| William Neilson | |
| Fullname: | William Francis Neilson |
| Birth Date: | 24 September 1850 |
| Birth Place: | Liverpool, England |
| Death Place: | Christchurch, New Zealand |
| Batting: | Right-handed |
| Club1: | Canterbury |
| Year1: | 1874–75 to 1878–79 |
| Columns: | 1 |
| Column1: | First-class |
| Matches1: | 6 |
| Runs1: | 123 |
| Bat Avg1: | 13.66 |
| 100S/50S1: | 0/1 |
| Top Score1: | 57 not out |
| Deliveries1: | 122 |
| Wickets1: | 8 |
| Bowl Avg1: | 8.37 |
| Fivefor1: | 1 |
| Tenfor1: | 0 |
| Best Bowling1: | 5/19 |
| Catches/Stumpings1: | 1/0 |
| Date: | 27 March 2017 |
| Source: | https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/22/22563/22563.html CricketArchive |
William Francis Neilson (24 September 1850 – 2 May 1880)[1] was an English-born New Zealand cricketer who played for Canterbury in the 1870s.
Born in Liverpool, England, Neilson moved to New Zealand as a young man.[2] He had his best cricket performances in the match against Otago in 1876–77, when he scored 57 not out in the second innings batting at number nine, and then took 5 for 19 to wrap up the Otago innings and the match.[3]
In 1877–78 Neilson organised and captained Canterbury's first trip to the North Island, when they dismissed Auckland for 13 at the Auckland Domain.[4] A few weeks later he captained Canterbury to victory over the touring Australians, the Australians' only loss of the tour.[5] He also led the Canterbury team that toured Tasmania and Victoria in 1878–79.[6]
A popular figure in Canterbury, he was the best amateur billiards player in New Zealand, a fine games player and horse rider, and a prominent owner of racehorses.[7] [8] He died on 2 May 1880 after a long illness, aged 29.[9]