Frank Field, the Warwickshire fast bowler who partnered Frank Foster in the championship-winning side of 1911 and continued to lead the county attack until the war, was one of the underrated workhorses of the early 1910s — taking over 100 wickets in three consecutive seasons.
Field had been a Warwickshire pro since 1897. By 1910 he was the leading bowler in the county.
The 1911 championship season was the high point — Foster made the headlines as captain and all-rounder, but Field's wickets at the other end were essential.
Field was a Birmingham-born fast-medium bowler who had joined Warwickshire in 1897. By the early 1910s he was the senior partner in the county's seam attack, with the young Frank Foster as the new ball partner. In 1911, the year Warwickshire won their first County Championship, Field took 122 wickets at 18.95 — quietly outshone in the headlines by Foster's brilliance but vital to the side's success. He continued through 1912 and 1913 with similar workloads. By 1914 he was 39 and visibly slowing. He served briefly in the war and attempted a comeback in 1919, but his pace was gone. He retired at the end of that season. He stands here for the secondary tier of pre-war professionals — men whose careers were good without ever being great, who were the backbone of county cricket, and whose names are largely forgotten by anyone outside their own counties.
1911: 122 wickets; Warwickshire win championship
1912-1913: Continues as leading Warwickshire bowler
1914: Final pre-war season
1919: Brief comeback attempt fails
1897
Warwickshire debut
1911
122 wickets in championship year
1914
Final pre-war season
1919
Comeback attempt, retires
“Foster got the headlines, but Field got the wickets at the other end.”
Field retired in 1919 and worked in Birmingham coaching local cricket. He died in 1934.
A quiet workhorse fast bowler whose 122 wickets in 1911 made Warwickshire's championship possible.
Field is one of the forgotten foundation members of Warwickshire's first championship side. Edgbaston's pavilion has carried a quiet memorial to him for over fifty years.
Yorkshire v Essex
1932-06-16
On 15-16 June 1932 Herbert Sutcliffe (313) and Percy Holmes (224*) put on 555 for the first wicket against Essex at Leyton, breaking the world first-class record for any wicket and adding a layer of folklore — including a scoreboard that read 554 for several minutes and a hastily reversed declaration — that has clung to the partnership ever since.
Australia v England
1933-02-14
With the fate of the Bodyline series in the balance and England 216 for 6 chasing 340, Eddie Paynter checked himself out of a Brisbane hospital where he was being treated for acute tonsillitis, taxied to the Gabba in pyjamas and a dressing gown, and batted for nearly four hours to score 83. England drew level on first innings, won the Test by six wickets and the series 4-1.
Australia
1934-09-25
Days after the 1934 Oval Test, Bradman fell seriously ill with appendicitis that progressed to peritonitis. With antibiotics not yet available, he was given little chance of survival; his wife Jessie left Adelaide on a sea voyage to England prepared for the worst. He recovered after weeks of intensive nursing in a London nursing home and returned to first-class cricket the following Australian summer.