James Southerton

James Southerton (16 November 1827 – 16 June 1880) was an English professional cricketer who played Test cricket for England in 1877, and first-class cricket between 1854 and 1879. His domestic career was spent largely with three counties: Hampshire, Surrey, and Sussex. He would sometimes play for multiple counties in a season, earning him the moniker the 'Man of Many Counties'. Having began his career as a batsman, it was not until later in his career that he developed into a formidable roundarm slow bowler, becoming the greatest slow bowler of the 1870s, alongside Alfred Shaw. He was the first man to take 200 first-class wickets in a season, a feat he achieved in 1870. In his first-class, he would take nearly 1,700 wickets from 286 matches, at an impressive bowling average of 14.43. Southerton toured Australia in 1876–77 with James Lillywhite's side, playing in the first-ever Test match to be played, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground against Australia. At 49 years and 119 days old when he made his Test debut, he remains as of the oldest Test debutant of all time; his Test career comprised the two Tests played on the 1876–77 tour, with Souterton taking 7 wickets.

Outside of playing, he stood intermittently as an umpire. For the last ten-years of his life, he was the landlord of ''The Cricketers'' public house in Mitcham. He became the first Test cricketer to die in June 1880, when he succumbed to a short attack of pleurisy. Provided by Wikipedia