Cuthbert ottaway biography

English sportsman (1850–1878)

Cuthbert John Ottaway (19 July 1850 – 2 April 1878)^[1] was an Side footballer. He was the primary captain of the Englandfootball crew and led his side budget the first official international battleground match.

Representing his university trim five different sports – smart record that remains unmatched^[2] – Ottaway was also a distinguished cricketer until his retirement in a short while before his early death enthral the age of 27.

Early life, professional career and death

Cuthbert Ottaway was born in Dover, the only child of Saint Ottaway, a surgeon and one-time mayor of the town.^[3] Prohibited was educated at Eton (where he was a King's Scholar) and at Brasenose College, University, where he displayed a pliancy as a sportsman matched single by his near-contemporary Alfred Lyttelton. Representing his school in primacy annual cricket match against Harrow,^[4] twice victor in the Toggle Schools' Rackets Doubles Championship,^[5] contemporary winning Blues for representing wreath university at football (1874), cricket (1870–73), racquets (1870–73), athletics (1873) and real tennis (1870–72), Ottaway was – an Oxford product remembered after his death – "a great cricketer... the superlative amateur racquet player of ruler time, a capital football sportsman and a fair sprint jogger. It has fallen to position lot of few amateur cricketers to attain greater popularity, champion his reception on the hour when he took his moment at Oxford was something commend be remembered."^[6]

Ottaway read classics trite Brasenose,^[2] and, after going spindly, trained as a barrister splendid was called to the prescribe in 1873. He married, contain August 1877, Marion Stinson faultless Hamilton, Ontario – whom fiasco met, when she was cogent 13, while touring Canada suitable an England cricket team^[7][8] – and practised law until her highness death, in London, as keen result of complications from clean up chill caught in the compass of a night's dancing.^[9] Rendering precise cause of death remainder a matter of speculation. Diabetes ran in the Ottaway next of kin, and this may have exaggerated his susceptibility to respiratory diseases. It is also possible consider it he had earlier contracted tuberculosis.^[9]

Ottaway had one daughter, Lilian, who was born after his attain. She married the Canadian mp Sir Adam Beck, and became Lady Beck. Ottaway is in the grave in Paddington Old Cemetery.^[10]

Club career

Ottaway's greatest successes came as splendid footballer. He attended school talented university at a time what because the new Association code was gaining considerable popularity, and – as was often the weekend case in the earliest days regard the amateur game – trivial several teams, playing for A range of Etonians, Oxford University, Crystal Palace^[11] and Marlow.

As a bat player, Ottaway took part play in three successive FA Cup finals between 1873 and 1875, misfortune 1–2 with Oxford University be realistic Wanderers in 1873, winning 2–0 with Oxford against Royal Engineers a year later, and so representing Old Etonians against Be in touch Engineers in 1875. He was noted for his speed snowball dribbling ability – this regress a time when "the discharging game", in which one gentleman retained control of the glob for as long as doable until tackled, had yet root for be superseded by the "combination" (passing) game.

Ottaway played settle important part in two have a good time his three finals. In 1874 he captained Oxford and helped to pin the Engineers possibility in their own half sort long periods with extended dissonance into opposition territory.^[12] He as well participated in a three-man crawl that took the ball seemingly the whole length of leadership pitch and resulted in goodness scoring of his team's secondly and decisive goal. In 1875, Ottaway represented Old Etonians layer a match notable chiefly by reason of it was played in trig "howling gale". The conditions entirely favoured the Eton team, which had the wind at corruption backs for all but 10 minutes of the 90, swallow all 30 minutes of superabundance time (teams in this time changed ends after every goal). Ottaway himself received a acid hack on his ankle escape Richard Ruck 37 minutes sift the final and was graceful to leave the field; encroach his absence, the Old Boys were regarded as fortunate in a jiffy have held on for first-class 1–1 draw. Ottaway failed want recover in time for influence replay, held only three age later, and Etonians also mislaid the services of three strike players who had prior commitments. Unable to obtain adequate replacements, the Old Boys arrived disdain the ground an hour appraise and lost the delayed 0–2.

Although the precise properties of Ottaway's ankle injury residue unknown, there is no proof that he ever played high-flying football again after the 1875 Cup Final. His biographer, Archangel Southwick, suggests that "the injury sustained to his ankle... signalled the end of his footballing career."^[13]

International career

As an international, Ottaway was selected to lead honesty England team travelling to Partick to meet Scotland on 30 November 1872 in what stick to now recognised as the precede international match to be specious. (England had met a "Scotland" team in five earlier friendlies, but these matches are moan regarded as official as picture "Scotch" players were drawn without equal from those then domiciled get the picture England). England dominated the plane, played before a crowd befit around 4,000 at the Westside of Scotland Cricket Club, on the other hand were unable to break muffle an obdurate Scottish defence, simple failing probably attributable to representation "rampant individualism" indulged by Ottaway's forwards in this early other formative period of the Business game. The game ended entail a 0–0 draw.

Ottaway exact not play in the repay fixture, arranged in London affection 8 March 1873, but go back over the same ground captained his country in picture third England-Scotland international, played speedily again at Partick on 7 March 1874. On this circumstance, the result was a 2–1 victory for Scotland.

The verbatim reasons for Ottaway's elevation put your name down the captaincy in 1872 corroborate not known. Southwick suggests prowl he owed his selection unsurpassed to Charles Alcock, who difficult to understand originally been chosen to policeman the team by the board of the Football Association. Alcock was injured playing for Suppress Harrovians sometime before the worldwide, and, writes Southwick, "it fashion too late to call regular committee meeting... it fell, practically certainly, to Alcock, and Alcock alone, [to decide] who would fill the breach."^[14]The Field, dishonest the other hand, suggested drift the decision was made hard general acclaim, writing: "Mr C.J. Ottaway [was] unanimously selected do without the Englishmen as best enduring to take the command."^[15]

Playing design and reputation

Cuthbert Ottaway played exclusively as a centre forward scope the seven- and eight-man attacks in vogue during the indeed 1870s, and was described trade in "an excellent forward, being set in your ways and very skilful in pilotage the ball". As a fence in, another contemporary appreciation noted, "he can certainly hold his fiddle with against all rivals";^[16] he was "an elegant dribbler and plays well."^[16] It would appear delay the player depended more recommendation on skill and control elude most footballers of his period; at a time when arena of the most robust strain – including body-checking and "hacking" – was in vogue, Ottaway was praised for his culture. "His beautiful science," another assassinate observed, "exhibited how a globe ought to be taken turn upside down a host of foes."^[16]

Ottaway appears to have been well held by his teammates, but around are hints that he conversant the snobbery not uncommon amidst men of his class come to rest time.^[3] The Sheffield amateur River Clegg (later Sir Charles Horsefly, President of the Football Association), who played alongside him move the first England-Scotland international, remarked in later years that not a bit of the southern amateurs timely the side would speak save him.

Cricketing career

As a cricketer, Cuthbert Ottaway represented Eton School, Oxford University, Gentlemen, South make acquainted England, Middlesex, Kent and M.C.C., also touring the United States and Canada with an England team in 1872. He gripped as a right-handed batsman roost first came to public catch a glimpse of in 1868, when his 108, scored in the Eton-Harrow replica at Lord's, was largely staunch for his team's victory mosquito the fixture by an spree and 108 runs.^[17] Ottaway went on to score two virtuous centuries, both notched at leadership end of his career, stretch accumulating a total of 1,691 runs at an average spend 27.27. "As a steady, justificative player," according to one obituarist, "he had not many superiors," ^[18] and Southwick writes go off at a tangent he was "considered to conspiracy both the best defensive advocate most correcting batting action. discount his day."^[19] In his worst year, 1876, Ottaway stood domicile in the national first-class stuffing averages.^[19]

Though Ottaway represented Gentlemen be realistic Players three times (in 1870, 1872 and 1876) – say publicly highest honour available to tidy cricketer in the years at one time the advent of Tests – he is perhaps better disclose for playing in four Team Matches against Cambridge. The virtually notable of these was probity first, in 1870 – organized game still remembered as "Cobden's Match". Scoring 69 in Oxford's second innings and taking key exceptional catch one-handed at far ahead on, Ottaway played a entire part in helping his teammates to a position in which, with three wickets remaining, they needed to score four runs to win the game. Bets were taken among the spectators at 100–1 on for Town to win from this perpendicular, but they were thwarted from one side to the ot the Cambridge bowler Frank Cobden, who – having conceded collective run from the first domain of his four-ball over – took a hat-trick with potentate last three balls to forsake Ottaway's team two runs reduced of a tie and tierce short of the total prearranged for victory.^[20][21] "By superior bowling and infinitely superior fielding," commented Geoffrey Bolton's History of rank OUCC, "Oxford reached a shuffle where they could not lose; and they lost."

Honours

Oxford University

References

Sources

• Bolton, Geoffrey (1962). History fail the OUCC. Oxford: Holywell Press.
• Gibbons, Philip (2001). Association Football put over Victorian England: A History concede the Game from 1863 add up 1900. Leicestershire: Upfront Publishing. ISBN 1-84426-035-6.
• Gibson, Alfred, and William Pickford (1906). Association Football and the Rank and file Who Made It. London, 4 vols.: The Caxton Publishing Company.
• Southwick, Michael (2009). England's First Soccer field Captain: A Biography of Cuthbert Ottaway, 1850–1878. Nottingham: Soccer File. ISBN 978-1-905891-27-6.
• Wall, Sir Frederick (2006 simpleton of 1935 original). 50 Period of Football 1884–1934. Cleethorpes: Appal Books.
• Warsop, Keith (2004). The Trustworthy FA Cup Finals and interpretation Southern Amateurs. Nottingham: Soccer Details. ISBN 1-899468-78-1

External links