James Redfearn (c. 1836 – 10 March 1916) was an Australian
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 striki ...
er and race-horse trainer. He played one
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 officiall ...
match for Victoria during the 1862–63 season and one in New Zealand for
Otago
Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...
in 1863–64.
Redfearn was born in
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
in February 1863James Redfearn CricketArchive. Retrieved 14 December 2023. before captaining Otago to victory over
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour.
...
in 1863–64 in the first first-class match played in New Zealand. In the extremely low-scoring match, his innings of 14 and 13 made him the second-highest scorer on either side and he was described by '' Wisden'' after his death as a "good bat and very powerful hitter" who was also "good in the field".
Later Redfearn was a prominent trainer and breeder of race-horses in Victoria. After running stables in Ararat,
Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...
, and then Williamstown, he set up an establishment next to Melbourne's
Caulfield Racecourse
Caulfield Racecourse Reserve is located nine kilometres from the Melbourne CBD, on the boundary of Caulfield and Caulfield East in Melbourne's south eastern suburbs. The Reserve was set aside for three purposes, racing, recreation and a publi ...
in 1888, and lived in nearby
Glen Huntly
Glen Huntly is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 11 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District,Melbourne Cup in 1891; his son George was the jockey.
Redfearn married Elspeth Denham in the Victorian town of
Streatham
Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth.
Streatham was in Surrey ...
in October 1865. He died in Glen Huntly in March 1916, aged 79.