'SPEEDY FRED' REMEMBERED
First to 100 Wickets in a Season
Born 175 years ago today – 16 December 1850 – Frederick Morley was known as 'Speedy Fred', but with 666 Nottinghamshire wickets to his name, perhaps he should have been the ‘demon’ bowler!
He was to form a powerful bowling partnership with Alfred Shaw – there are many instances of the pair bowling unchanged through an innings and sharing the wickets – on his way to taking more than 1200 First-Class wickets (16 for England and plenty for the AEE).
In 1870, when he was engaged with Bolton, he made a single appearance with the All England Eleven (AEE) v Sheffield Shrewsbury CC.
He remained with Bolton in 1871 and took part in the match between the AEE and the rival United England XI in July, taking 4 of the 10 wickets to fall and scored 14* and 0. This match signalled his First-Class debut.
He obviously made a favourable impression for 1872 found Morley installed as a permanent member of the AEE and this led naturally to his inclusion in the opening match of Nottinghamshire’s season – against Yorkshire at Trent Bridge.
Morley did not bowl in that match and his second game was all but completely rained off so it wasn’t until Notts played Yorkshire again – curiously at the Prince’s Cricket Ground in Chelsea – that he got the chance to show his worth. He took 4-62 and 5-38 to steer Notts to a narrow six-run win.
Having made his debut for Nottinghamshire, Morley appeared in all their fixtures for 1872 and, completing the season with the most wickets in county matches, he was regarded as the most promising young bowler in the country. The following summer found him being described as ‘not far removed from the best fast bowler in England’ and in 1875 ‘Morley’s feats stamp him as the best fast bowler (in England)’. Many contemporary critics continued to hold this opinion of him until his retirement and death.
His best season for Nottinghamshire was in 1878, when he became the first Notts player to take 100 wickets in a season - his total of 126 was not bettered until 1902. In 1880 he took 97 wickets at 10.34 runs apiece which led to him being selected to play in the match that later became known as the first Test match to take place in England (against Australia, naturally) taking 8 for 146, including five wickets in the first innings.
In 1879 his 89 wickets cost only 9.84 runs each, the only other year during which he took over 75 wickets for the County was 1882 with 76 at an average of 12.43 runs each. Morley headed the county bowling averages in 1877, 1878 and 1879.
Morley was in the Hon.Ivo Bligh’s team to Australia in 1882/3, but the outward journey proved to be a disaster for Morley. Their ship came into collision with another; knocked over by the impact, Morley was badly hurt, but the exact nature for his injury was not diagnsed - he had fractured a rib - until some weeks later after they had landed in Australia.
On 28 September 1884, aged just 33, Morley died of congestion and dropsy at his home in Sutton-in-Ashfield, in which town he is buried.
The accident and his early death are always conflated together in the (necessarily brief) narratives of his life but it is not clear if the one precipitated the other.
Frederic Morley (he was registered without the final k) was always ready and eager to do his best and was a 'most civil and unassuming fellow'. In May 1885, a match – North v South – was played at Lord’s for the benefit of his widow and children, ‘a good sum being realised.’
December 2025