Robert Noel Davenport (26 November 1852 – 22 December 1934) was a New Zealand cricketer. He played two first-class matches for Otago, one in each of the 1881–82 and 1883–84 seasons.[1]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Noel Davenport |
| Born | 26 November 1852 Adelaide, Colony of South Australia |
| Died | 22 December 1934 (aged 82) Port Elliott, South Australia |
| Role | Batsman |
| Domestic team information | |
| Years | Team |
| 1881/82–1883/84 | Otago |
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 8 May 2016 | |
Robert Noel Davenport was born at Adelaide in 1852.[1] He was the son of Robert Davenport, a pioneer and politician in the early days of the Colony of South Australia. His uncle, Samuel Davenport, was also an early pioneer, the brothers having arrived in Australia in 1843.[2][3][4] Davenport was educated at St Peter's College in Adelaide and then in England at Mill Hill School. He worked for the National Bank of Australasia before farming in Queensland.[2][5]
As a young man, Davenport was considered a "brilliant athlete" and a "well-known cricketer".[2] He played against a touring English side led by WG Grace at Melbourne[2] and played club cricket in New Zealand for Phoenix Cricket Club in Dunedin. He was described in January 1882 by the Otago Daily Times as a "high order" batsman with "the strongest defence" who was also "an excellent field". The paper went on to suggest that "as an all-round player, in short, he cannot be far off being the best man in the Southern Province".[6] He played for an Otago XI against a visiting English team led by Alfred Shaw later in the month and in February played the first of his two first-class matches, playing against Canterbury in Otago's only first-class match of the season. He played again for the province in February 1884, this time against a touring Tasmanian side. He scored a total of 54 first-class runs, with a highest score of 38 not out scored against Tasmania.[7]
Davenport lived at Port Elliot with his wife in a home which had been established by his father. The couple had no children. He died in 1934 aged 82.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b "Robert Davenport". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
- ^ a b c d e Obituary, Victor Harbour Times, 8 March 1935, p. 2. (Available online at Trove. Retrieved 18 June 2023.)
- ^ "Robert Davenport". Ancestry Information Operations. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
- ^ R.N.D. appears in several photographs in Robert Davenport's album available online at http://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/PRG+40/138/2/1-128 courtesy of the State Library of South Australia
- ^ McCarron A (2010) New Zealand Cricketers 1863/64–2010, p. 41. Cardiff: The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. ISBN 978 1 905138 98 2
- ^ Cricket, Otago Daily Times, issue 6212, 7 January 1882, p. 2. (Available online at Papers Past. Retrieved 18 June 2023.)
- ^ Robert Davenport, CricketArchive. Retrieved 18 June 2023. (subscription required)
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