Louis Tancred

Who was Louis Tancred?

Louis Joseph Tancred was a South African cricketer who played in 14 Tests from 1902 to 1913, including three as captain.

Born into a cricketing family in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Tancred attended St Aidan's College, Grahamstown where, along with his brothers Bernard and Vincent, he began to show cricketing prowess. He made his first-class debut for Transvaal against Western Province on 24 March 1897, scoring 40 and 15. The next season, Tancred starred in the Currie Cup, scoring 120 against Natal and averaging 36.12 for the season, placing him second in the batting averages.

His flourishing cricketing career was waylaid by the outbreak of the Anglo-Boer War. Tancred served as a trooper with the Western Province Mounted Rifles and awarded the Queen's Medal for bravery. While still serving in the war, Tancred was named in South Africa's touring team to England in 1901 and, after being excused from active service, Tancred joined his team mates on the boat to England. In England he played 16 first-class matches, scoring 591 runs at 21 but failed to play a Test.

Tancred eventually made his Test debut against Australia on 11 October 1902 at Johannesburg, scoring 97 and 24. His 97 was the highest score by a South African on Test debut until Andrew Hudson’s 163 against the West Indies in 1992.