Major Booth
Encyclopedia
This page is about an English Cricketer. For other persons named William Booth, see William Booth (disambiguation)
.
Major William Booth (10 December 1886 in Lowtown, Pudsey
, Yorkshire
, England
– 1 July 1916 near La Cigny, France
) was a cricket
er who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club
between 1908
and 1914
, a season in which he was named one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year
.
Note that "Major" was a given name, not a military rank. His international career was restricted to playing for England
in the 1913-14 tour of South Africa
, which was the last Test match
tour before the First World War. After receiving a commission in the West Yorkshire Regiment, Booth became Second Lieutenant
Major Booth, and died just under a year later when he went over the top on the trenches on 1 July 1916, the first day of the Somme offensive.
, and later he was associated with Pudsey St. Lawrence and the Wath Athletic Club, which played in the Mexborough League, and of which he was captain. He appeared regularly for Yorkshire 2nd XI in 1907 and two following seasons, and in 1908 received his first trial for the County. He did not, however, secure a regular place in the team until two years later, but in 1911 he scored 1,125 runs for his county and took seventy-four wickets, with a highest innings of 210 against Worcestershire
on the Worcester ground. He increased his reputation as a bowler in the following summer, and in 1913 made over a thousand runs and took 158 wickets of Yorkshire, his aggregate of 181 wickets in first-class matches being the highest of any bowler that season. In 1914 he was not so successful in batting, but he obtained 141 wickets for Yorkshire at a cost of 18 runs apiece. Although a fine punishing batsman, Booth's claim to fame will rest chiefly upon what he accomplished as a bowler. Possessed of a free, natural action, he made the ball come quickly off the pitch. On occasion his off-break was quite formidable, but his strong points were swerve and pace off the ground.
In two consecutive matches in August, 1914, he and Drake bowled unchanged throughout, Gloucestershire being dismissed for 94 and 84 at Bristol and Somerset
for 44 and 90 at Weston-super-Mare. In the second innings of the latter match Booth had the very rare experience of bowling throughout without obtaining a wicket, Drake taking all 10 for 35 runs.
In 1913 Booth was chosen for the Players at Lord's, and during 1913-14 toured South Africa with MCC's team under Douglas' captaincy. His doings abroad were somewhat disappointing, and so strong was the side that he was left out of three of the Test matches. In the 144 games in which he appeared for Yorkshire he scored 4,213 runs with an average of 22.65 and obtained 556 wickets for 18.89 runs each. Tall of stature, good-looking, and of engaging address, Booth was a very popular figure both on and off the cricket field. Booth was brought up at Town End House near the Britannia Inn at Pudsey. He was the best man at Roy Kilner's wedding and the latter named a son after him. There is a memorial tablet in St Lawrence Church in memory of him.
Booth joined the British Army
and was commissioned as a second lieutenant
on 16 July 1915, having initially been a serjeant
. He first served in Egypt
from 22 December 1915 before being shipped to the Western Front.
On 1 July 1916 he went "over the top" near La Cigny on the Somme
while serving with the 15th (Service) Battalion, The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own), also known as "The Leeds Pals". He was followed a short while later by another wave of soldiers among whom was Abe Waddington
(later also Yorkshire and England). Waddington was hit and found himself in a shell hole with Booth and held him until he died. Booth's body then remained there until the spring, when he was buried at Serre Road No 1 Cemetery.
William Booth (disambiguation)
William or Bill Booth may refer to:In Christianity:*William Booth , British Methodist preacher*William Booth , British clergyman*William Booth , Archbishop of York...
.
Major William Booth (10 December 1886 in Lowtown, Pudsey
Pudsey
Pudsey is a market town in West Yorkshire, England. Once an independent town, it was incorporated into the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds in 1974, and is located midway between Bradford and Leeds city centres. It has a population of 32,391....
, 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...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
– 1 July 1916 near La Cigny, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) was a 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 who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club
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....
between 1908
1908 English cricket season
The 1908 English cricket season was the year in which American John Barton "Bart" King topped the bowling averages as a member of the touring Philadelphian cricket team.-Honours:*County Championship - Yorkshire...
and 1914
1914 English cricket season
The 1914 English cricket season was called off at the end of August because of the outbreak of the First World War. The last four matches to be played all finished on 2 September and the remaining five scheduled fixtures were cancelled....
, a season in which he was named one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year
Wisden Cricketers of the Year
The Wisden Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season"...
.
Note that "Major" was a given name, not a military rank. His international career was restricted to playing for 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...
in the 1913-14 tour of South Africa
English cricket team in South Africa in 1913-14
The English cricket team in South Africa in 1913-14 was organised by Marylebone Cricket Club . The team played as MCC in the non-Test fixtures and as England in the five Test matches. They played 18 first-class matches including the Tests, winning 9 times with 8 draws and 1 defeat .England was...
, which was the last 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...
tour before the First World War. After receiving a commission in the West Yorkshire Regiment, Booth became Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
Major Booth, and died just under a year later when he went over the top on the trenches on 1 July 1916, the first day of the Somme offensive.
Overview
His earliest cricket was played at Fulneck schoolFulneck School
Fulneck school is a small, independent boarding school, situated in the Fulneck Moravian Settlement, in Pudsey, West Yorkshire, England. It provides education for pupils between the ages of 3 and 18.-History:...
, and later he was associated with Pudsey St. Lawrence and the Wath Athletic Club, which played in the Mexborough League, and of which he was captain. He appeared regularly for Yorkshire 2nd XI in 1907 and two following seasons, and in 1908 received his first trial for the County. He did not, however, secure a regular place in the team until two years later, but in 1911 he scored 1,125 runs for his county and took seventy-four wickets, with a highest innings of 210 against Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire 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 Worcestershire...
on the Worcester ground. He increased his reputation as a bowler in the following summer, and in 1913 made over a thousand runs and took 158 wickets of Yorkshire, his aggregate of 181 wickets in first-class matches being the highest of any bowler that season. In 1914 he was not so successful in batting, but he obtained 141 wickets for Yorkshire at a cost of 18 runs apiece. Although a fine punishing batsman, Booth's claim to fame will rest chiefly upon what he accomplished as a bowler. Possessed of a free, natural action, he made the ball come quickly off the pitch. On occasion his off-break was quite formidable, but his strong points were swerve and pace off the ground.
Notable feats
His best feats with the ball may be summarised thus:- 8 in inns. for 52, Yorkshire v. Leicestershire, at Sheffield 1912
- 8 in inns. for 47, Yorkshire v. Middlesex, at Leeds 1912
- 8 in inns. for 86, Yorkshire v. Middlesex, at Sheffield: 1913
- 7 in inns. for 21, Yorkshire v. MCC and Ground, at Lord's 1914
- 8 in inns. for 64, Yorkshire v. Essex, at Leyton 1914
- 14 in match for 160, Yorkshire v. Essex, at Leyton 1914
- 3 wkts in 3 balls, Yorkshire v. Worcestershire, at Bardford 1911
- 3 wkts in 3 balls Yorkshire v. Essex, at Leyton 1912
- 3 wkts in 4 balls Yorkshire v. Warwickshire, at Sheffield 1913
- 3 wkts in 4 balls Yorkshire v. MCC and Ground, at Lord's 1914
- 3 wkts in 4 balls Yorkshire v. Kent, at Sheffield 1914
In two consecutive matches in August, 1914, he and Drake bowled unchanged throughout, Gloucestershire being dismissed for 94 and 84 at Bristol and 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...
for 44 and 90 at Weston-super-Mare. In the second innings of the latter match Booth had the very rare experience of bowling throughout without obtaining a wicket, Drake taking all 10 for 35 runs.
In 1913 Booth was chosen for the Players at Lord's, and during 1913-14 toured South Africa with MCC's team under Douglas' captaincy. His doings abroad were somewhat disappointing, and so strong was the side that he was left out of three of the Test matches. In the 144 games in which he appeared for Yorkshire he scored 4,213 runs with an average of 22.65 and obtained 556 wickets for 18.89 runs each. Tall of stature, good-looking, and of engaging address, Booth was a very popular figure both on and off the cricket field. Booth was brought up at Town End House near the Britannia Inn at Pudsey. He was the best man at Roy Kilner's wedding and the latter named a son after him. There is a memorial tablet in St Lawrence Church in memory of him.
Army service
In World War IWorld 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...
Booth joined the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
and was commissioned as a second lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
on 16 July 1915, having initially been a serjeant
Sergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
. He first served in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
from 22 December 1915 before being shipped to the Western Front.
On 1 July 1916 he went "over the top" near La Cigny on the Somme
Somme
Somme is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Picardy region of France....
while serving with the 15th (Service) Battalion, The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own), also known as "The Leeds Pals". He was followed a short while later by another wave of soldiers among whom was Abe Waddington
Abe Waddington
Abraham "Abe" Waddington, sometimes known as Abram Waddington , was a professional cricketer for Yorkshire, who played in two Test matches for England against Australia in 1920–21. Between 1919 and 1927 Waddington made 255 appearances for Yorkshire, and in all first-class cricket played in 266...
(later also Yorkshire and England). Waddington was hit and found himself in a shell hole with Booth and held him until he died. Booth's body then remained there until the spring, when he was buried at Serre Road No 1 Cemetery.