William Francis Neilson (24 September 1850 – 2 May 1880)[1] was an English-born New Zealand cricketer who played for Canterbury in the 1870s.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Francis Neilson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1850-09-24)24 September 1850 Liverpool, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 2 May 1880(1880-05-02) (aged 29) Christchurch, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1874–75 to 1878–79 | Canterbury | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: CricketArchive, 27 March 2017 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born in Liverpool, England, Neilson moved to New Zealand as a young man.[2] He had his best cricket performances in the match against Otago in 1876–77, when he scored 57 not out in the second innings batting at number nine, and then took 5 for 19 to wrap up the Otago innings and the match.[3]
In 1877–78 Neilson organised and captained Canterbury's first trip to the North Island, when they dismissed Auckland for 13 at the Auckland Domain.[4] A few weeks later he captained Canterbury to victory over the touring Australians, the Australians' only loss of the tour.[5] He also led the Canterbury team that toured Tasmania and Victoria in 1878–79.[6]
A popular figure in Canterbury, he was the best amateur billiards player in New Zealand, a fine games player and horse rider, and a prominent owner of racehorses.[7][8] He died on 2 May 1880 after a long illness.[9]