John McIlwraith (7 September 1857 – 5 July 1938) was an Australian cricketer who played in one Test match in 1886.[1]
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| Full name | John McIlwraith | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 7 September 1857 Collingwood, Melbourne, Colony of Victoria | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 5 July 1938 (aged 80) Camberwell, Melbourne, Victoria | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Only Test (cap 43) | 12 August 1886 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: Cricinfo, 28 April 2019 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Early life and business career
editJack McIlwraith was the son of John McIlwraith, the co-founder of the McIlwraith McEacharn shipping company and Mayor of Melbourne in 1873–74,[2] and the nephew of Thomas McIlwraith, who was several times Premier of Queensland. Jack was educated at Scotch College, Melbourne.[3] He worked with McIlwraith McEacharn, managing the Melbourne office while still in his twenties, and later became a director.[4][3] He was also involved with the company's lead-manufacturing concern.[5]
Cricket career
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McIlwraith played for Melbourne Cricket Club, scoring more than 1500 runs in the 1883–84 season.[6] He was selected to play for Victoria in 1884–85.[3] He was the outstanding batsman in the short Australian first-class season in 1885–86, scoring 315 runs at an average of 78.75, with two centuries; only one other batsman scored a century, and the next most successful batsman made 201 runs.[7] He made his highest first-class score of 133 in the first match of the season, an innings victory for Victoria over New South Wales.[8]
He toured England in 1886 with the Australian team, but was only moderately successful in a team that lost all three Tests. He was handicapped on English pitches by the lack of a sound defence, and made only 520 runs at an average of 16.25.[9] He improved towards the end of the tour and played in the Third Test, but scored only 2 and 7 in an innings defeat.[3][10] He continued playing for Victoria until 1889, when he retired to concentrate on the family business.[9]
McIlwraith was also a leading Australian rules footballer for Melbourne in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) during the 1880s.[11]
Personal life
editMcIlwraith married Florence Edith Osborn in June 1885.[12] When he died on 5 July 1938 he left no family, his wife and only daughter having pre-deceased him.[5]
References
edit- ^ "Obituaries in 1939". Wisden. 2 December 2005. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ Hone, J. Ann. "McIlwraith, John (1828–1902)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Jack McIlwraith Passes: Was Fine Batsman". Sporting Globe: 13. 13 July 1938.
- ^ "Mr. John McIlwraith". Cricket: 113–14. 13 May 1886.
- ^ a b "Mr. John McIlwraith". The Argus. Melbourne: 2. 8 July 1938.
- ^ "John McIlwraith". Cricinfo. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ "First-class Batting and Fielding in Australia for 1885/86". CricketArchive. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ "Victoria v New South Wales, 1885/86". Cricinfo. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
- ^ a b The Oxford Companion to Australian Cricket, Oxford, Melbourne, 1996, p. 352.
- ^ "3rd Test, Australia tour of England at London, Aug 12-14 1886". Cricinfo. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ Atkinson, p. 182.
- ^ "Marriages". The Australasian: 3. 27 June 1885.
External links
editSources
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- Atkinson, G. (1982) Everything you ever wanted to know about Australian rules football but couldn't be bothered asking, The Five Mile Press: Melbourne. ISBN 0 86788 009 0