Frank Cooke (barrister) facts for kids

Frank Herbert Cooke (born September 22, 1862 – died June 10, 1933) was a talented New Zealand cricket player. He played what is called first-class cricket for teams like Otago and Nelson in the 1880s. Besides being a sportsman, he was also a successful lawyer. He worked as a barrister and later became a Crown Solicitor in Palmerston North.

Frank Cooke's Early Life and Education

Frank Cooke was born in Melbourne, Australia. However, he went to school in England at Tonbridge School in Kent. In 1879, when he was about 17, he moved to New Zealand.

He started training to become a lawyer in Dunedin. This training was like an apprenticeship, where he learned from experienced lawyers. By 1884, he had finished his training and became a qualified lawyer.

Frank Cooke's Cricket Career Highlights

Frank Cooke was known as a slow left-arm spinner in cricket. This means he bowled with his left arm and made the ball spin slowly to trick the batters. He often started the bowling for his team.

Playing for Otago

Cooke began playing for the Otago team soon after he arrived in Dunedin. His first big match was in January 1880 against the Canterbury team. He was only 17 years old at the time.

In a match against Canterbury in 1882–83, he was amazing. He took 15 wickets in total, which means he got 15 batters out. Even with his great bowling, Canterbury still won the game by a tiny four runs.

During the 1883–84 season, he played three important matches. He took 29 wickets in these games, showing how good he was at getting batters out.

His last match for Otago was in 1884–85, again against Canterbury. In that game, he took nine out of the first ten wickets in Canterbury's first turn at batting. The last batter was run out, so Cooke ended up with 9 wickets for 73 runs. Soon after this match, he moved to Nelson.

Playing for Nelson

When Cooke joined the Nelson team, he continued to show off his bowling skills. In his very first match for Nelson in 1885–86, he bowled for the entire game. He took six wickets, helping Nelson win easily against the Wellington team. Wellington only scored 36 and 19 runs in their two turns.

In Nelson's next game in 1886–87, he took 5 wickets for 27 runs and 4 wickets for 50 runs. He also scored his highest first-class score of 34 runs in that match.

In 1887–88, Nelson beat Wellington in just one day, which was very unusual for a first-class match. Cooke took six wickets in that game. In another short game played the next day, he took 8 wickets for 26 runs and 2 wickets for 17 runs. Overall, he took 16 wickets in those two days!

Recognized as a Top Player

Years later, a cricket historian named Tom Reese wrote a book about early New Zealand cricket. In his book, he picked a team of the best New Zealand cricketers from 1860 to 1914. Frank Cooke was chosen as one of those top players. This shows how important he was in the history of New Zealand cricket.

Frank Cooke's Life After Cricket

After his cricket career, Frank Cooke focused more on his law work. He started his own law business in Nelson in 1885.

He also helped create the Nelson Athletic Ground Company. This company was formed in 1885 to build Trafalgar Park, a big sports complex in Nelson.

In 1890, he moved to Palmerston North and joined a law firm there. He was also part of the group that bought land and developed Fitzherbert Park. This is now Palmerston North's main cricket ground. In April 1923, he was given an important job as the Crown Solicitor in Palmerston North. This means he represented the government in legal cases.

Frank Cooke married Alice Monckton in February 1892. They had two sons, and both of them also became lawyers. One of their sons, Philip, became a judge. Frank Cooke passed away at his home in Palmerston North in June 1933, when he was 70 years old.