Sussex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 member clubs of the English County Championship, representing the historic county of Sussex. Although Sussex representative sides had been playing cricket since the mid-eighteenth century and had also played first-class cricket matches since 1815, the County Cricket Club was established on 1 March 1839. [1] They have played first-class matches since 1839, List A matches since 1963, and Twenty20 matches since 2003. [2] [3] [4] [lower-alpha 1]
Unlike most professional sports, in which a team usually has a single fixed home ground, county cricket clubs have traditionally used different grounds in various towns and cities within the county for home matches, although the use of minor "out grounds" away from the club's main headquarters has diminished since the 1980s. [8] [9] In total, Sussex have played first-class, List A and Twenty20 cricket at 17 different grounds across the county.
The club's first fixture was played at the Royal New Ground, Brighton. [1] The ground was Sussex's main ground until 1848, when the Royal Brunswick Ground in Brunswick, Hove became the main ground. [10] In 1872, the land of the Royal Brunswick Ground was required for the expansion of the town, [11] so the club relocated to the County Ground, which continues to be the main ground for Sussex Cricket Club. [10] [12] The County Ground was the venue where Sussex claimed the 2003 and 2007 County Championships. [13] [14] It is also the only ground in Sussex to have hosted international cricket; in the 1999 World Cup, a One Day International between India and South Africa was played at the ground. [15]
In 1849, the club used a venue outside Brighton for the first time, when they played a first-class match at Petworth Park New Ground; the match against Surrey is notable for being one of Sussex's lowest aggregate scoring matches of all time, with only 287 runs scored. [16] It was also the only time that Petworth Park hosted a Sussex match. Sussex have frequently used out grounds to host some of their matches, typically as part of cricket festivals. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, their main out grounds were the Central Recreation Ground in Hastings, The Saffrons in Eastbourne, the Cricket Field Road Ground in Horsham, and the Arundel Castle Cricket Ground (from 1972). After the Central Recreation Ground was demolished in 1996, Sussex also played two List A matches at Horntye Park, Hastings' other cricket ground. [lower-alpha 2] Eastbourne cancelled its proposed fixture in 2001 and did not host another county match until 2017, [17] [18] whilst Horsham was not awarded any matches for the 2016 season, due to financial difficulties. [19] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all of Sussex's matches in 2020 and 2021 were played at the County Ground. [20] [21] In 2020, Hampshire played some "home" fixtures at Arundel, as the Rose Bowl was being used by England. [22]
The County Ground and Arundel Castle are the only two grounds to have hosted Sussex Twenty20 matches. [19]
Below is a complete list of grounds used by Sussex County Cricket Club for first-class, List A and Twenty20 matches. Statistics are complete through to the end of the 2020 season. Only matches played by Sussex County Cricket Club since its establishment in 1839 are included in the table. Matches abandoned without any play occurring are not included.
Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Middlesex which has effectively been subsumed within the ceremonial county of Greater London. The club was founded in 1864 but teams representing the county have played top-class cricket since the early 18th century and the club has always held first-class status. Middlesex have competed in the County Championship since the official start of the competition in 1890 and have played in every top-level domestic cricket competition in England.
Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland. The club's limited overs team is called the Leicestershire Foxes. Founded in 1879, the club had minor county status until 1894, when it was promoted to first-class status pending its entry into the County Championship in 1895. Since then, Leicestershire have played in every top-level domestic cricket competition in England.
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Sussex. Its limited overs team is called the Sussex Sharks. The club was founded in 1839 as a successor to the various Sussex county cricket teams, including the old Brighton Cricket Club, which had been representative of the county of Sussex as a whole since the 1720s. The club has always held first-class status. Sussex have competed in the County Championship since the official start of the competition in 1890 and have played in every top-level domestic cricket competition in England.
The County Cricket Ground, known for sponsorship reasons as The1st Central County Ground, is a cricket venue in Hove, in the city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The County Ground is the home of Sussex County Cricket Club, where most Sussex home matches since 1872 have been played, although many other grounds in Sussex have been used. Sussex CCC continue to play some of their games away from The County Ground, at either Arundel Castle or Horsham. It is one of the few county grounds to have deckchairs for spectators, in the Sussex CCC colours of blue and white, and was the first cricket ground to install permanent floodlights, for day/night cricket matches and the second ground to host a day/night match in England, in 1997.
Whitehawk Football Club is a semi-professional English football club based in Whitehawk, a suburb of the city of Brighton and Hove, The club currently plays in the Isthmian League Premier Division. Whitehawk's home ground is the 3126-capacity Enclosed Ground, situated within East Brighton Park. Nicknamed The Hawks, the club's traditional playing colours are red and white. Prior to 2010, the club had never played above County League level, but after three promotions in four seasons, the Hawks reached Conference South in 2013 as well as the second round of the FA Cup in 2015.
The Sussex Senior Cup is an annual association football knockout cup competition for men's football clubs in the English county of Sussex; the winning team is presented with the Sussex Senior Challenge Cup, the county senior cup of the Sussex FA. For sponsorship purposes the trophy is also known as the Sussex Transport Senior Challenge Cup, after a new sponsorship deal was agreed in 2023.
Frederick William Lillywhite was an English first-class cricketer during the game's roundarm era. One of the main protagonists in the legalisation of roundarm, he was one of the most successful bowlers of his era. His status is borne out by his nickname: The Nonpareil.
The Saffrons is a multi-purpose sports ground in Eastbourne, East Sussex. The ground is home to Eastbourne Cricket Club, Eastbourne Town Football Club, Eastbourne Hockey Club and Compton Croquet Club. There is also a sand dressed astroturf pitch. The sports ground is located on the edge of Eastbourne town centre, next to the town hall and is in easy reach of local transport links. The ground was first used in 1884. Sussex County Cricket Club played some of their matches there between 1896 and 2000, and recently from 2017.
Arundel Castle Cricket Ground is a cricket ground in Arundel, West Sussex, England, nearby to Arundel Castle. It has been in use since 1952. The ground was first used by the Sussex 1st XI in 1972 for limited-over matches and in 1990 for County Championship matches. As of the end of the 2015 English cricket season, Arundel Castle has hosted 32 first-class matches, 20 List A matches, and 5 T20 matches.
The Royal New Ground, also known as "Box's Ground", in Brighton, Sussex was a venue for first-class cricket matches from 1814 to 1847. Originally called "Brown's Ground" in the 18th century, it was located where Park Crescent, Brighton now stands.
The Central Recreation Ground was a cricket ground in Hastings, East Sussex, used for first-class and List A cricket between 1864 and 1996. The ground was frequently used by Sussex County Cricket Club as one of their outgrounds from 1865; in total, Sussex played 143 first-class and 17 List A matches at the ground. Between 1887 and the 1960s, the Central Recreation Ground also played host to the Hastings & St Leonards cricket festival, which attracted many other teams and notable players. In the early twentieth century, the ground hosted seven Gentlemen v Players matches, and notable players to have played at the ground include W.G. Grace, Don Bradman, Jack Hobbs and Denis Compton. Grace made over 40 appearances at the ground, whilst both Hobbs and Compton broke the record for most first-class centuries in a season at the Central Recreation Ground. The ground also hosted a women's one-day international between England and New Zealand in 1984. In the 1980s, planning permission was given for the ground be demolished, and the land used to build a shopping centre. After the demolition of the ground in 1996, the Priory Meadow Shopping Centre was built on the site.
Matthew William Machan is an English-born former cricketer who played for Sussex and Scotland. Machan was a left-handed batsman who bowled right-arm off break. He was born in Brighton, Sussex and educated at Hurstpierpoint College and Brighton College. Machan currently plays for Brighton and Hove CC in the Sussex Premier League.
Kirk Ogilvy Wernars is a South African cricketer. Wernars is a left-handed batsman who bowls right-arm fast-medium. He was born at Cape Town, Cape Province.
William James Humphry was an English cricketer. Humphry's batting and bowling styles are unknown. He was born at Lavant, Sussex.
Charles James Hammond was an English cricketer. Hammond was a right-handed batsman, although his bowling style is unknown. He was born at Storrington, Sussex.
Alfred Smith was an English cricketer notable for his fourteen first-class cricket appearances for Sussex as a gentleman cricketer between 1841 and 1852.
Philip Dean Salt is a professional cricketer, who plays internationally for England and domestically for Lancashire County Cricket Club, and previously for Sussex. Primarily an aggressive right-handed opening batsman, he sometimes keeps wicket and, less frequently, bowls right-arm off spin. Salt made his international debut for England in July 2021. Born in Wales, he moved in his youth to Barbados and then to England. Salt was part of the England team that won the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup. He recently made history after scoring two consecutive centuries in T20 Internationals against West Indies.
Sport in Sussex forms an important part of the culture of Sussex. With a centuries-long tradition of sport, Sussex has played a key role in the early development of both cricket and stoolball. Cricket is recognised as having been formed in the Weald and Sussex CCC is England's oldest county cricket club. Slindon Cricket Club dominated the sport for a while in the 18th century. The cricket ground at Arundel Castle traditionally plays host to a Duchess of Norfolk's XI which plays the national test sides touring England. The sport of stoolball is also associated with Sussex, which has a claim to be where the sport originated and certainly where its revival took place in the early 20th century. Sussex is represented in the Premier League by Brighton & Hove Albion and in the Football League by Crawley Town. Brighton has been in the Premier League since 2017 and has been a League member since 1920, whereas Crawley was promoted to the League in 2011. Brighton & Hove Albion W.F.C. play in the FA Women's Super League from 2017. Sussex has had its own football association, since 1882 and its own football league, which has since expanded into Surrey, since 1920. In horse racing, Sussex is home to Goodwood, Fontwell Park, Brighton and Plumpton. The All England Jumping Course show jumping facility at Hickstead is situated 8 miles (13 km) north of Brighton and Hove.
Cricket in Sussex refers to the sport of cricket in relation to its participation and history within Sussex, England. One of the most popular sports in Sussex, it is commonly believed that cricket was developed in Sussex and the neighbouring counties of Kent and Surrey. Records from 1611 indicate the first time that the sport was documented in Sussex; this is also the first reference to cricket being played by adults. The first reference to women's cricket is also from Sussex and dates from 1677; a match between two Sussex women's teams playing in London is documented from 1747. Formed in 1839, Sussex County Cricket Club is believed to be the oldest professional sports club in the world and is the oldest of the county cricket clubs. Sussex players, including Jem Broadbridge and William Lillywhite were instrumental in bringing about the change from underarm bowling to roundarm bowling, which later developed into overarm bowling. For some time roundarm bowling was referred to as 'Sussex bowling'.