Alfred Soames

Alfred Soames DSO (16 September 1862 – 13 October 1915) was an English-born South African cricket umpire and soldier.[1]

Alfred Soames
Personal information
Born(1862-09-16)16 September 1862
Mildenhall, Wiltshire, England
Died13 October 1915(1915-10-13) (aged 53)
Hulluch, France
Umpiring information
Tests umpired2 (1899–1902)
Source: Cricinfo, 7 June 2019

Soames was born in Mildenhall, Wiltshire, where his father was rector.[2] He was educated at Haileybury School in England. He served as a lieutenant with the Buffs in the Second Boer War, and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in 1902 for his service.[3]

Soames umpired 15 first-class matches in South Africa between 1891 and 1902, including two Test matches in 1899 and 1902 and three Currie Cup finals.[4][5] He gave the English batsman Pelham Warner not out in response to a stumping appeal in the 1899 Test, and later admitted it was a mistake that had probably cost South Africa victory.[6]

Soames served as a major with the Buffs in World War I, and was mentioned in dispatches. He died in action in October 1915 at Hulluch in northern France and is buried at the Loos memorial.[2][7]

See also

References
  1. "Alfred Soames". Cricket Archive. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  2. "Casualty Details: Alfred Soames". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  3. "Biographies". Victoria Falls Cenotaph. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  4. "Alfred Soames as Umpire in First-Class Matches". CricketArchive. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  5. "A. Soames". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  6. Bruce Murray & Christopher Merrett, Caught Behind: Race and Politics in Springbok Cricket, Wits University Press and University of KwaZulu-Natal Press, Johannesburg and Scottsville, 2004, p. 19.
  7. "In Memoriam" (PDF). The Dragon: 398. October 1923.
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