Robert Ramsay (cricketer)
Encyclopedia
Robert Christian Ramsay (20 December 1861 – 25 June 1957) was an amateur cricketer who played for Cambridge University
and Somerset
in the early 1880s.
, Gloucestershire
on 20 December 1861 as the second son of Robert Ramsay and Susan née Lindsay Carnegie. He attended Ipswich Grammar School
in Queensland
, Australia until the family moved to England in 1874. He then attended Elstree School
and Harrow School
. At Harrow, he played for the school's cricket team, alongside his older brother Francis Ramsay. In 1879, the brothers combined to take seventeen of Eton College
's twenty wickets, of which Robert claimed six in the first innings and four in the second.
Ramsay followed his older brother to Trinity Hall
, Cambridge University, and in his first year played in the freshmen's trial match, in which he claimed six wickets, five of them in the first innings. He played one first-class
match for the university that summer, bowling ten overs
without taking a wicket against Yorkshire
. He also played five second-class matches during 1881, all for Somerset County Cricket Club
. His best performance for Somerset during that time was against Kent
, against whom he claimed six first innings' wickets.
The following year at Cambridge, Ramsay played nine first-class matches for the university, and gained his blue. His first match in the summer of 1882 was played for the university against the Marylebone Cricket Club
(MCC), a match which Cambridge won by 189, aided by the strong bowling of Ramsay, who claimed 13 wickets and conceded just 49 runs, a performance bettered for the university only nine times. Later in the summer he claimed eight wickets against Lancashire
, and then picked up 12 wickets against the touring Australians, collecting five wickets in the first innings and seven in the second, albeit more expensively than in the match against the MCC. He was less prolific against Lancashire at Old Trafford, during a match played in such cold weather that catches were hard to hold. Bill Roe said that during this match, Lancashire's number eleven
, George Nash
was dropped off every ball of an over bowled by Ramsay, before Roe himself caught the professional off the first ball of the following over. Ramsay was selected to play for the "Gentlemen of England" against the touring Australians, and claimed three wickets in a match which the Australians won by an innings. In the University match
against Oxford
, Ramsay was largely ineffective, taking two wickets from his 52 overs, during which he conceded 91 runs. Cambridge won the match by seven wickets, thanks primarily to the brothers; Charles
and George Studd
.
Cambridge University Cricket Club
Cambridge University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team. It now plays all but one of its first-class cricket matches as part of the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence , which includes Anglia Ruskin University...
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...
in the early 1880s.
Life and career
Robert Christian Ramsay was born in CheltenhamCheltenham
Cheltenham , also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a large spa town and borough in Gloucestershire, on the edge of the Cotswolds in the South-West region of England. It is the home of the flagship race of British steeplechase horse racing, the Gold Cup, the main event of the Cheltenham Festival held...
, Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
on 20 December 1861 as the second son of Robert Ramsay and Susan née Lindsay Carnegie. He attended Ipswich Grammar School
Ipswich Grammar School
Ipswich Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding school for boys, located in Ipswich, a city situated on the Bremer River in South East Queensland, Australia...
in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia until the family moved to England in 1874. He then attended Elstree School
Elstree School
Elstree School is an English preparatory school based in Woolhampton, near Reading in Berkshire.-1848-1938 in Elstree, Herts:As its name suggests, the school was originally founded in 1848 in Elstree, Hertfordshire, at Hill House on Elstree Hill, an 18th-century Grade II Listed Building...
and Harrow School
Harrow School
Harrow School, commonly known simply as "Harrow", is an English independent school for boys situated in the town of Harrow, in north-west London.. The school is of worldwide renown. There is some evidence that there has been a school on the site since 1243 but the Harrow School we know today was...
. At Harrow, he played for the school's cricket team, alongside his older brother Francis Ramsay. In 1879, the brothers combined to take seventeen of Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
's twenty wickets, of which Robert claimed six in the first innings and four in the second.
Ramsay followed his older brother to Trinity Hall
Trinity Hall, Cambridge
Trinity Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the fifth-oldest college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by William Bateman, Bishop of Norwich.- Foundation :...
, Cambridge University, and in his first year played in the freshmen's trial match, in which he claimed six wickets, five of them in the first innings. He played one 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...
match for the university that summer, bowling ten overs
Over (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, an over is a set of six consecutive balls bowled in succession. An over is normally bowled by a single bowler. However, in the event of injury preventing a bowler from completing an over, it is completed by a teammate....
without taking a wicket against Yorkshire
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....
. He also played five second-class matches during 1881, all for Somerset County Cricket Club
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...
. His best performance for Somerset during that time was against Kent
Kent County Cricket Club
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...
, against whom he claimed six first innings' wickets.
The following year at Cambridge, Ramsay played nine first-class matches for the university, and gained his blue. His first match in the summer of 1882 was played for the university against the Marylebone Cricket Club
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...
(MCC), a match which Cambridge won by 189, aided by the strong bowling of Ramsay, who claimed 13 wickets and conceded just 49 runs, a performance bettered for the university only nine times. Later in the summer he claimed eight wickets against Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
, and then picked up 12 wickets against the touring Australians, collecting five wickets in the first innings and seven in the second, albeit more expensively than in the match against the MCC. He was less prolific against Lancashire at Old Trafford, during a match played in such cold weather that catches were hard to hold. Bill Roe said that during this match, Lancashire's number eleven
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
, George Nash
George Nash (cricketer)
George Nash was an English professional cricketer during the 1880s. Nash played as a slow left-arm orthodox bowler for Lancashire, and later in Minor Counties cricket for his native Buckinghamshire.-Life and career:...
was dropped off every ball of an over bowled by Ramsay, before Roe himself caught the professional off the first ball of the following over. Ramsay was selected to play for the "Gentlemen of England" against the touring Australians, and claimed three wickets in a match which the Australians won by an innings. In the University match
The University Match (cricket)
The University Match in a cricketing context is generally understood to refer to the annual fixture between Oxford University Cricket Club and Cambridge University Cricket Club...
against Oxford
Oxford University Cricket Club
Oxford University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team, representing the University of Oxford. It plays its home games at the University Parks in Oxford, England...
, Ramsay was largely ineffective, taking two wickets from his 52 overs, during which he conceded 91 runs. Cambridge won the match by seven wickets, thanks primarily to the brothers; Charles
Charles Studd
Charles Thomas Studd, often known as C. T. Studd, was born 2 December 1860, Spratton, Northamptonshire, England, and died 16 July 1931, Ibambi, Belgian Congo....
and George Studd
George Studd
George Brown Studd - cricketer and missionary.Studd was the second eldest of the famous Studd brothers, who dominated English cricket in the late 19th century...
.