Empire Cricket Booklet

rAORE THAN A GAME

of its being given improved status in public schools and because of the perceived moral upliftment that the new games cult brought. Headmasters attached further value to the development by sympathising with the imperial idea in which games played an important role in the training of English gentlemen, administrators and soldiers. Sportsmen from public schools would take their games with them when assigned posts of responsibility in outposts of the empire. 'The translators and emasculators of Arnold,' wrote C. L. R. James,'were the van gu ard of a worldwide movement ... [and] an integral part of civilisation was on its way.' 3 The impact on South Africa was significant and as Cricket: A Weekly Record of the Game commented on Transvaal's victory in the inau gu ral Currie Cup Challenge in 1889/90, 'Dulwich and Charterhouse may fairly be said to have won the first eleven-a-side match ever played by the state which has become so prominent ever since'. 4 But in the empire, sport generally began as part of the military adventure. In South Africa, the long series of colonial wars (and indeed the South African War itself) meant that it was a long time before cricket would rid itself of the military tinge, of defenders of the empire at play. According to Richard Holt, sport'helped both to relieve the tedium of a distant posting and to integrate new arrivals into the small world of colonial society'. In time, it'came to have a special meaning for the empire ... in the transmission of imperial and national ideas'. 5 The first touring cricketers from England were described by David Frith as being'ambassadors, showing the flag in the colonies, providing a fond link for the settlers from the Old Country and a sight of some curiosity for the native-born'. He continued: 'In turn, Australian and South African cricketers were expected to be rough hewn and they often were. They were additionally expected to lose, and often did. And sometimes they won, and it did nothing to weaken the bonds of the far-flung empire.' 6 It was success on the pitch rather than failure that cemented South Africa's imperial position by 1909. The various essays which follow explore cricket within political, social and economic contexts as a game that served a distinct role in early South African

history, not least because it was played by each of the major ethnic and racial groups. The following chapter describes the early popularity of cricket amongst African and coloured players at the Cape; a subsequent chapter considers the relationship between cricket, empire and the Indian people of Natal. Later chapters also cover cricket played by Afrikaans- and English-speaking whites and describe declining Afrikaner interest from strong beginnings. A Cape Times article on cricket in the Cape Town area in the early 1850s made no effort to differentiate between English and Dutch colonist contributions to the game, and recalled the prominent fi gu res of the period as the 'Van Renens, Cloetes, Hornes, De Smidts'.7 The Early English Tours In examining South African cricket from 1860 to 1915, W. H. Mars unsurprisingly concluded that'the turning point in its history in many ways' was the first English tour by Major Robert G. Warton's team in 1888/89. 8 It was South Africa's first international sporting encounter and did much to bring the various political elements together as a single entity in the public mind twenty years before political union. In cricketing terms, it marked the beginning of first-class cricket in the country. It gave A. B. Tancred - South Africa's'W. G. Grace' - a chance to display his talent and, remarkably, become the first player to bat through a Test innings. The tour also encouraged South Africans to explore further opportunities to play at an international level, whilst galvanising local enthusiasts into establishing cricket administrations. It also brought both cricket itself and the key personalities, whether players, administrators or even journalists into the public eye. Many of the names which cropped up during that tour reappear in the years that followed, frequently pursuing contrasting paths of opportunity within a complex society. What is particularly interesting is the significance and fluidity of the careers of the main individuals involved. William Milton, for example, was the 1888/89 tour organiser who became South Africa's cricket captain in its second Test match. He then served as Cecil John Rhodes's parliamentary private