Dedicated to the Tyldesleys

By J Chadwick

About Eighteen-Ninety from neighbouring Haigh

A young man named Tyldesley came Westhoughton way.

A big hefty fellow, broad shouldered and tall,

A good man at cricket with both bat and ball.

This act at Westhoughton they soon got to know,

And wasted no time to engage him as ‘Pro’.

The town of Westhoughton he never forsook,

For years well he batted and wickets he took;

In Bolton League cricket, whose class no one scorns,

He made every “Keaw Yead” more proud of his horns;

To add to our laurels and increase our pride,

He brought up four sons that all played for our side.

The eldest, named Billy, when only a lad

Would open the innings, along with his dad,

And many a time have I helped the crowd roar

Whilst Bill and his father were helping the score.

So loud did we cheer them we might have known that

One soon would be Lancashire’s opening bat.

The time Billy left us we had, besides him,

Assisting Westhoughton his brother, named Jim;

A tall, handsome youngster, a promising lad,

Could send down a fast one and clout like his dad;

His style made us fancy we’d soon have another

Playing for Lancashire, along with his brother.

Both played for their County and well-earned their caps,

A fact which made “Howfen” well-known on the map;

But death, which gets all of us out in due time,

Got out those two lads in the midst of their prime

Jim played his last innings where he got his chance,

Billy played for England “somewhere in France.”

But the last of the Tyldesleys we hadn’t yet seen,

For Westhoughton still had two more just as keen;

Although only youngsters, in our first team matches,

They batted and bowled well and made some good catches.

Their averages proved that Westhoughton still had

A couple more Tyldesleys being coached by their dad.

In those days opponents had something to lick

When faced by a side that played Harry and Dick,

Who in cricket circles were causing some noise,

Which made our supporters more proud of the boys;

And none can deny they were two of the reasons

For our club enjoying some prosperous seasons.

Quite frequent, when we had those two in the game,

The Bolton League table commenced with our name;

And though at the time we had not a bad side,

We oftener than not on the Tyldesleys relied

And one of the pillars on which they could lean

Proved the finest spin bowler perhaps ever seen.

Comparisons are odious, but if I’d to pick

The best of the Tyldesleys, my choice would be Dick,

Who, some years for the County, led the attack

Along with Macdonald, the Australian crack.

His crowning achievement, and no doubt the best,

Was playing for England “down under” in Test.

Never should Westhoughton James Tyldesley forget,

Nor his famous sons, that brilliant quartet;

That cricketing family, now passed away,

We owe a great debt which we now can repay,

By doing our utmost to help in a scheme

Which honours the Tyldesleys and assists the team.

The scheme has two objects, one – buying the ground,

The other – a suitable tablet to found,

In memory of stars that appear in these lines,

Whose beam in the cricket world still brightly shines.

So come on, you sportsmen, that good cause ne’er shunned,

Please help up the TYLDESLEY MEMORIAL FUND.

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