James Southerton (16 November 1827 – 16 June 1880) was a professional

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 s ...

er who 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 ...

between 1854 and 1879. After a slow start, he became, along with

Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw (29 August 1842 – 16 January 1907) was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings (5/35). He made two trips to North Ameri ...

, the greatest slow bowler of the 1870s. He played in the first Test match and remains the oldest player to make their debut in

Test cricket Test cricket is a form of first-class cricket played at international level between teams representing full member countries of the International Cricket Council (ICC). A match consists of four innings (two per team) and is scheduled to last f ...

Early career

Southerton began his cricketing life during the 1850s as a batsman for

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the Englis ...

. In 1861, Southerton was engaged at

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers ...

and resided at the

Antelope Ground The Antelope Ground, Southampton was a sports ground that was the first home of both Hampshire County Cricket Club, who played there prior to 1884, and of Southampton Football Club, who played there from 1887 to 1896 as "Southampton St. Mary' ...

until 1867. During this period Southerton, operating in a period before regulations prevented anyone playing for more than one county in the same season, played for both

and

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

. It was not until 1865 that Southerton developed the slow bowling for which he was to gain belated fame and set many records. At a time when bowling was mainly fast round-arm, Southerton's slower speed with its deceptive flight and sharp break was a challenge for batsmen that they did not adapt to easily. Southerton had much more than spin and flight, however. He was able to vary his pace and pitch very well, often deceiving batsmen by bowling a ball outside the off stump Grace, William Gilbert (21 June 1890) Forty Years of Cricket, ''

The Sydney Mail ''The Sydney Mail'' was an Australian magazine published weekly in Sydney. It was the weekly edition of ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' newspaper and ran from 1860 to 1938. History ''The Sydney Mail'' was first published on 17 July 1860 by Jo ...

''. which turned on the under-prepared pitches of his time viciously into the right-handed batsmen. Southerton typically would then bowl a faster, straighter ball as a contrast, and was exceptionally strong at knowing which ball would be most difficult for each individual batsman. Like Lancashire's Alec Watson, who was often called "the Southerton of the North", the fairness of Southerton's delivery was sometimes called into question. Upon leaving Southampton, Southerton played for

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

as well as Sussex and Hampshire, and with more cricket to play because of Surrey's longer programme, became the most successful bowler in England. Playing only for Surrey and Sussex in 1868, Southerton was the leading wicket-taker in England with 151 wickets, aided by an exceptionally hot summer and very bad pitches even for the era. Two years later Southerton became the first bowler to reach 200 wickets in a first-class season, and played in as many as twenty-seven of only forty-nine first-class matches played during the year.First Class Bowling in Each Season
/ref> During this period it was said that Southerton was the one bowler able to defeat or even contain the brilliant batting of

W. G. Grace William Gilbert Grace (18 July 1848 – 23 October 1915) was an English amateur cricketer who was important in the development of the sport and is widely considered one of its greatest players. He played first-class cricket for a record-equ ...

. He continued as a leading bowler between 1871 and 1875, including taking 16 wickets for 52 runs in a day for the South against the North on a sticky wicket on 17 May 1875.

Test debut and later career

Although Southerton declined somewhat in the 1876 season with 28 fewer wickets than the previous year, he toured Australia as part of

James Lillywhite James Lillywhite (23 February 1842 – 25 October 1929) was an English Test cricketer and an umpire. He was the first ever captain of the English cricket team in a Test match, captaining two Tests against Australia in 1876–77, losing the fir ...

's side the following winter. This led to him playing in the first-ever Test matches. Southerton was 49 years 119 days old when he made his Test debut, making him the oldest ever Test debutant. Southerton made his Test debut on 15 March 1877, breaking the dominant partnership of

Charles Bannerman Charles Bannerman (3 July 1851 – 20 August 1930) was an English-born Australian cricketer. A right-handed batsman, he represented Australia in three Test matches between 1877 and 1879. At the domestic level, he played for the New South Wale ...

and Bransby Cooper. Age was clearly catching up with Southerton, and the following season saw him fail to reach 100 first-class wickets for the first time since 1866. He played his final matches in 1879 and became the first Test cricketer to die when he succumbed after a short attack of

pleurisy Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity ( pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant dull ache. Other s ...

just ten months after he had retired from cricket. Outside of cricket, Southerton was the landlord of the ''Cricketers'' Hotel at

Mitcham Cricket Green Mitcham Cricket Green is a cricket ground in Mitcham, south London (historically in Surrey). It is the home of Mitcham Cricket Club and is reportedly the oldest cricket ground still in use, having been used for cricket since 1685. ''Note'': the ...

, southwest

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

.Lazenby, John (2015) ''The strangers who came home''. Bloomsbury: London. .

Bibliography

Gault, Adrian. ''James Southerton: The Man of Many Counties''. London: Mitcham Cricket Club, 2020.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Southerton, James 1827 births 1880 deaths England Test cricketers English cricketers Hampshire cricketers Surrey cricketers Sussex cricketers Players cricketers North v South cricketers United South of England Eleven cricketers People from Petworth Surrey Club cricketers Married v Single cricketers Players of the South cricketers New All England Eleven cricketers