Freeman George Image 2 Yorkshire 1885

Description

Boroughbridge, Yorkshire born George Freeman was a right-hand round-arm fast bowler, who began his career as a sixteen-year-old in Boroughbridge, where for Ten Boys of Boroughbridge against Ten Boys of Sessay he took fifteen wickets for 38 runs. Three years later, still in his teens, Freeman accepted an engagement with Leeds Clarendon Club, but was not taken up by the newly formed Yorkshire County club until 1865 under recommendation of George Parr. Freeman emerged after a few matches in 1865 and 1866 to jump straight to the top of the tree in 1867. He had tremendous “cut” from leg as well as pace, which was said by those who played against him to reflect a classic round-arm delivery and powerful twist extending as far up as his elbow.

On the rough, even stony pitches that prevailed before the advent of the heavy roller George Freeman was a terror to even the best batsmen, with frequent shooters often being impossible for any batsman to stop. Between 1867 and 1871 Freeman took 269 wickets in a mere 37 first class matches for a phenomenal average of 8.94 runs per wicket. In these five seasons he conceded only 26.8 runs for every 100 balls he bowled and took a wicket every 33 balls he bowled.

Freeman’s best analysis of 8-11 came against Lancashire in a Roses Match of 1868; however, his best match bowling record was thirteen wickets for 60 runs against Surrey in 1869 at Sheffield. In both these games Freeman and fellow fast bowler Tom Emmett bowled unchanged throughout both innings. Amongst other notable bowling spells are 6-44 against an “All England Eleven’, 5-36 against Cambridgeshire, 5-14 against Kent, 6-26 against the Marylebone Cricket Club (M.C.C.), 7-29 against Middlesex, 7-30 against Nottinghamshire, 13-68 in a match against Richard Daft’s XI, 7-45 against The South of England, and 8-29 against Surrey.

After the 1868 season Freeman went to the United States under the captaincy of Edgar Willsher and met with tremendous success, taking 27 wickets for 22 runs against Twenty-Two of Philadelphia, 20 wickets for 30 runs against Twenty-Two of Boston, and in five games against other teams he took 93 wickets for 201 runs.

Freeman appeared in a non-first class game for a “Miscellaneous All England Eleven” against 22 of Ireland in 1869, when he took 4-19 and 6-5, to register 10-24 in the match. Of his matches, only 44 were considered first class, and in first class play he took five wickets in an innings on 32 occasions and 10 wickets in a match 10 times, with 288 wickets at 9.84 apiece. With the bat he scored 918 runs at 13.70 in those games, with a top score of 53 for Yorkshire against Surrey and, over the course of career, also took 20 catches, scoring two other half centuries against Lancashire and the “United South of England Eleven”.