William Tait (cricketer)

William C Tait was a cricketer who played three first-class matches in New Zealand for Otago between the 1872–73 and 1874–75 seasons.[1][2]

William Tait
Personal information
Full name
William C Tait
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1872/73–1874/75Otago
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 26 May 2016

Tait was a member of Dunedin Cricket Club in Otago, serving on the committee and acting as the club's treasurer and vice-president.[3][4][5] Described as "a fair change bowler"[6] who "could bowl a good 'un at times",[7] Tait played in three representative matches for Otago.

He made his first-class debut in Otago's February 1873 match against Canterbiry, taking four wickets in the only innings in which he bowled.[2] He was considered one of the better members of an Otago team weakened by the absence of a number of established players.[6] He played in the same fixture in each of the following two seasons, taking one wicket in each match. His highest first-class score of 21 not out was made in the 1873–74 match, the only one that Otago won. In total he scored 27 runs in the five innings in which be batted.[2]

Little is known of Tait's life,[8] although he is described as "the Victorian 'duffer'" in an 1874 article in The Evening Star, a Dunedin newspaper, suggesting that he may have been born in Australia.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "W Tait". CricInfo. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "William Tait". CricketArchive. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  3. ^ The Dunedin Cricket Club, Otago Daily Times, issue 3934, 25 September 1874, p. 2. (Available online at Papers Past. Retrieved 28 January 2024.)
  4. ^ Editorial, Otago Daily Times, issue 4313, 14 December 1875, p. 2. (Available online at Papers Past. Retrieved 28 January 2024.)
  5. ^ Dunedin Cricket club, Otago Daily Times, issue 4862, 17 September 1877, p. 2. (Available online at Papers Past. Retrieved 28 January 2024.)
  6. ^ a b Interprovincial cricket matches, Globe, volume XXI, issue 1708, 11 August 1879, p. 4. (Available online at Papers Past. Retrieved 28 January 2024.)
  7. ^ Austin TL (1937) Cricket Association Diamond Jubilee: Reminiscences of an old cricketer, Otago Daily Times, issue 23119, 19 February 1937, p. 5. (Available online at Papers Past. Retrieved 28 January 2024.)
  8. ^ McCarron A (2010) New Zealand Cricketers 1863/64–2010, p. 128. Cardiff: The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. ISBN 978 1 905138 98 2 (Available online at the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 5 June 2023.)
  9. ^ Cricket gossip, Evening Star, issue 3632, 13 October 1874, p. 2. (Available online at Papers Past. Retrieved 28 January 2024.)
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