Australia with Alfred Shaw’s team and played in all the Test matches, scoring an impressive 121 in Melbourne. In 1885, Briggs developed greatly as a bowler: having scarcely bowled at all in previous seasons, he took 67 wickets for 13.74 each, and in 1886, his bowling helped England achieve a 3–0 cleansweep of the series, their last whitewash victory in a series of three or more Tests in the Ashes until 1977. His batting did not suffer: Briggs hit a career-best 186 against Surrey at Liverpool – adding a then-record 173 for the tenth wicket with Dick Pilling. In the exceptionally dry summer of 1887, Briggs took 100 wickets in a season for the first time, whilst in the summer of 1888 he was consistently deadly on the treacherous pitches. His 160 wickets cost only 10.49 each, and the following year he was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year. He played well in South Africa’s first two Test matches in 1888/9 (only canonised as such much later), taking 15 for 28 in the second Test, of which fourteen were clean bowled. For Lancashire and England, Briggs shouldered an incredible burden. For Lancashire, as a professional or “player” in a team largely made up of “gentleman” amateurs he was expected to open the bowling and sometimes to bowl all day in tandem with the other professionals; Barlow, Crossland, Mold. He toured Australia five times and went to South Africa, experiencing very high temperatures. Professional cricketers were expected to play through injuries - if they didn’t play, they would not be paid. His health suffered even before his major injury and last illness. Briggs bowled the third ever hat-trick in Test Cricket. It happened at Sydney in 1892 when he finished off the Australian second innings. In the First Test at Sydney in 1894/95 he played a part in the first time a team won after following on. Australia scored a massive 586 on a relatively poor pitch – partly because of England’s wicket keeper dropping some important chances. When England batted they struggled to 325 only because Briggs at No.8 scored 57. They were asked to follow on. This time they batted well on a wearing pitch, Lancashire’s Albert Ward scored a hundred and Johnny Briggs made another 42. Australia only needed 177 to win and made it to 117 for 2 by close of play. Some of the England players