Portal:Yorkshire/Selected article/17

Lord Hawke in his playing days. He was a key figure in the captaincy debate.

The Yorkshire captaincy affair of 1927 arose from a disagreement among members of Yorkshire County Cricket Club over the selection of a new captain to succeed the retired Major Arthur Lupton. The main issue was whether a professional cricketer should be appointed to the post. A tradition had been established throughout English county cricket that captains should always be amateurs. At Yorkshire, a succession of amateur captains had recently held office, on the grounds of their supposed leadership qualities, though none of them were worth their place in the side as cricketers. None of these skippers had lasted long; after Lupton's departure some members felt it was time that a more accomplished cricketer was appointed, on a longer-term basis.

The Yorkshire committee, prompted by the influential county president, Lord Hawke, made an approach to Herbert Sutcliffe, one of the side's leading professionals. After Sutcliffe's provisional acceptance of the captaincy, controversy arose and the members were divided. Some objected to the appointment on the traditional grounds that Sutcliffe was not an amateur; others felt that if a professional was to be appointed, then the post should be offered to the county's senior professional, Wilfred Rhodes, who had been playing much longer than Sutcliffe. Rhodes himself was offended that he had not been approached. When Sutcliffe became aware of the controversy, he withdrew his acceptance. No offer was made to Rhodes, and the county subsequently appointed amateur William Worsley as captain. Worsley lasted for two seasons, and was followed by two more short-term leaders. In 1933 Brian Sellers, a more competent amateur, was appointed and became the long-serving captain that Yorkshire had sought. (read more . . . )