Wilfred Bird

Lieut. Wilfrid Stanley Bird (6th Battalion King's Royal Rifle Corps.) was born at Yiewsley, Middlesex, September 28, 1883, and killed in action on April 9. He was educated at the Grange, Eastbourne, where he was captain of the cricket and football elevens, and afterwards at Malvern, where he represented the College at cricket, football and fives. He was in the Malvern eleven in 1900-1-2, among his contemporaries being A.P. Day and G. N. Foster. Going up to Oxford with good credentials as a wicket-keeper he would in the ordinary course of events have stepped straight into the eleven, but Oxford in 1903 had a wicket-keeper of established reputation in W. Findlay. However, he kept wicket for Oxford in 1904-5-6, being captain of the eleven his last year. As a wicket-keeper he had not the genius of Martyn or Macgregor, but he was decidedly above the average. It was his privilege to keep wicket for the Gentlemen at Lord's in 1908 and 1912. He also played on a few occasions for Middlesex. His skill was, perhaps, never seen to better advantage than when keeping to D. W. Carr's googlies at Scarborough in 1909. As a batsman he was only moderate, but he helped the late W. H. B. Evans to save the University match in 1904. He was a master at Ludgrove School for several years, and was gazetted to the King's Royal Rifles in January, 1915. He had been a member of the M.C.C. since 1905.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack