There cannot be too many cricket clubs in England that have occupied the same ground for almost two centuries, but Bishop’s Stortford’s club in Cricketfield Lane, founded in 1825, can claim to be one of them. To put that date into perspective, the club was in existence twelve years before Queen Victoria came to the throne. The cricket ground was originally a field owned by Hawkes brewery (See Guide 6) who allowed the club to use it rent free – their only profit coming from the sale of lunch and refreshments on match days.
The laws of cricket were laid down in 1744, and in 1825 the game was still quite rudimentary – bowlers bowled round-arm and batsmen played with little or no protection. But by the 1860s the game had moved on considerably and the club became a much-respected force in Hertfordshire. The All-England XI brought several teams here during that decade to play against 22 of the town and district, and in 1868 the great W.G. Grace played on this ground for the local side as a ‘given man’, helping to secure a victory over the England XI.
In 1877 the club was reconstituted; a new set of rules came into force and a ground rent of £50 per annum was paid. Sir Walter Gilbey accepted an invitation to become president of the club in 1895, and that same year his son, Tresham, became the new landlord – charging only £30 per year rent. The present changing pavilion was built in 1896.
When Sir Walter Gilbey died in 1914, his son replaced him as president of the club. That year also saw the start of the First World War, and over the next five years the ground was used only occasionally; mainly by the Bishop’s Stortford Grammar school under the direction of its headmaster, Bruce Payne.
Perhaps the greatest event in the clubs long history came in 1928 when Tresham Gilbey handed over the Deeds of the ground to the Urban District Council. His only stipulation was that the Council should never part with the ground and that it should only ever be used for the playing of cricket.
During the Second World War the pavilions were taken over by the military, but with little time for cricket the ground became neglected. A revival came in 1946 and for this the club owed much to former England and Middlesex cricketer, E.T. Killick. Not only was he appointed Vicar of St Michael’s Church, but also a team member. The club never reached its former heights during this period but it did produce many good individual performances.
At the end of the 1960s a lack of adequate facilities put the club’s future in jeopardy and an expansion programme was started with the building of a new pavilion. Named after a former club president, Charles Edwards, it opened in 1971.
With the formation of League Cricket in 1968 and the Herfordshire Competition in 1974, the club had a number of successful seasons over the next two decades with both their first and second XI. Since 1990 they have played mainly local fixtures as well as an increasing amount of Cup cricket, and continue to play in the Hertfordshire Cricket League Premier Division.
