Ralph Spencer (14 April 1861 – 23 August 1926) was an English 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 striki ...

er. The son of Micheal Spencer and his wife, Isabella, Spencer was born at Newburn in April 1861. He was educated at

Harrow School (The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) , established = (Royal Charter) , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , religion = Church of E ...

, before going up to

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...

. While studying at Cambridge he made his debut in first-class cricket for Cambridge University against an England XI at Fenner's in 1881. He played for Cambridge in the 1881 and 1882 seasons, making twelve appearances and gaining a blue in 1881. He scored a total of 181 runs across these matches, with a high score of 57. As a right-arm fast bowler, he took 19 wickets at an average of 24.26, with best figures of 3 for 19. He later

minor counties cricket The National Counties, known as the Minor Counties before 2020, are the cricketing counties of England and Wales that do not have first-class status. The game is administered by the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), which comes un ...

for Northumberland, making a single appearance in the 1899

Minor Counties Championship The NCCA 3 Day Championship (previously the Minor Counties Cricket Championship) is a season-long competition in England and Wales that is contested by the members of the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), the so-called national cou ...

against Durham at Jesmond. Outside of playing cricket, Spencer also played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

for Tyne Association, one of the earliest football clubs in the Newcastle area. His grandfather John Spencer had founded the Newburn Steelworks, which Spencer would serve as chairman during a period of decline in the companies fortunes. He died at Netherwitton Hall in August 1926. His great-uncle,

Walter Trevelyan Walter Blackett Trevelyan (18 March 1821 – 10 October 1894) was an English first-class cricketer and barrister. Life and legal career Trevelyan was born at Netherwitton Hall in Morpeth to Raleigh Trevelyan and Elizabeth Grey. He was ...

, was also a first-class cricketer.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer, Ralph 1861 births 1926 deaths People from Newburn Sportspeople from Newcastle upon Tyne (district) Cricketers from Tyne and Wear People educated at Harrow School Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge English men's footballers English cricketers Cambridge University cricketers Northumberland cricketers Men's association football players not categorized by position