Herbert Wilson Gardner (15 January 1852 — 5 December 1924) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

first-class

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

er and solicitor. The son of James Gardner, he was born at

Rugeley Rugeley ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Cannock Chase District in Staffordshire, England. It lies on the north-eastern edge of Cannock Chase next to the River Trent; it is situated north of Lichfield, south-east of Stafford, n ...

in January 1852. He was educated at

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. ...

, where he played for the school cricket team and was coached by

Alfred Diver Alfred John Day Diver (6 July 1823 – 25 March 1876) was an English first-class cricketer whose career spanned the 1843 season to the 1866 season. Diver played mainly for Cambridge Town Club (''aka'' Cambridgeshire) and also played for Mid ...

. He was described by ''

Wisden ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "bible of cricket" was first used in the 1930s by Alec Waugh in a ...

'' during his time at Rugby as a batsman who "hit well and scored fast, and was a very good field at cover-point". He also played

rackets Racket may refer to: * Racket (crime), a systematised element of organized crime ** Protection racket, a scheme whereby a group provides protection to businesses or other groups through violence outside the sanction of the law * Racket (sports equ ...

for the school, winning the Public Schools Rackets Challenge Cup in 1870 alongside Thomas Pearson. After completing his education, Gardner was admitted as a solicitor in 1876 and practiced in Rugeley. He later played

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officia ...

for the

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influenc ...

(MCC) against

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the Un ...

in 1882. Batting twice in the match, he was dismissed for a single run in the MCC first innings by Edward Shaw, while in their second innings he was

run out Run out is a method of dismissal in cricket, governed by Law 38 of the Laws of Cricket. A run out usually occurs when the batsmen are attempting to run between the wickets, and the fielding team succeed in getting the ball to one wicket bef ...

for the same score. Besides playing first-class cricket, Gardner also played minor matches for Staffordshire until 1895, but did not feature in any of their eight matches in their debut season in the Minor Counties Championship. He was an elected member of the Lichfield Rural District Council.Deaths. '' The Sentinel''. 6 December 1924. p. 2 Gardner died in December 1924 at Armitage, Staffordshire.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gardner, Herbert 1852 births 1924 deaths People from Rugeley People educated at Rugby School English solicitors English cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Cricketers from Staffordshire