Name:

Hirst, George H

Nickname:

GH

Date of Birth:

07 Sep 1871

Gender:

Men

Place of Birth:

Kirkheaton, Yorkshire.

Date Died:

10 May 1954

Career:

Test: 1897 - 1909

Teams:

Yorkshire (Regional)
England (Country)

Golden years: Hill & Gregory to Hobbs & Sutcliffe

George Hirst: Formed a devastating partnership with Rhodes 

George Herbert Hirst was born on 7 September 1871 in Kirkheaton, Yorkshire, and became a central figure in English cricket during the late Victorian and Edwardian eras. He was a natural all-rounder, combining a powerful yet stylish left-handed batting technique with accurate, penetrative right-arm fast-medium bowling.

Hirst’s career was defined by both individual brilliance and his partnership with fellow Yorkshireman Wilfred Rhodes, with whom he often batted and bowled in tandem to devastating effect.

His most remarkable achievement came in the 1906 season, when he scored 2,385 runs and took 208 wickets in the same year — a feat known as the “double double,” unmatched in cricket history. He scored 60 centuries in first-class cricket and was known for his aggressive stroke play, while his bowling was relentless in accuracy, capable of swinging and seaming the ball in English conditions.

For England, Hirst played 24 Test matches between 1897 and 1909, contributing significantly in the 1903–04 Ashes series in Australia, where his all-round skills helped England regain the urn. One of his most enduring cricketing stories is his 1902 partnership with Rhodes at The Oval, when the pair guided England to a one-wicket victory over Australia — Rhodes famously saying, “We’ll get ’em in singles,” a phrase that entered cricket folklore.

Beyond his playing career, Hirst became a respected coach at Eton College and later at Yorkshire, where he mentored future greats, instilling in them the same discipline and resilience that defined his own game. He passed away on 10 May 1954 in Huddersfield, but remains celebrated as one of cricket’s most complete all-rounders and a cornerstone of Yorkshire’s cricketing tradition.