Bobby Peel
Encyclopedia
Robert "Bobby" Peel was a Yorkshire
and England
cricket
er: a left-arm spinner
who ranks as one of the finest bowlers of the 1890s. He was also a capable batsman, who once hit 210 not out (out of a record County Championship
total of 887 against Warwickshire). He was also first player in Test cricket history to have been dismissed
four times in succession without scoring (in 1894/1895).
, Yorkshire
, Peel emerged in first-class cricket
for Yorkshire in 1882, and quickly established himself as a skillful and accurate left-arm spin bowler with the ability to bowl a fast ball that obtained many wickets. He was consider good enough that, even though he was relatively inexperienced, Alfred Shaw
took him to Australia
in 1884/1885 where he appeared in all three Tests. He took 21 wickets but played disappointingly in the dry summer of 1885. Despite recovering his form, Peel did not play in the three 1886 Tests, but in 1887/1888 he played superbly at the Sydney Cricket Ground
, taking nine wickets for 58 runs
and being England's match-winner.
In the wet summer of 1888, Peel took 100 wickets for the first time and, on a series of sticky wickets, took 24 wickets for less than eight runs each in three Tests against Australia
, including 11 for 68 in the deciding match at Old Trafford
. He accomplished many bowling feats that year, including 8 for 12 and 6 for 21 against Nottinghamshire. This saw Peel named among the first batch of Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1889 (it was actually titled Six Great Bowlers Of The Year).
In the following years, Peel took over 100 wickets every year, except in 1891 when he took only 99. Peel equalled his 1888 haul of 171 wickets in 1890, and came close to a thousand runs in 1889 and 1891, scoring in the former year 158 against Middlesex
. However, owing to competition from bowlers such as Johnny Briggs
, Peel did not make consistent appearances in the England Test team playing in only one out of three Tests in both 1890 and 1893. Whilst his batting declined somewhat for a few seasons between 1892 and 1895, Peel headed the first-class bowling averages in 1893 and took a career-best 180 wickets in 1895, when after a slow start on much-improved wickets in very dry weather, his spin and guile made him almost unplayable when the weather broke up in July. His 15 for 50 against Somerset
and 10 for 59 against Gloucestershire
were both match-winning performances.
Meanwhile, Peel's bowling on generally very hard and true Australian pitches in the tour of 1894/1895 had seemed to cement his place as a successful slow bowler. Though this tour is best remembered for his then-record four successive ducks, Peel did bat well on a couple of other occasions during a close series.
The summer of 1896 saw Peel, aided by the improvement in pitches that occurred during the 1890s, develop as a batsman and hit three centuries. The pitches did nullify his spin and his average at one point was twice his 1895 average, but he was effective when rain-affected pitches returned.
However, in 1897, during a disappointing season, Peel's behaviour saw him disciplined by the Yorkshire club's committee over disagreements concerning pay, and other occasions when he had to be helped from the pitch. In August that year, at Bramhall Lane, Sheffield
, Peel had lunched well, and urinated on the pitch in front of the Yorkshire captain, Lord Hawke, who immediately banished Peel from the Yorkshire XI. He never played county cricket again. In fact, apart from two festival matches in 1897, and a match for AJ Webbe's XI and one at Truro for an England XI in 1899, he never played first-class cricket again. In 1898, he appeared for Church C.C. in the Lancashire League.
Hawke later stated about Peel, "he never bore me any malice".
Peel died in Leeds, on 12 August 1941, at the age of 84.
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
and England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er: a left-arm spinner
Left-arm orthodox spin
Left-arm orthodox spin is a type of bowling in the sport of cricket.Left-arm orthodox spin is bowled by a left arm bowler using the fingers to spin the ball from right to left of the cricket pitch...
who ranks as one of the finest bowlers of the 1890s. He was also a capable batsman, who once hit 210 not out (out of a record County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
total of 887 against Warwickshire). He was also first player in Test cricket history to have been dismissed
Dismissal (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a dismissal occurs when the batsman is out . Colloquially, the fielding team is also said to have snared, bagged or captured a wicket. At this point a batsman must discontinue batting and leave the field permanently for the innings...
four times in succession without scoring (in 1894/1895).
Life and career
Born in LeedsLeeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, Peel emerged in first-class cricket
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...
for Yorkshire in 1882, and quickly established himself as a skillful and accurate left-arm spin bowler with the ability to bowl a fast ball that obtained many wickets. He was consider good enough that, even though he was relatively inexperienced, Alfred Shaw
Alfred Shaw
Alfred Shaw was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings . He who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888...
took him to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1884/1885 where he appeared in all three Tests. He took 21 wickets but played disappointingly in the dry summer of 1885. Despite recovering his form, Peel did not play in the three 1886 Tests, but in 1887/1888 he played superbly at the Sydney Cricket Ground
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
, taking nine wickets for 58 runs
Run (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...
and being England's match-winner.
In the wet summer of 1888, Peel took 100 wickets for the first time and, on a series of sticky wickets, took 24 wickets for less than eight runs each in three Tests against Australia
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
, including 11 for 68 in the deciding match at Old Trafford
Old Trafford (cricket)
Old Trafford is a cricket ground situated on Talbot Road in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester. It has been the home of Lancashire County Cricket Club since its foundation in 1864, having been the ground of Manchester Cricket Club from 1857...
. He accomplished many bowling feats that year, including 8 for 12 and 6 for 21 against Nottinghamshire. This saw Peel named among the first batch of Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1889 (it was actually titled Six Great Bowlers Of The Year).
In the following years, Peel took over 100 wickets every year, except in 1891 when he took only 99. Peel equalled his 1888 haul of 171 wickets in 1890, and came close to a thousand runs in 1889 and 1891, scoring in the former year 158 against Middlesex
Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Middlesex. It was announced in February 2009 that Middlesex changed their limited overs name from the Middlesex Crusaders, to the...
. However, owing to competition from bowlers such as Johnny Briggs
Johnny Briggs (cricketer)
Johnny Briggs was a left arm spin bowler for Lancashire County Cricket Club between 1879 and 1900 who still stands as the second-highest wicket-taker in the county's history after Brian Statham...
, Peel did not make consistent appearances in the England Test team playing in only one out of three Tests in both 1890 and 1893. Whilst his batting declined somewhat for a few seasons between 1892 and 1895, Peel headed the first-class bowling averages in 1893 and took a career-best 180 wickets in 1895, when after a slow start on much-improved wickets in very dry weather, his spin and guile made him almost unplayable when the weather broke up in July. His 15 for 50 against Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
and 10 for 59 against Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
were both match-winning performances.
Meanwhile, Peel's bowling on generally very hard and true Australian pitches in the tour of 1894/1895 had seemed to cement his place as a successful slow bowler. Though this tour is best remembered for his then-record four successive ducks, Peel did bat well on a couple of other occasions during a close series.
The summer of 1896 saw Peel, aided by the improvement in pitches that occurred during the 1890s, develop as a batsman and hit three centuries. The pitches did nullify his spin and his average at one point was twice his 1895 average, but he was effective when rain-affected pitches returned.
However, in 1897, during a disappointing season, Peel's behaviour saw him disciplined by the Yorkshire club's committee over disagreements concerning pay, and other occasions when he had to be helped from the pitch. In August that year, at Bramhall Lane, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, Peel had lunched well, and urinated on the pitch in front of the Yorkshire captain, Lord Hawke, who immediately banished Peel from the Yorkshire XI. He never played county cricket again. In fact, apart from two festival matches in 1897, and a match for AJ Webbe's XI and one at Truro for an England XI in 1899, he never played first-class cricket again. In 1898, he appeared for Church C.C. in the Lancashire League.
Hawke later stated about Peel, "he never bore me any malice".
Peel died in Leeds, on 12 August 1941, at the age of 84.