Published: May 09, 2017, 11:04 AM (IST)
Edited: May 09, 2017, 12:33 PM (IST)
The Northampton Mercury issue of August 18, 1741 gives some details of a cricket match played at Cow Meadow between Gentlemen of Northamptonshire and the Gentlemen of Buckinghamshire for a purse of 20 guineas a side. This game, and another played on August 10 at Woburn Park between Bedfordshire XI and a combined Northants and Huntingdonshire XI (but not widely reported in the contemporary media), are believed to be the earliest recorded cricket matches in the region. Around this time, Northants was predominantly a rural county where agriculture was given prime importance in preference to sports and pastimes. Not much of cricket was played in the early summer, the month of May usually being utilised for the sowing of seeds, and many of the early games of cricket were played in county estates like Althorp and Burghley.
A semblance of proper organisation began to appear in Northants cricket in the year 1820 with the formation of the Northampton Town XI, comprising a motley group of cricket enthusiasts from all walks of life, who could boast of their own pitch on the Racecourse. It was not a very inspired choice of location for a cricket pitch, being frequently used to graze cattle, and scores of 50 or above were very few and far between. Surprisingly, many of these games were played over two innings.
An event of historical importance for Northants cricket occurred at the conclusion of a meeting held at the George Hotel, Kettering, on July 31, 1878, that resulted in the official formation of the Northants County Cricket Club (which was, in reality, just an extension of the Northampton Town Club, also known as the Nene Club, formed in 1820). A local cricket club, St. Michael’s CC, was formed in 1879. In 1882, Northamptonshire CCC began playing some evening games against the local clubs that included St. Michael’s.
The County Agricultural Show of September 1885 resulted in major damage to the playing area of the Racecourse. Local clubs met in February 1886 and adopted a Resolution to appeal to the Town Council to improve the status of the area set aside for cricket, with a suggestion that the heavy roller be employed for the purpose. In the mid-1890s Northants CCC began to find their feet and success in the Minor Counties Championship. Between 1900 and 1904 the bowling abilities of such stalwarts as George Thompson and ‘Billy’ East convinced the club authorities that it was time for a step up in the hierarchy of county cricket.
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Northants CCC applied for First-Class status in 1904 and the request was granted in 1905. The big day for the Club was May 18, 1905, when they began their debut First-Class Championship game against Hampshire CCC at Southampton. The match was drawn. Northants CCC had now finally arrived at, and been accepted in, the higher echelons of cricket in England.
Charles James Tomlin Pool (to give him his full name) was born January 21, 1876 at Northampton. He attended Northampton Grammar School. A newsletter released from St Michael’s Club, Northampton reveals the interesting information that, in an unusual departure from the norms of the times, young Charlie was mentored and home-coached in the basics of cricket by his mother, an avid and accomplished sportswoman in her time. Indeed, so effective was the lady’s training that young Pool began playing League cricket as a schoolboy from the tender age of 13. The archives have him turning out for Northants in the last fixture of 1893 — a ‘minor’ game against Buckinghamshire at High Wycombe, aged 17, and still very much a schoolboy, and scoring 20 and 4 and taking a catch in the field.
Pool made an emphatic mark, both for himself and for his county, in his debut Minor Counties Championship match against Durham at Northampton in 1896. From reports appearing in the contemporary press it is learnt that this match also happened to be the Minor Counties Championship debut for Northants as a team.
Northants batted first. Pool walked out at 18 for 1 and scored 157, his maiden century in senior cricket, in 210 minutes with 20 fours, a three, and 11 twos. It was the first century for Northants in the Minor Counties Championship. It set a new personal record for the tournament surpassing the 153 scored by JW Welford for Durham against Staffordshire at Stoke-on-Trent in 1895. Northamptonshire won their inaugural Minor Counties match by an innings and 56 runs, a big event for them and a positive boost for their cricket.
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Pool played a total of 36 matches for Northants in the Minor Counties Championship from 1896 to 1904. As stated above, Northants had been elevated to First-Class status from 1905. Pool made his First-Class debut playing for Northants against Sussex at Hove that year. He top-scored in each innings with 91 and 42.
Between 1905 and 1910, Pool played 94 First-Class games scoring 4,350 runs. His highest score was 166, and he averaged 25.43 in the days of uncovered and underprepared wickets. He had 4 centuries and 20 fifties.
At the turn of the century, Pool had briefly moved to the warmth of the Australian climate for health reasons. While in Australia, he had been offered the opportunity to turn out for the touring 1901-02 English team under Archie MacLaren against a local up-country side, but he had declined, citing health reasons. He was back in England by 1905 and played for Northants from their inaugural First-Class match onwards.
In 1905 Northants were playing Hampshire at Hove. Opening batting, Pool scored 110 in the second innings, the first for Northants in First-Class cricket. He also achieved the rare honour of having scored the maiden century for Northants in both Minor Counties Championship and County Championship, an indelible record if ever there was one.
He scored 166 against Worcestershire at New Road next year after Northants followed on. It remained his highest First-Class score. This is how a reporter had described his batting style in one of the contemporary journals: “There is no more delightful sight to our cricket loving crowds here in Northampton than watching the slim and athletic form of Mr CJT Pool at the wickets, gathering runs as easy as blackberries.” With his stylish handlebar moustache, his cravat and his boater, he had been described by the local press as being representative of the archetypal dashing Edwardian English gentleman, tall and slim and graceful of manner. In his batting, “he blended a strong defence, a slashing off-drive, a crisp cut and even stronger leg side strokes in a free and easy style that made run-getting look easy. When he was in form there was no better way of spending an afternoon than watching him bat.”
For all his panache and grace at the batting crease, however, the name of Charles Pool will forever be linked with one very inglorious record for his team in County Championship cricket. The events unfolded at the Spa Ground, Gloucester in 1907 when Gloucestershire took on Northants.
Gloucestershire batted first, being dismissed for a low total of 60. Any joy there may have been in the Northants camp was soon extinguished as they were dismissed for 12 in only 11.3 overs, the lowest total ever in Championship cricket till date.
This is how the innings progressed (well, perhaps ‘progressed’ is not a fitting description in this context):
1/6 Edmund Crosse* (4) — 2.6 overs
2/10 Charles Pool (4) — 6.1 overs
3/11 Mark Cox (2) — 8.1 overs
4/11 Lancelot Driffield 0) — 8.2 overs
5/11 George Thompson (0) — 8.4 overs
6/11 Roger Hawtin (0) —10.3 overs
7/11 William East (0) —10.4 overs
8/12 Walter Buswell† (1) — 10.6 overs
9/12 Robert Beasley (1) — 11.1 overs
10/12 William Wells (0) — 11.3 overs
The not out batsman was Sidney King (0)
George Dennett took 8 for 9 as the last 9 Northants wickets fell for only 2. The home team scored 88 in the second innings, and Jupiter Pluvius spared Northants the ignominy of outright defeat after they had been reduced to 40 for 7 in 30 overs in their second innings.
Although he had never felt the need to experience wedded bliss, Pool was reputed to have been a ladies’ man. There is a story, apocryphal perhaps, of an incident that had taken place during the Minor Counties days of Pool. It seems that during an ‘away’ game, he had requested permission from his skipper Tom Horton to stay with an aunt, promising to take an early morning train back so as not to miss the fixture. The skipper had agreed on those terms. However, as the saying goes, Pool had spent the night with one of his lady friends. As luck would have it, Northants had lost the toss and had to field first. Pool had arrived late to the ground, and “in a puff” after a frantic drive in a horse-drawn carriage. He had dashed to the dressing-room, changed and run on to the field full of profuse apologies to the skipper. Horton was then reputed to have turned to him and said, very calmly, “Oh, that’s all right, Charlie. You’ve not been picked for this game!”
Apart from his 664 runs from his 9 games for Northants at an average of 36.88 in 1905, he scored in excess of 700 runs for the remaining five seasons. He captained Northants in 8 matches from 1907 to 1910.
Pool’s first experience as skipper of the team was when he deputised for Horton in the game against Lancashire at Old Trafford in 1907. It was not an enjoyable experience for him as he was dismissed for a duck in his only innings. In the return game at Northampton later that season he did better, scoring 74 and 24. Pool’s only century as team leader came against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge in 1909 when he scored 117.
He accepted a coaching job for the Northants juniors after quitting in 1910. He was promoted to chief coach of the senior team in 1911. He also obtained a license to run the County Hotel, now known as County Tavern, right beside the County Ground on Abington Avenue. He also played hockey of a fairly high standard, captaining Northants in the sport. He continued to play local club cricket till well into his fifties, and for MCC, for whom he scored 3 centuries in 1925. He spent some time in North Wales where he bred Great Danes and relaxed by fishing and shooting, later moving on to Sussex to continue with club cricket.
Charles Pool passed away on October 13, 1954 at Epsom, Surrey, aged almost 79. To commemorate his pioneering achievements for Northants, a bequest from his brother was used for the erection of ‘The Pool Gates’ at the Wantage Road entrance to the County Ground in 1959.
