His father was a wholesale warehouseman and Northcote was educated at Cranbrook School in Kent.
[4] He studied medicine at St Thomas' Hospital in London and made his first-class debut for Middlesex in 1888 whilst a student.
[4] He was a "highly regarded" club cricketer for Beckenham Cricket Club,[4] as well as for sides such as Band of Brothers, West Kent and United Hospitals, but only played two further first-class matches for the county side, one against Yorkshire in 1892 and one as a last minute replacement against Gloucestershire in 1895.
In 1894 Northcote played for Chatham Cricket Club against the touring South Africans.
[2][4][5] His Wisden obituary described him as a "good free right-handed batsman" who "bowled slow left arm".