John Cottam
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| Full name | John Thomas Cottam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 5 September 1867 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 30 January 1897 (aged 29) Coolgardie, Western Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Legbreak | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| National side | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Only Test (cap 49) | 25 February 1887 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: Cricinfo, 19 October 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
John Thomas Cottam (5 September 1867 – 30 January 1897) was an Australian cricketer who played in one Test match in 1887.
Jack Cottam had played in only one first-class match – for New South Wales against the touring English cricket team, when he scored 29 and 14 not out[1] – before making his Test debut a few days later in the Second Test against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Cottam made just four runs as Australia lost by 71 runs.[2] Cottam's five other first-class matches came on New South Wales' tour of New Zealand in 1889–90, when he was the most successful batsman:[3] he made three fifties including his highest score of 62, the only fifty in the match, when New South Wales beat Wellington.[4][5]
Cottam was a talented batsman – "style, strokes, physique, and a happy, sanguine temperament were all his" – but he did not seek to make the most of his cricketing ability.[3] He went to the West Australian goldfields, where he died of typhoid fever in hospital at Coolgardie in January 1897, aged 29.[6][7]
References
- ^ "New South Wales v A Shaw's XI 1886-87". CricketArchive. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
- ^ "2nd Test, England tour of Australia at Sydney, Feb 25 – Mar 1 1887". Cricinfo. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
- ^ a b Not Out (17 February 1897). "Cricket". Referee: 8.
- ^ "New South Wales in New Zealand, 1889/90". Cricinfo. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
- ^ "Wellington v New South Wales 1889-90". CricketArchive. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
- ^ "Cricket Chatter". The Arrow: 2. 20 February 1897. Retrieved 18 October 2025.
- ^ "Deaths at the Hospital". The Western Australian Goldfields Courier: 17. 6 February 1897.