Liverpool and District Cricket Competition

The Liverpool and District Cricket Competition is the top level of competition for recreational club cricket in the Liverpool area and since 2000 has been a designated ECB Premier League.

The Competition operates a three division system and has feeder leagues, the Merseyside Competition and the Southport and District Cricket League.

History

Although many of the district's clubs had met regularly as far back as 1850, or earlier, it was not until 1892 that a Liverpool newspaper began publishing a weekly table and calling it the Liverpool Competition in order to create more interest in the game.

The eleven senior clubs making up the original table were Birkenhead Park, Bootle, Formby, Huyton, Liverpool, New Brighton, Northern, Ormskirk, Oxton, Rock Ferry and Sefton.

Neston were offered first team fixtures in 1908 and, in 1919, Hightown and Southport and Birkdale joined whilst Wallasey took over the fixtures of the Rock Ferry club who did not resume after the First War. Boughton Hall (not then known as Chester Boughton Hall) were invited to join in 1923.

The Competition continued until 1947 when it was decided to admit a sixteenth club and Preston were voted in. Two years later, fixtures were standardised by all clubs agreeing to meet each other, and although there was no suggestion of a league, it was decided to regard the table as official.

Preston resigned at the end of the 1952 season to be replaced by St Helens Recs in 1953.

In recent years, the Liverpool and District Cricket Competition has changed radically. There was an expansion in 1996 that introduced clubs from further afield in Lancashire and North Wales but saw founder members Birkenhead Park, Chester Boughton Hall, Neston and Oxton resign to join the Cheshire County League. Of the four, only Oxton had failed to be Champions of the Liverpool and District Cricket Competition.

In 1999 a two division structure was introduced, and in 2000 the 1st XI Premier Division was awarded ECB Premier League status.

From the end of the 2004 season, promotion from and relegation to the Merseyside & Southport Cricket Alliance feeder league was introduced, but was then curtailed from the end of the 2009 season. At this time, additional clubs from the Alliance were invited to join, to form a new three divisional structure.

2nd XIs also play in a similar three divisional structure but independent of the 1st XIs.

There is a two divisional structure for Saturday 3rd XIs and below, with another structure for those clubs preferring to play on Sundays. They have a Premier Division and two First Divisions, East and West.

1st XI Divisions for 2010

ECB Premier League: Bootle, Colwyn Bay, Highfield, Hightown, Lytham, New Brighton, Newton le Willows, Northern, Northop Hall, Ormskirk, Prestatyn, Wallasey.

First Division: Fleetwood Hesketh, Formby, Leigh, Liverpool, Maghull, Orrell Red Triangle, Rainford, Rainhill, Sefton Park, Skelmersdale, Southport and Birkdale, Wigan.

Second Division: Ainsdale, Alder, Birkenhead St Mary's, Burscough, Caldy, Moorfield, Parkfield Liscard, St Helens, St Helens Recs, Southport Trinity, Sutton, Wavertree.

Champions

year	1st XI Division			2nd XI Division
1949	Bootle			Southport and Birkdale
1950	Bootle			Southport and Birkdale
1951	Boughton Hall			Boughton Hall
1952	Liverpool			Birkenhead Park
1953	Liverpool			Liverpool
1954	Liverpool and Southport and Birkdale (joint)			New Brighton
1955	Birkenhead Park			Sefton
1956	Bootle			Southport and Birkdale
1957	Chester Boughton Hall and Neston (joint)			Southport and Birkdale
1958	Hightown and Ormskirk (joint)			Southport and Birkdale
1959	Liverpool			Southport and Birkdale
1960	Birkenhead Park			Liverpool
1961	Birkenhead Park			Neston
1962	Birkenhead Park			Oxton
1963	Birkenhead Park			Northern
1964	Birkenhead Park			Neston
1965	Neston			Southport and Birkdale
1966	Birkenhead Park			Neston
1967	Sefton			Liverpool
1968	Liverpool			Liverpool
1969	Neston			Oxton
1970	Neston			Liverpool
1971	Ormskirk			Birkenhead Park
1972	Sefton			Ormskirk
1973	Ormskirk			Liverpool
1974	New Brighton			New Brighton
1975	Southport and Birkdale			Sefton
1976	Ormskirk			Huyton
1977	Ormskirk			Sefton and Birkenhead Park (joint)
1978	St Helens Recs			Liverpool
1979	Southport and Birkdale			Chester Boughton Hall
1980	Ormskirk			Bootle
1981	Liverpool			St Helens Recs
1982	New Brighton			Liverpool
1983	New Brighton			Sefton
1984	Bootle			Birkenhead Park
1985	Chester Boughton Hall			St Helens Recs
1986	Birkenhead Park			Birkenhead Park
1987	Bootle			Birkenhead Park
1988	Birkenhead Park]]			Sefton
1989	Bootle			Northern
1990	Bootle			Chester Boughton Hall
1991	New Brighton			Bootle
1992	Neston			New Brighton
1993	New Brighton			Neston
1994	Chester Boughton Hall			New Brighton and Wallasey (joint)
1995	Bootle			New Brighton
1996	Southport and Birkdale			Oxton
1997	Bootle			Neston
1998	New Brighton			Southport and Birkdale
year	1st XI Premier Division	1st XI First Division		2nd XI Premier Division	2nd XI First Division
1999	Bootle	Lytham		Sefton	Liverpool
year	1st XI ECB Premier League	1st XI First Division		2nd XI Premier Division	2nd XI First Division
2000	Wallasey	Sefton Park		Liverpool	Newton le Willows
2001	Ormskirk	Maghull		Bootle	Huyton
2002	Wallasey	Newton le Willows		Bootle	Colwyn Bay
2003	Bootle	Southport and Birkdale		Bootle	Liverpool
2004	Bootle	Hightown		Bootle	Sefton Park
2005	Northern	Maghull		Bootle	Fleetwood Hesketh
2006	Bootle	St Helens Recs		Bootle	Highfield
2007	Bootle	Formby		Bootle	Northop Hall
2008	Ormskirk	Northop Hall		New Brighton	Formby
2009	Bootle	Highfield		Bootle	Orrell Red Triangle
year	1st XI ECB Premier League	1st XI First Division	1st XI Second Division	2nd XI Premier Division	2nd XI First Division	2nd XI Second Division
2010

External links

• Liverpool and District Cricket Competition - official site
• Liverpool and District Cricket Competition - unofficial site
• Liverpool and District Cricket Competition - play-cricket site

• List of English and Welsh cricket league clubs