Birthplace plaque honours legend of Yorkshire cricket

And a plaque unveiled yesterday at the Harrogate birthplace of Herbert Sutcliffe, who scored 50,670 first-class runs, will help ensure his achievements are remembered.

The ceremony was performed by Yorkshire president Ray Illingworth at 10 East View Terrace, Summerbridge, where Sutcliffe was born on November 24, 1894.

In recent years, former Yorkshire spin bowlers Hedley Verity and George Macaulay – contemporaries of Sutcliffe – were also remembered with commemorative plaques at their birthplaces in Leeds and Thirsk respectively.

Sutcliffe, who died at Cross Hills, Yorkshire, on January 22, 1978, played from 1919 to 1945 and scored 4,555 Test runs at 60.73 – the fourth-best average behind Don Bradman, Graeme Pollock and George Headley.

He formed celebrated partnerships with Jack Hobbs for England and with Percy Holmes for Yorkshire, sharing with the latter a stand of 555 against Essex at Leyton in 1932 – a first-wicket record that stood until 1977 .

Sutcliffe's style was encapsulated in his obituary in the cricket bible Wisden: "Immaculate, alert, brisk of movement, serene in repose, he carried his character with a clear label wherever he appeared.

"His off-drive wore a silk hat and his hook was a ready response to the aggressive intent of any bumper.

"His defensive play was the reduction of risk to the minimum and his self-confidence was unshakeable."