Berkshire County Cricket Club
Encyclopedia
Berkshire County Cricket Club is one of the county
clubs which make up the Minor Counties
in the English
domestic cricket
structure, representing the historic county of Berkshire
and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and MCCA Knockout Trophy
.
The Minor Counties play three-day matches at a level below that of the first-class
game. At present, Berkshire competes in the Western Division of the Minor Counties Championship.
in his Growth and Development of Cricket, the first reference to cricket being played in the county of Berkshire was in 1751. But cricket certainly reached Berkshire much earlier than that for it originated on the Weald
in Saxon or Norman times and was definitely being played in Berkshire's neighbouring county of Surrey in 1550.
The first definite mention of cricket in Berkshire
relates to the famous all rounder Thomas Waymark
who resided at Bray Wick, near Maidenhead
in the 1740s.
In September 1740, a team called "Buckinghamshire, Berkshire & Hertfordshire" played two matches against the famous London Cricket Club
at Uxbridge
and the Artillery Ground
. London won the first "with great difficulty" but no post-match report was found of the second. See H T Waghorn
: Cricket Scores 1730 - 1773.
By the late 18th century, Berkshire had become a first-class
team. Its strength was in the prominent Oldfield Club of Bray, near Maidenhead, which had a team representative of Berkshire as a county and was capable of taking on other leading teams of the time. The first time we encounter Berkshire as a county team is in a match against Surrey
in June 1769 and the county was first-class from then until August 1795 when, after losing to MCC at Lord's, it abruptly ceased to appear in important matches.
For information about Berkshire county teams during the county's period of first-class status and before the formation of Berkshire CCC, see : Berkshire county cricket teams
Berkshire CCC was founded on 17 March 1895, the same year that the Minor Counties Championship began. It did not compete in the first year of the competition but joined for 1896 and has taken part ever since, winning the title four times with the latest in 2008.
, however they declined the invitation because the team felt they lacked adequate facilities.
game, or are notable for other things:
Historic counties of England
The historic counties of England are subdivisions of England established for administration by the Normans and in most cases based on earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and shires...
clubs which make up the Minor Counties
Minor counties of English cricket
The Minor Counties are the cricketing counties of England and Wales that are not afforded first-class status. The game is administered by the Minor Counties Cricket Association which comes under the England and Wales Cricket Board...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
domestic cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
structure, representing the historic county of Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and MCCA Knockout Trophy
MCCA Knockout Trophy
The Minor Counties Cricket Association Knockout Cup was started in 1983 as a knockout one-day competition for the Minor Counties in English cricket...
.
The Minor Counties play three-day matches at a level below that of the first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
game. At present, Berkshire competes in the Western Division of the Minor Counties Championship.
Honours
- Minor Counties Championship (4) - 1924, 1928, 1953, 2008
- MCCA Knockout Trophy (1) - 2004, 2011
Earliest cricket
According to Rowland BowenRowland Bowen
Major Rowland Francis Bowen was a cricket researcher, historian and writer....
in his Growth and Development of Cricket, the first reference to cricket being played in the county of Berkshire was in 1751. But cricket certainly reached Berkshire much earlier than that for it originated on the Weald
Weald
The Weald is the name given to an area in South East England situated between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It should be regarded as three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the centre; the clay "Low Weald" periphery; and the Greensand Ridge which...
in Saxon or Norman times and was definitely being played in Berkshire's neighbouring county of Surrey in 1550.
The first definite mention of cricket in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
relates to the famous all rounder Thomas Waymark
Thomas Waymark
Thomas Waymark was an English professional cricketer in the first half of the 18th century...
who resided at Bray Wick, near Maidenhead
Maidenhead
Maidenhead is a town and unparished area within the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in Berkshire, England. It lies on the River Thames and is situated west of Charing Cross in London.-History:...
in the 1740s.
In September 1740, a team called "Buckinghamshire, Berkshire & Hertfordshire" played two matches against the famous London Cricket Club
London Cricket Club
The original London Cricket Club was formed by 1722 and was one of the foremost clubs in English cricket over the next four decades. It is closely associated with the Artillery Ground, where it played most of its home matches.-Early history of London cricket:...
at Uxbridge
Uxbridge
Uxbridge is a large town located in north west London, England and is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. It forms part of the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is located west-northwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres...
and the Artillery Ground
Artillery Ground
The Artillery Ground in Finsbury is one of London's most centrally located cricket grounds, situated just off the City Road immediately north of the City of London...
. London won the first "with great difficulty" but no post-match report was found of the second. See H T Waghorn
H T Waghorn
Henry Thomas Waghorn , was a cricket statistician and historian. He is best known for his two classic researches into cricket's early history: The Dawn of Cricket and Cricket Scores: 1730 - 1773....
: Cricket Scores 1730 - 1773.
By the late 18th century, Berkshire had become a first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
team. Its strength was in the prominent Oldfield Club of Bray, near Maidenhead, which had a team representative of Berkshire as a county and was capable of taking on other leading teams of the time. The first time we encounter Berkshire as a county team is in a match against Surrey
Surrey county cricket teams
Surrey county cricket teams have been traced back to the 17th century but the county's involvement in cricket goes back much further than that. The first definite mention of cricket anywhere in the world is dated c.1550 in Guildford.-17th century:...
in June 1769 and the county was first-class from then until August 1795 when, after losing to MCC at Lord's, it abruptly ceased to appear in important matches.
For information about Berkshire county teams during the county's period of first-class status and before the formation of Berkshire CCC, see : Berkshire county cricket teams
Berkshire county cricket teams
Berkshire county cricket teams have been traced back to the 18th century but the county's involvement in cricket goes back much further than that...
Origin of club
The Oldfield Club was effectively a Berkshire county team but it was not formally constituted as a county club. Rowland Bowen's researches discovered evidence of a county organisation by 1841, but it may only have been a loose association of local clubs, as was sometimes the case elsewhere.Berkshire CCC was founded on 17 March 1895, the same year that the Minor Counties Championship began. It did not compete in the first year of the competition but joined for 1896 and has taken part ever since, winning the title four times with the latest in 2008.
Club history
In 1921, Berkshire were offered first-class status and a place in the County ChampionshipCounty Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
, however they declined the invitation because the team felt they lacked adequate facilities.
Current squad
- Craig CroweCraig CroweCraig Piers Crowe is an English cricketer. Crowe is a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm medium pace. He was born at Leicester, Leicestershire....
- Shelvin Gumbs
- Benny HowellBenny HowellBenny Alexander Cameron Howell is an English cricketer. Howell is a right-handed batsman who bowls right-arm medium-fast. He was born at Bordeaux, France and educated at the The Oratory School in Berkshire....
- Jono McLeanJono McLeanJono McLean is a South African cricketer. Born in Johannesburg, he is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-pace bowler. He made his Hampshire debut in 2005, and while he is not playing English cricket he played for Western Province in South Africa.He helped Hampshire finish as runners-up...
- Hamza RiazuddinHamza RiazuddinHamza Riazuddin is an English cricketer. He is a right-handed lower-order batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler who currently plays for Hampshire. He is a British Pakistani...
- Shaun UdalShaun UdalShaun David Udal is an English cricketer. An off spin bowler and lower-middle order batsman, he was a member of England's Test team for their tours to Pakistan and India in 2005/06.-International career:...
- David BarnesDavid Barnes (cricketer)David Barnes . He is an English cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-pace bowler who played List A cricket for Cumberland...
- Stuart Davison
- James Hoddle
- Bjorn MordtBjorn MordtBjorn Haaken David Mordt is a Zimbabwean cricketer. Mordt is a right-handed batsman who bowls right-arm medium pace. He was born at Mutare, Manicaland Province....
- Steven NaylorSteven NaylorSteven Paul Naylor is an English cricketer. Barrow was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm fast-medium. He was born at Billingham, County Durham....
- Michael Roberts
- Luke BeavenLuke BeavenLuke Edward Beaven is an English cricketer. Beaven is a right-handed batsman who bowls slow left-arm orthodox. He was born in Reading, Berkshire....
- Carl CroweCarl CroweCarl Daniel Crowe is an English cricketer. Crowe is a right-handed batsman who bowls right-arm off break. He was born at Leicester, Leicestershire....
- Tom LambertTom LambertThomas Luke Lambert is an English cricketer. Lambert is a right-handed batsman who bowls right-arm medium pace. He was born at Ascot, Berkshire....
- James MorrisJames Morris (cricketer)James Calum Morris is an English cricketer. Morris is a right-handed batsman who bowls leg break. He was born at Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire.-Berkshire career:...
- Chris PeploeChris PeploeChristopher Thomas Peploe is an English cricketer. A left-handed batsman and a slow left-arm bowler, he currently plays List A cricket for the Unicorns in the Clydesdale Bank 40....
Famous players
The following Berkshire cricketers made an impact on the first-classFirst-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
game, or are notable for other things:
- Aftab HabibAftab HabibAftab Habib is an English cricketer. He has been appointed the coach of Afghanistan national cricket team on September 2011...
- Alan IgglesdenAlan IgglesdenAlan Igglesden is a former English cricketer. He played three Tests and four ODIs for England, but his playing career was ruined by injuries...
- Albert RelfAlbert RelfAlbert Edward Relf, born at Burwash, East Sussex on 26 June 1874, and died at Wellington College, Berkshire on 26 March 1937, was a cricketer who played for Sussex and England....
- Alec BedserAlec BedserSir Alec Victor Bedser, CBE was a professional English cricketer. He was the chairman of selectors for the English national cricket team, and the president of Surrey County Cricket Club...
- Edwin FieldEdwin FieldEdwin Field was an English rugby union forward who played club rugby for Cambridge University, Clifton R.F.C., Richmond, Barbarians and Middlesex Wanderers and international rugby for England. He also played cricket for Cambridge University and Middlesex.-Personal history:Field was born in...
- Eric BedserEric BedserEric Arthur Bedser was a cricket player for Surrey County Cricket Club. He was the elder identical twin brother of Sir Alec , widely regarded as one of England's top bowlers of the 20th century...
- Graham RoopeGraham RoopeGraham Richard James Roope was an English cricketer, who appeared in twenty one Tests and eight ODIs for England between 1973 and 1978....
- Hamza RiazuddinHamza RiazuddinHamza Riazuddin is an English cricketer. He is a right-handed lower-order batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler who currently plays for Hampshire. He is a British Pakistani...
- Jimmy AdamsJimmy AdamsJames Clive "Jimmy" Adams is a former Jamaican cricketer, who represented the West Indies as player and captain during his career. He was a steady left-handed batsman, useful left-arm orthodox spin bowler and good fielder, especially in the gully position...
- John EmbureyJohn EmbureyJohn Ernest Emburey is a former English cricketer, who played for Middlesex, Northamptonshire, Western Province, Berkshire and England....
- Ken BarringtonKen BarringtonKenneth Frank Barrington , better known as Ken Barrington, played for the English cricket team and Surrey County Cricket Club in the 1950s and 1960s. He was a right-handed batsman and occasional leg-spin bowler, well known for his jovial good humour and long, defensive innings "batting with bulldog...
- Sir Miles Christopher DempseyMiles DempseyGeneral Sir Miles Christopher Dempsey, GBE, KCB, DSO, MC was commander of the British Second Army during the D-Day landings in the Second World War...
- Peter May
- Robert RelfRobert Relf (cricketer)Robert Richard Relf was an English first class cricketer who was born in Berkshire. He played for Sussex and also represented PW Sherwell's XI.-External links:*...
- Thomas WaymarkThomas WaymarkThomas Waymark was an English professional cricketer in the first half of the 18th century...
- Tom DolleryTom DolleryTom Dollery was an English cricketer, who played for England and Warwickshire.-Life and career:Born Horace Edgar Dollery in Reading, Berkshire, and playing Minor counties cricket for Berkshire at the age of 15, Dollery joined Warwickshire in 1934, and was a mainstay of the team until retirement in...
Grounds
The club has no fixed address and uses several grounds around the county. These are:- Falkland CC, Enborne Street, Wash Common, NewburyNewbury, BerkshireNewbury is a civil parish and the principal town in the west of the county of Berkshire in England. It is situated on the River Kennet and the Kennet and Avon Canal, and has a town centre containing many 17th century buildings. Newbury is best known for its racecourse and the adjoining former USAF...
- Memorial Ground, FinchampsteadMemorial Ground, FinchampsteadThe Memorial Ground is a cricket ground in Finchampstead, Berkshire. The first recorded match on the ground was in 1982, when Berkshire played Buckinghamshire in the grounds first Minor Counties Championship match. From 1982 to present, the ground played host to 27 Minor Counties Championship...
- Hungerford CC, War Memorial Ground, Bulpit Lane, HungerfordHungerfordHungerford is a market town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, 9 miles west of Newbury. It covers an area of and, according to the 2001 census, has a population of 5,559 .- Geography :...
- Hurst CC, Hurst Lodge, Hurst, ReadingReading, BerkshireReading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
- Kidmore End CC, Gallowstree Common, Kidmore End, Reading
- Maidenhead & Bray CC, Bray Ground, Bray-on-Thames, MaidenheadMaidenheadMaidenhead is a town and unparished area within the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in Berkshire, England. It lies on the River Thames and is situated west of Charing Cross in London.-History:...
- Sonning LaneSonning LaneSonning Lane is a cricket and hockey ground in Reading, Berkshire, England, near the village of Sonning. It is located in a road called Sonning Lane leading between the A4 road and the village, hence the name....
, ReadingReading, BerkshireReading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London.... - Reading School, Playing Fields, Erleigh Road, Reading
- Thatcham CC, Browns Sports Field, Bath Road, ThatchamThatchamThatcham is a town in Berkshire, England 3 miles east of Newbury and 15 miles west of Reading. It covers about and has a population of 23,000 people . This number has grown rapidly over the last few decades from 5,000 in 1951 and 7,500 in 1961.It lies on the River Kennet, the Kennet and Avon...
, Newbury
External sources
Further reading
- Rowland BowenRowland BowenMajor Rowland Francis Bowen was a cricket researcher, historian and writer....
, Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development, Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1970 - G B Buckley, Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket, Cotterell, 1935
- E W Swanton (editor), Barclays World of Cricket, Guild, 1986
- H T WaghornH T WaghornHenry Thomas Waghorn , was a cricket statistician and historian. He is best known for his two classic researches into cricket's early history: The Dawn of Cricket and Cricket Scores: 1730 - 1773....
, The Dawn of Cricket, Electric Press, 1906
- Playfair Cricket AnnualPlayfair Cricket AnnualPlayfair Cricket Annual is a compact annual about cricket that is published in the United Kingdom each April, just before the English cricket season is due to begin. Its main purposes are to review the previous English season and to provide detailed career records and potted biographies of current...
– various editions - Wisden Cricketers Almanack – various editions