Catalogue for the auction of
Cricket, Football & Sporting Memorabilia
Held on Friday, Saturday & Sunday
10th, 11th & 12th April 2026
Lot 476
Estimate: £250/350
Hammer: £200
Maurice William Tate. Sussex & England 1912-1937. E.P.B.M. silver plated tea set, comprising of a teapot, sugar bowl and milk jug. Engraved to the teapot is the following inscription ‘Johnnie Walker Trophy. Presented to M.W. Tate, Adelaide 1925’. The sugar bowl and milk jug have Tate’s initial’s engraved to their sides. The tea set made by James Dixon & Sons of Sheffield, with makers marks to bases of all three items. The teapot stands approximately 6.75” tall, the sugar bowl with lid 5” tall and the milk jug 4.25” tall. Very good condition
The 1925 cricket season was a record breaking season for Maurice Tate. He set a Test record of 38 wickets in the 1924/25 series playing for England against Australia in the 1924/25 series which remained a record for a single Test series until 1950, 1925 marked the third consecutive year he achieved the ‘double’ of 1,000 runs and 200 wickets in a single season and he rapidly took his 100th wicket of the 1925 English season by 25 June. It has been suggested to me that he was presented with a silver tea service upon his return to England from Australia in early 1925 by the people of Brighton to commemorate the record breaking feat. However, if that is the case why is the tea pot engraved with the wording ‘’Johnnie Walker Trophy’ and have ‘Adelaide’ inscribed on it. He took eleven wickets in the first Test at Sydney, nine wickets in the 2nd Test at Melbourne, only two wickets in Adelaide in the third Test, seven wickets in the 4th Test back at Melbourne and nine wickets in the final Test at Sydney making up the 38 wickets. The reference to the Johnnie Walker Trophy suggests that it might have been a presentation from the company in recognition of the achievement, Johnnie Walker whisky sponsored huge scoreboards in many towns around England in the 1920/30’s to inform cricket lovers of the Test match scores as it happened but did this only happen in the summer, I presume so.... A real conundrum !