow has now been correctly
identified.

George Macnamara was a good all round sportsman. An upper order
batsman in the classical mould, he was also a useful medium pacer and,
at school, a fine tennis player, but, arguably, his best game was
football at which he excelled during both his School and University
days.

He was one of the six children of Richard and Mary Macnamara, Richard
being a prosperous solicitor, able not only to send at least one son -
he had three - to an English boarding school but also maintain a
household in 1911 including four servants and a governess for his
eight year old daughter.

Oratory, always one of Britain's leading Catholic Public Schools, was
then situated not in its present Oxfordshire setting, but in suburban
Birmingham at Edgbaston. Its most important cricket match of the year
was that against Beaumont College, indeed, having been first played in
1867 and moved to Lord's in 1926, it remained so until Beaumont closed
in 1967. However in the three years from 1908 in which George played,
he missed the 1909 match, it was held at Oxford University College
grounds. His first appearance was at Queen's College in a match left
drawn, heavily in Oratory's favour. Batting at No 8, he was bowled for
9 by Beaumont's opening bowler William Thompson, who was to die three
years later. There was some Irish interest in the Beaumont side with
the batting opened by William Mooney, later to tour the USA and Canada
with Frank Browning's Irish side in 1909, as well as Frank Considine,
son of one former Irish cricketer and nephew of two others. The
Beaumont XI also included TJA O'Brien, son of Sir Timothy and a highly
promising batsman. When the clouds of war rolled away, he, like George
and at least one other member of the Oratory side, opening batsman
George French, would not be there to resume his game. Nor would two of
French's four brothers, all of whom also played for Oratory 1st XI.

By 1910 the match had moved to the Jesus College ground and George had
moved to No 1 in the order. Unfortunately his form did not improve as
he was out for 7. However, despite a fifty from O'Brien, Oratory were
victorious. 1911 however saw George in fine form throughout the
season. He hit a career best 118 against local rivals King Edward's,
Birmingham and then, still at the Jesus ground, took a leading part in
a convincing win over Beaumont. Opening both the bowling and batting,
he began by taking 2/39, helping to put Beaumont out for 178. Then he
put their attack to the sword, batting magnificently to score an
undefeated 108 and see his side to victory by 8 wickets.

He was equally, if not more, effective on the football field. Always
playing in the forward line, the traditional 5-3-2-1 formation being
in use, he was the School 1st XI's leading goal scorer, once netting
five against City of Birmingham Police. Football rather than cricket
was his main claim to sporting fame while at Oxford after he entered
New College in the Michaelmas Term of 1911. He played cricket for the
College, but there is no sign of his having been considered for
University trial. However the winter game was a different matter. In
his final season 1913-14, he made the University side as a half back
and was awarded his half Blue ( football not then being considered
worthy of a full one) for the match against Cambridge in February
which the Light Blues won 2-1. Football, College cricket and military
activities in the University Officers' Training Corps must have kept
George from his books for much of the time. He graduated in 1914, but
had only a 4th class History Degree to show for his efforts.

His one match for Ireland came against Scotland at the Raeburn Place
ground in July 1913. He had shown his all round talents when available
for Leinster in University vacations and was one of four substitutes
called late into the team for this match. The side was led by WP (Pat)
Hone whose delayed second innings declaration, probably condemned the
match to a draw as Scotland, set 387 to win, finished on 246-8. He
could not, however, have been accused of selfish captaincy as he was
on 92*. George had quite a good debut and it was unfortunate for him
that Ireland had no other fixtures that season. Ireland began by
scoring 224, at 7 George who together with Gus Kelly gave the innings
some much needed impetus, making 30 out of the 64 added while he was
at the wicket. He was ninth out being dismissed lbw. He then opened
the Irish bowling with Kelly but bowled only 9 overs taking 0-28 as
the Scots also made 224. Ireland with Hone and Cyril Bateman - another
who was destined not to survive the coming conflict - well to the fore
responded with 386/5 before the declaration. Promoted to No 6 with
quick runs needed George made 21 out of a 5th wicket stand of 61 with
his captain. He bowled four wicketless overs in Scotland's second
innings. Hone thought it a most enjoyable match, It is to be hoped
that George agreed and had good memories to sustain him through the
dark days which lay ahead.

George was commissioned as Second Lieutenant (on probation) in the 4th
Battalion of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers in August 1915, having
already, of course, had some basic military training in the Oxford
University OTC. The following April his rank was confirmed and shortly
afterwards he was promoted to Acting Lieutenant. He had since his
commission, though officially in the 4th, been attached to the 8th
Battalion of the RDF, which became heavily involved in the Battle of
the Somme. The New College records state that his death, in action,
occurred " near Loos". Irish troops were, at the time, involved in
defending the Loos Salient, though the 8th were also involved in heavy
fighting around Ginchy, a key point in the Battle of the Somme.

George Frederick Macnamara was one of thousands of young men whose
lives were cruelly cut short by "The War to end all Wars." There is no
knowing what he and they might have achieved both on sports' fields
and in the wider world had events taken a different course. His grave
may be found in the Philisophe British Cemetery at Mazingarbe in the
Pas de Calais, along with 1995 other First world War dead, 277 of whom
are unidentified.

Wisden, during the First World War years, has almost countless
obituaries of young men who died in the conflict, some who had done
little more than play cricket for their House XI at public school.
However George's name is not to be found among them, nor for that
matter are those of the French brothers. A Major George Macnamara, a
regular army officer aged 27, Dublin born and whose home was in Co
Clare is included. He is listed as having played "regimental cricket"
and was killed in 1917. As far as I am aware he had no connection with
the subject of this biography.

NB I am greatly indebted to Dora Nash, Archivist of The Oratory School
and Jennifer Thorp, Archivist of New College, Oxford for their
considerable help with details of George's School and University
careers.

[Brian Lawrence]

There's a new Wisden book that updates the approx. 1800 obituaries
published in the Almanack from the 1915 edition. Many of them have been
amended and/or corrected.


<http://bookshop.nationalarchives.gov.uk/9781408832356/Wisden-on-the-Great-War/>

Perhaps one of the most poignant is AEJ Collins, who is still the holder
of the record for the highest individual score in any form of cricket,
faithfully recorded by Wisden for decades.

<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._E._J._Collins>
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scorecard_of_A._E._J._Collins>

Of the 22 boys who played in that match, 14 did not return from the war.



--

Brian W Lawrence
Wantage
Oxfordshire

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I remember reading about Collins and that match. Only one noball
recorded. I suppose because of the centenary there has been some extra
interest in all things that connected the great war

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[John Hall]

In message <53e11bbf...@news.btinternet.com>, max.it@?.?.invalid
writes

>I remember reading about Collins and that match. Only one noball
>recorded. I suppose because of the centenary there has been some extra
>interest in all things that connected the great war

I don't suppose that umpires in school house matches would have been too
vigilant in looking for no balls. Also I believe it was harder for
umpires to detect no balls with the old back foot law, because bowlers
tended to "drag" a lot.
--
John Hall Weep not for little Leonie
Abducted by a French Marquis!
Though loss of honour was a wrench
Just think how it's improved her French. Harry Graham (1874-1936)

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On Tue, 5 Aug 2014 21:10:21 +0100, John Hall <john_...@jhall.co.uk>
wrote:

You're right about the umpires, my youngest lad is a keeper and he
gets downright mouthy about wides recorded as byes.
The old dragging back foot,you would have needed two bowlers end
umpires (one straight and one square) to be able to see what was
really going on.

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[Andy Walker]

On 05/08/14 21:10, John Hall wrote:
> [...] Also I believe it was harder

> for umpires to detect no balls with the old back foot law, because
> bowlers tended to "drag" a lot.

That may well have been true at Test and perhaps even f-c level,
where some fast bowlers cultivated drag, esp after WW2 when Lindwall [in
particular] became notorious for it. But I'd be very surprised if many
public-school house-match bowlers were fast enough to cause the umpires
trouble for that reason, and indeed if many of them dragged at all --
it's the sort of action that would have been coached out of them if they
were good enough to get near a coach.

--
Andy Walker,
Nottingham.