Albert Moss (cricketer)
Encyclopedia
Albert E Moss was a cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....

: a fast bowler who had a short first-class
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...

 career of just four games, all in 1889-90, but who nevertheless holds a unique record: he is the only man to have taken all ten wickets in an innings in an 11-a-side match on his first-class debut.

Albert Edward Moss was born on 3 October 1863 in Hugglescote, Coalville, where his family lived at 32 Station Street. Moss moved to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 after his father succumbed to tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...

, hoping to avoid sharing his fate. He made his debut for Canterbury against Wellington at Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...

 on 27 December 1889, and the following day took 10-28 in 21.3 six-ball overs as Wellington were dismissed for 71; he also claimed three wickets in the second innings as Canterbury won by 33 runs. His first-innings achievement remains (as of 2007) the only instance of ten wickets in an innings in New Zealand.

Moss took such pride in his achievement, especially as the ball was mounted with a plaque and presented to him by his cricket club, Lancaster Park C.C.

He took thirteen wickets in his next three matches between January and March 1890, and shortly afterwards stood for the only time as an umpire
Umpire (cricket)
In cricket, an umpire is a person who has the authority to make judgements on the cricket field, according to the Laws of Cricket...

. Albert Moss was tried in the Supreme Court, Christchurch in August 1891, for wounding his wife with intent to murder. He was found not guilty on the grounds of insanity and remanded to Lyttelton Prison, "till the pleasure of the Colonial Secretary is known". He was released in early 1896 on condition that he did not contact his wife again and was deported to Rio de Janeiro.
Hoping to redeem himself, he went first to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

 and then to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

, working for the Salvation Army
The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....

 in Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...

. By chance, his wife read an article about his work in the Salvation Army magazine, The War Cry, and, after returning the ball to him, herself went to South Africa and re-married him.

Moss died in South Africa at the age of 92, after which the ball was given to Lancaster Park, the home of the Canterbury club. It is now looked after by the Salvation Army, but an agreement has been made for it to be displayed at Lancaster Park on special occasions, such as the 125th anniversary of the Canterbury Cricket Association in 2002.

External links

  • Statistical summary from CricketArchive
    CricketArchive
    CricketArchive is a website that aims to provide a comprehensive archive of records relating to the sport of cricket. It claims to be the most comprehensive cricket database on the internet, including scorecards for all matches of first-class cricket , List A cricket , Women's Test cricket and...

  • Historic Canterbury artefact centrepiece of 125th jubilee from Cricinfo
    Cricinfo
    ESPNcricinfo is believed to be the largest cricket-related website on the World Wide Web. Content includes news,articles, live scorecards,live text commentary and a comprehensive and searchable database called 'StatsGuru', of historical matches and players from the 18th century to the present...

    , 8 March 2002
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