Historical cricket club celebrates bicentenary

A county's oldest cricket club has marked its 200th anniversary with a programme of celebrations.

Northamptonshire's Oundle Town Cricket Club was founded in 1826 and plays its home fixtures at a ground on Milton Road.

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Its bicentenary commemorations will feature a series of matches, including a T20 against Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), and a range of community events.

The club, which is the oldest in Northamptonshire, has more than 200 members, and nine senior and junior sides, including its first XI, which competes in the Northamptonshire Cricket League's premier division.

The club's celebrations began on Wednesday when Northamptonshire County Cricket head coach, Darren Lehmann, visited the club for a question and answer session.

On Friday, the club played a three-match series with games played according to the laws and dress of 1826, 1926 and 2026.

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Oundle Town's early days

When the club was founded, Lord Liverpool was prime minister and Beethoven was still alive.

An edition of the former Huntingdon, Northampton, Bedford and Cambridge Weekly Journal detailed the club's earliest days with a story about a "well-contested match that was played for a rump and a dozen" - steak and eggs.

After the victors claimed their prize, the paper said they headed to the Dolphin Inn, now known as the Old Dryden, for glasses of wine that was "briskly circulated".

Detailed scorecards from the club's formative years are few and far between - the earliest dates from 24 July, 1837 - a month into Queen Victoria's long reign, when Oundle lost heavily to Bourn's village team in a match played near Stamford.

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Familiar names

Despite its modest size, the club has produced its fair share of notable names.

The Rt Hon John Powys turned out regularly around 1890 and later, as Lord Lilford, served as president and generous benefactor of the Northamptonshire county club either side of the First World War.

When Oundle tackled Lilford Park in 1901 a master at neighbouring Oundle School, Bertie Grace, flayed the bowling to all parts in a memorable knock of 141.

Nine days earlier, his illustrious father - WG Grace had made exactly the same score against the Oundle schoolboys – his 200th century in all cricket.

International players including Dawid Malan, Tshepo Moreki, Denesh Ramdin and Huntingdon-born Josh Hull have all worn Oundle Town colours in recent years.

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