Frank Tarrant
Encyclopedia
Frank TarrantFrank Tarrant (in full Francis Alfred Tarrant (Melbourne
, Australia
, 11 December 1880 – 29 January 1951 in Melbourne) was an Australian all-rounder
who played with great success for Middlesex in the County Championship
in the years before World War I
.
His record is sufficient to establish Tarrant as one of the best cricketer
s never to play a Test match
, though he could never be considered after his move to Middlesex in 1903 according to the rules of the time, for he moved back and forth to play occasionally with Victoria.
Tarrant first played for Victoria in 1898/1899, and met with little success either as a batsman or a bowler then or in 1900/1901.
However, he moved to England in 1903 to join the Lord's ground staff and played a number of matches for the MCC
whilse qualifying for Middlesex. In these, he showed himself developing into a left-arm spinner
of above average pace but with nothing beyond steadiness when pitches did not help him. In 1904, he showed development as a solid right-handed batsman, and in 1905, when fully qualified, he was a valuable aid to Middlesex. his superb batting on a difficult pitch to draw the game with Essex at Leyton showed he was a player of exceptional resolution during the most difficult crisis.
In 1906, while his bowling was impotent on the rock-hard wickets prevailing in the Home Counties
for most of the season, Tarrant was unplayable on rain-affected pitches at Old Trafford
and in Yorkshire, and he scored 1000 runs for the first time.
1907 saw Tarrant take a leap into cricket's elite, with his batting, at least for three months, marking him as a player of remarkable patience even if he failed to use all the strokes he was capable of playing. Though he lacked sting when pitches were hard, on rain-affected pitches Tarrant could turn the ball extremely quickly from a perfect length. This was seen at its clearest when he took nine for 59 against Nottinghamshire at Lord's - some of the batsmen said they "had never seen a finer piece of bowling". For the whole season Tarrant took 183 wickets for 15.70 each and scored 1552 runs with an average of 32.
That winter, Tarrant returned to Australia and in six matches scored 762 runs for an average of 76, including 159 against the touring MCC team and 206 against New South Wales at the SCG. Between 1908 and 1914, he was always one of the best all-rounders in the game - a safe catcher, a skilful opening batsman (who formed with Pelham Warner one of the best opening partnerships in the game), and a deadly bowler when the wicket was helpful and steady when it did not. His batting also grew beyond the purely defensive as he developed his on-side strokes - so much that against Surrey
at Lord's in 1911 he scored 89 in seventy minutes when Middlesex wanted quick runs for a declaration. That year he achieved the rare feat of scoring 2000 runs and taking 100 wickets, and carried his bat for 207 against Yorkshire. His performance of taking 16 for 176 followed by 101 not out against Lancashire in 1914 remains one of the greatest all-round feats in county cricket. That same year, he scored a brilliant 250 not out at Leyton after Johnny Douglas
had put Middlesex in to bat on a rain-affected pitch. As he scored 200 against Worcestershire in the following match, he accomplished the remarkable feat of scoring two successive double-hundreds. With J.W. Hearne
he forged a partnership that, almost single-handed, allowed Middlesex to come second to Surrey.
During the war, Tarrant played in India, and his bowling was unplayable on the matting wickets against weak batting. In 1918/1919 he achieved the incredible feat of scoring a century and taking all ten wickets in an innings.
Tarrant continued to organise touring teams to India after the war, and only played rarely outside India. However, he managed to make 78 in one match as late as 1936/1937, when he was fifty-seven, and he umpired
England's first two Tests on Indian soil, as well as several other MCC matches on that tour. Tarrant and his son Louis stood together in the match between MCC and Southern Punjab, which provides one of the few instances when a father and son umpired in a match.http://www.cricketarchive.co.uk/Archive/Scorecards/14/14863.html
On 26th August 1909, Playing for Middlesex against Gloucestershire, Tarrant Did the Double by taking a Hat-trick
and carrying his bat in the same, he is the only Cricketer to Do sohttp://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/8/8008.html
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, 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...
, 11 December 1880 – 29 January 1951 in Melbourne) was an Australian all-rounder
All-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a few batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are considered specialists...
who played with great success for Middlesex in the County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
in the years before World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
His record is sufficient to establish Tarrant as one of the best 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"....
s never to play a Test match
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
, though he could never be considered after his move to Middlesex in 1903 according to the rules of the time, for he moved back and forth to play occasionally with Victoria.
Tarrant first played for Victoria in 1898/1899, and met with little success either as a batsman or a bowler then or in 1900/1901.
However, he moved to England in 1903 to join the Lord's ground staff and played a number of matches for the MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
whilse qualifying for Middlesex. In these, he showed himself developing into 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...
of above average pace but with nothing beyond steadiness when pitches did not help him. In 1904, he showed development as a solid right-handed batsman, and in 1905, when fully qualified, he was a valuable aid to Middlesex. his superb batting on a difficult pitch to draw the game with Essex at Leyton showed he was a player of exceptional resolution during the most difficult crisis.
In 1906, while his bowling was impotent on the rock-hard wickets prevailing in the Home Counties
Home Counties
The home counties is a term which refers to the counties of South East England and the East of England which border London, but do not include the capital city itself...
for most of the season, Tarrant was unplayable on rain-affected pitches 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...
and in Yorkshire, and he scored 1000 runs for the first time.
1907 saw Tarrant take a leap into cricket's elite, with his batting, at least for three months, marking him as a player of remarkable patience even if he failed to use all the strokes he was capable of playing. Though he lacked sting when pitches were hard, on rain-affected pitches Tarrant could turn the ball extremely quickly from a perfect length. This was seen at its clearest when he took nine for 59 against Nottinghamshire at Lord's - some of the batsmen said they "had never seen a finer piece of bowling". For the whole season Tarrant took 183 wickets for 15.70 each and scored 1552 runs with an average of 32.
That winter, Tarrant returned to Australia and in six matches scored 762 runs for an average of 76, including 159 against the touring MCC team and 206 against New South Wales at the SCG. Between 1908 and 1914, he was always one of the best all-rounders in the game - a safe catcher, a skilful opening batsman (who formed with Pelham Warner one of the best opening partnerships in the game), and a deadly bowler when the wicket was helpful and steady when it did not. His batting also grew beyond the purely defensive as he developed his on-side strokes - so much that against Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
at Lord's in 1911 he scored 89 in seventy minutes when Middlesex wanted quick runs for a declaration. That year he achieved the rare feat of scoring 2000 runs and taking 100 wickets, and carried his bat for 207 against Yorkshire. His performance of taking 16 for 176 followed by 101 not out against Lancashire in 1914 remains one of the greatest all-round feats in county cricket. That same year, he scored a brilliant 250 not out at Leyton after Johnny Douglas
Johnny Douglas
John "Johnny" William Henry Tyler Douglas was a cricketer who was captain of the England team and an Olympic boxer.-Early life:...
had put Middlesex in to bat on a rain-affected pitch. As he scored 200 against Worcestershire in the following match, he accomplished the remarkable feat of scoring two successive double-hundreds. With J.W. Hearne
Jack Hearne (John William Hearne)
John William Hearne was a Middlesex leg-spinning all-rounder cricketer who played from 1909 to 1936, and represented England in 24 Test matches between 1911 and 1926.A skilful right-handed batsman, Hearne was...
he forged a partnership that, almost single-handed, allowed Middlesex to come second to Surrey.
During the war, Tarrant played in India, and his bowling was unplayable on the matting wickets against weak batting. In 1918/1919 he achieved the incredible feat of scoring a century and taking all ten wickets in an innings.
Tarrant continued to organise touring teams to India after the war, and only played rarely outside India. However, he managed to make 78 in one match as late as 1936/1937, when he was fifty-seven, and he umpired
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...
England's first two Tests on Indian soil, as well as several other MCC matches on that tour. Tarrant and his son Louis stood together in the match between MCC and Southern Punjab, which provides one of the few instances when a father and son umpired in a match.http://www.cricketarchive.co.uk/Archive/Scorecards/14/14863.html
On 26th August 1909, Playing for Middlesex against Gloucestershire, Tarrant Did the Double by taking a Hat-trick
Hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick in sport is the achievement of a positive feat three times during a game, or other achievements based on threes. The term was first used in 1858 in cricket to describe HH Stephenson's feat of taking three wickets in three balls. A collection was held for Stephenson, and he...
and carrying his bat in the same, he is the only Cricketer to Do sohttp://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/8/8008.html