Thomas Rawson Barker (9 April 1812 – 26 April 1873) was an English

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 ...

er, whose career spanned the 1833 to 1849 seasons. He was an amateur who appeared in only nine matches due to his business commitments. He played for

Sheffield Cricket Club The Sheffield Cricket Club was founded in the 18th century and soon began to play a key role in the development of cricket in northern England. It was the direct forerunner of Yorkshire County Cricket Club and some of the teams fielded by Sheffi ...

, whose team was sometimes called Yorkshire, and for other clubs in the county. Barker was born in Bakewell, Derbyshire. He was a right-handed

batsman In cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the cricket ball, ball with a cricket bat, bat to score runs (cricket), runs and prevent the dismissal (cricket), loss of one's wicket. Any player who is currently batting is, since Septembe ...

and a left-arm medium pace bowler using the roundarm style. He appeared in what is sometimes called the inaugural Yorkshire first-class match at the

Hyde Park Ground Hyde Park was a cricket ground in Sheffield on a site now used for high-rise community flats. It took the name of fields that occupied the area in the early 19th century. Hyde Park was used for important matches between 1830 and 1854. It opene ...

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

, in 1833 against

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

, although at this time Yorkshire was still the Sheffield Club. In doing so, he became the first non-Yorkshire born player to play first-class cricket for a team called Yorkshire. Barker played in nine first-class matches from 1833 to 1849, scoring 121 runs at 11 with a top score of 37, and taking 38

wicket In cricket, the term wicket has several meanings: * It is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch. The fielding team's players can hit the wicket with the ball in a number of ways to get a batsman out. ...

s at an estimated 7.93, with a best analysis of five for 11. A lead merchant in Sheffield, Barker served as mayor of the city and, when the

Yorkshire County Cricket Club Yorkshire County Cricket Club is one of 18 first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Yorkshire. Yorkshire are the most successful team in English cricketing hi ...

was formed in 1863, he was briefly its first President before handing over to Michael Ellison. He died in Sheffield, aged 61, in 1873.

References

1812 births 1873 deaths English cricketers English cricketers of 1826 to 1863 Sportspeople from Bakewell Cricketers from Derbyshire Sheffield Cricket Club cricketers Presidents of Yorkshire County Cricket Club {{England-cricket-bio-1810s-stub