Henry Royston

Henry Royston (12 August 1819 – 30 September 1873) was an English first-class cricketer and cricket umpire.

Royston was born at Harrow on the Hill in August 1819. A professional all-round cricketer, he began his 25 year association with the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in 1843,[2] making his debut in first-class cricket for the club against Hampshire at Lord's. Throughout the 1840s, he played for a number of club sides and played his first-class cricket almost exclusively for the MCC, except for two appearances for an England XI in 1845 and 1847.[3] He first played for Middlesex in 1850, debuting for the county in first-class matches against Surrey.[3] He also made first-class appearances for several other teams, including the Players in the Gentlemen v Players match, for the South in the North v South fixture and for a United England Eleven amongst others. His four appearances for Middlesex were sporadic and spread over a period of twelve years,[3] with his final appearance coming just two years before the formation of Middlesex County Cricket Club. It was for the MCC that he played the vast majority of his first-class matches for, making a total of 51 appearances between 1843–61.[3] In these matches he scored 974 runs at an average of 12.02, with a high score of 60.[4] Standing 5 foot 6 inches tall and bowling right-arm roundarm slow,[2] he also took 91 wickets for the MCC at a bowling average of 11.28, with best figures of 8 for 44. He took five wickets in an innings on five occasions and took ten wickets in a match once.[5] His appearances in club cricket continued into the 1850s and early 1860s, demonstrating that Royston was a sought after player, with him making guest appearances for the personal teams of many leading cricket figures of the day, including Sir Frederick Hervey-Bathurst, Robert Grimston and Roger Kynaston.[6]

Besides playing, he was a well known umpire, standing in 133 first-class matches between 1846 and 1872.[7] Away from cricket, Royston was by trade a confectioner.[2] He died at St John's Wood in September 1873.