The Worcestershire County Cricket League (WCL) is an English club cricket league, and consists of club teams from Worcestershire

Worcestershire

Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...

, Herefordshire

Herefordshire

Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...

, and several other sides from bordering counties.

History

The Worcestershire County Cricket League was created in 1999 as part of the new 'pyramid system' in English club cricket, and acts as a feeder league to the Birmingham and District Premier League

Birmingham and District Premier League

The Birmingham and District Cricket League is the oldest club cricket league in the world, formed in 1888. Arguably the strongest club competition in the country, it was also the first ECB Premier League, being designated such in 1998.- Geography :...

. It was formed mainly as a merger between the old Worcestershire Clubs' League and the Autobag/Plumb Centre League. Other clubs came from the Midland Combined Counties League, the 3D Cricket PLJ League, and in the case of Herefordshire sides, the Marches Cricket League and the Willowsticks Three Counties Cricket League.

There is promotion and relegation and most divisions of the league operate on a two up/two down basis, although the feeder league status means that more than two sides may be relegated from Division 1, with knock-on effects on other divisions, if more than one Worcestershire or Herefordshire side is relegated from Birmingham League Division 3. Other exceptions to this are in Division 1 (where only the winner is promoted to the Birmingham and District Premier League

Birmingham and District Premier League

The Birmingham and District Cricket League is the oldest club cricket league in the world, formed in 1888. Arguably the strongest club competition in the country, it was also the first ECB Premier League, being designated such in 1998.- Geography :...

), and Division 5 (no relegation). Clubs can only be promoted from Division 6 if they are able to field two XIs in the following season, and there is a space available in Division 5.

Winners of Division 1 of the Worcestershire County Cricket League, who have been promoted to the Birmingham and District Premier League

Birmingham and District Premier League

The Birmingham and District Cricket League is the oldest club cricket league in the world, formed in 1888. Arguably the strongest club competition in the country, it was also the first ECB Premier League, being designated such in 1998.- Geography :...

, since 1999 are:

• 1999: Hagley
• 2000: Redditch
• 2001: Kington
• 2002: Old Elizabethans
• 2003: Evesham
• 2004: Pershore
• 2005: Ombersley
• 2006: Kington
• 2007: Brockhampton
• 2008: Eastnor
• 2009: Pershore
• 2010: Barnards Green

Divisional Structure

For 2011 the Worcestershire County Cricket League is made up of the following divisions and clubs:

Division One

• Astwood Bank
• Bewdley
• Bromyard
• Droitwich Spa
• Oldswinford
• Pedmore
• Pershore
• Redditch
• Romsley & Hunnington
• Stourbridge
  Stourbridge Cricket Club
  Stourbridge Cricket Club is an English cricket club based in Stourbridge, West Midlands. The club play at the War Memorial Athletic Ground in Stourbridge, and compete in the Crusader Worcestershire County Cricket League....
  
  
• Worcester
• Worcester Nomads

Division Two

• Belbroughton
• Burghill & Tillington
• Colwall
• Coombs Wood
• Feckenham
• Hagley
• Kidderminster Victoria 3rd XI
  Kidderminster Victoria Cricket Club
  Kidderminster Victoria Cricket Club is an amateur cricket club in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. Their 1st and 2nd XIs currently play in the Birmingham and District Premier League Premier Division. Their 3rd, 4th and 5th XIs play in the Worcestershire County Cricket League...
  
  
• Malvern
• Monmouth
• Netherton
• Worcester Dominies & Guild
• Wormelow

Division Three

• Alvechurch & Hopwood
• Birlingham
• Chaddesley Corbett
• Cookley
• Enville
• Harborne 3rd XI
• Harvington
• Himbleton
• Lye
• Old Vigornians
• Rushwick
• Stourport-on-Severn

Division Four

• Alveley
• Amblecote & Wollaston
• Avoncroft
• Barnards Green 3rd XI
• Brintons
• Canon Frome
• Himley 3rd XI
• Martley
• Stourbridge Social
• Tenbury Wells

Division Five

• Barnt Green 3rd XI
  Barnt Green Cricket Club
  Barnt Green Cricket Club is an amateur cricket club in Barnt Green, near Bromsgrove in North Worcestershire. Their 1st and 2nd XIs currently play in the Birmingham and District Premier League Premier Division. The 3rd and 4th XIs play in the Worcestershire County Cricket League...
  
  
• Bromsgrove 3rd XI
• Claverley
• Cleobury Mortimer
• Hanley Castle & Upton
• Halesowen 3rd XI
  Halesowen Cricket Club
  Halesowen Cricket Club is an amateur cricket club in Halesowen, West Midlands that has 4 senior Saturday cricket sides. Their 1st and 2nd XI's currently play in the Birmingham and District Premier League. The 3rd and 4th XI's play in the Worcestershire County Cricket League. The Club also has a...
  
  
• Old Elizabethans 3rd XI
• Old Hill 3rd XI
  Old Hill Cricket Club
  Old Hill Cricket Club is an amateur cricket club in Cradley Heath, West Midlands, England.Founded in 1884 as Haden Hill Victoria, the club has played on Haden Hill ground in Cradley Heath since founding, having purchased it in 1934, with the ground placed owned by a Trust and shared with Old Hill...
  
  
• Ross on Wye
• Stourbridge 3rd XI
  Stourbridge Cricket Club
  Stourbridge Cricket Club is an English cricket club based in Stourbridge, West Midlands. The club play at the War Memorial Athletic Ground in Stourbridge, and compete in the Crusader Worcestershire County Cricket League....
  
  

From Division 1 down to Division 5, there are also separate 2nd XI Divisions, with the 4th XI of those sides above whose 3rd XIs play in the league, competing against other clubs' 2nd XIs. From 2006, Division 1 and 2 2nd XIs were promoted and relegated independently of their 1st XIs (and 4th XIs can be promoted or relegated independently of their 3rd XIs), and from 2007 the same applied to Division 3.

Division Six

• Astwood Bank 3rd XI
• Cutnall Green
• Hallow
• Hewell
• Netherton 3rd XI
• Pershore 3rd XI
• Stone
• Vine
• West Malvern
• Worcester Nomads 3rd XI

Division Seven

• Bewdley 3rd XI
• Coombs Wood 3rd XI
• Enville 3rd XI
• Harborne 5th XI
• Highley
• Kidderminster Victoria 5th XI
  Kidderminster Victoria Cricket Club
  Kidderminster Victoria Cricket Club is an amateur cricket club in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, England. Their 1st and 2nd XIs currently play in the Birmingham and District Premier League Premier Division. Their 3rd, 4th and 5th XIs play in the Worcestershire County Cricket League...
  
  
• Knighton-on-Teme
• Ombersley 3rd XI

Division Eight

• Belbroughton 3rd XI
• Droitwich Spa 3rd XI
• Kempsey
• Oldswinford 3rd XI
• Rushwick 3rd XI
• Stourport-on-Severn 3rd XI
• West Malvern 2nd XI
• Worcester 3rd XI

Division Nine

• Avoncroft 3rd XI
• Chaddesley Corbett 3rd XI
• Evesham 3rd XI
• Hagley 3rd XI
• Harborne 6th XI
• Malvern 3rd XI
• Pedmore 3rd XI
• Romsley & Hunnington 3rd XI

Division Ten

• Alvechurch & Hopwood 4th XI
• Amblecote & Wollaston 3rd XI
• Astwood Bank 4th XI
• Bromyard 3rd XI
• Feckenham 3rd XI
• Hallow 2nd XI
• Stourport-on-Severn 4th XI
• Worcester Nomads 4th XI

Famous players

Several current or ex-first-class cricketers have played in the Worcestershire County Cricket League in its short history:

Internationals, and Club represented

England

• Steve Davies Victoria & Blakeley Hall (later merged with Kidderminster to form Kidderminster Victoria CC)
• Richard Illingworth
  Richard Illingworth
  Richard Illingworth is an English former cricketer, who is currently a first-class cricket umpire. The bulk of his domestic cricketing career occurred with Worcestershire, although he had a spell with Derbyshire, and overseas with Natal...
  
   Barnt Green 3rd XI
• Phil Newport
  Phil Newport
  Philip John Newport is a former English cricketer, who played primarily as a seam and swing bowler. Newport was a stalwart of Worcestershire County Cricket Club for most of the 1980s and 1990s, and played a key part in the county's triumphs in the late 1980s...
  
   Worcester Nomads
• Neal Radford
  Neal Radford
  Neal Victor Radford Neal Victor Radford Neal Victor Radford (born 7 June 1957, Luanshya, Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia) is an English former cricketer, who appeared in three Tests and six ODIs for England.He also played for Transvaal B, Lancashire, Worcestershire, and Herefordshire....
  
   Evesham

New Zealand

• Daniel Flynn Barnards Green

West Indies

• Andre Russell
  Andre Russell
  Andre Dwayne Russell is a Jamaican cricketer. Russell plays for the Jamaica national cricket team as well as the West Indies in Test cricket...
  
   Barnards Green

Pakistan

• Humayun Farhat
  Humayun Farhat
  Humayun Farhat is a Pakistani cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and wicketkeeper. He is one of two brothers to have played test cricket for Pakistan.-Domestic:...
  
   Stourbridge
• Imran Farhat
  Imran Farhat
  Imran Farhat is a Pakistani cricketer who has played over 30 Tests and One Day Internationals for Pakistan, opening the batting in most of his international innings.-Career:...
  
   Stourbridge
• Abdur Rauf Brockhampton

Sri Lanka

• Dinusha Fernando
  Dinusha Fernando
  Kandana Arachchige Dinusha Manoj Fernando is a Sri Lankan cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler....
  
   Bromyard
• Chamila Gamage
  Chamila Gamage
  Chamila Gamage is a Sri Lankan cricketer...
  
   also known as Chamila Gamage Lakshitha, Alvechurch & Hopwood
• Dharshana Gamage
  Dharshana Gamage
  Dharshana Gamage is a Sri Lankan cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler.He is yet to make his Test debut, but made his One-day international debut against New Zealand in May 2003.-References:*...
  
   Kington

Other First class players, and Club(s) represented

England

• Steve Adshead Astwood Bank
• Duncan Catterall
  Duncan Catterall
  Duncan Neil Catterall is an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Worcestershire and currently plays at minor counties level for Shropshire...
  
   Ombersley
• Nigel Cowley
  Nigel Cowley
  Nigel Geoffrey Charles Cowley is a former English cricketer who played for Dorset, before finding fame with Glamorgan and Hampshire.-External links:*...
  
   Himbleton
• Ben Cox
  Ben Cox
  Oliver Benjamin Cox is an English cricketer who plays county cricket for Worcestershire.Cox has been associated with Worcestershire for some years, having played at Under-13, Under-15 and Under-17 level, although not originally as a wicket-keeper.He captained the Under-17 side against Somerset...
  
   Belbroughton
• Damian D'Oliveira
  Damian D'Oliveira
  Damian Basil D'Oliveira is a former cricketer who played first-class cricket for Worcestershire from 1982 to 1995, and is the current Academy director of Worcestershire County Cricket Club.His father, Basil played first-class cricket for Worcestershire from 1964 to 1980, and England from 1966 to...
  
   Ombersley
• Liam O'Driscoll Worcester Nomads
• Matthew Pardoe
  Matthew Pardoe
  Matthew Graham Pardoe is an English cricketer. A left-handed opening/middle order batsman, he plays for Worcestershire.In Birmingham league cricket, Pardoe plays for Kidderminster Victoria...
  
   Belbroughton
• Ben Stebbings Kington
• William Thomas Ombersley

Australia

• Michael Jeh Luctonians
• Craig Jones
  Craig Jones (cricketer)
  Craig Jones was an Australian cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler who played for Middlesex in 2005. He was born in Tamworth, New South Wales....
  
   Kington

South Africa

• Andre (Leon) Botha Pershore
• Wesley Euley Droitwich Spa
• Calvin Flowers Ombersley
• Lundi Mbane Bromyard
• Dillon Stanley Worcester Nomads

West Indies

• Sergio Fedee
  Sergio Fedee
  Sergio Mendes Fedee, born 13 January 1983 in Georgetown, Guyana, is a West Indian cricketer who played in the 2002 U-19 Cricket World Cup in New Zealand. He also played first-class and List A cricket for the Windward Islands.-References:...
  
   Stourbridge
• Mali Richards
  Mali Richards
  Mali Alexander Richards is a West Indian cricketer who played first class cricket for the Leeward Islands. The son of Viv Richards, Mali was born in England and educated at Cheltenham College in Gloucestershire. He has had a stint with Middlesex County Cricket Club and also played for Oxford UCCE...
  
   Stourbridge

New Zealand

• Jonothon Boult Barnards Green, Bewdley, Droitwich Spa

India

• Neeraj Chawla Coombs Wood
• Sachin Khartade Worcester Nomads
• Shashi Ranjan Alvechurch & Hopwood
• Gagandeep Singh Redditch

Pakistan

• Mohammad Ali
  Mohammad Ali (cricketer)
  Syed Mohammad Ali Bukhari is a Pakistani-cricketer.He is a right-handed batsman and a left-arm fast-medium bowler who has represented:* Lahore City 1993/1994* Railways 1993/1994* Islamabad 1994/1995...
  
   Brockhampton
• Khalid Mahmood Redditch
• Mahmood Malik Brockhampton
• Atiq-ur-Rehman Eastnor
• Zahid Saeed
  Zahid Saeed
  Zahid Saeed is a right-handed Pakistani cricketer who bowls left-arm at a fast-medium pace. He played for the 2005 ICC Trophy. He was once fined by the PCB for ball tampering during the Ramadan Cup in 2002.-References:...
  
   Ombersley, Bromyard

Sri Lanka

• Lakshan Rodrigo Bromyard

Zimbabwe

• Leon Soma Droitwich Spa
• Jason Young Barnards Green