‘Close of Play’
Items from the cricket collection of
Chris Saunders
Knights Auctioneers last auction ‘Close of Play’ - Items from the cricket collection of Chris Saunders, was held on Saturday 13th September 2025.
The sale included 500 lots and we have included some highlights below.
To view the results from the auction click here.
Lot 490 'The Noble Cricketers: A poetical and familiar epistle, address'd to Two of the Idlest Lords in His Majesty's Three Kingdoms'. Published by J. Bew, No. 28 Paternoster Row, London 1778. First and only edition. pp (iv),22. Rebound in blue buckram for the M.C.C. with M.C.C. colours to covers, gilt title to spine. The lengthy poem is written anonymously and satirises two cricketing aristocrats, 'his Grace the Duke of D..s.t [Dorset], and the Earl of T..k..v.lle [Tankerville]. The Duke of Dorset and Earl of Tankerville were well-known cricket enthusiasts, Tankerville employing cricketers such as Edward 'Lumpy' Stevens on his estate. Very rare, only three copies are recorded in institutions in the UK, at the M.C.C., British Library, and the Bodleian. This copy was previously sold for £13,750 (including premium) as Lot 52 in the Christie's sale of M.C.C. duplicates in 2010. Very good condition. Hammer Unsold
Lot 47 William Henry Moule. Victoria & Australia 1878-1886. Handwritten two page letter in ink to Hugh Trumble with the letter dated 26th October 1925. The letter headed 'Law Courts, Melbourne' in ink. Moule is writing to Trumble, on behalf of his wife, if the Melbourne Cricket Club would donate some bats and balls to Bundoora Park, a convalescent home for shell shocked soldiers. Nicely signed by Moule 'Yours sincerely'. A rare signature from a very early Australian cricketer who made his one appearance for the national side in the inaugural Test in England in 1880. Good condition. Hammer £800
Lot 262 'Souvenir of the Visit of Lord Hawke's English Cricket Team to South Africa 1898/99'. An excellent post tour brochure, with full details of every match played, profusely illustrated with images of the teams, individuals and grounds. Printed and published by W.A Richards & Sons, Cape Town. Oblong 8vo. Original pictorial wrappers. A very rare post tour brochure. Hammer £850
Lot 312 Australia 1893. Original carte de visite photograph of the ‘Eighth Australian Cricketing Team 1893’. Team photograph of the players and management including Blackham (Captain), Giffen, Trumble, Trott, Gregory, Bannerman, Turner, Jarvis, Graham etc. Lower and side borders of the photograph mount with title, names of players and publisher. Photograph by the London Stereocopic & Photographic Company Ltd. Hammer £150
Lot 432 'Parsi Cricket with hints on bowling, batting...'. M.E. Pavri. Bombay 1901. Original decorative pictorial boards. A rarely seen title. Hammer £360
Lot 197 Gordon Charles White, Transvaal & South Africa, 1902-1912. Early sepia real photograph postcard of White, full length, stood at the wicket in batting pose. Nicely signed by White in black ink. Foster of Brighton. Hammer £360
Lot 38 M.C.C. tour of Australia 1911/12. 'The M.C.C. Dinner'. Small and beautifully ornate folding menu for the Dinner given for the M.C.C. touring party to Australia held on the 27th February 1912 at the Hotel Wentworth, Sydney. The menu, on cream card with pink blush colour, has raised stylish art nouveau floral decoration with title to centre. All the courses are named after English players, 'Hearne Bay Oyster Cocktails', 'Rhodes Schnapper a la Century', 'Saddle Woolley Lamb and Vine Sauce’... A rare and early menu. Hammer Unsold
Lot 436 'Indian Cricket Chronology and Memorabilia'. F.S. Ashley-Cooper. Merritt and Hatcher 1911. Original red decorative paper wrappers with red cord to spine. 16pp. Limited edition of only thirty copies produced, this being no. 29. Limitation statement to rear wrapper with handwritten dedication and signature in ink to 'Cecil Speigalhalter Esq from F.S. Ashley-Cooper'. Rare. Hammer £620
Lot 292 'Young England' and 'Young England's Sister'. Excellent pair of Copeland parian figures, after C. Halse 1874. Excellent figures, the boy leaning against a tree stump with cricket bat and reading a book, the girl with book and croquet mallet behind her. Both, signed by Halse, on oval bases with titles to front, 'Copyright reserved. Copeland' impressed to sides of base. Both approx 16" tall. A rarely seen pair of parian figures. Hammer £500
Lot 325 Pakistan v England 1954. Original official sepia photograph of the Pakistan team seated and standing in rows wearing cricket attire. The photograph taken at Trent Bridge for the second Test match, 1st- 5th July 1954. Fully signed in ink by all twelve members of the Pakistan team. Signatures are Kardar (Captain), Imtiaz Ahmed, Fazal Mahmood, Maqsood Ahmed, Khan Mohammad, Hanif Mohammad, Alimuddin, Khalid Hasan, Aslam Khokhar etc. Pakistan drew their inaugural tour to England 2-2. Hammer £65
Lot 297 Cyril Frederick Walters, Glamorgan, Worcestershire & England 1928-1935. Rajindra Cricket Club of India mid blue blazer with gold trimming, by Ranken of Calcutta and London, with exquisite and ornate raised embroidered badge of crossed bats, stumps, crown and ball and title 'Rajindra Cricket Club' in gold thread and brass buttons to blazer with similar emblem. 'H.H. Yuvraj of Patiala’ and other details handwritten to inner pocket label. The blazer appears to have been presented to Walters by Yadavindra Singh on the M.C.C. tour in 1933/34. Hammer £100
Lot 300 John Maurice Read. Surrey & England 1880-1895. Early original sepia cabinet card studio portrait photograph of Read, head and shoulders wearing formal attire. Signed in black ink to the photograph by Read, possibly in later years. The cabinet card, with gilt to edges, by Tuttle & Co. of 421 George Street, Sydney, probably taken during Lillywhite, Shaw and Shrewsbury's tour to Australia in 1887. A rare photograph from an early tour. Hammer £550
Lot 190 Yorkshire C.C.C. Champion County 1919. Two large joined album pages featuring an original pen and ink illustration of a cricket bat signed 'W.C.W.' across the two pages with the hand printed title 'Cricketers' Autographs'. The face of the bat has been signed in pencil by eighteen members of the Yorkshire and 'The Rest' teams that played in the Champion County match at Kennington Oval, 15th- 18th September 1919. Yorkshire signatures are Burton, Robinson, Holmes, Hirst, Denton, Waddington, Sutcliffe, Kilner, Dolphin, Rhodes, Williams etc and for The Rest, Hitch, Woolley, Hendren, Kennedy, Hobbs, Crawford, Abel etc. Hammer £120
![Lot 452
The Tournament Chronicle' 1884-1885 [South Africa]. Printed and published by Charles Cox of the Port Elizabeth Advertiser Office. Individual issues one to nine, all published, covering the period Monday 23rd December 1884 to Friday 2nd Janua](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6170539f9de5005591e466e3/4367b11f-4339-4da5-8709-ce53209a725a/90_0452.jpg)
Lot 452 The Tournament Chronicle' 1884-1885 [South Africa]. Printed and published by Charles Cox of the Port Elizabeth Advertiser Office. Individual issues one to nine, all published, covering the period Monday 23rd December 1884 to Friday 2nd January 1885 with full description and scores of all the matches in the Christmas Tournament held in Port Elizabeth. Excellent vignette of a cricket scene to each title page of the Chronicle. A very scarce item. Hammer Unsold
Lot 202 Albert John Young Hopkins. New South Wales & Australia. 1896-1914. Sepia postcard of Hopkins, full length, in batting attire wearing Australian cap and holding a bat to side. Nicely signed, Yours faithfully' in black ink by Hopkins and dated '30/9/1908. Ralph Dunn & Co series No. 1008. Hammer £220
Lot 374 Ken 'Slasher' Mackay. Queensland & Australia. Original biro caricature portrait, on a sheet of Orient Line S.S. Orcades headed paper, of Mackay stone walling a ball, wicket keeper, slip and pavilion to background by Arthur Mailey (1920/21 to 1926). The portrait has been signed by Mailey, dated 4th July 1958 and inscribed 'A memory of Mackay’. Hammer Unsold
Lot 459 'Den Kjobenhavn Boldspilklub. Haandbog i Cricket og Langbold'. Copenhagen C.C. Lose's Forlag. 1866. 50pp. Small Danish cricket handbook with wood-engraved illustrations, original pictorial wrapper boards. First edition. Very rare. Hammer Unsold
Lot 290 Arthur Percy Frank Chapman. Kent & England 1924-1938. Newhall Pottery blue water jug printed with an oval colour portrait of Chapman, in roundall, in batting stance at the crease to one side, cricket bats, wicket and balls within a shield to the reverse. 1926. Newhall Pottery stamp to base. 7" tall. Hammer £380
Lot 479 'The Cricketer's Autograph Book'. T. Broadbent Trowsdale ('Cover Point'). Walter Scott Publishing, London 1906. Original green pictorial cloth with mono image of W.G. Grace inlaid to front, gilt titles to front and spine, gilt to all page edges. Profusely and very nicely signed throughout in ink by some 730 Test and first-class cricketers including some rarer signatures of lesser known players. Each signed to their birth date entry. The earliest signatures are of Vernon Royle, David Hunter, Charles Burls, C.I. Thornton, Joseph Eccles, Harry Butt and G.P. Harrison etc. There are 147 who played in Test matches for England, 41 Australians including Monty Noble, Warwick Armstrong, Arthur Mailey, Don Bradman etc, 40 West Indians, Ellis Achong, Clifford Roach, Percy Tarilton etc, 31 South Africans, 12 Indians….. A full listing of the identified signatures is provided. A rare and splendid opportunity to acquire such an extensive archive of cricketers' signatures of the period. Hammer Unsold
Lot 378 'The Derbyshire Cricket Guide for season 1897'. 2nd Edition. Compiled by L.G. Wright and W.J. Piper Jun. Published by Baker & Hudson of Derby. From the cricket collection of Ian Buxton, former Derbyshire cricketer. Hammer £65
Lot 304 Hugh Trumble and Syd Gregory. Australia tour to England 1899. Excellent sepia cabinet card photograph of a tall Hugh Trumble looking down on a diminutive Syd Gregory, both depicted full length wearing formal attire, straw boaters, and smoking cigarettes, The photograph nicely and boldly signed in black ink by both Trumble and Gregory, dated '1899'. The photograph by Aaron Pickering of High Street, Leicester. A very rare and sought after signed card of these early Australia Test players. Hammer £800
Lot 195 Sibley John 'Tip' Snooke. Border, Western Province, Transvaal & South Africa 1879-1924. Sepia real photograph postcard of Snooke standing in batting pose at the wicket wearing South Africa cap, bat raised. Nicely and boldly signed in black ink to the photograph by Foster of Brighton. A nice image and excellent signature. Hammer £170
Lot 68 'Rare Cricket Letters and Photographs. Ex-Neville Weston 1938'. Half morocco leather green scrapbook compiled by Weston on the collector Charles Pratt Green. Weston has handwritten a very short biography of Pratt Green to the front end paper and dated this 1949. The album contains twelve letters from Pratt Green and includes a copy of Pratt Greens privately printed booklet on Malvern 'Memory's Harkback 1852-1940’. There are several handwritten postcards and letters from Ashley Cooper letters from A.W. Shelton, J.N. Pentelow, H.K. Foster (Worcestershire 1899-1925), F.S. Jackson (Yorkshire & England) and one from Monty Noble of Australia, a signed photograph of Tiger Smith etc. There are ten laid down cabinet cards, with three signed of William Gunn, Ashley Cooper and Henry Luff (Proprietor of Wisden), the unsigned cards are of Richard Daft, P.F. Warner (Fry's), J.H. Broad, Charles Absolon (Latter), Thomas Padwick, The Australians of 1888 (London Stereoscopic & Photographic Company Ltd of London and an image of MacLaren's 228 bat (Ayling) There is also an early small photograph of Trent Bridge with both cricket and a football match being played simultaneously with different crowds. Hammer Unsold
![Lot 487
'Surry [sic] Triumphant: or The Kentish-Mens Defeat. A new ballad being a parody on Chevy-Chace'. John Duncombe. Printed for J. Johnson, London 1773. First edition. 24pp. Rebound in half green leather and marbled boards and endpapers, gilt t](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6170539f9de5005591e466e3/b91c7763-7d6b-4939-8a1e-f549f5aa7107/90_0487.jpg)
Lot 487 'Surry [sic] Triumphant: or The Kentish-Mens Defeat. A new ballad being a parody on Chevy-Chace'. John Duncombe. Printed for J. Johnson, London 1773. First edition. 24pp. Rebound in half green leather and marbled boards and endpapers, gilt title to spine. Woodcut vignette to title page. The match, instigated by the Earl of Tankerville, took place at Bishopsbourne Paddock, the seat of Sir Horatio Mann, on 24 July 1773, for £2000. A rare and very early cricket book. Hammer £2600
Lot 194 Lancashire C.C.C./Liverpool & District Cricket Club 1860/1890's. Folded piece of cream paper very nicely signed in ink by eight players to two sides (not back to back), five of them played for Lancashire in the period quoted. Signatures are Edward Horatio Porter (17 matches for Lancashire 1874-82), Charles Langton Jones (5 matches for Lancashire 1876-1878), George Colquhoun Hamilton Dunlop ((1 match for Lancashire 1868), Arthur Twiss Kemble (76 matches for Lancashire 1885-1894), Edgar Christian Hornby (9 matches for Lancashire 1885-87, distant cousin of A.N. Hornby). On a separate piece is the laid down signatures of Edgar Ratcliffe (1 match for Lancashire 1884). Rare and early Lancashire signatures. Hammer £280
Lot 33 'Wisden Trade Catalogue. List of Prices for 1862. Cricketing & other British Sports. Warehouse, 2 New Coventry Street, Leicester Square, London'. Headed to 'Regiments and Cricket Clubs'. Small 8vo.16pp. The front wrapper has an illustration of Wisden's Shop with a paragraph regarding what the shop has to offer. The list of prices is followed by bats, stumps, gloves etc as well as cricket photographic prints, the Lillywhite and Wisden patent catapulta and other sporting goods such as football and rackets and finally cigars... This trade catalogue is much the same size as a Wisden. A rare and early trade catalogue. Hammer Unsold