THE HISTORY OF CRICKET IN STALBRIDGE
Cricket has been played in Stalbridge Park for at least 180 years, the original Club being known as the Anglesea (sp?) Cricket Club, named after the Marquess of Anglesey, one time Lord of the Manor. In 1827 Anglesea beat both Blandford and Shaftesbury and for the next 15 years was reputedly the 'most prominent Club' in Dorset.
The Stalbridge Estate paid a subscription to Anglesea Cricket Club from 1828, though there is no known record of a member of Lord Anglesey’s family being a player. At this time, a list of members is reported to have included several Rectors and Curates and members of the landed gentry in the area. In a letter of 1827 requesting a subscription from the Estate, Rev. F. Luke believed the club would be useful in forming a ‘political connection in the county’, much to the scepticism of the Estate’s Agent at the time, William Castleman.
On 23rd August 1829, during a two day match in Stalbridge Park against Lansdowne, Anglesea scored innings of 70 and 60. The visitors from Bath scored 54 in their first innings, and were at 40 for four in their second innings when controversy arose over a disputed ball (which would probably have been an underarm delivery in those days). Still requiring 37 to win, Lansdowne refused to play further and went home; a distant home too, in those pre-Somerset and Dorset Railway days.
The local prominence of the Club was such that it even received press notices. Accordingly, one match in 1832 played in Stalbridge Park against Stonehenge Club, was won by Anglesea “after a very severe contest”, though the return match was reported as having been lost “after two days’ hard fagging”!!
In 1853 “The Gentlemen of Stalbridge” were the first team to play on Sherborne School’s new upper pitch, a pitch still used for Dorset County Cricket Club fixtures.
The cricket ‘pitch’ in The Park was originally about half a mile due west of the main house, then an impressive Elizabethan mansion not unlike Montacute House in Somerset.
Demolished in 1822, the original house was replaced by the current farmhouse a few yards to the north of the old site (which is now visible as a series of mounds adjoining the old walled garden). The pavilion used by the cricketers was originally the archery pavilion erected for the Anglesea Archery Club in about 1700. The wicket in front of this pavilion was very rough, moles were a constant problem and scores were very low! There was a small copse in line with the wicket, a hit into which counted as three runs. A hit into the ditch bordering the copse was counted as a two.
In the early days of cricket the success of most clubs depended very largely upon the interest of the big country houses, which provided the fields and raised the teams. Thus some quite small villages such as Horsington, Cucklington, Charlton Musgrove and Yarlington had strong teams. More locally, the houses at Inwood and Thornhill also had cricket grounds. Due to the long hours worked by most men, getting a team was rarely easy; it was not until 1899 that shops shut at 2pm on Wednesdays, the weekly half-day, and on Saturdays, only at 10pm instead of 11pm! In those days, many of the games started at 10.30 am, as there was no summertime adjustment to lengthen the evenings.
At Thornhill House, General Parkes would occasionally raise a combined team of Stalbridge and Marnhull players to play visiting teams. In Stalbridge itself, Major Bennett lived at Grove House from 1880 to 1900, and captained the Stalbridge side for a number of years at that time. He would usually open the door of Henry Hobbs’ tailor’s shop on the morning of a match, and call out “Hobbs! Three players for today’s match!” which would include Henry himself and two of his tailors. Henry Hobbs, who also captained Stalbridge for a while, was a most enthusiastic cricketer, and loved to tell how, as a spectator, he once caught the famous W.G. Grace over the boundary line.
In 1907, Stalbridge, captained by Henry Hobbs, played Colonel Ridley’s side at Mapperton House. Before the match, an alarmed Hobbs is reported to have complained “Oh! My tender sides” when Colonel Ridley told him that the England Captain L.C.Palairet would be playing in the Mapperton team. On going to the wicket to bat, Palairet told Galton (the Stalbridge Postmaster, erratic fast bowler and hard hitting batsman) that he would give him half a crown if he bowled him in the first over. Galton reportedly knocked Palairet’s middle stump out first ball, and presumably picked up half a crown as a result!
In 1928 records show that the Club ran on an income of less than £10 per annum! Balls cost less than 50p, and a best bat was priced at 2 guineas (£2.10p). In the 1930s most Stalbridge matches seemed to be evening games played at such places as Handford, Holwell, and Child Okeford, though there was an annual Saturday fixture against Fosters School in Sherborne.
This game came about chiefly through the efforts of Percy Dike, ex-pupil of Fosters, Stalbridge player, umpire of renown, longtime chairman and lifelong supporter of the Club!
Pre World War II, the main competitions entered by the Club were the occasional local knock-out cups and the Blackmore Vale Cricket League, which was formed in 1921 to compete for the Pitt Rivers Cup. Stalbridge went on to successfully win this trophy in 1949.
During the Second World War, the old thatched roof on the archery pavilion collapsed and the wicket also suffered. At the end of the war, Mr. Harry Dufosee agreed in 1946 to let the Club play at its current location, alongside the spot where the Football Club had first played in 1895. After the war, under the captaincy of Cyril Dike, the number of fixtures played gradually increased. In 1967 the first Sunday fixture was played, with Clive Moore by this time captain of the Club. The national village knockout competition was also keenly contested, and before Stalbridge officially became a town, the Club reached the County final, losing to Shillingstone in 1974.
It wasn’t however until 1977 that Stalbridge first achieved success in the countywide Dorset Junior Club Championship, topping a table of 39 Dorset Clubs, with Pete Moore as captain. The following year this competition, previously won on averages, was reorganised into leagues and eventually into the current separate Saturday and Sunday league competitions in the mid 1990s.
In 1988, William Dike captained the 1 st XI to the Division Two title. For the following nine years, the Club competed in Dorset League Division One, with Will Dike, Phil Calcott, Hayden Williams and Matt Chant all filling the role of captain at various stages. This competitive division involved the club in many memorable games against strong village teams such as Cattistock, Cranborne, Marnhull and Puddletown, as well as some of the larger clubs in the Bournemouth and Poole area.
Under the captaincy of Matt Chant, Stalbridge eventually won the Division One title in 1997, thereby achieving promotion to the Dorset Premier League, the top league in the county. Competing against teams from the major Dorset towns such as Weymouth, Poole, Dorchester, Wimborne and Sherborne, Stalbridge went on to be Runners Up in 2001 a remarkable achievement for what was in many ways still a village cricket club.
The number of players available in Stalbridge meant that a second eleven was viable from the late 1970s, and the team entered the MidWessex league, achieving success in 1982 as the Runners Up of Division 3. The 1983 Dorset League reorganisation saw the 2nd XI join the Dorset League Division Six.
As well as showcasing the skills of some of our keenest, most sociable and well matured members, the 2nd XI has over the years proved valuable in providing competitive senior cricket for a large number of talented young players in the Club.
In addition to the two Saturday sides fielded by the Club, a Dorset Sunday League Side was also been fielded for a number of seasons until the demise of formal Sunday league cricket in Dorset. The Sunday XI now plays occasional friendly matches.
Midweek, an Evening League side has successfully competed for many years in the Ranston Evening League and Knockout Cup, finishing as league Champions and Cup Winners on numerous occasions.
Within the Club, a great deal of effort has been made since the late 1970s to introduce youngsters to cricket, with a number of Club members and helpers voluntarily giving up their time to run teams and practice sessions. In 1983, the very successful Under-15 team managed by Rob Chant and Clive Moore won the Dorset U15 Knockout Cup, going on to beat Cheltenham in the Area Knockout Competition, before eventually losing in the South West Regional Finals at Weston-Super-Mare.
Subsequent Under-15 and Under-13 teams have gone on to be Winners or Runners-Up in the Dorset U-15 and U-13 Club Championship as well as (along with U-11 teams) winners of the North Dorset Junior League and Cup competitions. In recent seasons, the Club has also run Under-9 and ECB All-Stars sections too.
Over the years, a number of junior players have gone on to representative cricket, playing for full County or District teams. At senior level, both Steve Forshaw and Matt Chant played for Dorset County Cricket Club whilst playing for Stalbridge 1st XI.
In addition to the crucial development of junior cricket and homegrown talent, a major factor in the continuing vitality of the Club, has been in the ability to field sociable yet competitive teams that, whilst based on the loyalty of stalwarts from Stalbridge, have also been able to welcome committed players from outside the town.
Away from the pitch, since 1965 the end of each season has usually been marked with an awards evening and dinner. Guest speakers have included numerous local cricketers and friends of the Club, including in 1975 a certain eighteen year old Somerset cricketer on his first public speaking engagement – a Mr. Ian Botham! In 2002 the Club celebrated its 175th Anniversary with a Cricket Week during the summer and a Dinner held at the Stalbridge Hall on Saturday 28th September. Over 120 members, sponsors, vice-presidents, supporters and friends of the Club attended.
Written by:
Harry Dike & Colin Moore
With extracts taken from ‘Stalbridge Pepys’ by Percy Dike, and additional references from ‘The Stalbridge Inheritance 1780 – 1854’ by Irene Jones.