Christopher Collins

Who was Christopher Collins?

Christopher Collins was an English cricketer. Collins was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm fast-medium. The son of Benjamin Collins and his wife Jane, he was born Cobham, Kent. In the 1881 census, Collins was living at Cobham and was employed, alongside his father, as a gardener. He learnt his cricket at Cobham, where he played under the captaincy of Ivo Bligh, 8th Earl of Darnley.

Collins made his first-class debut for Kent against the Marylebone Cricket Club at Lord's in 1881. He made seven further first-class appearances for the county, the last of which came against Yorkshire in 1885. In his eight first-class matches, he scored a total of 97 runs at an average of 8.81, with a high score of 41. With the ball, he took 16 wickets at a bowling average of 19.06, with best figures of 4/9.

He was subsequently groundsman at the Bat and Ball Ground, Gravesend and later ran a sports outfitters in the town.

His father played first-class cricket for Kent, as did his brother, George. His son, also called George, played first-class cricket for Kent as well. Collins died at Gravesend, Kent, on 11 August 1919.