Leigh started playing cricket as a boy at Stoneleigh Abbey after his father Lord Leigh, Lord Byron's schoolmate at Harrow, established a cricket ground at his country estate at Stoneleigh Abbey in 1839 for his eldest son William Henry Leigh who was attending Harrow.
lˈiː stˈɑːɹɾᵻd plˈeɪɪŋ kɹˈɪkɪt æz ɐ bˈɔɪ æt stˈoʊnliː ˈæbi ˈæftɚ hɪz fˈɑːðɚ lˈɔːɹd lˈiː, lˈɔːɹd bˈaɪɹɑːnz skˈuːlmeɪt æt hˈæɹoʊ, ɪstˈæblɪʃt ɐ kɹˈɪkɪt ɡɹˈaʊnd æt hɪz kˈʌntɹi ᵻstˈeɪt æt stˈoʊnliː ˈæbi ɪn wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd θˈɜːɾi nˈaɪn fɔːɹ hɪz ˈɛldɪst sˈʌn wˈɪljəm hˈɛnɹi lˈiː hˌuː wʌz ɐtˈɛndɪŋ hˈæɹoʊ.