1768 English cricket season
The 1768 English cricket season was the 25th season following the earliest known codification of the Laws of Cricket. Details have survived of nine eleven-a-side matches between significant teams.
Matches
Nine eleven-a-side match between significant teams are known to have taken place.[1][2]
- 10 June - Caterham & Westerham v Bourne - Westerham Common
- 26 July - Caterham v Bourne - Caterham Common
- 29 July - Middlesex v Surrey - Stamford Hill
- 31 July - Surrey v Hampshire - Guildford Bason
- 2 August - Caterham v Bourne - Caterham Common
- 5 August - Hampshire v Sussex - Broadhalfpenny Down
- 12 August - Bourne v Surrey - Bourne Paddock
- 29 August - Hambledon v Kent - Broadhalfpenny Down
- 5 September - Hambledon v Sussex - Broadhalfpenny Down
A scorecard showing individual scores survives from the Caterham–Bourne match on 10 June. This scorecard is the third oldest to be known to have survived, and the first since the 1744 English cricket season.[3]
Other events
William Bedle, who had played for Dartford and Kent sides in the early 18th century, died at his house near Dartford. He was described as "accounted the most expert cricket player in England" in Lloyd's Evening Post on 10 June.[4]
Three ladies' matches between teams from Harting and Rogate in Sussex took place in June. The matches attracted crowds of 2–3,000 spectators.[3]
First mentions
Players
- John Boorman (Kent/Essex)
- John Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset (Kent)
- James Fuggles (Kent)
- Richard May (Kent)
- Thomas May (Kent)
- William Palmer (Kent/Surrey)
- Richard Simmons (Kent)
- Smailes (Caterham)
References
- ACS, p.23.
- Other matches in England 1768, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2019-02-10.
- Buckley.
- Buckley, p.48.
Bibliography
- ACS (1981). A Guide to Important Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles 1709 – 1863. Nottingham: ACS.
- Buckley, G. B. (1935). Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket. Cotterell.
Further reading
- Altham, H. S. (1962). A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914). George Allen & Unwin.
- Birley, Derek (1999). A Social History of English Cricket. Aurum.
- Bowen, Rowland (1970). Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development. Eyre & Spottiswoode.
- Major, John (2007). More Than A Game. HarperCollins.
- Maun, Ian (2011). From Commons to Lord's, Volume Two: 1751 to 1770. Martin Wilson. ISBN 978-0-9569066-0-1.
- Underdown, David (2000). Start of Play. Allen Lane.