John Wood (cricketer)
Encyclopedia
John Wood was an English cricket
er who played for Kent
. His career began in the 1760s before first-class statistics
began to be recorded and his known first-class career spans the 1772 to 1783 seasons.
He has often been confused with his namesake
who played for Surrey
at the same time. Although Wood is credited with 12 first-class appearances by CricketArchive, there are only 10 which can definitely be attributed to him. Using the data in Scores and Biographies, there were 12 matches in which a player known only as "Wood" took part, with Wood of Surrey specifically recorded in 13.
According to John Nyren
, Wood of Kent was a "change bowler who was tall, stout, bony and a very good general player". According to H T Waghorn
, he suffered a serious knee injury in 1773 and there were fears of amputation being necessary. However, he was playing again in 1774 so things cannot have been as bad as they first seemed.
The first time a John Wood is mentioned in the sources is when one plays for Caterham
against Hambledon
in 1769. This was probably the Surrey-based player. In the same season, a player called Wood played for the Duke of Dorset
's XI against Wrotham in the minor match that featured John Minshull
's century. Given Dorset's strong Kent connection, this was probably John Wood of Kent.
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 who played for Kent
Kent county cricket teams
Kent county cricket teams have been traced back to the 17th century but the county's involvement in cricket goes back much further than that. Kent, jointly with Sussex, is the birthplace of the sport...
. His career began in the 1760s before first-class statistics
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...
began to be recorded and his known first-class career spans the 1772 to 1783 seasons.
He has often been confused with his namesake
John Wood (Surrey cricketer, born 1744)
For the 18th century Kent cricketer, please see John Wood For the former Durham CCC cricketer, please see John Wood ...
who played for Surrey
Surrey county cricket teams
Surrey county cricket teams have been traced back to the 17th century but the county's involvement in cricket goes back much further than that. The first definite mention of cricket anywhere in the world is dated c.1550 in Guildford.-17th century:...
at the same time. Although Wood is credited with 12 first-class appearances by CricketArchive, there are only 10 which can definitely be attributed to him. Using the data in Scores and Biographies, there were 12 matches in which a player known only as "Wood" took part, with Wood of Surrey specifically recorded in 13.
According to John Nyren
John Nyren
John Nyren was an English cricketer and author. Nyren made 16 known appearances in first-class cricket from 1787 to 1817...
, Wood of Kent was a "change bowler who was tall, stout, bony and a very good general player". According to H T Waghorn
H T Waghorn
Henry Thomas Waghorn , was a cricket statistician and historian. He is best known for his two classic researches into cricket's early history: The Dawn of Cricket and Cricket Scores: 1730 - 1773....
, he suffered a serious knee injury in 1773 and there were fears of amputation being necessary. However, he was playing again in 1774 so things cannot have been as bad as they first seemed.
The first time a John Wood is mentioned in the sources is when one plays for Caterham
Caterham Cricket Club
Caterham Cricket Club was based at Caterham, Surrey. Caterham at this time was effectively representative of Surrey as a county. Its home venue was on Caterham Common...
against Hambledon
Hambledon Club
The Hambledon Club was a social club that is famous for its organisation of 18th century cricket matches. By the late 1770s it was the foremost cricket club in England.-Foundation:...
in 1769. This was probably the Surrey-based player. In the same season, a player called Wood played for the Duke of Dorset
John Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset
John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset was the only son of Lord John Philip Sackville, second son of Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset. He succeeded to the dukedom in 1769 on the death of his uncle, Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset...
's XI against Wrotham in the minor match that featured John Minshull
John Minshull
John Minshull aka Minchin was a famous English cricketer during the 1770s...
's century. Given Dorset's strong Kent connection, this was probably John Wood of Kent.