Northumberland Cricketers 1867-2010

INTRODUCTION The earliest reference to cricket being played in Northumberland was in January 1766 near Hexham on the frozen River Tyne. In June 1785 “a select party of gentlemen” played a game on the Town-moor, Newcastle, and there is a report of a match at the North Shields CC ground near Preston in 1805, “it being a novelty in that part of the country”. North Shields played South Shields at Preston in July 1811 for 22 guineas. A Morpeth Club met at Netherwitton in 1821 and there was a match at Haltwhistle between married and single members in 1829. Other Clubs around this time were Alnwick (1837), Tynemouth (1847) and an Albion Club played matches in 1834. The first important scorecard of a match in the county was in 1834 when the Newcastle Club met the Sunderland Club on the Town Moor, Newcastle upon Tyne. This Club was possibly the forerunner of the Northumberland Cricket Club which was formed sometime after that year and survived until 1898. This was a private Club and over the years there has been considerable confusion between matches played by this Club and teams representing the County before the County Club was officially formed. The Northumberland Club itself was a fairly strong Club team playing regular matches against Darlington, Middlesbrough, Grange (Scotland), Sunderland and other major club teams. I have however, started the list of County matches from 1867 as in that year the Northumberland Club arranged two important matches against the Gentlemen of Sussex at Brighton and the MCC at Lord’s. Thereafter, for the next 13 years regular important fixtures were arranged or sponsored by the Northumberland Club against Durham (after its formation in 1874), Cumberland, MCC, Roxburghshire etc. Some 27 matches were played prior to 1881 which could be described as County matches as the Northumberland Club did bring in outside players to strengthen the team and professionals were included in most of these matches. A meeting on 12th May 1881 agreed to the setting up of a County Cricket Association “for the playing of County matches and the selection of the teams” and on 22nd June 1881 a formal meeting on the formation of a County Club was confirmed. The first President elected was the Duke of Northumberland with W.Cail as Financial Secretary. It did not take very long after the Association was founded before there was a reformation, and a new County Cricket Club was established on 21st May 1885. This Club remained in existence until 14th February 1895 when it was dissolved. County fixtures were arranged during this time against MCC, Durham, Cumberland, Lincolnshire, Hertfordshire, various Yorkshire Ridings teams, some visiting overseas teams and others. A meeting to discuss forming a new County Club took place on 1st March 1895, and this was followed by further meetings during the year until the meeting on 9th December agreed to appoint officers and a committee, it was decided no further formal resolution was required about formation. The President appointed was Earl Grey with Calverley Bewicke, Honorary Secretary and Mark Fenwick, Honorary Treasurer. It was also formally agreed that the Club should enter the Minor Counties Championship (then called the Second Class Counties Competition) from 1896. Regular fixtures were made over the first few years with Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Durham, Lincolnshire, Yorkshire II, Staffordshire then later Lancashire II and Cheshire. After the splitting of the Championship in 1983 Northumberland were included in the Eastern Division comprising Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Cumberland, Durham, Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Staffordshire, Suffolk (Buckinghamshire replaced Durham in 1992). Home matches have virtually all been played at the ground on Osborne Avenue, Jesmond, since the first at the end of 1894, until the lease of the ground was passed to the Royal Grammar School in 2005, after which the matches have been played at a number of other grounds around the county. 3