Vincent Tancred

Who was Vincent Tancred?

Vincent Maximillian Tancred was a South African cricketer who played in one Test in 1899.

Born into a cricketing family in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Tancred, along with his brothers Bernard and Louis, showed cricketing talent from a young age and began playing for the Pretoria based Union Club while pursuing a legal career. Under the coaching of Albert Trott, Tancred developed into one of the best cricketers in the country, making his first-class debut on 7 March 1898 for Abe Bailey's Transvaal XI against Natal, scoring 57 and 4*. Tancred was second in the first-class batting averages for the 1897/98 season.

Tancred made his Test debut for South Africa at Johannesburg in the first Test of the 1898/99 series against England. Opening the batting, Tancred scored 18 and seven and was dropped for the second Test.

Tancred worked as Secretary of the Pretoria Club until the commencement of the Anglo-Boer War in 1899, after which he enlisted in the South African Light Horse, serving as a Lieutenant during the relief of Ladysmith, and was mentioned in despatches.