Harold Gilligan

Who was Harold Gilligan?

Alfred Herbert Harold Gilligan was a cricketer who played for Sussex and England. Gilligan captained England on their four-Test tour of New Zealand in 1929-30, which England won 1-0. This tour was played simultaneously with another England Test tour to the West Indies, where England were captained by the Honourable Freddie Calthorpe.

A right-handed batsman of limited ability and occasional change bowler, Gilligan set a record in 1923 that is unlikely to be equalled when, in batting 70 times during the season, he scored 1,186 runs at an average of 17.70 runs per innings: the average is the lowest by any cricketer who achieved 1,000 runs in a season.

Gilligan's brother was Arthur Gilligan, who captained England in 1924–25, making them the first, and to date only, brothers to have captained England. Both brothers attended Dulwich College, as did their brother Frank, who played for Essex. Harold's daughter, Virginia, married the England captain Peter May in 1959. They had four daughters.