According to N. L. Jackson, while de Winton was studying at Cambridge in 1846, "two old Shrewsbury boys, Messrs. H. de Winton and J. C. Thring,[8] persuaded some Old Etonians to join them and formed a [football] club. Matches were few and far between, but some were played on Parker's Piece. Unfortunately, the game was not popular at the 'Varsity then, and the club did not last long".[9] On the basis of this passage, de Winton has been credited with playing a part in the development of one of the earliest sets of "Cambridge rules", which were significant in the history of football.[10]