| Team information | |
|---|---|
| Established | 1764 |
| Last match | 1875 |
| History | |
| Notable players | Fuller Pilch |
Many of the early Norfolk county cricket teams played matches in the first half of the 18th century, especially between 1820 and 1836. They represented the historic county of Norfolk. The current Norfolk County Cricket Club was founded in 1876.
The earliest reference to cricket in Norfolk is from 1745, [1] although the game was known in the county before that date. [2] F. S. Ashley-Cooper, writing in 1900, recounted a "tradition" of a club playing at Swaffham as early as 1700, [3] and games played in London and South-East England featured in press reports in the Norwich press during the 1720s and 1730s. [2]
The first inter-county match played by a Norfolk team was against Suffolk at Bury St Edmunds Racecourse in August 1764, with three further matches played during the same year—one at Diss, and the other two at nearby Scole. [4] [5] In 1797, Norfolk played against England (i.e., the "rest" of England) at the Racecourse Ground in Swaffham. [6] [3]
In 1820, Norfolk played in an important match at Lord's against Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). The Norfolk players, including Fuller Pilch, were mainly from the Holt Cricket Club, with three given men. The match is historically famous because William Ward made his record score of 278 for MCC. [3] [7] [8] [9] In the next two years, the Holt-based Norfolk played matches against Nottingham. [10]
The first Norfolk County Club was organised in 1826 or 1827 by Lord Suffield. [3]
During the 1830s, a number of matches involving Norfolk, or the Gentlemen of Norfolk, are recorded, [11] including matches against MCC in 1830. By 1831, The Sporting Magazine described Norfolk as one of the strongest county teams in the country. [3] [12]
Between 1833 and 1836, five matches were played against Yorkshire, largely organised by Sheffield Cricket Club. While these matches were important in the development of county cricket, they were played by professional cricketers rather than the amateur players who made up Suffield’s County Club. [7] [13] [14]
Although matches continued against MCC and Cambridge Town Club, the County Club had largely ceased to operate by 1848. [15] [16]
The club was revived in 1862, with subscriptions continuing into the late 1860s, but regular matches were not re-established and the club ultimately accumulated debt. [17] [18]
The Norfolk name nevertheless continued to be used for representative matches into the 1870s, including games against MCC, Cambridgeshire, Cambridge University, and Essex. [19] [20] [21]
The present county club was founded in October 1876, with Charles Harbord, 5th Baron Suffield, serving as president. It played its first matches in 1877. [22] [18] [23]