 | |
| Location | Finsbury, Islington |
|---|---|
| Home club | London Cricket Club Honourable Artillery Company Cricket Club |
| Establishment | by 1730 |
The Artillery Ground in Finsbury is an open space originally set aside for archery and later known also as a cricket venue. Today it is used for military exercises, cricket, rugby and football matches. It belongs to the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC), whose headquarters, Armoury House, overlook the grounds.
From 1498, about 11 acres (4.5 ha) of the 23-acre (9.3 ha) Bunhill Fields were set aside for the practice of archery and shooting. Today's 8-acre (3.2 ha) site was given to the Artillery Company in 1638. [1]
Although the earliest definite cricket match at the Artillery Ground, between London and Surrey, took place in August 1730, it is believed to have been used to host matches as early as 1725. London used the ground regularly, as did England XIs throughout much of the 18th century. [2] There were five matches recorded on the ground in 1731, three against Dartford and two against Croydon and the ground became the most important in the country for a time. [2] [3]
By the 1770s the HAC was attempting to block cricket being played on the ground, and the last significant match for over 50 years took place in 1778. [2] [3] Two matches which have since been given retrospective first-class cricket status: one played in 1773 and the other in 1778. Both saw England sides play Hampshire on the ground. [3]
Cricket was restarted on the ground in 1846 but only members of the HAC were allowed to play. The HAC Cricket Club was founded in 1860. [2]
On 15 September 1784 Vincenzo Lunardi, flew a balloon from the Artillery Ground, the first such flight in England. [4]
The area is now used for rugby and football in the winter and cricket in the summer by HAC teams including HAC RFC. [5] [6] Notably, it hosted a rugby union match between Saracens and the USA national team on 9 November 2010, won 20–6 by Saracens. [7] It is also, as a source of revenue for the HAC, rented out for parties and events including the annual Cityrace 5 km run through the city's streets. [8]
Cardiff Arms Park, also known as The Arms Park, is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. It is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World Cup, including the third-place play-off. The Arms Park also hosted the inaugural Heineken Cup Final of 1995–96 and the following year in 1996–97.
The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is a reserve regiment in the British Army. Incorporated by royal charter in 1537 by King Henry VIII, it is the oldest regiment in the British Army and is considered the second-oldest military unit in the world. Today, it is also a charity whose purpose is to attend to the "better defence of the realm", primarily through supporting the HAC regiment and a detachment of City of London Special Constabulary. The word "artillery" in "Honourable Artillery Company" does not have the current meaning that is generally associated with it, but dates from a time when in the English language that word meant any projectile, including for example arrows shot from a bow. The equivalent form of words in modern English would be either "Honourable Infantry Company" or "Honourable Military Company".
The Oxford University Parks, commonly referred to locally as the University Parks, or just The Parks, is a large parkland area slightly northeast of the city centre in Oxford, England. The park is bounded to the east by the River Cherwell, though a small plot of land called Mesopotamia sits between the upper and lower levels of the river. To the north of the parks is Norham Gardens and Lady Margaret Hall, to the west the Parks Road, and the Science Area on South Parks Road to the south. The park is open to the public during the day, and has gardens, large sports fields, and exotic plants. It includes a cricket ground used by Oxford University Cricket Club.
The London Borough of Islington is short of large parks and open spaces, given its status in recent decades as a desirable place of residence. In fact, Islington has the lowest ratio of open space to built-up areas of any London borough. The largest continuous open space in the borough, at 11.75 hectares, is Highbury Fields.
Old Deer Park is an area of open space within Richmond, owned by the Crown Estate, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. It covers 147 hectares of which 90.4 hectares are leased as sports grounds for sports, particularly rugby and golf. Despite the name, there are now no deer in the park.
Nuneaton RFC is an English rugby union club. They were founded in 1879 and play at Liberty Way in Nuneaton. They currently play in the Midlands Premier, a fifth tier league in the English rugby union system.
John Lindsay Bryan was an English schoolteacher and cricketer who played for Cambridge University and Kent County Cricket Club. Bryan served in the British Army in both World War I and World War II and won the Military Cross in 1918.
St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground, commonly known simply as St Helens Ground, is a sports venue in Swansea, Wales, owned and operated by the City and County of Swansea Council. Used mainly for rugby union and cricket, it has been the home ground of Swansea RFC and Swansea Cricket Club since it opened in 1873.
Castle Avenue cricket ground, also known as Clontarf Cricket Club ground, is a cricket facility in the suburb of Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland. It is the primary of the two grounds of Clontarf Cricket Club, the secondary being at Mount Temple Comprehensive School, and the lands on which it lies are also home to two rugby union pitches belonging to Clontarf FC. The ground is one of only three One Day International grounds on the island of Ireland.
7th Parachute Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery is a regiment of the Royal Artillery in the British Army. It currently serves in the field artillery role with 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team, and is equipped with the L118 Light Gun.
Eugene Cross Park is a rugby and cricket ground in Ebbw Vale, Wales. In November 1919 the Ebbw Vale Welfare Association was formed and bought the "Bridgend Field". The 6 acres (2.4 ha) of land became known as the Welfare Ground, and in 1973 its name was changed to its present title in honour of Sir Eugene Cross, the influential and long-standing Chairman of the Welfare Trustees. The ground has terraces, a stand which was bought due to a fire which burnt the previous stands and a clubhouse which boasts a pub, a club shop open at match days and award-winning hospitality packages. The stadium is adjacent to the B4486 road, the Newchurch Road and the Ebbw River.
Rectory Field is a sports ground in Blackheath in the Royal Borough of Greenwich in south-east London. It was developed in the 1880s by Blackheath Cricket, Football and Lawn Tennis Company and became the home ground of rugby union team Blackheath F.C. between 1883 and 2016. The ground has hosted international rugby matches and at one time, along with the Richmond Athletic Ground, it was the unofficial home of the England national rugby union team before the development of Twickenham Stadium. The ground was also used for first-class and List A cricket by Kent County Cricket Club between 1887 and 1972. The field is named after the Charlton Rectory that once stood at the site. It is used today by Blackheath Sports Club for cricket, rugby, tennis and squash.
Middlesex Rugby is the governing body for rugby union in Middlesex, England; Middlesex is a historic county of England that covers areas in the ceremonial counties of Greater London, Surrey and Hertfordshire. The historic county is still in use when referring to sport, and some businesses in the area. Middlesex RFU was originally created as the Middlesex County Rugby Club but within six years was being referred to as the Middlesex County Rugby Football Union and is now known simply as Middlesex Rugby.
Rugby union is one of the most popular sports, in terms of both participants and spectators in London. London has several of England's leading rugby union clubs, and the city is home to 13 teams playing in national leagues, and many regional amateur leagues regulated by the London and South East Division Rugby Football Union. However, several of these teams, due to necessity, have found homes at stadia outside the boundaries of the capital. The sport is well established, especially in the middle-class suburbs to the north and west of the city. Four of the twelve clubs currently in the Gallagher Premiership have London origins.
Devon League 1 is an English level eight rugby union league for clubs based in Devon. The champions are promoted to Cornwall/Devon and the runner-up plays the second team from Cornwall League 1, with the winning team gaining promotion. Up until the end of the 2017–18 season, teams were relegated to Devon League 2 but since that league has been abolished there is currently no relegation.
Thomas Cook’s amateur Rugby Football Club was founded in 1910 as part of a wider sports club established by the company in 1897, with the ground at Ravensbourne in Kent.
The first club president was Frank Henry Cook, who had played his rugby at Mill Hill School.
It ceased playing during both World Wars, and like many ‘house’ rugby clubs it no longer exists. At its most popular the club ran two XV’s until it closed in 1966. During its lifetime the club played against well over 100 different clubs in London and the South East.
It also established a regular Easter tour to the Netherlands in 1958 playing RC Hilversum. which helped to promote Dutch rugby during the 1960s. The original tour fixture was filmed for Dutch cinemas and television in front of crowd of over 2,600 at the AGOVV Apeldoorn stadium in Apeldoorn.
A Battery, Honourable Artillery Company is a L118 light gun battery that provides a reserve to 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery. Its predecessor was a horse artillery battery that was formed from Light Cavalry Squadron, HAC, in 1891. It transferred to the Territorial Force in 1908 as artillery support for the London Mounted Brigade.
B Battery, Honourable Artillery Company was a horse artillery battery that was formed from the Field Artillery, HAC in 1899. It transferred to the Territorial Force in 1908 as artillery support for the South Eastern Mounted Brigade.
Saracens Women (/ˈsærəsənz/) are a women's rugby union club based in Hendon, London, England. They were founded in 1989 and currently play in the Premier 15s, the top level competition of women's rugby in the country. Saracens are the most successful team in the history of the Premier 15s, having won the league a record three times – in 2017–18, 2018–19 and 2021–22. They are also the women's team of Saracens Amateurs, who themselves are affiliated to Premiership Rugby team, Saracens.
The Middlesex RFU Vase is an annual rugby union knock-out club competition organised by the Middlesex Rugby Football Union and donated by Russell Grant Founder of the Federation of Middlesex Sports. It was first introduced during the 2002–03 season, with the inaugural winners being London French. It is the third most important cup competition organised by the Middlesex RFU, behind the Senior Cup and Senior Bowl.
