   |
|
Home 2003 Season 2002 Season News Photo Gallery Club Directory Umpires SPCL Umpire Appointments Rules/ Accreditation Officials SEC Cup Awards Statistics Links |
|
|
Sparsholt Cricket Club - Formed 1935
Back to Sparsholt CC Directory Page
Potted history
At the end of the last century, cricket at Sparsholt was an informal affair, with grounds at Balldown and towards Farley Mount being pressed into occasional use. The pavilion in those days was a thatched open shelter, three sides being furze branches woven into the wooden uprights - scores were kept by notches cut in a stick. In the early 1900s the team used a pitch near Lock's Lane, but moved on, to the north side of Lainston House. In the 1920s, the 'Club' played in the field adjoining the Village Memorial Hall, and also on a side near the Woodman Inn.In 1929, the Sparsholt Athletic Club, which primarily looked after the interests of the football section, initiated a Cricket section, and began the search for fixtures. In the 1930s, the present ground at Lock's Lane came into use, and Sparsholt CC in its present form was born shortly after the 1935 AGM, when the cricket section seceded from the Athletic Club. The first pavilion was a chicken hut, erected in 1935 at a cost of £6.37p. Fixtures were uncertain and fitful, especially during the War, but the Club was revived in 1946, and by 1949 the members themselves had designed and built a new pavilion, at a cost of £350.
The early 1970s saw the advent of Hampshire League cricket, and Sparsholt joined up in 1975. In 1979 Sparsholt won the HCL SW Division 2 league, and then in 1982, the SW Division 1 title. During this period, the need for a brick-built pavilion was turned into reality with the construction, largely by craftsmen Club members, of the existing pavilion, at a cost of £8000.
In the 1980s the club grew rapidly, fielding a 2nd XI in the League in 1983. In the same year, the 1st XI were runners-up in HCL Division 3, being promoted into HCL Division 2 for 1984, and promoted again into HCL Division One for the 1986 season.
The 1st XI remained in the HCL Division One, apart from a brief foray into the Southern League in 1993, until awarded Premier Bronze status upon the formation of the new league in 2000.
The 2nd XI was promoted into HCL West 1 in 1992, the year in which a major extension was added to the pavilion.
In 1991, the 3rd XI was created, and entered the Hampshire Combination League. In 1992, the junior section was formed, expanding over recent years to today's level, whereby a full junior programme is offered at U15, U13 and U11 levels.
The club is a regular and competitive participant in WDCCA competitions, winning the Igglesden Trophy on seven occasions (64, 78, 90, 92, 93, 95, 97), the Tichborne Trophy twice (91, 92) and the Condor Cup thrice (82, 89, 90).
With an excellent private ground (consistently rated amongst the best by captains and umpires), and cricket available at all levels for both seniors and juniors, Sparsholt welcomes new members.