Middlesex County Cricket Club

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Middlesex County Cricket Club
One-day Name: Middlesex Crusaders
Coach: Flag of Wales Toby Radford
Captain: Flag of England Ed Smith
Overseas Player(s): Flag of South Africa Vernon Philander
Founded: 1864
Home Ground: Lord's
Capacity: 30,000
First-class debut: Sussex
in 1864
at Islington
Championship wins: 12 (including 2 shared)
Pro40 wins: 1
FP Trophy wins: 4
Twenty20 Cup wins: 0
Official Website: MiddlesexCCC

Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Middlesex. Its limited overs team is called the Middlesex Crusaders.

The club plays most of its home games at Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, which is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club. The club also plays some games around the county at the Walker Ground in Southgate which hosts the annual Middlesex County Cricket Festival, Uxbridge CC in Uxbridge and The Old Deer Park in Richmond (home of Richmond CC).

Middlesex CCC has an indoor school based in Finchley and the Middlesex Academy officially opened in October 2003 to provide specialist coaching to the 12 best county prospects.

Currently the former Middlesex and Sussex batsman Toby Radford is the 1st XI Coach. Following a successful tenure as the Director of the Middlesex Cricket Academy, he was appointed as the permanent successor to Richard Pybus on 7th November 2007 and Ed Smith was re-appointed County Captain for 2008.

Contents

[edit] Honours

  • Champion County [1] (1) - 1866; shared (1) - 1878
  • County Championship (10) - 1903, 1920, 1921, 1947, 1976, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1990, 1993; shared (2) - 1949, 1977
  • FP Trophy [2] (4) - 1977, 1980, 1984, 1988
  • National League [3] (1) - 1992
Division Two (1) - 2004
  • Twenty20 Cup (0) -
  • Benson & Hedges Cup (2) - 1983, 1986

[edit] Second XI honours

  • Second XI Championship (5) - 1974, 1989, 1993, 1999, 2000; shared (0)
  • Second XI Trophy (1) - 2007
  • Minor Counties Championship (1) - 1935; shared (0)

[edit] Records

[edit] First-class

[edit] Team records

  • Highest Total For - 642-3 declared v Hampshire at Southampton 1923
  • Highest Total Against - 850-7 declared by Somerset at Taunton 2007
  • Lowest Total For - 20 v MCC at Lord's 1864
  • Lowest Total Against - 31 by Gloucestershire at Bristol 1924

[edit] Batting records

  • Highest Score - 331 JDB Robertson v Worcestershire at Worcester 1949
  • Highest Score Against - 341 CM Spearman for Gloucestershire at Gloucester 2004
  • Most Runs in Season - 2669 EH Hendren in 1923

[edit] Current squad


Most runs for Middlesex
Qualification - 20000 runs [1]

Batsman Runs
Flag of England Patsy Hendren 40, 302 (1907–1937)
Flag of England Mike Gatting 28, 411 (1975–1998)
Flag of England Jack Hearne 27, 612 (1909–1936)
Flag of England Jack Robertson 27, 088 (1937–1959)
Flag of England Bill Edrich 25, 738 (1937–1959)
Flag of England Clive Radley 24, 147 (1964–1987)
Flag of Scotland Eric Russell 23, 103 (1956–1972)
Flag of England Denis Compton 21, 781 (1936–1958)
Flag of England Peter Parfitt 21, 302 (1956–1972))

[edit] Bowling records

  • Best Bowling - 10-40 GOB Allen v Lancashire at Lord's 1929
  • Best Bowling Against - 9-38 RC Robertson-Glasgow for Somerset at Lord's 1924
  • Best Match Bowling - 16-114 G Burton v Yorkshire at Sheffield 1888
  • Best Match Bowling Against - 16-100 JEBBPQC Dwyer for Sussex at Hove 1906
  • Wickets in Season - 158 FJ Titmus in 1955

Most wickets for Middlesex
Qualification - 1000 wickets [2]

Bowler Wickets
Flag of England Fred Titmus 2, 361 (1949–1982)
Flag of England JT Hearne 2, 093 (1888–1923)
Flag of England JW Hearne 1, 438 (1909–1936)
Flag of England Jim Sims 1, 257 (1929–1952)
Flag of England John Emburey 1, 250 (1973–1995)
Flag of England Jack Young 1, 182 (1933–1956)
Flag of England Jack Durston 1, 178 (1919–1933)
Flag of England Alan Moss 1, 088 (1950–1963)
Flag of Australia Frank Tarrant 1, 005 (1904–1914)

[edit] Wicketkeeping records

Most dismissals for Middlesex
Qualification - 500 dismissals [3]

Wicketkeeper Dismissals
Flag of England John Murray 1, 224 (1, 024 catches & 200 stumpings) (1952–1975)
Flag of England Fred Price 940 (629 catches & 311 stumpings) (1926–1947)
Flag of England Joe Murrell 779 (516 catches & 263 stumpings) (1906–1926)
Flag of England Leslie Compton 596 (467 catches & 129 stumpings) (1938–1956)
Flag of England Paul Downton 547 (484 catches & 63 stumpings) (1980–1991)

[edit] Best partnership for each wicket

Partnership Runs Players Opposition Venue Season
1st wicket 372 Mike Gatting & Justin Langer v Essex Southgate 1998
2nd wicket 380 Frank Tarrant & Jack Hearne v Lancashire Lord's 1914
3rd wicket 424* Bill Edrich & Denis Compton v Somerset Lord's 1948
4th wicket 325 Jack Hearne & Patsy Hendren v Hampshire Lord's 1919
5th wicket 338 Robert Lucas & Tim O'Brien v Sussex Hove 1895
6th wicket 270 John Donald Carr & Paul Weekes v Gloucestershire Lord's 1994
7th wicket 271* Patsy Hendren & Frank Mann v Nottinghamshire Nottingham 1925
8th wicket 182* Mordaunt Doll & Joe Murrell v Nottinghamshire Lord's 1913
9th wicket 160* Patsy Hendren & Jack Durston v Essex Leyton 1927
10th wicket 230 Richard Nicholls & William Roche v Kent Lord's 1899
Source: CricketArchive.com. Last updated: July 17, 2007.

* - Indicates that the partnership was unbroken

[edit] List A

[edit] Team records

  • Highest Total For - 337-5 (45 overs) v Somerset at Southgate 2003
  • Highest Total Against - 353-8 (45 Overs) by Hampshire at Lord's 2005
  • Lowest Total For - 23 (32 overs) v Yorkshire at Leeds 1974
  • Lowest Total Against - 41 (19.4 overs) by Northamptonshire at Northampton 1972

[edit] Batting records

  • Highest Score - 163 AJ Strauss v Surrey at The Oval 2008
  • Highest Score Against - 163 CJ Adams for Sussex at Arundel 1999

[edit] Bowling records

  • Best Bowling For - 7-12 WW Daniel v Minor Counties East at Ipswich 1978
  • Best Bowling Against - 6-28 AW Greig for Sussex at Hove 1971

[edit] Best partnership for each wicket

  • 1st - 210* PN Weekes & ET Smith v Northumberland at Jesmond 2005
  • 2nd - 223 MJ Smith & CT Radley v Hampshire at Lord's 1977
  • 3rd - 165 MR Ramprakash & JD Carr v Nottinghamshire at Lord's 1993
  • 4th - 220 EC Joyce & JWM Dalrymple v Glamorgan at Lord's 2004
  • 5th - 147 MR Ramprakash & JD Carr v Leicestershire at Leicester 1992
  • 6th - 142* BL Hutton & NRD Compton v Lancashire at Shenley 2002
  • 7th - 132 KR Brown & NF Williams v Somerset at Lord's 1988
  • 8th - 112 DC Nash & AA Noffke v Sussex at Lord's 2002
  • 9th - 73 DC Nash & ARC Fraser v Northamptonshire at Lord's 1999
  • 10th - 57* EJG Morgan & Mohammad Ali v Somerset at Bath 2006

* Denotes not out/unbroken partnership

[edit] Earliest cricket

It is almost certain that cricket reached London and thereby Middlesex, by the 16th century. Early references to the game in London or Middlesex are often interchangeable and sometimes it is not clear if a particular team represents the city or the county.

See : History of cricket to 1696 and History of cricket 1697 - 1725

The first definite mention of cricket in London or Middlesex dates from 1680 and is recorded in Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket by G B Buckley as that book's first entry. The reference "is quite unfit for publication nowadays" but contains, nevertheless, a clear reference to "the two umpires" (it is also the earliest mention of an umpire in what seems to be a cricket connection) and, as Mr Buckley points out, the reference also strongly suggests that the double wicket form of the game was already well known in London.

The earliest known match in Middlesex took place at Lamb's Conduit Field in Holborn on 3 July 1707 involving teams from London and Croydon (see The Dawn of Cricket by H T Waghorn). In 1718, the first reference is found to White Conduit Fields in Islington, which later became a very famous London venue.

The earliest reference to a team called Middlesex is on 5 August 1728 when it played London Cricket Club "in the fields behind the Woolpack, in Islington, near Sadlers Wells, for £50 a side" (see Waghorn).

For information about Middlesex county teams before the formation of Middlesex CCC, see: Middlesex county cricket teams

[edit] Origin of club

There are references to earlier county organisations, especially the MCC Thursday Club around 1800, but the definitive Middlesex club is the present Middlesex CCC. The club was informally founded on 15 December 1863 at a meeting in the London Tavern. Formal constitution took place on 2 February 1864. The creation of the club was largely through the efforts of the Walker family of Southgate, which included several notable players including the famous V E Walker, who in 1859 became the first player to take 10 wickets in an innings and score a century in the same match.

Middlesex CCC played its initial first-class match versus Sussex CCC at Islington on 6 & 7 June 1864. In the same season, the club was a contender for the title of "Champion County" and is regarded as a first-class team since that season (though numerous earlier Middlesex teams were also first-class). Middlesex played at Lillie Bridge Grounds from 1869 before leaving in 1872 due to the poor quality of the turf. The club nearly folded at this time, a vote for continuing being won 7-6. They played at Prince's Cricket Ground from 1872 to 1876, and began using Lord's in 1877.

[edit] Recent History

In 2007 Middlesex had mixed fortunes in Domestic Cricket. In the 4-Day version of the game, the club finished 3rd of the nine teams in Division 2 of the Liverpool Victoria County Championship, narrowly missing out on promotion. However, 3rd place in Division 2 of the NatWest Pro 40 League was enough to earn them a place in the play-off final against Northamptonshire Steelbacks. Middlesex won that game comfortably and therefore gained promotion to Division 1 for the 2008 Season. There was less success in the two knockout cups where Middlesex failed to progress beyond the group stages of either tournament. In the Friends Provident Trophy they finished 7th of the ten teams in the Southern Division. Likewise in the Twenty20 Cup, 5th place of the six teams in the Southern Division was not good enough to see them progress.

[edit] Noted players

The club has produced a host of famous players, notably the batting greats Patsy Hendren, Jack Hearne, Jack Robertson, Bill Edrich and Denis Compton who dominated the English game with breathtaking stroke play after the Second World War.

Skipper Mike Brearley proved as astute for his county as he did for his country in the late 1970s and early 1980s and a team boasting the 'spin twins' of John Emburey and Phil Edmonds, the batting firepower of Mike Gatting and overseas fast bowlers of the quality of Wayne Daniel was hard to beat.

Mark Ramprakash, before his move to Surrey was an England team player while seamer Angus Fraser carried the attack through the 1990s. More recently, Andrew Strauss has become a fixture at the top of the England order and Owais Shah has also featured for his country. Famed for proucing young talented individuals, Middlesex have great hopes this season for batsman Billy Godleman and bowler Steve Finn.

Popular overseas players have included Frank Tarrant, Tuppy Owen-Smith, Alan Connolly, Jacques Kallis, Lance Klusener, Nantie Hayward, Ajit Agarkar, Murali Kartik, Irfan Pathan, Stuart Clark, Glenn McGrath, Justin Langer, Chaminda Vaas and Stephen Fleming.

Famous fans include Mick Jagger and Johnny Borrell.

[edit] Staff

[edit] Presidents of the County

[edit] County Chairmen

[edit] County Captains

[edit] County Coaches

[edit] County Scorers

[edit] County Secretaries

[edit] Middlesex Facts and Feats

  • Bill Edrich scored 1000 runs before the end of May in 1938. He did it in just 15 innings, with 4 centuries, and every run was scored at Lords. Don Bradman gave him the chance to score the 10 runs he needed in the Australian tour match with Middlesex by declaring his team's innings early.
  • Middlesex won the County Championship in 1947 thanks to the phenomenal run scoring of Denis Compton and Bill Edrich. They both passed Tom Hayward's 1906 record of 3518 runs in a season with Compton making 3816 at 90.86 and Edrich 3539 at 80.43 with a dozen centuries. Compton's 18 centuries surpassed Jack Hobb's former record of 16 in 1925. Compton scored 1,187 of his runs in the tests against South Africa, and Edrich 869 of his, but together with Jack Robertson's 2214 runs and Syd Brown's 1709 and the bowling of Jack Young, Jim Sims, Laurie Gray and Compton and Edrich themselves, the championship was won. The following season Compton and Edrich made their record unbeaten stand of 424 for the 3rd wicket against Somerset at Lords.
  • During 2007, Middlesex wore pink shirts during their Twenty20 matches in support of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer charity. The pink shirts will again be worn for 2008's Twenty20 campaign whilst a pink/navy quartered kit will be sported for the other one day competitions.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ An unofficial seasonal title proclaimed by consensus of media and historians prior to December 1889 when the official County Championship was constituted
  2. ^ Formerly known as the Gillette Cup (1963-1980), NatWest Trophy (1981-2000) and C&G Trophy (2001-2006)
  3. ^ Formerly known as the Sunday League (1969-1998)

[edit] External sources

[edit] Further reading

  • H S Altham, A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914), George Allen & Unwin, 1962
  • Derek Birley, A Social History of English Cricket, Aurum, 1999
  • Rowland Bowen, Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development, Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1970
  • Roy Webber, The Playfair Book of Cricket Records, Playfair Books, 1951
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