Lionel Charlie Ramsbottom-Isherwood (13 April 1891 — 30 September 1970) was an English first-class cricketer and an officer in the British Army.

Lionel Isherwood
Personal information
Full name
Lionel Charlie Ramsbottom-Isherwood
Born(1891-04-13)13 April 1891
Southsea, Hampshire, England
Died30 September 1970(1970-09-30) (aged 79)
Merrow, Surrey, England
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm medium
RelationsFrancis Isherwood (uncle)
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1919-1923Hampshire
1923-1926/27Marylebone Cricket Club
1925-1927Sussex
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 60
Runs scored 1,529
Batting average 16.44
100s/50s –/6
Top score 75*
Balls bowled 60
Wickets 1
Bowling average 24.00
5 wickets in innings
10 wickets in match
Best bowling 1/16
Catches/stumpings 1/–
Source: Cricinfo, 12 December 2009

Military service and cricket career edit

The only son of Charles Edward Ramsbottom-Isherwood and his wife, Isabel, he was born at Southsea in April 1891. He was educated at Eton College,[1] and following the completion of his education he was commissioned as a probationary second lieutenant into the Royal Field Artillery in August 1910.[2] He was confirmed as a second lieutenant in September 1911,[3] prior to transferring to the 16th Lancers in 1912.[1] Isherwood served in the First World War with the 16th Lancers, being promoted to lieutenant in December 1914.[4] He was seconded to the staff in January 1918, at which point he was granted the temporary rank of captain.[5] He gained the full rank of captain after the war, in January 1920,[6] and was transferred as an adjutant into the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry in April 1920.[7] His appointment in the Yeomanry lasted until August 1922.[8]

Following the war, Isherwood played first-class cricket for Hampshire, making his debut against Gloucestershire at Bristol in the 1919 County Championship. He played first-class cricket for Hampshire until 1923, making 26 appearances, the majority (15) of which came in 1921.[9] In his 26 matches for Hampshire, he scored 627 runs at an average of 16.50; he made three half centuries, with a highest score of 61 not out.[10] In 1923, he also played two first-class matches for the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) against Oxford and Cambridge University's.[10] He joined Sussex in 1925,[11] making his debut against Leicestershire at Hove in the 1925 County Championship. He played for the county until 1927, making 28 appearances.[9] For Sussex, he scored 787 runs at an average of 16.74; he made three half centuries, with a highest score of 75 not out.[10] While playing for Sussex, Isherwood made a further four first-class appearances for the MCC against Argentina on their late 1926 winter tour of South America.[9] Overall in first-class cricket, he played 60 matches and scored 1,529 runs at an average of 16.44.[12] He was described by John Arlott as a "conscientious, careful batsman with limited strokes, but much patience".[13]

Isherwood would later serve in the Second World War as a war substantive major with the Royal Armoured Corps, until his retirement in November 1945, shortly after the end of the war. Upon his retirement, he was granted the honorary rank of lieutenant colonel.[14] Isherwood died in September 1970 at Merrow, Surrey.[15] His uncle was the first-class criketer and rugby union international Francis Isherwood.

References edit

  1. ^ a b Eton College Register 1899–1909. Vol. 7. Eton: Spottiswoode & Co. 1922. p. 183.
  2. ^ "No. 28406". The London Gazette. 12 August 1910. p. 5873.
  3. ^ "No. 28545". The London Gazette. 27 October 1911. p. 7797.
  4. ^ "No. 29001". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 December 1914. p. 10554.
  5. ^ "No. 30490". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 January 1918. p. 1160.
  6. ^ "No. 31752". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 January 1920. p. 1056.
  7. ^ "No. 31866". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 April 1920. p. 4449.
  8. ^ "No. 32745". The London Gazette. 8 September 1922. p. 6513.
  9. ^ a b c "First-Class Matches played by Lionel Isherwood". CricketArchive. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  10. ^ a b c "First-Class Batting and Fielding For Each Team by Lionel Isherwood". CricketArchive. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  11. ^ "Cricket". West Sussex Gazette. Arundel. 7 May 1925. p. 10. Retrieved 14 February 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  12. ^ "Player profile: Lionel Isherwood". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  13. ^ "A–Z (I1)". www.hampshirecrickethistory.wordpress.com. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  14. ^ "No. 37341". The London Gazette (Supplement). 6 November 1945. p. 5464.
  15. ^ "Wisden –– Obituaries in 1970". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 14 February 2024.

External links edit