Frank Field — Warwickshire's Quiet 1910s Workhorse

Field had been a Warwickshire pro since 1897. By 1910 he was the leading bowler in the county.

The 1911 championship season was the high point — Foster made the headlines as captain and all-rounder, but Field's wickets at the other end were essential.

Field was a Birmingham-born fast-medium bowler who had joined Warwickshire in 1897. By the early 1910s he was the senior partner in the county's seam attack, with the young Frank Foster as the new ball partner. In 1911, the year Warwickshire won their first County Championship, Field took 122 wickets at 18.95 — quietly outshone in the headlines by Foster's brilliance but vital to the side's success. He continued through 1912 and 1913 with similar workloads. By 1914 he was 39 and visibly slowing. He served briefly in the war and attempted a comeback in 1919, but his pace was gone. He retired at the end of that season. He stands here for the secondary tier of pre-war professionals — men whose careers were good without ever being great, who were the backbone of county cricket, and whose names are largely forgotten by anyone outside their own counties.

“Foster got the headlines, but Field got the wickets at the other end.”

Field retired in 1919 and worked in Birmingham coaching local cricket. He died in 1934.