About our Cricket Club

The exact date that cricket was first played in Witchampton is not known, but it was well established by the late nineteenth century. At this time the ground was situated in Higher Park at Boxhalls’s Lodge near Cock Road, Crichel.

It was in the 1920’s when the ground was moved to Crichel Park, facilities at that time were primitive with only a small box-like scoring hut providing the only changing room, but the standard of cricket was good and it is known that the Club won the Wimborne Saturday League in three consecutive years and the only champions ever to beat the “Rest of the League” side, a traditional prestigious match in those days.

After the second world war a nissen hut was purchased and sited at the current entrance to the ground. This provided provide sufficient facilities for changing rooms, storage and for serving teas. At this time there was also several large fir trees that skirted the lower boundary resulting in a much smaller boundary than there is now, although the equipment and outfield would not be of the standard there is today.

Friendly matches were played after the war years and it was in 1947 when the Wimborne Evening League was formed and membership to this league led to an impressive run of results including winning the Division 1 league in 1949 (The Luff Cup).

In 1950 the club were accepted to membership of the Bournemouth Cricket League and remained members with either one or two teams until the Bournemouth Association dissolved in 2003.

In the early 1960’s a new wooden pavilion was built that provided a superb backround to the playing area and was the envy of most clubs in those days. With these facilities, a successful team and a quiet village setting, it was not unusual to get several hundred supporters and cricket lovers to park around the ground to watch our matches.

The Club is proud of its village status and when the National Village Knock-out Championship in 1972, coincided with a prolonged successful period of competitive cricket in all competitions. In all the Club were crowned Dorset Village champions 4 times with several other semi-final and final matches. It was in 1973 when we achieved our first Dorset Champion status, then beating Mere of Wiltshire in the next round which provided us with a match against Troon, the Cornwall champions who had won the tournament the previous year. An unforgettable day was had by all those who played or watched the match in front of a 2,000 strong crowd and a we fell just 16 runs short of the target that would have made put us into the giant killer status.

In 1981 we were crowned Bournemouth League Division 1 champions for the first time, a feat repeated two years later in 1983 but this time we went through the season unbeaten, a remarkable achievement considering the standard of the competition.

The Club has benefited from many good loyal and hard working officers and members and the family connections are apparent when looking through the officers listing. The family connections have been borne out in the way our cricket has been played over the years with generations of the same families appearing in the teams throughout the years, this has helped towards the fair but competitive way we have performed over the years and a good reputation for our after match socialising with our opponents.