Richard Newland

Richard Newland ( 11 September 1713 – February 1778) was an English cricketer of the mid-Georgian period who played for Slindon and Sussex under the patronage of Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond. He also represented various England teams and, in some matches, led his own select team. The eldest of three cricketing brothers, he is generally recognised as one of cricket's greatest early players and has been called a pioneer of the sport.

Newland is cricket's earliest known left-handed batter. He is remembered as a great all-rounder who was proclaimed "The Champion" in a famous poem by James Love. Despite his fame, nothing is known of his bowling arm, style or pace except that he used an underarm action. The actual length of Newland's career is unknown and has been the subject of speculation by some writers, but there were 21 senior matches between 1743 and 1751 in which he definitely appeared: 14 eleven-a-side and seven under single wicket rules. In 1745, he made a score of 88 which is the highest individual innings on record until the 1760s.

Newland was an uncle of Richard Nyren, who became captain of Hambledon in the 1760s and 1770s. Newland is said to have been his nephew's mentor. In 1900, the historian F. S. Ashley-Cooper included Newland among his choice of four outstanding 18th-century players, along with John Frame, David Harris, and John Small.

Family and background Richard Newland was born in 1713 (the parish record reads, born and baptised September 11, 1713 ) at Slindon, Sussex. His parents were Richard Newland Sr of Slindon and Elizabeth Newland (née Hammond) of Eartham, Sussex. They married in 1704 and had ten children, five brothers and five sisters, all born in Slindon. Newland Sr was a yeoman farmer and Richard Jr became one too. Two of Newland's brothers, John (1717–1800/1804) and Adam (born 1719), also became well-known cricketers. She was married to Richard Nyren at Binsted on 4 January 1732/33. John Newland, brother to Richard, was baptised at Slindon on 27 July 1717.

Newland's history has been complicated by the existence of a namesake surgeon who became his brother-in-law after he, the cricketer, married the surgeon's sister Mary. The cricketer's dates have been confirmed as 1713–1778

1742–1743 Newland was an all-rounder who batted left-handed and he is the earliest known left-handed player in cricket's history. His bowling arm, style and pace are unknown except, like all bowlers of the time, he used the underarm method of delivery with the ball bowled all along the ground. There is no surviving report of the second match except for the result but Ashley-Cooper in a brief description of Slindon says it was most famous for its cricket, "its chief players being the Messrs. Newland – Adam, John and Richard – and Cuddy". Kent won by 2 runs. The London Evening Post estimated a crowd of 10,000. A return match was arranged at Sevenoaks Vine on 27 July, but "it did not come off". London, whose team included given men, was the host club and their opponents were all from the counties of Surrey and Sussex. The visitors batted first and scored 102. London replied with 79, so Surrey and Sussex had a first innings lead of 23. In their second innings, Surrey and Sussex reached 102/6 and then apparently declared their innings closed, although the Laws of Cricket did not allow for declarations in 1744. In the final innings, London needed 126 to win but were all out for 70. Newland was out without scoring in both innings. The scorecard was kept by the 2nd Duke of Richmond at Goodwood House.

Two weeks later, Newland played for England against Kent at the Artillery Ground. The match was commemorated in Cricket, An Heroic Poem (1745) by James Love. Newland, who excelled in both the single wicket and eleven-a-side variants, was proclaimed "The Champion" by Love. Kent captain Lord John Sackville is reported to have held a remarkable catch in the second innings to dismiss Newland, who made the top two scores in the match with 18* and 15. Sackville's catch may have been the defining moment of the match, which Kent won by one wicket after Cutbush and Hodsoll managed to score the remaining few runs with nine wickets down.

On 10 September, the London club hosted a match against Slindon at the Artillery Ground. Play continued into the next day and, after winning the match by an unknown margin, Slindon issued a challenge to play "any parish in England" and received immediate acceptances from the Addington and Bromley clubs. These matches were arranged to take place at the Artillery Ground over the next few days and it is known that Slindon v Addington began on 12 September. It was impacted by bad weather and Slindon led by two runs at the close of play. There are no surviving reports of play on the 13th. Slindon's match against Bromley was scheduled for 14 September, but there is no record of it having taken place. Newland and Aburrow are known to have played for Slindon against both London and Addington. Newland had played for England against Kent in two eleven-a-side matches at the Artillery Ground on 31 August and at Bromley Common on 2 September.

Later years and death Newland's last known appearances were in May 1751, the year after Colchin and then Richmond had died. He played in two matches for England against Kent and was on the winning team both times, in the first by 9 runs and in the second by an innings and 9 runs. Now 38, it seems that, like Sussex cricket in general after the death of Richmond, Newland faded from the scene and returned to his family's farm. He coached his nephew Richard Nyren and taught him how to play cricket. This was Newland's legacy to the sport for Nyren went on to captain the Hambledon Club's teams to great success in the 1760s and 1770s.

Writing in 1900, Ashley-Cooper asserted in his introduction to At the Sign of the Wicket: The transcription of his burial at Slindon does give the date as 3 February 1778. His brother-in-law, the surgeon, died in 1791 and is commemorated by a plaque inside the church.