| Born | 18 June 1844, Dublin |
| Died | 30 January 1927 Cannes, France. |
| Educated | Oxford University. |
| Occupation | Barrister. |
| Debut | 20 May 1867 v MCC at Lord's |
| Cap Number | 93 |
| Style | Right hand bat. |
| Teams | Na Shuler. |
| History | Mervyn de Montmorency came from an old Anglo - Irish landed family, originally named Pratt, which had been granted lands in Kilkenny at the time of the Cromwellian settlement. Marriage into the De Montmorency family resulted in a change of name in 1831. Mervyn was a good middle order batsman who was little seen in Irish Cricket. He did take part in the Na Shuler tour of Cork in 1871, scoring 11 and 1 v T Hewitt's XIV at The Mardyke. He was accounted for in each innings by the redoubtable Parker Dunscombe, for many years ever present in most major matches in Cork. The Shulers, after gaining a small first innings lead, collapsed for 14 at their second attempt and were easily beaten.
He was unfortunate in his one and only game for Ireland, the MCC fixture at Lord's in May 1867. His selection was possibly due to his London residence. He was one of 6 new caps, four of whom, including him, were never to play for Ireland again. Not that he, or any of the other cricketers involved, did much playing this time. Ireland reached 10-0, then the rains came and there was no further play. This was an unusual match for other reasons: nine of the players involved had played or were to play for I Zingari against Ireland, five on the Irish side. MCC included BB Cooper, a well known amateur, who emigrated to Australia, and played in the first ever Test Match, making himself the first Australian Test cricketer to play against Ireland. De Montmorency had a successful career as a barrister, having been called to the Bar in 1870. He married Maud Ann De Gear, widow of Baron Gustav de Geer of the Netherlands. Edward Liddle, October 2007 |