Leland Hone (30 January 1853 – 31 December 1896[1]) was an Irish cricketer who played internationally for England and Ireland, in addition to playing first-class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club.[2]
 Hone in about 1878 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 30 January 1853 Dublin, Ireland | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 31 December 1896 (aged 43) Dublin, Ireland | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Only Test (cap 14) | 2 January 1879 v Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: CricketArchive, 16 May 2019 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing career
A right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper,[1] Hone made his debut for Ireland in August 1875 playing against I Zingari. He played three more matches against I Zingari in August of each of the following three years, scoring 74 not out in 1877, his highest score for Ireland.[3] In 1878, he made his first-class debut, playing for the MCC against Cambridge University. After one more game against Oxford University[4] he was chosen to tour Australia under the captaincy of Lord Harris.[5]
When it became clear that the side lacked a regular wicket-keeper, Hone was drafted in for the only Test of the tour, playing against Australia in January 1879, becoming the first player to represent England without playing county cricket[5][6] and the first Irishman to represent England.[7]
He played four more first-class matches on the tour, two each against New South Wales and Victoria,[4] and returned to the Ireland team for matches against the MCC and Surrey that summer.[3] He played one final first-class match for the MCC in 1880 against Oxford University at Lord's.[4] He continued playing club cricket, and represented Ireland twice in 1883 before a final game against I Zingari in August 1888.[3]
Statistics
In his matches for Ireland, he scored 321 runs at an average of 24.69. He took sixteen catches and six stumpings.[3] In his only Test match, he scored 13 runs and took two catches. In first-class cricket, he scored 85 runs at an average of 7.08, taking nine catches and two stumpings.[1]
Family
Hone came from a cricketing family. His brothers William and Nathaniel also played for Ireland, as did his cousins William, Thomas and Jeffery. His nephew Pat Hone also played for Ireland.[1]