1767 English cricket season
It was reported that in the 1767 English cricket season Hambledon Club’s success continued and the team staged some remarkable batting performances, but very little more is known of them.
There was an interesting report concerning the Laws of Cricket in the Reading Mercury dated Monday 8 June which states: The Articles of the Game of Cricket as settled in the year 1744 by the Society of Noblemen & Gentlemen at the Star & Garter in Pall Mall, may be had at the Printing Office in reading or of the newsmen, neatly printed on a whole sheet of fine writing paper, price only 3d, or on a pasteboard bordered with marble paper, price 6d.[1]
The Society of Noblemen & Gentlemen may well have been the name of the organisation that ran cricket and other sports. It was essentially a social club with sporting interests. They have been loosely referred to as the "London Club" but that was surely a cricketing enterprise based at the Artillery Ground that they backed, as they also formed and subsidised the Jockey Club, and subsequently both the White Conduit Club and MCC.[2]
Matches
| Date | Match Title | Venue | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 July (M) | Greenwich v London [3] | Blackheath | London won by 2 runs | |
|
Afterwards, an elegant dinner was provided at the Assembly Rooms. | ||||
| 4 August (Tu) | Hampshire v Sussex [1] | Broadhalfpenny Down | Hampshire won | |
|
No details are known other than the outcome, which was given in the Reading Mercury of Mon 10 August. There is a report of a second Hampshire v Sussex game on Sat 8 August, also won by Hampshire, but this may be a duplicate of the above as it is not recorded elsewhere.[4] | ||||
| c.5 August (W) | Bourne v Surrey [1] | Bishopsbourne Paddock | result unknown | |
|
This was announced in the Kentish Weekly Post on 5 August. Bourne Club (Sir Horace Mann's team) had four given men so may have had a very useful side. The announcement says: Wickets to be pitched at 10 so the match may be played out that day (sic) on account of the Assizes. It is not known what date that day was, unfortunately. The Surrey team was probably Mr Henry Rowett’s Caterham Club. Mon 17 August. There was a fives game on Richmond Green between Richmond and Brentford. King George III was present and ordered dinner for the players at The Feathers in Richmond. He also awarded a guinea each to the winners and half a guinea each to the losers.[3] | ||||
| 23 September (W) | Richmond v Kingston [3] | Richmond Green | Kingston won by 2 wkts | |
|
Richmond scored 70 & 55; Kingston replied with 71 and 55-8. | ||||
| c.21 September (M) | Caterham v Hambledon [3] | Duppas Hill, Croydon | Hambledon won by 262 runs | |
|
A very large margin for the times and Hambledon reportedly had a partnership of 192 which was described in a contemporary report as the greatest thing ever known. This is the earliest known century partnership. The game was played for 200 guineas. One source says the partnership was believed to have been between Tom Sueter and Edward Aburrow (i.e., Aburrow junior) but the primary sources do not name the players.[4] The match report simply says "October" and that the game was played a few days earlier. As it took place near Croydon, the venue was almost certainly Duppas Hill.[3] | ||||
| 28 & 29 September (M-Tu) | Hambledon v Caterham [3] | Broadhalfpenny Down | Hambledon won by 224 runs | |
|
Another huge margin of victory but no details have survived. | ||||
| 14 October (W) | Caterham v Hambledon [3] | Caterham Common | Caterham won | |
|
This was played for £100 and, surprisingly, given the results of the two previous games, was won by Caterham. | ||||
First mentions
- Edward "Curry" Aburrow (Hampshire)
- Sir Horatio Mann, 2nd Baronet (Kent)
- Henry Rowett (Caterham/Surrey)
- Tom Sueter (Hampshire)
References
- ^ a b c G B Buckley, Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket, Cotterell, 1935
- ^ From Lads to Lord's; The History of Cricket: 1300 – 1787
- ^ a b c d e f g H T Waghorn, Cricket Scores, Notes, etc. (1730-1773), Blackwood, 1899
- ^ a b Ashley Mote, The Glory Days of Cricket, Robson, 1997
Bibliography
- Buckley, G. B. (1935). Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket. Cotterell.
- Haygarth, Arthur (1862). Scores & Biographies, Volume 1 (1744–1826). Lillywhite.
- McCann, Tim (2004). Sussex Cricket in the Eighteenth Century. Sussex Record Society.
- Waghorn, H. T. (1899). Cricket Scores, Notes, etc. (1730–1773). Blackwood.
- Waghorn, H. T. (1906). The Dawn of Cricket. Electric Press.
- Wilson, Martin (2005). An Index to Waghorn. Bodyline.
Additional reading
- ACS (1981). A Guide to Important Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles 1709 – 1863. Nottingham: ACS.
- Altham, H. S. (1962). A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914). George Allen & Unwin.
- Birley, Derek (1999). A Social History of English Cricket. Aurum.
- Bowen, Rowland (1970). Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development. Eyre & Spottiswoode.
- Buckley, G. B. (1937). Fresh Light on pre-Victorian Cricket. Cotterell.
- Major, John (2007). More Than A Game. HarperCollins.
- Maun, Ian (2011). From Commons to Lord's, Volume Two: 1751 to 1770. Martin Wilson. ISBN 978-0-9569066-0-1.
- Mote, Ashley (1997). The Glory Days of Cricket. Robson.
- Underdown, David (2000). Start of Play. Allen Lane.