His death rocked the IRFU, and robbed the organisation, of which he had been president, of one its most distinguished supporters and administrators.
Browning was buried in Dublin at Dean’s Grange Cemetery, and his colleagues at the IRFU erected a headstone, which praised him as an:
…honourable comrade and distinguished sportsman, who by his untiring efforts and splendid patriotism obtained from his corps over three hundred recruits for His Majesty’s Forces during the Great European War.
Although Browning was associated with rugby in his later life, it was a different sport that had dominated much of his forty-seven years.
Cricket was his first love, and he began playing the game seriously when he was a student at Marlborough College in Wiltshire. Early reports indicate that his technique needed some refining and he was viewed as ‘not a strong bat’, while another observer commented that he ‘often sacrifices his wicket in an attempt to hit square leg’.
A short, well-built man with strong arms, Browning was a natural wicketkeeper, and sought out this position at school and at university. He became a regular member of the first eleven at Trinity College in Dublin, and quickly got a reputation as a batsman of some note. Wisden refers to him being an ‘excellent wicketkeeper and an effective bat with a pretty style’.
His efforts behind the stumps and his adventurous batting style were rewarded when he was selected for Ireland, and he made his debut in August 1888 against Scotland. The weather at Rathmines was ‘delightful’, and a large crowd gathered to watch the match, which Scotland won by five wickets.
Browning’s performances continued to catch the eye of the selectors, and his run rate for the university team was exceptional. In 1889 he hit nearly 900 runs in a season, which included two centuries. He was now a player in demand, and the following season was asked to play against a team selected by the famous W. G. Grace. His good form continued when he chalked up a half-century, a score that he equalled against a Cambridge eleven. Ireland repeated their visits to England in the next few years, and Browning would be a regular in games against sides like Oxford, Essex, Warwickshire and the MCC.
Cricket was now becoming an international sport, and in 1904 Ireland played host to the South Africans. In the run-up to the match in Cork there had been lots of rain, but when the two sides took to the field the sun shone and the playing conditions were good. Browning played one of his best games in Irish colours, and made a good first innings score of 40 following it up with 31 runs in the second innings. Irish bowler T.C. Ross was sensational, and took nine South African wickets for just 28 runs. His accuracy secured a famous Irish victory, Browning’s team winning by 93 runs. The news travelled widely, and the next day’s newspapers made pleasant reading for the Irish players as they scanned headlines that simply declared ‘The Colonials Beaten’.
The following year the Australians arrived on Irish soil, and Browning was asked to play against the tourists for a Dublin University team made up of current and former students. One of his teammates was Joseph Lynch, a right-handed batsman and medium bowler who was a commissioned officer with the Royal Irish Fusiliers. Lynch was much younger than Browning, and although he had just recently come into the university team he was viewed as a very able cricketer.The university side performed heroically, and Frank Browning scored 52 runs in the first innings and 54 in the second, making him Ireland’s top scorer in the match. His new teammate, Joseph Lynch, took four wickets, although it was at the expense of 113 runs. Ireland fought valiantly, but they were not a match for the talented visitors, who won by 231 runs. One correspondent remarked that the contest had been predictable, and that ‘as had been expected the Australians experienced no difficulty’.
It was a great occasion for Lynch to play against the touring Australians, but he would have to wait a further four years before he would get a call up to play for Ireland.
1905 marked a dramatic year for the young man from South Dublin as he joined the army and became a 2nd lieutenant in the Royal Fusiliers. Born in Monkstown in 1880, he was one of three children, and was educated at the renowned Clongowes Wood College in County Kildare. School provided young Lynch with many sporting opportunities. As well as cricket, he played golf at Killiney, he sailed from the Royal Irish Yacht Club, and like many other servicemen he turned out regularly for Monkstown Rugby Club.
After becoming a commissioned officer he was posted to India, so his sporting opportunities in Ireland were limited and he disappeared from the Irish cricketing scene for a number of years. In contrast, Browning’s international career flourished, and he made further appearances behind the stumps for Ireland, and even captained the side.
In August 1908 at College Park in Dublin, Ireland played host to a team from Philadelphia, and over a series of days played two matches. Frank Browning was selected to play in both games, and the Irish team had mixed fortunes.
In the opening match Browning scored 13 runs in his first innings, and he fared poorly in his second innings, with a knock of just 6. Ireland were torn apart by the bowling of Bart King, who took seven wickets for just 23 runs. The home side was well beaten, and Philadelphia triumphed by an innings and 7 runs. Frank Browning and his teammates had little time to dwell on the nature of their defeat, as the next game with the visitors began straight away. This time Ireland performed much better, and Browning was one of the star players with an impressive innings of 50 runs, which marked his highest ever score for his country. In the second innings he took a couple of catches, and the match was a draw.
Browning’s fine batting performance saved the game, and his work was rewarded when he was named as captain for Ireland’s 1909 tour of North America. The planned trip also provided good news for Joseph Lynch. Back in Ireland, and freed from soldiering duties, the young South Dubliner was once again playing cricket, and in a surprise move Browning selected his old university teammate for the tour.
Lynch and Browning travelled across the Atlantic and headed for Staten Island, where they faced an ‘All New York’ team in September 1909. Ireland were victorious in the opening encounter, Browning chalking up a respectable 30 runs.Joseph Lynch did not get a chance to bat in the first innings, and did not score in the second, but it did not matter as Ireland’s bowlers proved too strong for the home side. Further games followed with a Philadelphia side, but this time the Irish batting was poor, and great bowling by Bart King and ‘Ranji’ Hordern put paid to any thoughts of another victory. In truth, the Irish side was weak, and contained players like Frank Browning, who were now at the end of their careers. Browning managed only 7 runs in the Philadelphia games, and to most observers it was clear that his days as Irish captain were coming to an end. At the time of the American trip he was forty-one years old, and had played for Ireland off and on for over twenty years.
Although his wicket keeping was regarded as good, his batting in a number of the tour games had been poor, and it was apparent that he was past his best. The trip across the Atlantic ended his inter- national cricket career and that of Joseph Lynch, whose time in Irish colours was regrettably brief. Had he not gone overseas with the army in 1905, it is likely he would have enjoyed more international games.
Invalided home after contracting a fever, Joseph Lynch probably thought his army career was over as well, but his love of the military was rekindled in 1914 when the war broke out. He did not return to the Royal Irish Fusiliers, which was his old regiment; instead, he enlisted with the 10th Battalion of the Yorkshire Regiment.
By September 1914, Lynch was back in uniform again and began battle training in a series of camps across England. He was highly regarded by his comrades, his leadership skills impressed those in the battalion’s hierarchy, and in April 1915 he was made a captain.
A year after he enlisted his opportunity to fight in France arrived, and in September 1915 he crossed the English Channel and landed in Boulogne ready to go into battle.Lynch and his comrades were on their way to take part in what would become known as the Battle of Loos, which was named after a small mining village in France. The British attack was being planned in conjunction with French forces, and on 25 September,