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Walter Powys

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Walter Powys
Personal information
Full name
Walter Norman Powys
Born(1849-07-28)28 July 1849
Titchmarsh, Northamptonshire, England
Died7 January 1892(1892-01-07) (aged 42)
Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England
Height5 ft 11[1] in (1.80 m)
BattingLeft-handed
BowlingLeft-arm roundarm fast
RelationsArthur Powys (brother)
Richard Powys (brother)
Arthur Crichton (uncle)
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1871–1874Cambridge University
1877–1878Hampshire
1877–1879Marylebone Cricket Club
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 27
Runs scored 244
Batting average 6.97
100s/50s –/–
Top score 30
Balls bowled 3,163
Wickets 98
Bowling average 14.44
5 wickets in innings 6
10 wickets in match 3
Best bowling 9/42
Catches/stumpings 9/–
Source: Cricinfo, 14 June 2022

Walter Norman Powys (28 July 1849 — 7 January 1892) was an English first-class cricketer. He played mostly for Cambridge University Cricket Club in first-class cricket and was most renowned for his exploits on his first-class debut, when he took 13 wickets, which included innings figures of 9 for 42. These remain as of 2023 the fifth-best innings bowling figures on debut in first-class cricket.

First-class cricket and life

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Powys was the son of The Honourable and Reverend Atherton Legh Powys and Charlotte Elizabeth Norman, he was born in July 1849 at Titchmarsh, Northamptonshire.[2] After being privately educated,[3] he matriculated to Pembroke College, Cambridge in 1870; his academic studies were characterised by interruptions, with him being readmitted to the university in 1874 and 1877, finally graduating in 1879.[2] Powys was a member of the Cambridge University Cricket Club and made his debut in first-class cricket for the club against the Marylebone Cricket Club at Fenner's in 1871. He played first-class cricket for Cambridge until 1874, making eighteen appearances.[4] These included three appearances in The University Matches of 1871, 1872 and 1874, taking 24 wickets in these matches with his left-arm roundarm fast bowling.[3] In his eighteen appearances for Cambridge, he took a total of 78 wickets at an average of 11.42; he took a five wicket haul on five occasions and twice took ten wickets in a match.[5] His best innings figures of 9 for 42 came on debut against the Marylebone Cricket Club in 1871; these figures rank as the fifth-best innings bowling figures on debut in first-class cricket.[6] He was described by the magazine Cricket as a bowler who bowled at terrific pace.[3] He was the honorary secretary of Cambridge University Cricket Club in 1873, a season in which he did not feature for Cambridge due to commitments in the United States.[1]

Powys also played first-class cricket for a number of other teams, including the Gentlemen of the North in 1871, for the Gentlemen in the 1872 Gentlemen v Players fixture, for the MCC on three occasions from 1877 to 1879 (and for their gentlemen's team in 1872), and for the Orleans Club against the touring Australians in 1878.[4] He also played first-class matches for Hampshire, having qualified to play for the county through residency (his father was a Reverend in Southsea, Hampshire).[3][7] However, he only made two appearances for Hampshire, against Derbyshire at Southampton in 1877 and Kent at Tunbridge Wells in 1878.[4] His overall tally of first-class wickets was 98 at an average of 14.44, with six five wicket hauls and three ten wicket hauls in a match.[5] Wisden described him as "one of the best amateur fast bowlers in England".[8]

Whilst at Cambridge, Powys studied law and was admitted to Lincoln's Inn in 1878, however he was not called to the bar. He instead went into business in Nottingham.[2] Owing to ill-health, Powys spent sometime in the United States on medical advice, but returned invalided. He died at Nottingham on 7 January 1892,[8] leaving behind a widow, Ada, whom he had married in March 1880.[2] His brother's, Arthur and Richard, also played first-class cricket, as did his uncle, Arthur Crichton.

References

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  1. ^ a b Lillywhite, Frederick (1879). Haygarth, Arthur (ed.). Frederick Lillywhite's Cricket scores and Biographies. Vol. 12. London: Longman. p. 105.
  2. ^ a b c d Venn, John Archibald (1944). Alumni Cantabrigienses. Vol. 5 (2 ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 179.
  3. ^ a b c d "Pavilion Gossip". Cricket. London. 28 January 1892. p. 9. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  4. ^ a b c "First-Class Matches played by Walter Powys". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  5. ^ a b "First-Class Bowling For Each Team by Walter Powys". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  6. ^ "First-Class Outstanding Bowling in an Innings on Debut". www.stats.acscricket.com. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  7. ^ Baildon, William Paley, ed. (1896). The Records of the Honorable Society of Lincoln's Inn. London: Lincoln's Inn.
  8. ^ a b "Wisden - Obituaries in 1892". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
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