John Minshull      

John Minshull's place in cricket history was secured when on August 31, 1769 he scored 107 for Sevenoaks against Wrotham, the first recorded hundred in the game, although it is thought that John Small scored one in 1768.

In Early Kent Cricketers he is described as "a thick-set man, about 5'9" in height, rather a slow mover in the field (and had) a tendency towards injury and illness". According to John Nyren, he was a "capital hitter, and a sure guard of his wicket" but "not an elegant player, his position and general style were both awkward and uncouth". Minshull evidently had a high opinion of his own ability and was said to have been "as conceited as a wagtail and from his constantly aping what he had no pretensions to, was, on that account only, not estimated according to the price at which he had rated his own merits."

In October 1769 Minshull accepted the post of gardener at Knole House (the Duke of Dorset's residence near Sevenoaks) and while employed by the Duke, Minshull used to play cricket for Sevenoaks and he also represented Kent.

In late 1772, Minshull left Knole and settled in or near Uxbridge in Middlesex. Then, in the autumn of 1775, he moved back into Surrey and played for the Surrey XI until his retirement from major cricket in 1780. He had probably returned to Kingston-on-Thames as the final reference to him is contained in the Kingston parish registers for October 23, 1793, where it records the burial of "John Minchen (sic), gardener".
Martin Williamson