Charles Nepean

Charles Edward Burroughs Nepean (5 February 1851 – 26 March 1903) was an English amateur cricketer and footballer who later became a vicar in the Church of England.

His father was the son of Sir Evan Nepean, 1st Baronet and was the Canon of Westminster and a Chaplain in Ordinary to Queen Victoria.

[9] According to his obituary in Wisden, "his future at Oxford seemed assured, but from some cause he did not get a place in the eleven till his last year"; he was described as "an admirable batsman, with a very neat and business-like style".

In the summer of 1873, he played regularly including the two wicket victory over Middlesex in June[11] and the match against Cambridge University at Lords, scoring 22 and 50 (his top first-class score), helping Cuthbert Ottaway to gain a victory by three wickets[12] and for Nepean to obtain his blue.

Following his ordination, he no longer played first-class cricket, although he was a member of the Kent committee, thus keeping him in touch with the game.

In November 1870, he was selected by Arthur Kinnaird to represent "Scotland" in the second pseudo-international match against the English side, organised by Charles Alcock.

(In his biography of Arthur Kinnaird, Andy Mitchell says that Nepean's "closest link to Scotland was a cousin who married a Scot.

"[17]) According to the report on the match played at the Kennington Oval on 19 November 1870, "proceedings were commenced with a kick-off by C.E.B.

In the match on 25 February 1871, Nepean scored the Scottish goal in a 1–1 draw;[20] the match report says "about a quarter of an hour after the kick-off a loud shout proclaimed the fall of the English goal – an achievement entirely due to the play of C.E.

The report comments: "to C. E. Nepean, Q. Hogg and W. H. Gladstone was mainly due the successful defence of [the Scottish] lines against a series of well-organised attacks".

[23] In 1872, Oxford University entered a team in the FA Cup for the first time,[24] reaching the final against the Wanderers.

[29] On leaving Oxford in 1874, Nepean entered the Church of England[30] and in 1876 he was appointed as vicar of Lenham in Kent.