William Bullen (dates unknown) was an outstanding English cricketer throughout the last quarter of the 18th century. Cricket is a bat-and-ball team Sport that originated in England and is now played in more than 100 countries Hailing from Kent, Bullen was a great all-rounder, noted in the key sources as a fast bowler and a "powerful hitter".

He may have been a genuine debutant in the 1773 season, when he first appears in a scorecard. The 1773 English cricket season was a horrendous one for Hampshire and the Hambledon Club. He played until the 1800 season, making 120 known first-class appearances. The 1800 English cricket season is one of the more difficult years to analyse because of several matches involving town clubs like Rochester Woolwich Homerton Richmond Storrington There is no doubt that he was one of the period’s most prolific players as well as one of the best.

In July 1774, playing for All-England v Hampshire at Sevenoaks Vine, Bullen became the first bowler known to have taken five wickets in an innings when he bowled five Hampshire batsmen in their first innings. The Vine Cricket Ground ( aka Sevenoaks Vine) is one of the oldest Cricket venues in England These were "bowled" wickets only as bowlers at the time were not credited with wickets falling to catches.

It is a pity that so little outside match reports is known of such an outstanding player.

External links

• From Lads to Lord's; The History of Cricket: 1300 – 1787

References

• Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket by G B Buckley (FL18)
• The Dawn of Cricket by H T Waghorn (WDC)
• Scores & Biographies, Volume 1 by Arthur Haygarth (SBnnn)
• The Glory Days of Cricket by Ashley Mote (GDC)
• John Nyren's "The Cricketers of my Time" by Ashley Mote

George Bent Buckley (born in Yorkshire c1885 died 26 April 1962 aged 77 was a celebrated Cricket historian and an authority on the early days of the Henry Thomas Waghorn ( 11 April 1842 – 30 January 1930) was a Cricket statistician and historian Arthur Haygarth ( 4 August 1825 in Hastings, Sussex – 1 May 1903 in Pimlico, London) was a noted Ashley Mote (born 25 January 1936, London) is a Non-inscrit Member of the European Parliament (MEP for South East England Ashley Mote (born 25 January 1936, London) is a Non-inscrit Member of the European Parliament (MEP for South East England

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