James Southerton (16 November 1827 – 16 June 1880) was an English professional cricketer who played Test cricket for England in 1877, and first-class cricket between 1854 and 1879. His domestic career was spent largely with three counties: Hampshire, Surrey, and Sussex. He would sometimes play for multiple counties in a season, earning him the moniker the 'Man of Many Counties'. Having began his career as a batsman, it was not until later in his career that he developed into a formidable roundarm slowbowler, becoming the greatest slow bowler of the 1870s, alongside Alfred Shaw. He was the first man to take 200 first-class wickets in a season, a feat he achieved in 1870. In his first-class, he would take nearly 1,700 wickets from 286 matches, at an impressive bowling average of 14.43. Southerton toured toured Australia in 1876–77 with James Lillywhite's side, playing in the first-ever Test match to be played, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground against Australia. At 49 years and 119 days old when he made his Test debut, he remains as of 2024 the oldest Test debutant of all time; his Test career comprised the two Tests played on the 1876–77 tour, with Souterton taking 7 wickets.
Outside of playing, he stood intermittently as an umpire. For the last ten-years of his life, he was the landlord of The Cricketers public house in Mitcham. He became the first Test cricketer to die in June 1880, when he succumbed to a short attack of pleurisy.
Cricket
Early career
Southerton was born in Petworth in Sussex on 16 November 1827. His family moved from Petworth to Mitcham in Surrey when he was three months old.[1] By occupation a barber,[3] he made his debut in first-class cricket for Surrey against Sussex at Hove in 1854.[4] The following season he played twice for Surrey, against an All-England Eleven and Sussex. Two years would elapse before he next played for Surrey in 1857, against Manchester at Eccles.[4] Southerton departed from Surrey ahead of the 1858 season and was engaged by Sussex. He made four first-class appearances for Sussex during the 1858 season (alongside appearing for a combined Kent and Sussex team against Surrey),[4] but was forced to withdraw from their team due to over-exertion and other causes.[3] He returned in 1859 to play one match against the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) at Lord's.[4] For the first five years of his career, Southerton was engaged as a batsman, though he had little success and only averaged in double figures once.[5] It was not until 1860 that he began to develop as a right-arm slow roundarm bowler.
'Man of Many Counties'
Southerton would spend a further season with Sussex in 1860, making two appearances, alongside playing for the South in the North v South fixture at Sleaford.[4] In 1861, he was engaged by Hampshire at the Antelope Ground,[6] with him playing once in first-class cricket against the MCC that season.[4] He remained engaged with Hampshire in 1862, and although Hampshire did not play any major fixtures that year, Southerton still appeared in minor matches for the Union Club which was based in Southampton.[3] He remained engaged at the Antelope Ground in 1867, operating in a period before regulations prevented anyone playing for more than one county in the same season. Thus, during this period he played for both the newly formed Hampshire County Cricket Club and Sussex, having settled a dispute between himself and his native county which had prevented him from playing for them, and would return to play for Surrey in 1867;[3] this earned him the monicker 'The Man of Many Counties'.[1] He played six times for Sussex in 1863, and for both Hampshire and Sussex in 1864.[4]
It was while playing exclusively for Hampshire in 1865 and 1866 that his slow bowling, which was to bring him much fame, came to the fore. In the 1860s, the predominant bowling style of the time was mainly roundarm fast; Southerton's slower speed with its deceptive flight and sharp break was a challenge for batsmen that they did not adapt to easily. He bowled with a twisting action,[3] which generated much spin and flight, coupled with an ability to vary his pace and pitch, which had the effect of deceiving batsman.[7] When he bowled outside the off stump, the ball was able to turn viciously off the unprepared pitches of the time into right-handed batsmen. He added variation to his repertoire by bowling a faster, straighter ball as a contrast, and was exceptionally strong at knowing which ball would be most difficult for each individual batsman.[7] He played a large part in Hampshire's inaugural first-class victory against Surrey in 1865, taking 7 wickets for 45 runs.[8] Having taken 21 wickets from three matches in 1865 and 32 from four matches in 1866,[9] Southerton took 132 wickets in 1867 at an average of 14.14; he took nineteen five wicket hauls and ten-wickets in a match on five occasions across the season,[9] having been afforded greater playing opportunities by playing largely for Surrey in 1867, with Surrey having a busier playing programme compared to other counties.[10]
He departed the Antelope Ground ahead of the 1868 season, and played for both Surrey and Sussex in sixteen matches across that season, in addition to playing for the Players of the South against the Gentlemen of the South.[4] During the 1868 season, aided by an exceptionally hot summer, he became the most successful bowler in England,[11] taking 151 wickets at an average of 13.76.[9][12] The following season, in which Southerton played once again for both Surrey and Sussex, he took 136 wickets at an average of 15.30.[9] In 1870, he became the first bowler to reach 200 wickets in a first-class season,[13] and played in as many as 27 of only 49 first-class matches played during the entire year in England.[9] At the age of 42, he made his first appearance for the Players in the 1870 Gentlemen v Players match, which was considered the biggest match of the season.[3] During this period it was said that Southerton was the one bowler able to defeat or even contain the brilliant batting of W. G. Grace.[14] He continued as a leading bowler between 1871 and 1875, taking well over 100 wickets in each of those season.[9] He notably took 16 wickets for 52 runs in a day for the South against the North on a sticky wicket at Lord's on 17 May 1875, which included his career-best innings figures of 9 for 30 in the Souths first innings.[15] It was said that throughout the 1875 season, he 6,089 balls throughout the season, and for Surrey he did not bowl a single wide.[3]
Test cricket and later career
The English touring team in 1876. Southerton is seated second from left.
Southerton had previously been chosen to tour with a team captained by W. G. Grace in the winter which followed the 1873 season,[16] though none of the matches played during the tour were afforded first-class status. Southerton was critical of Grace's captaincy during the tour, labelling him a "damn bad captain".[17] Although his bowling returns had declined somewhat in the 1876 season, with 28 fewer wickets than the previous year (136 wickets),[9] he toured Australia as second-in-command of James Lillywhite's side the following winter.[18][19] After featuring in a first-class match against New South Wales, Southerton was chosen to play in the first-ever Test match, played between England and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).[20] Southerton was 49 years and 119 days old when he made his Test debut, making him the oldest ever Test debutant,[21] which is a record that is unlikely to be broken. On debut, he broke the partnership of Charles Bannerman and Bransby Cooper, on his way to claiming figures of 3 for 61 in the Australians first innings.[22] He played in the Second Test twelve days later, which was also played at the MCG.[20] He took 4 for 46 in the Australians second innings,[23] with England winning the match by four wickets to tie the series. These wickets bought his total Test tally to 7 wickets at an average of 15.28.[24] From there, Southerton departed with the tour to New Zealand, but no matches of status were played.
Returning home, age began to catch up with Southerton, and in the 1877 season he failed to take 100 first-class wickets in a season for the first time since 1866, though his average remained healthy.[9] This was to be the case in the 1878 and 1879 seasons, where he was afforded fewer playing opportunities with Surrey, though his bowling average remained consistently good.[9] In his latter years, his bowling was characterised as a "very slow deliberate throw",[25] and much like Lancashire'sAlec Watson, who was often called "the Southerton of the North", the fairness of Southerton's delivery was sometimes called into question.[7] However, he was never called for throwing by any umpire.[25] The 1879 season was to be his last, with Southerton retiring at the end of it having been provided with a benefit match during the North v South match at The Oval in July,[26] with the weather noted as being unfavourable for large periods of play.[27] Following his retirement, he was appointed superintendent of the bowlers at The Oval by Surrey.[28]
Career statistics
Southerton's first-class career spanned from 1854 to 1879. He began his career as a batsman, but found little in the way of success in this role, both prior to and after he became a skilled bowler. Haygarth noted that he was an attacking batsman,[3] while W. G. Grace wrote that Southerton seldom defended the ball, and was known to close his eyes when striking out.[7] In 286 first-class matches, he would score 3,159 runs at an average of 9.02; he did not score a century during his career, only passing fifty on three occasions, with a highest score of 82.[21] After a slow start as a bowler, he became, along with Alfred Shaw, the greatest slow bowler of the 1870s. As he progressed as a bowler, his arm at the point of release got higher and higher, so much so that his classification changed from a roundarm bowling to an overarm bowler.[2] Utilising the unprepared pitches of the era, across his career he took 1,682 wickets at an average of 14.43; he took 192 five wicket hauls and ten-wickets in a match on 59 occasions.[21] He had most success for Surrey, taking 995 wickets for the county. He also took 269 wickets for Sussex, in addition to 183 for the South.[29] His bowling average was significantly higher when playing in the Gentlemen v Players match.[29] He was noted to be a good fielder at slip,[28] and across he career he took 215 catches,[21] 109 of which came for Surrey.[30]
Umpiring
Southerton first stood as an umpire in first-class in the 1864 fixture between Surrey and the South of England. Nine years would elapse before he next stood, doing so in the 1873 Gentlemen v Players fixture. He would consistently stand in first-class cricket between 1877 and 1879, doing so on ten occasions.[31] W. G. Grace considered Southerton a "hazy" umpire, prone to errors. Grace recalled an incident during their 1873–74 Australia tour when Southerton was umpiring in a match played at Castlemaine, when he was caught by the fielder, who subsequently fell over the boundary rope. Southerton adjudged it Grace to be not out, claiming that the fielder had caught the ball well over the rope; Grace subsequently ran five runs, but Southerton only awarded one run, when the decision should have either resulted in Grace's dismissal, or the awarding of the five runs.[7]
Personal life and death
Southerton was married to Sarah Pratt. Outside of cricket, Southerton was the landlord of The Cricketers hotel at Mitcham Cricket Green,[32] having taken up residence there around 1870.[33] He was popular with the touring Australian teams, and would let them stay at The Cricketer while they trained on Mitcham Green.[32] He became the first Test cricketer to die when he succumbed after a short attack of pleurisy at his Mitcham residence on 16 June 1880, just ten months after he had retired from cricket.[28] He had become ill the night prior to the derby match between Surrey and Middlesex, catching a chill which had confined him to bed for several days. Having sufficiently recovered, he returned to duties at The Oval, but was beset by an attack of pleurisy shortly thereafter.[28] He was buried in the graveyard of Mitcham Parish Church, with his funeral attended by 118 professional and amateur cricketers from a variety of counties, who walked two-by-two in front of his coffin and lined the churchyard on either side to form a guard of honour.[33] Amongst the mourners were former contemporaries at Surrey and Mitcham, including C. W. Alcock, Edward Garland, Will Mortlock, William Shepherd, and John Swan. Several past and present cricketers acted as his pallbearers, amongst whom were Frederick Gale, Frederick Harwood, Richard Humphrey, Thomas Mantle, Tom Sewell, and Edgar Willsher.[34] Just over a year later, a memorial was erected over his grave through public subscription.[33] His son, Sydney James (1874–1935), was editor of the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack from 1934 to 1935.[35]
^"Funeral of Southerton". Bell’s Life in London and Sporting Chronicle. 26 June 1880. p. 9. Retrieved 13 November 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
