Edward Stead

Infobox Early Cricketer
playername = Edward Stead


country = England
fullname = Edward Stead
nickname =
living =
partialdates = true
dayofbirth =
monthofbirth =
yearofbirth = 1701
placeofbirth = Maidstone, Kent
countryofbirth = England
dayofdeath =
monthofdeath =
yearofdeath = 1735
placeofdeath = London
countryofdeath = England
batting = unknown hand
bowling = underarm: unknown hand and type
role = patron
club1 = Dartford Cricket Club
year1 = c.1720-1735
club2 = Kent
year2 = c.1720-1735
date = 31 May
year = 2008
source = H T Waghorn

Edward Stead ("aka" Edwin Steed) (born 1701 in Maidstone, Kent; died 28 August 1735 in London) was a famous patron of English cricket, particularly of Kent county cricket teams, during its formative years in the early 18th century.

Career

Stead was something of a compulsive gambler and he sought to make money out of cricket by underwriting select XIs usually made up of players from several Kent parish teams. The Dartford Cricket Club, which featured William Bedle, had arguably the best parish team in the game at the time and it is almost certain that Stead used several Dartford players. It is not clear if Stead played himself but, given that his rival patrons all did, it is reasonable to assume that he was the captain of his own team as well as its patron .

Stead's teams are known to have performed in "Great Matches" for several years from 1724. He was very successful in 1728 when the report of a game in August said of his latest victory: "the third time this summer that the Kent men have been too expert for those of Sussex" H T Waghorn, "The Dawn of Cricket", Electric Press, 1906] .

"See also" : Champion County

Early death

But Stead was not always successful and his gambling habit eventually got the better of him. He died in reduced circumstances while still only 34 [http://www.jl.sl.btinternet.co.uk/stampsite/cricket/main.html From Lads to Lord's; The History of Cricket: 1300–1787] ] .

His death on 28 August 1735 was reported in the "Grub Street Journal" on Thursday 4 September 1735. The report says there were two accounts of his death: one that he died "near Charing Cross"; the other that he died "in Scotland Yard" G B Buckley, "Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket", page 12] .

References

External sources

* [http://www.dartfordcc.co.uk/ Dartford Cricket Club website]
* [http://www.jl.sl.btinternet.co.uk/stampsite/cricket/main.html From Lads to Lord's; The History of Cricket: 1300 – 1787]

Further reading

* H S Altham, "A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914)", George Allen & Unwin, 1962
* Derek Birley, "A Social History of English Cricket", Aurum, 1999
* G B Buckley, "Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket", Cotterell, 1935
* David Underdown, "Start of Play", Allen Lane, 2000
* H T Waghorn, "The Dawn of Cricket", Electric Press, 1906