Herbert Hopkins
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Herbert Oxley Hopkins (6 July 1895 – 23 February 1972) was an Australian-born English
first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...
er who played 85 matches
between the wars In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...
. The bulk of these games were for
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...
and
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
, though he also appeared once for Harlequins. In minor cricket, he played for both Federated Malay States and Straits Settlements, where he was working as a doctor. Obituary. ''
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "Bible of cricket" (or variations thereof) has been applied to ''Wi ...
'' 1973.


History

Hopkins was born in
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
, a son of Herbert Horatio Oxley Hopkins (c. 1859 – 2 April 1944) and his wife Fanny Hopkins née Newland (23 July 1867 – 20 May 1920). Fanny was a granddaughter of Rev. Ridgway William Newland and a cousin of
Henry Simpson Newland Sir Henry Simpson Newland, (24 November 1873 – 13 November 1969) was a distinguished Australian surgeon. As president of the Australian War Service League he was active in promoting selective conscription and martial law during the Second W ...
. His father was an employee of the
National Bank of Australasia The National Bank of Australasia was a bank based in Melbourne. It was established in 1857, and in 1982 merged with the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney to form National Australia Bank. History In 1857, Alexander Gibb, a Melbourne gentleman ...
at
Eudunda Eudunda is a town in the Mid North region of South Australia, situated 110 kilometres northeast of Adelaide in the Regional Council of Goyder. As of 2021, Eudunda had a population of 815 people. Eudunda is known as the birthplace of author and ed ...
, later at Woodville and
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, and was captain of district cricket clubs in these locations. Young Hopkins was educated at St Peter's College in
Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...
before going to
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
. His studies were interrupted by
The Great War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting took place mainly in Europe and th ...
, when he volunteered with the
7th Battalion Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven. Seventh may refer to: * Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution * A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts Film and television *"The Seventh", a second-season epi ...
, Liverpool regiment, was injured and repatriated to Australia. After the war he returned to Oxford, studying medicine at
Magdalen College Magdalen College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and one of the strongest academically, se ...
. He married Dr. (Margaret) Elinor Jones of
Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells (formerly, until 1909, and still commonly Tunbridge Wells) is a town in Kent, England, southeast of Central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone ...
around 1927; they had two children. The couple were involved with malaria research in Malaya, and were in Singapore at the time of the Japanese takeover of the island, and were held at Sime Road internment camp for the duration of the war.


Cricketing career

Hopkins played for St. Margaret's (Anglican, Woodville) church team and Woodville Cricket Club before leaving Australia. He made his first-class debut for the Oxford University against
Free Foresters Free Foresters Cricket Club is an England, English amateur cricket club, established in 1856 for players from the Midland counties of England. It is a 'wandering' (or nomadic) club, having no home ground. The Free Foresters were founded by the ...
at
The University Parks The Oxford University Parks, commonly referred to locally as the University Parks, or just The Parks, is a large parkland area slightly northeast of the city centre in Oxford, England. The park is bounded to the east by the River Cherwell, thou ...
in June 1921. He scored 7 and 32 in a game which ended in a Free Foresters win despite an innings of 202 from Oxford captain R.L. Holdsworth. After three more university games Hopkins played the rest of the summer for Worcestershire, though his only substantial score was an unbeaten 60 against
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
in August. During 1922 and 1923, Hopkins divided his playing time between his university and his county. In June 1922, in a 15-run win for Oxford over the
Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
at Oxford, he scored what was to remain his career-best innings of 142*, though he made only one other half-century that season. In early July 1923 he hit 100* for Oxford against
Marylebone Cricket Club The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...
(MCC) at
Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket List of Test cricket grounds, venue in St John's Wood, Westminster. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex C ...
, and won his
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when he appeared in the
Varsity Match A varsity match in Britain and Ireland is a fixture, especially of a sporting event or team, between university teams, usually the highest-level team, or varsity team, in that sport. The University Match in cricket between Oxford University an ...
at the same venue a few days later, making 42 in a crushing innings-and-227-run triumph over
Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
. He ended 1923 with 729 first-class runs at 27.00, by some way his highest season's aggregate. That marked the end of Hopkins' university cricket career, but he continued to appear, albeit somewhat irregularly, for Worcestershire over the next four seasons. In late June 1924, he scored 137 in a losing cause against
Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...
at
Trent Bridge Trent Bridge Cricket Ground is a cricket ground mostly used for Test cricket, Test, One-day cricket, One-Day International and county cricket located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, just across the River Trent from the city of Nott ...
, and in the same match picked up three of the only four wickets he ever took: those of John Gunn, Len Richmond and Fred Barratt. (His other wicket, claimed earlier that same summer, had been that of
Glamorgan Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the South Wales, south of Wales. Originally an ea ...
's
Jack Mercer Winfield Bennett Mercer (January 31, 1910 – December 7, 1984), known professionally as Jack Mercer, was an American voice actor. He is best known as the voice of cartoon characters Popeye the Sailor Man and Felix the Cat. The son of vaudevil ...
.) Hopkins scored just one more century — 122 against his old university in 1925 — although he got a start in a large number of innings without pushing on to fifties or hundreds. After the 1927 season, Hopkins ceased to play English cricket because of his work as a doctor in the
Malay States The monarchies of Malaysia exist in each of the nine Malay states under the constitutional monarchy system as practised in Malaysia. The political system of Malaysia is based on the Westminster parliamentary system in combination with features ...
, although he played minor cricket for Straits Settlements as late as 1938, by which time he was well into his forties. The exception was 1931, when he turned out nine times for Worcestershire in the
County Championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...
during a period of leave. Hopkins acted once as
wicket-keeper In cricket, the wicket-keeper is the Cricket player, player on the fielding (cricket), fielding side who stands behind the wicket, ready to stop Delivery (cricket), deliveries that pass the batsman, and take a Caught, catch, Stumped, stump the ...
, for Worcestershire against
Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...
at
Clifton College Clifton College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in the city of Bristol in South West England, founded in 1862 and offering both boarding school, boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18. In its early years, unlike mo ...
in 1921. His uncle,
Bert Hopkins Albert John Young "Bert" Hopkins (3 May 1874 – 25 April 1931) was an Australian cricketer who played in 20 Tests between 1902 and 1909. An all-rounder, Hopkins was a competent bowler and batsman in Australian domestic cricket for New South W ...
, played 20
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for
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
; while another uncle, Cyril Hopkins, had nine games for
Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...
.


Notes


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hopkins, Herbert 1895 births 1972 deaths Territorial Force officers Cricketers from Adelaide English cricketers Federated Malay States cricketers Cricketers from British Malaya Straits Settlements cricketers Worcestershire cricketers Oxford University cricketers People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide Harlequins cricketers King's Regiment (Liverpool) officers British Army personnel of World War I Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Australian emigrants to the United Kingdom Military personnel from Adelaide 20th-century English sportsmen