Vivian Edward Purcell (18 May 1882 – 23 April 1954) was an English first-class cricketer and an officer in the British Army.

Vivian Purcell
Personal information
Full name
Vivian Edward Purcell
Born18 May 1882
Ipswich, Suffolk, England
Died23 April 1954(1954-04-23) (aged 71)
Hove, Sussex, England
BattingUnknown
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1911/12Europeans
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 1
Runs scored 29
Batting average 29.00
100s/50s –/–
Top score 29*
Catches/stumpings –/–
Source: Cricinfo, 8 December 2023

The son of Colonel H. M. Purcell, he was born at Ipswich in May 1882. Purcell was educated at Wellington College,[1] before attending the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, from where he graduated into the Royal Engineers (RE) as a second lieutenant in July 1901.[2] Promotion to lieutenant followed in April 1904,[3] with a further promotion to captain coming in January 1912.[4] While in serving in British India, Purcell made a single appearance in first-class cricket for the Europeans cricket team against the Parsees at Bombay in the 1911–12 Bombay Triangular Tournament.[5] Batting twice in the match, he was dismissed without scoring by Maneksha Bulsara, while in their second innings he top-scored with an unbeaten 29 in the Europeans total of 85 all out.[6]

Purcell served in the RE during the First World War, during which he gained promotion to major in November 1916.[7] Eight years after the end of the war, he was placed on the half-pay list on account of ill-health,[8] prior to retiring in October 1928.[9] Purcell died at Hove in April 1954.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^ Bevir, Joseph Louis; Strangways, Arthur Henry Fox (1923). Wellington College Register, 1859-1923. Hunt. p. 217.
  2. ^ "No. 27348". The London Gazette. 23 August 1901. p. 5590.
  3. ^ "No. 27698". The London Gazette. 22 July 1904. p. 4760.
  4. ^ "No. 28575". The London Gazette. 26 January 1912. p. 642.
  5. ^ "First-Class Matches played by Vivian Purcell". CricketArchive. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  6. ^ "Europeans v Parsees, Bombay Triangular Tournament 1911/12 (Final)". CricketArchive. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  7. ^ "No. 29833". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 November 1916. p. 11388.
  8. ^ "No. 33208". The London Gazette. 5 October 1926. p. 6369.
  9. ^ "No. 33432". The London Gazette. 23 October 1928. p. 6779.
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