Berkhamsted Cricket

Cricket is played during the Trinity term and is enjoyed by a large number of pupils, with the school able to field up to 17 boys teams (1st XI – 3rd XI, U15A-C, U14A-D, U13A-D and U12A-D) and 11 girls teams (1st XI, U15A, U14A, U13A-D and U12A-D) during mid-week and weekend fixtures. The School aims to provide a cricketing experience to all of its pupils, across a range of abilities, as well as competitive fixtures to any students who wish to represent the School.

Cricket is at the heart of the summer curriculum with pupils at the Preparatory School (Years 3-6) and Senior School (Years 7-10) participating in cricket in their Physical Education lessons, games afternoons and during competitive fixtures. The senior cricket programme (1st XI – 3rd XI) combines Years 11-13 with training sessions and matches taking place on Tuesday & Thursday afternoons in addition to Saturday fixtures. The School’s experienced cricket staff include ECB Level 3 coaches, former professional players, experienced league players and numerous cricketing enthusiasts. All are led and supported by the Head of Cricket, PE Department and Bucks Cricket Board coaches in delivering to pupils of all ages and abilities.

The School’s fixture card is extremely strong and allows the students to test themselves against the top Schools in the area, including Bedford School,Merchant Taylors’, Haberdashers’, Abingdon School and Stowe. The fixtures allow pupils to experience a range of playing formats with T20, 30 and 40 over cricket played throughout the School as well as the 1st XI weekly limited overs (40/50 overs) matches and two-day fixtures later in the summer. Pupils also participate in the very popular Inter-House 6-a-side competitions that run annually.

The school season concludes with the much anticipated annual cricket week at the end of the Trinity term, when over 130 matches are played in seven days! A range of formats are played including: 6-a-side tournaments against local opponents for U11s (Boys & Girls), U13 (Girls) & U15 (Boys), a 1st XI 2-day fixture, a 1st XI T20 tournament with three high calibre opponents. The week culminates with the much anticipated fixture against the MCC which is held in front of the whole school as we celebrate achievements in our end of year Prize Day.

Facilities

Berkhamsted has some of the best cricket facilities in the area with eight grass squares across three sets of playing fields. The cricket facilities are maintained by an experienced and skilled team of six grounds staff. The showcase ground is the beautiful 1st XI pitch at Chesham Road, a facility which has recently been transformed by the addition of the David Case Pavilion with sensational views of the fields from the balcony. There is also a 5 -lane artificial net complex, 3 high quality grass nets and a fantastic indoor facility for the winter training programme.

Tours And Opportunities

Berkhamsted cricket teams embark on a major overseas tour every three years, in 2019 we travelled to Sri Lanka and in Easter 2023 we are off to India with 2 squads (Senior and U15).These trips are undoubtedly one of the most memorable sporting experiences of the students’ time at the School and the opportunity to play cricket in challenging sub-continent conditions whilst immersing themselves in the cricket and local culture of this beautiful island.The 2019 trip included matches for each squad at the Pallekele International Stadium, the new test ground in Kandy which had hosted the England Team only months before.There were also day trips to Elephant Orphanages, wonderful hotels, the very best of Sri Lankan hospitality and an excellent standard of cricket wherever you travelled in this cricket mad island.

“The highlight of my experience at Berkhamsted has been the opportunities I have had to further my experience as a cricketer. In Year 12 the School went out to Sri Lanka on tour and with this being just prior to the start of the season and was perfect timing. On the tour not only did I get to know the players in the team much better but I also got to play at some incredible grounds, the main highlight being a one-day game at the Pallekele International Stadium.”