List of Sussex first-class cricketers to 1838

This is a list of cricketers who played for Sussex county cricket teams in first-class cricket matches before the formation of Sussex County Cricket Club in March 1839.

Cricket is generally believed to have originated out of children's bat and ball games in the areas of the Weald and North and South Downs in Kent and Sussex. The two counties and Surrey were the first centres of the game, and matches played by teams using the name Sussex are found as early as 1734. Matches by the side have been considered first-class from 1815, although Brighton Cricket Club played seven first-class matches between 1791 and 1814 and are sometimes considered to be representative of Sussex during this period.

Sussex sides played 58 matches which are considered first-class before Sussex County Cricket Club was founded in March 1839, the first county cricket club to be formed in England. A Sussex Cricket Fund had been established at Brighton in 1836 and this led to the formation of the county club three years later. The club played its first first-class match later the same year, with MCC the opponents at Lord's.

This list includes those who played for Sussex sides in matches which have been given first-class status before the 1839 season. Many players appeared for other teams, but only those who played for Sussex sides have been included here.

Contents

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
See also
References
Notes

A

B

C

D

E

Etherington

F

G

H

J

K

L

M

N

J. Napper

O

George Osbaldeston

P

R

C. Roots

S

T

U

May Upton

V

Philip Vallance

W

Notes

Before this date matches had been played between teams organised by Sussex patrons such as the Duke of Richmond or William Gage against teams organised by patrons from other counties, including Kent, Middlesex and Surrey.
Six of these matches were played in 1791 and 1792 with the last played in 1814. There is no detailed scorecard available for the 1814 match but it has still be classified as first-class.
More complete scorecards for cricket matches only reliably exist from 1772 and this is considered the date from which matches can be classified as first-class.
Ayling played three first-class matches for Sussex, one in 1825 against a Hampshire side and two in 1826, both against combined Hampshire and Surrey sides. He scored a total of 21 runs with a highest score of eight not out. Other than a surname and initial no biographical details are known. A William Ayling, who was born at Cocking in Sussex in 1766, played in 22 first-class matches between 1800 and 1810 and died in October 1826 aged 59 or 60, but there is no known relationship between the men.

References

Underdown, p. 4.
Early Cricket (Pre 1799), International Cricket Council. Retrieved 2018-03-24.
A brief history of cricket, CricInfo. Retrieved 2018-05-31.
McCann, p. xxx.
^ McCann, p. lxiii.
Miscellaneous-class matches played by Sussex (pre county club), CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
^ Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians (1981) A Guide to Important Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles 1709–1863, p. 15. Nottingham: Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. (Available online. Retrieved 2022-04-02.)
First-class matches played by Brighton (Sussex), CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians (1982) A Guide to First Class Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles, second edition, pp. 4–5. Nottingham: Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. (Available online. Retrieved 2022-04-02.)
Birley, p. 65.
^ A brief history of Susses, CricInfo. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
First-class matches played by Sussex, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
19th Century Cricket, International Cricket Council. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
W Ayling, CricInfo. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
W Ayling, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2024-06-16. (subscription required)
Carlaw, pp. 33–34.

Bibliography

Birley D (1999) A Social History of English Cricket. London: Aurum Press. ISBN 978 1 78131 1769
Carlaw D (2020) Kent County Cricketers A to Z. Part One: 1806–1914 (revised edition). (Available online at the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 2020-12-21.)
McCann TJ ed (2004) Sussex cricket in the eighteenth century. Lewes: Sussex Record Society. (Available online at Hathi Trust via the University of Michigan. Retrieved 2024-06-16.)</ref>
Underdown D (2000) Start of Play: Cricket and Culture in Eighteenth-Century England. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-7139-9330-1

Sussex County Cricket Club

Sussex Women

Players

Grounds

Current grounds

Previous grounds

v t e Lists of English cricketers
National men	Test ODI T20I
National women	Test ODI T20I
Current first-class counties	Derbyshire Durham Essex Glamorgan Gloucestershire Hampshire Kent Lancashire Leicestershire Middlesex Northamptonshire Nottinghamshire Somerset Surrey Sussex Warwickshire Worcestershire Yorkshire
Current women's regional teams	Central Sparks Northern Diamonds North West Thunder South East Stars Southern Vipers Sunrisers The Blaze Western Storm
The Hundred teams	Birmingham Phoenix London Spirit Manchester Originals Northern Superchargers Oval Invincibles Southern Brave Trent Rockets Welsh Fire
Marylebone Cricket Club	1787–1826 1827–1863 1864–1894 1895–1914 1919–1939 1946–1977 1978–
Gentlemen v Players	Gentlemen (1806–1840) Gentlemen (1841–1962) Players (1806–1840) Players (1841–1962)
Former first-class universities	British Universities Cambridge UCCE & MCCU Cambridge University Cardiff MCCU Combined Universities Durham UCCE & MCCU Leeds/Bradford MCCU Loughborough MCCU Oxford UCCE & MCCU Oxford University Oxford and Cambridge Universities
Former first-class teams	A. J. Webbe's XI Berkshire and Oldfield British Army Cambridge Town/Cambridgeshire Combined Services D. H. Robins' XI Essex Gentlemen of Kent Hampshire H. D. G. Leveson-Gower's XI I Zingari Kent London County Manchester Norfolk Nottingham Oxford University Authentics Royal Air Force Royal Navy Sheffield Suffolk Surrey Sussex W. G. Grace's XI
Minor counties	Bedfordshire Berkshire Buckinghamshire Cambridgeshire Cheshire Cornwall Cumberland Devon Dorset Herefordshire Hertfordshire Huntingdonshire Lincolnshire Minor Counties Minor Counties East Minor Counties North Minor Counties South Minor Counties West Norfolk Northumberland Oxfordshire Shropshire Staffordshire Suffolk Unicorns Wales Minor Counties Wiltshire
County cricket boards	Derbyshire CB Durham CB Essex CB Gloucs CB Hampshire CB Kent CB Lancashire CB Leicestershire CB Middlesex CB Northants CB Notts CB Somerset CB Surrey CB Sussex CB Warwickshire CB Worcestershire CB Yorkshire CB
Former women's regional teams	Lancashire Thunder Loughborough Lightning Surrey Stars Yorkshire Diamonds
Players by era	to 1771 1772–1786 1787–1825 1826–1840 1841–1850 1851–1860 1861–1870 1871–1880
Birthplace	Players born abroad

Categories:

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D

E

F

G

H

J

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M

N

O

P

R

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T

U

V

W

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography