George Freeman (27 July 1843 – 18 November 1895) was an English first-class cricketer. He made thirty two appearance for Yorkshire County Cricket Club from 1865 to 1880.[1] He also played four matches of first-class cricket for the "United England Eleven" (1866-1869), three games for the "North of England" (1867-1869), four for the "United North of England Eleven" (1870) plus one for the "Players" (1871).
Born in Boroughbridge, Yorkshire, England, Freeman was a right-arm, round arm, fast bowler, who took 288 wickets in all first-class cricket at an average of 9.84. His best analysis of 8 for 11 came against Lancashire in a Roses Match. He took five wickets in an innings 32 times, and ten wickets in a match ten times. He conceded 1.66 runs per over, and had a strike rate of 35.47, which translates into a wicket every six overs.
Among his notable bowling spells are 6 for 44 against an "All England Eleven", 5 for 36 against Cambridgeshire, 5 for 14 against Kent, 6 for 26 against the MCC, 7 for 29 against Middlesex, 7 for 30 against Nottinghamshire, 8 for 43 against R Daft's XI, 7 for 45 against the "South of England", plus 8 for 29 against Surrey. He appeared in a non first-class game for a "Miscellaneous All England Eleven" against 22 of Ireland in 1869, when he took 4 for 19 and 6 for 5, to register 10 for 25 in the match.
He also scored 918 runs at 13.70, with a top score of 53 for Yorkshire against Surrey and, over the course of career, also took twenty catches. His other half centuries came against Lancashire and the "United South of England Eleven".
Under the pseudonym "Old Ebor", Alfred Pullin (1860-1934) interviewed eighteen former cricketers for the Yorkshire Evening Post during the winter of 1897/98. After publication in the paper, they were gathered together for a book called Talks With Old Yorkshire Cricketers. Each player interviewed nominated George Freeman as the greatest bowler they had ever seen. W. G. Grace, not interviewed in the book, all but agreed with their judgment, dubbing him the finest fast bowler he had ever played.
Freeman was not one of those featured as he had died in November 1895, in Sowerby Grange, near Thirsk aged 52. Pullin was forced to rely on the testimonies of team-mates and friends for his portrait. Pullin was the rugby and cricket correspondent for the Yorkshire Post, and one of the rare people included in Wisden's 'Births and Deaths of Cricketers' who had never played first-class cricket.