The Playing Fields of England

THE

PLAYING FIELDS OF ENGLAND AN A–Z GUIDE TO THE SUMMER GAME’S TOP 100 SCHOOLS 2018

Top 100 Schools Staff Chief executive Guy Evans-Tipping Editor Simon Hughes Managing editor Huw Turbervill Assistant editor James Coyne Art director Geoff Barton Business development manager Tom Gibbs Finance and subscriptions manager Chris Smith CricketArchive managing director Jim Hindson Social media manager Owen Riley Customer service executive Jamie Crawley Editorial assistant Don McDermott

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Girls are the emerging force in schools cricket It has been a very rewarding and uplifting experience judging this supplement. There were so many excellent entries it was really tough keeping it to 100. There were many other establishments that deserved to be included. It is reassuring to see so many schools, and their staff, putting this much effort into producing the next generation of players.

Particularly noticeable was the growth of the women’s game. Where, a year ago, there were girls’ teams here and there, now many schools are running them at all age groups. My own daughter’s (mixed) school – Emanuel, in south-west London – is a good case study in this respect. When she joined the school in 2012 there was no girls’ cricket at all. She was the only one who played. Three years later there was one under-14 team (captained by her) and she was in the boys’ XI. Now there is a team at every level, and rounders – previously the summer option for girls despite being, in my view, a glorified beach game – has been abolished!

There are nine state schools in this mix, up from eight last year. Small progress but the message is slowly filtering through. Given that half of English first-class cricketers come from private schools and England still can’t

Simon Hughes Editor @theanalyst

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seem to find a consistent No.3 batsman it is vital as many schools as possible – of all types – play regular cricket. It is the best way to keep kids away from their devices apart from anything else. All parents would welcome that.

You sense from working on this list that the game, after a decade of decline, is starting to pick up. Although it is true that more and more 12-year-olds want to play the reverse ramp before they learn a forward defence, at least they are having a go, and having fun. As the successful All Stars Cricket initiative really starts to kick in, there will be a host of reverse-sweepers emerging. A redraft of field settings may be required shortly.

The great thing about cricket is it is always evolving. From the early 1700s when the Laws were properly drafted and then a third stump was added, batsmen have always found new ways to make runs and bowlers discovered different methods to dismiss them. The tone is set at school. And those who thought that the highest ever individual score – AEJ Collins’ 628 not out made over four afternoons at Clifton College in 1899 – would never be challenged were finally proved wrong. Mumbai schoolboy Pranav Dhanawade made 1,009 in a match last year. Beat that!

THE

PLAYING FIELDS OF ENGLAND AN A–Z GUIDE TO THE SUMMER GAME’S TOP 100 SCHOOLS 2018

On t he cover

Repton School’s cricket pavilion, a stunning juxtaposition of the old and the new

State of play

Independent schools may well have the best facilities, but cricket is not dead in state schools, as Huw Turbervill reports

R

ugby and football boots trample over muddy outfields now, cries of “yes”, “no” and “wait” replaced by “scrumdown” and “corner”.

The Cricketer put in some miles this summer covering schools cricket at these venues, helping to inform us who should make our top 100 in The Playing Fields of England 2018.

We marvelled at the facilities of Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood, as they played host to Reading Blue Coat (12 grass squares!); they talked of how T20 is playing an increasing role in the fixture list… but then we heard a different message from former Essex allrounder Graham Napier.

Now master in charge of cricket at RHS in Holbrook, Suffolk, he told us, while watching the match against Framlingham College: “I would like to play more declaration cricket so the boys can see how good

it can be when played in the right spirit and manner.”

We also took in a trip to Woodhouse Grove in West Yorkshire (a lovely setting close to Brontë Country near Bradford), although the match against Leeds Grammar was sadly rained off.

We also chronicled splendid deeds: Tom Banton hitting 155 off 61 balls to help King’s College, Taunton, against Sherborne; the Mousley brothers, Alex, Dan and Tom, all hitting centuries in the same week for Bablake School in Coventry; Lewis Bedford making Cranleigh School’s highest ever score (172, against RGS Guildford); and Freddie Fairey reaching 1,000 runs for King’s Ely at the age of 13, still with six games to go.

It is fair to say that in compiling our top 100, we do receive letters asking why more state schools are not on the list. We are rigorously independent in our selection process. We choose the best in terms of how many

Red Rose: Ormskirk have one of the strongest girls’ teams in schools cricket

4 | thecricketer.com

Beechen Cliff

Prince Henry’s High School

South Gloucestershire College

Ormskirk School

cricketers are being catered for, standard of facilities, quality of opposition and so on. We recognise meteoric rises and year-on-year achievements.

We do not take into account how the pupils arrived at the school – whether they are local youngsters who go to their nearest state, grammar-school intake or their parents are fee-paying.

There are four non-selective state schools on this year’s list: Beechen Cliff (Bath); Prince Henry’s High School (Worcester); South Gloucestershire & Stroud College (Bristol) and Ormskirk School (Lancashire); and there are five grammar schools. We would all like to see more.

First and foremost we love cricket at this magazine. We want to see everyone play it – boys and girls, state and non-state, of all ages.

My son, 13, goes to a state school, Carshalton Boys Sports College. I was overjoyed when they played some games last summer. They took on an independent school, Cumnor House in South Croydon. A lad called Veer Patel (who is expected to play for Surrey – no pressure!) scored

a brilliant century with my son bowling. It was just great that the game was even happening at all.

Of course everyone acknowledges that state schools that make it on to the list have done fantastically well.

Why are there not more?

An expert on schools cricket attributes some it as a legacy of the Houghton Report on teachers’ salaries in 1974. “It gave teachers a modest pay rise and established what hours they should work, but the law of unintended consequences meant that they now worked to rule, suddenly stopping taking teams out of hours, at weekends and so on,” he told us.

“Cricket pitches have also been difficult to maintain, and there was also preference for sports that kept everybody occupied, like volleyball or basketball. With cricket, of course, you have 11 in the field, two batters, and at a push two more who are waiting to go into bat.

That leaves seven not directly involved at any one time, ‘making daisy chains’.”

Things have changed a little, he reflects, in that PE thecricketer.com | 5

teachers – rather than geography or English masters, for instance – now take the teams, and that is part of their job, but that is not altogether a good thing. “Because they are so competitive,” he suggests, “there has been some rather unfortunate, over-competitive, knock-on behaviour.”

Despite limited money and facilities, Beechen Cliff compete against independent schools on a tough circuit in the south-west. They won the Monkhouse League in 2016 for the first time in 10 years.

Simon Hinks (ex-Kent & Gloucestershire) is the professional at South Gloucestershire & Stroud College.

This sixth-form sports academy in Bristol has only ever received the top ranking of ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted since its inception a decade ago. In 2015 they beat a strong Millfield side in the National Schools T20.

Then there is Prince Henry’s, who have made remarkable progress in girls’ cricket. Gill Richards, a former England player and the first female on the Lord’s groundstaff, is a member of the PE department. The school competes against the local independent schools in the later stages of the County Cup. And finally there is Ormskirk, renowned for their girls’ cricket – winners of the Lady Taverners Competition in 2013, 2015 and finalists in 2017, Chance to Shine winners in 2013 and finalists for 2016.

Great achievements.

The quest goes on for a cricket renaissance in the state sector. MCC, under Derek Brewer, who has just departed as chief executive, launched a coaching programme in 30 of the 50 state primaries in Westminster. He acknowledges the challenges: “It’s time, it’s exams, it’s commitments of staff,” he told The Cricketer. “When I was a kid I went to a state school, and there was time in the curriculum, exams weren’t all-consuming in the summer term and staff were encouraged to coach cricket. The pressure on the state schools is phenomenal now. At private schools you have the facilities as well, but the playing fields are going. The London Playing Fields Foundation is doing great work, but the fields are still disappearing. It’s a very different scenario now but we have to look at it a little differently so you may not play on grass, you may play on a different surface.”

Steve Kirby, head of coaching at MCC, is another who is championing the game in the state sector. “The key is to bring more families back to cricket,” he told The Cricketer. “If you can get mum involved with her son or daughter’s development by bringing them to clubs, that is the key… Secondary schools are not signposting enough to clubs. We are trying to link schools and local cricket clubs so the same teachers and activators are involved at both – that is what our community hubs are trying to achieve: a symbiotic relationship.”

So there is clear evidence that cricket is being pushed in both the independent and parts of the state sector.

Long may that continue. n

Gill Richards Teacher at Prince Henry’s

Derek Brewer Ex-MCC chief executive

“ I would like to play more

declaration cricket so the boys can see how good it can be when played in the right spirit and manner ”

6 | thecricketer.com

Ben Radford /Allsport, Gareth Copley/Getty Images, james bunce

Steve Kirby The top man on the playing side at the MCC Cricket Academy

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bede’s SCHOOL x x x x x x x//x Bedford // x x x x xmodern x x x x x x school

BEDE’S SCHOOL Upper Dicker Hailsham East Sussex BN27 3QH Established 1979 Notable fixtures MCC, Eton, Hampton, Tonbridge, Charterhouse, Whitgift Director of cricket Alan Wells (Sussex, Kent & England) Cricket professionals Neil Lenham and James Kirtley (both Sussex) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U15 girls, U14AB Facilities Six indoor nets, eight outdoor artificial nets, four grass squares Club/county affiliation Sussex Brief history Cricket has gone from strength to strength under

BEDFORD MODERN SCHOOL Manton Lane Bedford MK41 7NT

Alan Wells Director of cricket

successive headmasters who are both cricket fans. Employing a professional coach 15 years ago has helped gain national recognition.

It has consistently helped develop

county youth cricketers, both male and female. The school currently has 14 girl cricketers Cricketers of note Ollie Rayner (Sussex & Middlesex), Luke Wells,

Callum Jackson, Fyn HudsonPrentice (all Sussex), Shai Hope (West Indies) – who showed his rich talent with two centuries against England at Headingley Extras The option for Year 9s to choose cricket as part of their curriculum and also drop a GCSE for those potentially on a career pathway Finest moment on the field National runners-up in 2012 and 2013 Cultural cricketers The pavilion is named after former Cricketer editor Christopher MartinJenkins, who went to Bede’s Prep

Extras Stanley holds the school record for most runs in a season, with 1,116. Paul Owen (Gloucestershire) holds the record for most 1st XI wickets with 154 over three years. Jones made

nearly 23,000 first-class runs, scoring 34 centuries, while Panesar represented England in 50 Tests.

The school actively lends out facilities to local state schools Finest moment on the field

Fordham – ECB head of cricket operations – led Bedford Modern to the Lord’s Taverners Trophy against Rugby School at Edgbaston in 1980. The school were national runners-up in 2012 and 2013

Established 1764 Notable fixtures MCC Director of cricket Paul Woodroffe Teams 15 teams regularly turn out, with girls able to opt for cricket, several playing for school teams Facilities Two indoor lanes in sports hall, 10 artificial lanes outdoors and five excellent grass nets. The school has five cricket squares Club/county affiliation Bedfordshire Brief history The first organised cricket at the school took place in 1883, largely thanks to Dick Rogers, who converted wasteland on Clarendon Street into a sports field Cricketers of note Arthur Turner (Essex), Arthur Jones (Notts & England) Frederick Newman (Surrey), Harold Day (Hampshire), Bob Gale (Middlesex), Peter Watts (Northants), Peter Kippax (Yorkshire), Alan Fordham (Northants), Geoff Millman (Notts & England), Neil Stanley (Northants), Monty Panesar (Northants, Sussex, Essex & England) thecricketer.com | 11

Top 100 Schools

BEDFORD SCHOOL // BEECHEN CLIFF SCHOOL

BEDFORD SCHOOL De Parys Avenue Bedford Bedfordshire MK40 2TU Established 1552 Notable fixtures MCC, Harrow, Shrewsbury, Bromsgrove, Stowe Director of cricket Gary Steer (Derbyshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U17, U16, U15ABC, U14ABCD Prep School 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U11ABCDEF, U10ABC, U9AB, U8ABC Facilities Six indoor nets, 13 outdoor grass nets, six outdoor artificial nets, seven grass squares Club/county affiliation Bedfordshire Brief history Records go back to 1886 but it is in recent years that Bedford has become one of the leading cricket schools. They won the under-17 tournament in 2010 and 2014, and twice made T20 finals day. The Alastair Cook Room in the refurbished pavilion is a daily reminder of his inspiration

Cricketers of note Alastair Cook (Essex & England), Alex Wakely, Toby Bailey, Ian Peck, Christian Davis (all Northants), James Kettleborough (Northants &

Glamorgan), Will Smith (Notts, Durham & Hampshire), Adrian Shankar (Worcestershire & Lancashire), Brian Disbury (Kent) Extras The ground has hosted

Bedfordshire games since 1895 Finest moment on the field Cook scoring a record 1,287 runs with five centuries in 2003. He trained for hours with coach Derek Randall

Hankins, is now in the county’s setup and has played for MCC after strong performances against them Extras Despite limited money and facilities, Beechen Cliff manage

to compete against independent schools on a tough circuit. In 2017, the junior school toured south Devon, Year 9 toured Worcester and Year 11 toured Barbados

Finest moment on the field Winning the Monkhouse League in 2016 for the first time in 10 years. All the other teams in the league are independent schools

BEECHEN CLIFF SCHOOL Alexandra Park Kipling Avenue Bath BA2 4RE Established 1896 Notable fixtures MCC, Millfield, XL Club Director of sport Patrick Macdonald Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC Facilities One cricket pitch, four indoor nets Club/county affiliation Somerset Brief history Beechen Cliff is an academy – the result of a merger in 1970 between City of Bath Boys’ Grammar and Oldfield Boys’ secondary modern. Since 2014 the school has offered places for boarders Cricketers of note Jordan Price (MCC Young Cricketer in 2013 and 2014), Harry Hankins (Gloucestershire 2nd XI), the brother of Gloucestershire wicketkeeper/batsman George 12 | thecricketer.com

BERK HAMS T EDX XSCHOOL X X X X X X// //BISHOP’S X X X X X XSXTXORT X X XFORD COLLEGE

BERKHAMSTED SCHOOL 6 Chesham Road Berkhamsted Hertfordshire HP4 2BB Established 1541 Notable fixtures MCC, Old Berkhamstedians Head of cricket George Campbell Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC Girls’ cricket Across a number of age groups. There are six girls playing in boys’ teams, including one in the 1st XI Facilities Eight grass squares, three grass nets, five outdoor all-weather nets, and six indoor lanes Club/county affiliation Buckinghamshire, Berkhamsted CC Brief history The first published school magazine, in 1880, showed the school played 10 games that season, including home and away against Berkhamsted Brewery Cricketers of note Derek Morgan (Derbyshire) – the first Derbyshire cricketer to combine

BISHOP’S STORTFORD COLLEGE 10 Maze Green Bishop’s Stortford Hertfordshire CM23 2PJ Established 1868 Notable fixtures MCC, Haileybury, Brentwood, Ipswich, Colchester RGS, Chigwell Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB Head of cricket Matt Drury Number of pupils 1,170 Prep School 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, 6th XI, U11ABCD, U9AB Girls’ cricket Training sessions are run on a weekly basis and interschool matches are played in the prep school. A number of girls play for Bishop’s Stortford CC women’s team in the Southern League, alongside former England captain Charlotte Edwards Facilities Four main squares, 14

10,000 runs and 1,000 wickets at firstclass level Extras A new cricket pavilion has transformed the 1st XI ground, with wonderful views across

artificial outdoor nets, two mobile net cages, two indoor nets Club/county affiliation Hertfordshire, who use the main ground for one and two-day representative matches. Bishop’s Stortford CC give boys and girls a chance to play a good standard of club cricket. Boys and girls play for Herts and Essex at various age groups Cricketers of note Graham Doggart (Middlesex & Cambridge University); CH Titchmarsh (MCC) toured New Zealand and West Indies in the early 1920s Extras The college offers sports scholarships and an elite cricket programme throughout the off season. Regular 1st XI pre-season tours to Cape Town. The Doggart pavilion – noted for its modern architectural style – was opened in 1933 and presented by the Doggart family. The outfield is one of the best in the region, having been used by Hertfordshire for two-day matches and international hockey

the playing fields from the balcony. The school also tour regularly, recently going to Sri Lanka and the Caribbean Cultural cricketers James

until the 1970s. The 1st XI finished fourth in the 2016 RNCF Cricket Shield for prep schools. Alex Portas (Year 13) captained Herts U17s and plays for Bishop’s Stortford 1st XI Finest moment on the field The college was the first UK school to tour Sri Lanka, in 1985/86 and played in the inaugural Sir Garfield Sobers International Cricket

Rodwell (England rugby sevens), Will Fraser (Saracens) and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston (sailor – the first person to singlehandedly circumnavigate the globe, in 1969) all played cricket at the school

Matt Drury Head of cricket Schools Festival in Barbados Cultural cricketers Sir Stephen Lander, director-general of MI5

thecricketer.com | 13

TOP 100 SCHOOLS BLUNDELL’S SCHOOL Blundell’s Road Tiverton Devon EX16 4DN Established 1604 Number of pupils 600 Notable fixtures MCC, Millfield, King’s Taunton, Sherborne, Clifton Director of cricket Rob Turner (Somerset & England A) Cricket professionals Liam Lewis (Devon & Loughborough UCCE), Alfonso Thomas (Somerset & South Africa), Julian Wyatt (Somerset & Devon) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket Girls’ fixtures across a variety of age groups, with girls also playing in the boys’ teams on merit. Girls’ cricket is growing in popularity and a number of students play for Devon age groups Facilities Indoor sports hall (two nets), outdoor all-weather facility (four nets), 12 grass nets and six cricket squares. Fitness suite for training during winter months Club/county affiliation Heathcoat CC (Devon Premier League), Devon, Somerset Brief history The earliest record of a Blundell’s cricket match took place in September 1844 against the Tiverton club. Since then, the school has produced many cricketers, including four who were part of the Devon County Wanderers team that won the Olympic gold medal for cricket for Great Britain at Paris in 1900 – the

14 | thecricketer.com

BLUNDELL’S SCHOOL // BRADFIELD COLLEGE

last time the sport was included in the Olympics Cricketers of note Vic Marks (Somerset & England), Jeremy Lloyds (Somerset & Gloucestershire), Hugh Morris (Glamorgan & England), Samuel Wyatt-Haines (Somerset), Dominic Bess (Somerset), Ulrick Considine (Somerset), Royston Gabe-Jones (who played for Glamorgan in 1922, while still a 15-year-old at Blundell’s), John Davies (Wales) and Roger Davies (Glamorgan) Best prospect Jo du’Gay (U14) Extras The school hosts matches for boys and girls at all age levels from under-11 through to the full county club and women’s teams.

Venue for the David Shepherd Great Cricket Picnic in July, raising funds to promote youth cricket.

The school also has a hospitality box at the County Ground, Taunton, which was kindly donated

by Sir Christopher Ondaatje and for use by pupils, parents and Old Blundellians Finest moment on the field A recent Devon v Wales match featured five Old Blundellians who have all captained the school Cultural cricketers AV Hill (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine), Ondaatje (author and philanthropist), Michael Mates (politician), Tristan Evans (drummer with The Vamps), Jack Maunder (England rugby), Dave Lewis (Exeter Chiefs rugby), Ben ‘The Stig’ Collins, Richard Sharp (England rugby captain) and Clem Thomas (Wales rugby captain)

BRADFIELD COLLEGE Reading Berkshire RG7 6BZ Established 1850 Number of pupils 780 Notable fixtures A full fixture card against the leading schools in the south of the country, complemented by matches against the Berkshire and Hampshire Academies, Free Foresters, MCC and the Bradfield Waifs. They give the boys the opportunity to play all formats, from 20 overs to a two-day declaration game against Malvern College Director of cricket Julian Wood (Hampshire) Teams 13 boys teams at all age groups (U14–U18) Girls’ cricket Two sides during the summer and training through the age groups Facilities Five indoor nets, four all-weather nets, 12 grass nets, six grass squares Club/county affiliation Bradfield work closely with numerous first-class and minor counties.

Boys currently play for Surrey, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Brief history Cricket is centred around Pit, the iconic main ground, once named by Ted Dexter as one of the most beautiful in the world.

The bowling record – Michael Mence’s 84 wickets in 1962 – looks like it will never be beaten due to the increase in limited-overs fixtures, but his batting record from

the same year was smashed in 2015

by Harry Came (great-grandson of Walter Robins) who is the first Bradfieldian to 1,000 in a season Cricketers of note Graham Roope (Surrey & England), Mark Nicholas (Hampshire & England A), Rupert Cox, William Kendall, Hamza Riazuddin and Richard Morris (all Hampshire), Ryan Higgins (Gloucs), Tom Jewell and Gus Atkinson (Surrey), Mence (Warwickshire) Extras Wood is in great demand from the world’s leading batsmen, who are keen to find out about his power-hitting programme, based out of Loughborough.

He has recently been working with the Australian and England squads during the college holidays and is a regular consultant at Gloucestershire, Middlesex and Hampshire. Sachin Tendulkar is rumoured to have cleared the River Pang in an U15 tour match Finest moment on the field Bradfield has won the John Harvey Cup in 2012 and 2015 – played between Radley, Marlborough, St Edwards, Winchester and Cheltenham. The Old Bradfieldian team – the Waifs – has won the Cricketer Cup three times Cultural cricketers Nicholas (right) is fast-becoming the successor to Richie Benaud as Channel 9’s frontman in their coverage of Australian home cricket

BREN T WOOD SCHOOL // BRIGH T ON COLLEGE

BRENTWOOD SCHOOL Middleton Hall Lane Brentwood Essex CM15 8EE Established 1557 Notable fixtures MCC, Felsted, Bancroft’s Cricket professional Jaik Mickleburgh (Essex) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB Facilities Six indoor and six outdoor nets Club/county affiliation Essex Cricketers of note Stanley Scott (Middlesex), Charles Kortright, Colin Griffiths, Graham Horrex, David Acfield, Richard Baker, Max Osborne, Ian Pont, Kishen Velani, Thomas Moore (all Essex) Extras The school has an active touring programme and strong links with Essex CCC and local clubs in the county. Former Essex batsman Brian Hardie made way as cricket professional after 25 years for 2005 Ashes hero Geraint Jones, fresh from helping

BRIGHTON COLLEGE Eastern Road Brighton East Sussex BN2 0AL Established 1845 Number of pupils 1,003 Notable fixtures MCC, MCC

Gloucestershire to Royal London One-Day Cup glory in 2015. He spent two years in the role, and now his replacement is former Essex batsman Jaik Mickleburgh,

still scoring heavily for Suffolk.

Among the former cricketers at Brentwood is ex-Chelsea and England footballer Frank Lampard, who loves the game

Women, XL Club Director of cricket Mike Smethurst (Lancashire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC Girls’ cricket at 1st XI, U15 and U13 level. The best girls play in the boys’ teams. Brighton also enter teams into the Lady Taverners Indoor tournament during the

winter Facilities Four indoor nets, 10 artificial nets, seven grass nets, two grass squares Club/county affiliation Sussex Brief history Brighton College is the most successful girls’ cricket school in the country. The cricket programme is the most comprehensive for females, and Brighton has churned out more England women’s cricketers than any other school. Added to that, Georgia Adams and Freya Davies are on the England Academy and Izzy Collis in the Southern Vipers squad Cricketers of note Sammy Woods (Somerset, England & Australia), Matt Prior (Sussex & England), Matt Machan (Sussex & Scotland), Carl Hopkinson, Neil Lenham (both Sussex), Joe Gatting (Sussex & Hampshire), Michael Thornely (Sussex & Leicestershire), Malcolm Waller (Zimbabwe), Bazid Khan (Pakistan), Holly Colvin, Sarah Taylor, Laura Marsh (all England

Stephen Salisbury Cricket professional

Women) Extras Connor (below) is the ECB’s head of women’s cricket and chairman of the ICC’s women’s committee – the most powerful female administrator in world cricket. The Clare Connor Scholarship is open to girls 16-plus Finest moment on the field In June, the 1st XI tied two consecutive games – against MCC and Ardingly – within three days, on the same wicket

thecricketer.com | 15

Top 100 Schools BRISTOL GRAMMAR SCHOOL University Road Bristol BS8 1SR Established 1532 Number of pupils 1,300 Notable fixtures Clifton College, King’s Taunton, Queen’s Taunton, Blundell’s, Taunton School, RGS Worcester Cricket professional Paul Muchall (Durham & Gloucestershire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12ABC, U11AB, U10AB, U9AB, U8AB Girls’ cricket There are eight teams. Kwik cricket for U12AB up to U15AB Facilities Five indoor lanes, seven grass nets, four astro nets, one artificial strip, five grass squares and five outwickets Club/county affiliation Somerset and Gloucestershire Brief history Founded by Royal

BRIS T OL GRAMMAR SCHOOL // BROMSGROVE SCHOOL

Charter on March 17 1532 by Henry VIII for the teaching of “good manners and literature”, the school was established to educate the sons of Bristol merchants and tradesmen. The school moved from its original home in the city centre to its current location

at Tyndall’s Park in 1879. The preparatory school began in 1900 but was destroyed on the night of November 24 1940 by incendiary bombs. The playing fields are three miles away from the main school at Failand where a new pavilion was built in 2008. Bristol Grammar

went independent in 1979 following the abolition of the direct grant system. In 1980 the school became a fully co-educational day school and has 1,300 students between four and 18 Cricketers of note Tom Graveney (Gloucestershire, Worcestershire & England), Will Tavaré (Gloucestershire) Best prospect Matt Brewer has represented West of England U15s and Gloucestershire 2nd XI

(Worcestershire), Jonathan Webb, Matt Lamb (both Warwickshire) Extras Bromsgrove retains strong links with the Lyttelton family of Worcestershire. The 10th Viscount Cobham was himself a first-class cricketer for Worcestershire.

Although not Old Bromsgrovians themselves, the family engaged with the Old Bromsgrovian Martlets cricket side, and held an annual match against the school at Hagley Hall, the family seat.

The last match of this kind was

played in May 2015 between Old Bromsgrovians and Lord Cobham’s XI Finest moment on the field Bromsgrove School has won the Chesterton Cup three out of the last four years

BROMSGROVE SCHOOL Worcester Road Bromsgrove Worcestershire B61 7DU Established 1553 Notable fixtures Shrewsbury, Sedbergh, Malvern Director of cricket Dave Fallows Teams U18 ABC, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC, U11 ABC, U10ABC, U9ABC Girls’ cricket U15s coached over the winter and play cup and friendly matches in summer. Looking to expand this to U13s Facilities Five new outdoor nets.

Indoor arena with eight nets, indoor sports hall with four nets. Seven outdoor squares Club/county affiliation Worcestershire and Warwickshire.

Worcestershire age-groups train all-year round on site Brief history Bromsgrove has a strong cricketing history, which sees many old boys returning to reminisce over. They regularly reach the latter stages of national competitions Cricketers of note Ben Cox 16 | thecricketer.com

CHART ERHOUSE SCHOOL // CHE ADLE HULME SCHOOL

Martin Bicknell, Director of cricket

CHARTERHOUSE SCHOOL Charterhouse Road Godalming Surrey GU7 2DX Established 1611 Notable fixtures Cowdrey Cup (Eton, Harrow, Tonbridge, Radley

CHEADLE HULME SCHOOL Claremont Road Cheadle Hulme SK8 6EF Established 1855 Notable fixtures MCC, Manchester Grammar, Shrewsbury, Denstone Cricket professional Rupert Kitzinger (Dorset) Teams 16 Girls’ cricket U13s and U15s are county indoor and softball champions. The school’s headteacher, Lucy Pearson (the former England women’s bowler) coaches the girls. Girls also train and play with boys Facilities Three squares prepared by former Headingley groundsman

ters oTintum et ipsam et et millabo recerum faceri te

College, Wellington College), MCC, Cranleigh, Westminster, Winchester Cricket professional Martin Bicknell (Surrey & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD Facilities Four indoor nets with bowling machines, 18 artificial outdoor nets, seven grass squares,

two artificial Club/county affiliation Surrey Cricketers of note Peter May (Surrey & England), James Hamblin and James Bovill (both Hampshire), Gregor McMillan (Gloucs and Leicestershire) Extras One of the prettiest grounds in the south-east. It dates back to 1859, when the

school played a game against Marlborough College. It also hosted a 1972 John Player League game between Surrey and Warwickshire, and the 1992 and 2009 Bunbury Under-15 Festivals Finest moment on the field One-wicket win over Wellington College in 2017, after a 10th-wicket stand of 27

Ian Barber, a new sports pavilion officially opened by Michael Vaughan, four outdoor nets, two indoor nets Club/county affiliation Lancashire and Cheshire Head of cricket Graham Clinton is Cheshire U11 coach Brief history Dates back to the 1880s, and recently taken giant leaps forward under Pearson, with two full-time coaches as part of the school staff Cricketers of note Tom Hodson (Cheshire) is MCC’s most capped player of all time, with 700 games Extras Pearson is on the ECB board of directors and is the only ECB Level 4 coach in the area. The school has a senior pre-season tour every year to the UAE, and a major tour every three. In 2017 they took 22 players to India at Easter

Finest moment on the field Ed Fluck in year 12 during the Easter 2017 tour of India scored 215 off 110 balls against the Dilip Vensarkar

Academy at Mumbai Cultural cricketers Nick Robinson (BBC political editor) and Duncan Watmore (Sunderland footballer)

thecricketer.com | 17

Senior School & Sixth Form

Do you want your child to realise their true potential?

“The school successfully meets its aim to be a place of learning with a broad and balanced curriculum that enables all pupils to fulfil their potential in everything they undertake.” ISI Inspection 2017.

Come to an Open Morning or arrange a private visit. We look forward to welcoming you.

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Registered Charity Number 1076483

The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School Nurturing Excellence

Cricket at Habs The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School

Be part of Millfield’s Cricket Programme

Nurturing Excellence

Cricket is hugely popular at Habs and enjoys an enviable reputation both on our local circuit and more widely.

During the summer we regularly field 15 sides, with further teams representing our Prep School, all of which receive expert guidance from our well-qualified coaching staff. Excellent facilities on our 100-acre campus, based just 15 miles from central London, include our Solai Indoor Cricket Centre. These enable boys to practise throughout the year and are constantly in use. Regular tours provide fantastic opportunities to experience the game in other countries, most recently Sri Lanka.

www.habsboys.org.uk

• Tailored development programmes • Four dedicated ECB Level 4/3 coaches • Fully integrated sport science support • Global tours • Year 9 and Sixth Form Sport Scholarships available For more information please call Admissions on 01458 444296 or email admissions@millfieldschool.com

The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School Nurturing Excellence

CHELT ENHAM COLLEGE // CL AY ESMORE SCHOOL

CHELTENHAM COLLEGE Bath Rd Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL53 7LD Established 1841 Notable fixtures Radley College, Rugby School, Winchester, Bradfield, Marlborough, MCC, Clifton College, Sherborne, Haileybury, King’s Taunton, St Edward’s Oxford, Wellington College Cricket professional Mark Briers (Worcestershire & Durham) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16A, U15ABC, U14ABC Girls’ cricket A Girls’ Open XI, plus four girls presently playing in the U14 and U15 boys’ teams. The U15s won the 2015 Indoor Lady Taverners final for Gloucestershire Facilities Five cricket squares plus the dedicated square for the Cheltenham Festival. Double

CLAYESMORE SCHOOL Blandford Road Iwerne Minster Dorset DT11 8LJ Established 1896 Notable fixtures MCC, Canford, Sherborne, Bryanston Cricket professional Dan Conway (Oxford MCCU & Herefordshire) Teams Ten from U14 to U18 Girls’ cricket Officially introduced in 2017, with successful matches against other schools. Girls are also encouraged to join the boys’ teams and attend additional training

sports hall with eight indoor nets.

Four artificial nets and four grass nets. Use of the Cheltenham Prep sports hall with a further four indoor nets Club/county affiliation Gloucestershire. Current captain Josh Dell is in Worcestershire’s academy Cricketer of note Percy Jeeves (Warwickshire), Mike Cawdron and Dom Hewson (both Gloucestershire) Brief history Gloucestershire have been playing at Cheltenham College for more than 140 years, making this the world’s longest-running cricket festival on an outground. WG Grace took 12 for 73 at the college for Gloucestershire v Surrey in 1872, then in 1877 he took 17 for 89 against Notts and promptly followed this up with the first-ever first-class triple-hundred, 318 not out. In 1928 against Surrey, Walter Hammond set a world record that

still stands, taking 10 catches in an match by a fielder, then scored a century in each innings Finest moment on the field The 1st XI were unbeaten against schools during 2012, winning 12 games in succession

opportunities in summer term Facilities Four indoor nets, five grass nets, three artificial nets, three grass squares. Further facilities are at the adjacent prep school Club/county affiliation Dorset and Hampshire Brief history Clayesmore School was founded by Alexander Devine, a Greek-Irish Mancunian, in 1896 in Middlesex and, after spells at Pangbourne and Winchester, it moved to Iwerne Minster in 1933.

In 1974 the school became fully co-educational Cricketers of note JWA Stephenson (Essex & Worcs),

Lewis McManus (Hampshire) Extras Recent coaches have gone on to higher coaching honours.

Paul Warren now works as an analyst for New Zealand, and Tom Flowers is assistant coach of the England Learning Disability team.

Clayesmore aim to try to support local club cricket at grassroots level wherever possible: Conway and other staff have spent the last year coaching at the local village club, Shroton CC, to reinvigorate their junior section. The recent success of alumni at professional and minor county levels are something that we are particularly proud of. The main school building is the scene of

Cultural cricketers Ulster and Scotland rugby player Simon Danielli and Nick Abendanon (of Bath, Clermont Auvergne and England), both played cricket for the college

Dan Conway Head of boys’ games

the chandelier smash in Only Fools and Horses Finest moment on the field A last-ball victory with a boundary hit to defeat local rivals Dauntsey’s in a nail-biting fixture around 2000 Cultural cricketers Gloucester, Leicester and England centre Anthony Allen, America’s Cup winner Shannon Falcone and legendary artist Tony Hart

thecricketer.com | 19

TOP 100 SCHOOLS CLIFTON COLLEGE Guthrie Road Clifton Bristol BS8 3EZ Established 1862 Number of pupils 1,200 Notable fixtures Sherborne, Marlborough, King’s Taunton, Bromsgrove, Cheltenham, Malvern, MCC Cricket professionals Jim Williams (Glamorgan), James Averis, Reg Williams (both Gloucestershire), Paul Romaines (Gloucs & Durham) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13ABCD, U12ABCD Girls’ cricket This is developing from U8 teams in the pre prep

20 | thecricketer.com

CLIF T ON COLLEGE

and prep school through to U15 in the senior school. There is the intention to take this further to a senior XI in future Facilities Ten-lane outdoor cricket school (including two bowlingmachine lanes), six cricket grounds and four indoor nets Club/county affiliation Gloucestershire and Somerset Brief history “There’s a breathless hush in the Close to-night. Ten to make and the match to win.

A bumping pitch and a blinding light. An hour to play, and the last man in. And it’s not for the sake of a ribboned coat. Or the selfish hope of a season’s fame, But his captain’s hand on his shoulder smote. ‘Play up! Play up! And play the game!’” – Vitaï Lampada by Henry Newbolt, 1892. Newbolt

wrote these lines about cricket on Clifton’s Close, and the sense of duty that could be taken to war, making The Close famous throughout the cricketing world.

Seven years after Newbolt wrote the poem, 13-year-old AEJ Collins scored 628 not out in a match for Clarke’s House against North Town House, at a pitch on Guthrie Road, now named Collins Piece. Collins pursued a career in the army but died at Ypres in November 1914.

Until Pranav Dhanawade scored 1,009 not out for KC Gandhi High School in Mumbai in January 2016, Collins’ score was the highest for an individual in all cricket Cricketers of note Matt Windows, Will Rudge (both Gloucs), Jim Williams (Glamorgan), James Kirtley (Sussex & England)

John Bobby Director of Cricket Best prospect Prem Sisodiya, who is on Glamorgan’s books Extras The school has a great coaching structure, including help from Tim Hancock, Gloucestershire head of talent pathway Finest moment on the field A seven-wicket win over Tonbridge School on the Nursery Ground at Lord’s in 2014. The fixture commemorated 100 years of the Clifton v Tonbridge fixture and to recall those who played in the fixture and died in the Great War Cultural cricketers John Cleese

CRANLEIGH SCHOOL // CULFORD SCHOOL

CRANLEIGH SCHOOL Horseshoe Lane Cranleigh Surrey GU6 8QQ Established 1865 Notable fixtures MCC, Wellington College, Tonbridge, Harrow, Charterhouse Director of cricket Stuart Welch Teams Five senior sides, three U15, three U14 Girls’ cricket U18, U15, U14 Facilities Dedicated two-lane indoor school, 20 outdoor nets, five squares including a six-bay net area with fully synthetic run-ups Club/county affiliation Surrey Brief history 2016 marked the 150th anniversary of Cranleigh’s first fixture, against Hurstpierpoint in June 1866. In 2017 six Old Cranleighans played first-class cricket (Stuart Meaker and Ollie Pope for Surrey, Michael Burgess for Sussex and three for MCC universities). Five of the six have left Cranleigh within the last five years

Cricketers of note Seren Waters (Kenya), Meaker (Surrey) Extras Harry Calder was one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1916 – when county cricket was in abeyance due to the First World War – and remains the

CULFORD SCHOOL Bury St Edmunds Suffolk IP28 6TX Established 1935 Number of pupils 678 Notable fixtures MCC, Gentlemen of Suffolk, Old Culfordians Cricket professional Andy Northcote (Western Province & Italy)

only person to be given the award and not play first-class cricket.

He was a spin bowler for Cranleigh 1st XI for five years, captaining them for three Finest moment on the field In 2014 Cranleigh won both The Cricketer

Teams For boys, 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14, U13ABC, U11ABC, U9AB Girls’ cricket Teams at 1st XI, U15, U14, U13AB, U11AB, U9AB. Culford introduced girls’ cricket in 2016 as a training model only, and in 2017 unveiled nine teams across the school. It has proven a lifeline for summer sport Facilities Four pitches (one with a backdrop to an iron bridge dating to 1803, and the Old Hall of 1429), a bay of eight grass nets, indoor sports hall with four lanes and a Merlyn bowling machine Club/county affiliation Suffolk

Cup and the school won the National Under-15 Cup, the first school in Surrey to do so. In 2016 the 1st XI broke the school record of 17 wins in a season and made T20 national finals day

Brief history Dr John Skinner, head of the East Anglian School for Boys in Bury St Edmunds. bought Culford Hall and 480 acres of parkland for £21,500 from the 7th Earl Cadogan Cricketers of note Josh Davey (Middlesex, Somerset & Scotland) Best prospect Alex Oxley just made his first senior minor counties appearance at 16. Lottie Kent has broken into the Essex women’s squad at 17 Cultural cricketers BBC football commentator John Motson played at the school

thecricketer.com | 21

TOP 100 SCHOOLS

DAUN T SE Y ’S SCHOOL // DENS T ONE COLLEGE

Facilities Four indoor nets, four grass nets, five caged astro nets, four grass squares, one artificial pitch, electronic scoreboard recently installed Club/county affiliation Wiltshire

Brief history Dauntsey’s is a leading co-educational independent boarding and day school for 11 to 18-year-olds, located on the northern edge of Salisbury Plain set in an estate of over 100 acres of

idyllic countryside. In 1930 it was made a public school and the name officially changed to Dauntsey’s School. Girls were admitted in 1971.

It is now a school of more than 800 pupils, and is supported by the Worshipful Company of Mercers Best prospect Jack Grant Extras Dauntsey’s are host to the MCC Foundation mid-Wiltshire hub, regularly host county age-group matches and training sessions and recently hosted a regional women’s T20 competition for the ECB. Dauntsey’s have defeated MCC in each of the last four years Cultural cricketers Desmond Morris (zoologist and author of The Naked Ape), Rev W Awdry (creator of Thomas the Tank Engine), Simon May (composer), Mohamed Nasheed (former president of the Maldives)

have an under-14 hardball team in summer Facilities Four cricket squares, three indoor nets, six outdoor allweather nets and six grass nets Club/county affiliation Staffordshire and Derbyshire Brief history Cricket is open to boys and girls in all years and the college is capable of running 11 teams on a Saturday (plus two girls’ teams in the winter), and play all the leading cricketing schools in the midlands. The 1st XI pitch, positioned in the centre

of the school and right beside the chapel, has helped maintain the popularity and success of the game at Denstone and it is the envy of visiting schools Cricketers of note Denstone has produced 29 first-class players, most recently Aneesh Kapil (Worcestershire & Surrey), Harvey Hosein and Greg Cork (both Derbyshire) and Jeremy Snape (Derbyshire, Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire & England) Extras All Staffs boys and girls age groups play at Denstone up to U15

level, and the school hosts the ECB Super Fours Midlands trials as well as Midland U15 matches Finest moment on the field In 2011 the U15 XI reached the final of the Lord’s Taverners U15 national 40-over tournament, and in 2012 went one better, beating Tonbridge in the final Cultural cricketers Alastair Hignell played full-back for England and first-class cricket for Gloucestershire and Cambridge University. Arthur Berry played football for England

DAUNTSEY’S SCHOOL High Street West Lavington Devizes Wiltshire SN10 4HE Established 1542 Number of pupils 833 Notable fixtures MCC, Winchester, Clifton, Sherborne, Canford, XL Club, Wiltshire Queries Cricket professional Jon Ayling (Hampshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket A girls’ club runs through the winter and there is a programme of girls fixtures in the summer. Some also play in boys’ teams, at senior and junior levels

DENSTONE COLLEGE Uttoxeter Staffordshire ST14 5HN Established 1868 Notable fixtures Worksop, MCC, Trent, St Edward’s Oxford, Rugby Director of cricket Simon Guy (Yorkshire) Teams 13 Girls’ cricket Denstone enters the Lady Taverners competition at under-15 and under-13 level and

22 | thecricketer.com

DR CHALLONER’S GRAMMAR SCHOOL // DULWICH COLLEGE

DR CHALLONER’S GRAMMAR SCHOOL Chesham Road Amersham Buckinghamshire HP6 5HA Established 1624 Number of pupils 1,250 Notable fixtures MCC, Eton Director of sport John Deadman Teams 14 in total. 1st XI, 2nd XI, U12–U15 in all years Facilities Indoor sports hall with

DULWICH COLLEGE Dulwich Common London SE21 7LD Established 1619 Notable fixtures MCC, Tonbridge, Harrow, Bedford, Incogniti (125 years standing) Cricket professional Bill Athey (Yorkshire, Gloucestershire, Sussex & England) Teams 45 from year 3 to 13 Facilities Twenty-four astroturf nets, 11 grass squares, main site and Trevor Bailey Sports Ground, eight indoor nets Club/county affiliation Surrey, Spencer CC, Dulwich CC, Old Alleynian CC Brief history Cricket has been

four lanes. One grass square Club/county affiliation Bucks Brief history Cricket has flourished at Challoner’s over the last 10 to 15 years. Major improvements, courtesy of enthusiastic support from the headmaster, have included a new pavilion and relaid square, which have contributed to making cricket the flagship sport of the school. The junior teams often win the Bucks County Cup and have also had good success in the U13 and U15 national competitions.

The passion for cricket comes from the committed Sport and PE team and a number of club cricketers on the staff. The school has regular tours to the Caribbean, generally St Kitts & Nevis, and to India in 2016. Lacking the level of investment of most independent schools, Dr Challoner’s compete very positively against the top schools in the area. The number of cricketers who carry on playing for their local club sides in the years after leaving school, and who play representative junior cricket for

Bucks, is a hugely positive aspect Cricketers of note Although there are no current professional cricketers who went to Dr Challoner’s, a recent pupil, Ali Birkby, was in the England Under-16 squad. Matthew Watson, whose uncle Roger played for Lancashire, has played first-class cricket for Bucks and Oxford UCCE Best prospect Dominic Goodman Finest moment on the field ESCA semi-final appearances at U13 and U15 level

played at the college for more than 140 years. PG Wodehouse said the game was one of the major strengths there in his day. Boys have the opportunity to represent the College for one of 45 sides, from the U8s up to the 1st XI and there is also a Common Room team Cricketers of note Nine Old Alleynians have been capped for their country and four have been named Wisden Cricketers of the Year, the most famous being Trevor Bailey, ‘the Barnacle’.

Roger Knight (Surrey), the former MCC president, is an OA and a former assistant master. Several Barbadians have arrived and thrived on sports scholarships, including Anthony Alleyne (Combined Campuses & Colleges), Ruel Brathwaite (Durham &

Hampshire), and Chris Jordan (Surrey, Sussex & England) Extras There is a rumour that the

nickname for deep midwicket, ‘cow corner’, originated at Dulwich College

thecricketer.com | 23

‘One of the top 10 sporting schools in the UK’

School Sports magazine, 2016

It’s more than just a game.

As our Cricket Professional, Jaik Mickleburgh knows, it’s about trust in your team, hours of practice when nobody’s watching and that hard-earned feeling of satisfaction.

Our pupils leave with more than grades.

Exceptional teamwork underpins every sporting activity at Sevenoaks, and our students and alumni compete at regional, national and international levels in many sports.

Co-educational boarding and day, 11-18.

One of the UK’s leading independent schools in Brentwood, Essex for boys and girls aged 3-18

www.brentwoodschool.co.uk

01277 243 314

www.sevenoaksschool.org

Registered charity 1101358

Bede’s Cricket Achievements

1st XI Sussex Champions – 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2017 1st XI South East Regional Champions – 2011, 2012, 2013 1st XI South of England Champions – 2012, 2013 1st XI National Runners Up – 2012, 2013 U15 ESCA National Champions and Sussex Champions 2017 Girls’ U15 Lord’s Taverners National Finalist – 2011 U13, U14 Sussex Champions – 2015, 2016

Bede’s Alumni

Callum Jackson – Sussex CCC and England U19 Ollie Rayner – Sussex CCC, Middlesex CCC, England U19 and England Lions Luke Wells – Sussex CCC, England U19 and England Lions Shai Hope – Barbados and West Indies Fynn Hudson-Prentice – Sussex CCC Delray Rawlins – Sussex CCC and England Young Lions

Coaching Staff

Alan Wells (ECB Level 4) Sussex CCC, Kent CCC and England Neil Lenham (ECB Level 3) Sussex CCC Petch Lenham (ECB Level 3) James Kirtley (ECB Level 3) Sussex CCC and England

Bede’s Senior School Upper Dicker East Sussex BN27 3QH bedes.org

HMC – Day, weekly and full boarding Boys and girls 13 to 18 For more information please contact: richard.mills@bedes.org T 01323 843252

DURHAM SCHOOL

DURHAM SCHOOL Quarryheads Lane Durham DH1 4SZ Established 1414 Notable fixtures Woodhouse Grove, Sedbergh, St Peter’s York, Ampleforth, Bradford Grammar, RGS Newcastle, Barnard Castle, MCC Director of cricket Michael Fishwick (full-time master-incharge). Michael Hirsch, who is part-time, has coached at Durham School for more than 35 years Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14AB,

U13, U12 Girls’ cricket No teams at present but lots of talented girls are in the boys’ teams Facilities Indoor sports hall with four lanes. Main pitch on the playground and a smaller pitch on the bottom. Bow, the junior school, has a lovely little pitch of its own Club/county affiliation Durham and Durham City CC Brief history Durham School has had a cricket team from at least 1847, but regular matches with other schools did not start until 1866 with the annual game against St Peter’s York. Other annual matches followed: Sedbergh

in 1908; Ampleforth in 1915; Giggleswick in 1933; Barnard Castle in 1937 and St Bees in 1938. The school currently has 17 boys from under-12 to under-17 representing Durham age groups Cricketers of note Mike Roseberry (Middlesex & Durham), Andrew Roseberry (Leicestershire & Glamorgan), Phil Weston (Worcestershire, Gloucestershire & Derbyshire), Robin Weston (Durham, Derbyshire & Middlesex), Gordon Muchall (Durham), Paul Muchall (Gloucestershire), Fraser Watts (Scotland) Extras TF Dodd, who attended

the school from 1846–54, wrote: “Cricket was much the same as now, except that bowling above the level of the shoulder was not allowed. We had not the tremendous scores you now have.”

Finest moment on the field Beating Millfield by six wickets in 1992 – their first loss in 17 years Cultural cricketers Mike Weston, former centre for the British Lions, was England national selector and manager, taking charge of the England side in the first Rugby World Cup in 1987. He also played for Durham at cricket when they were still playing in the Minor Counties Championship thecricketer.com | 25

TOP 100 SCHOOLS

EASTBOURNE COLLEGE Old Wish Road Eastbourne East Sussex BN21 4JY Established 1867 Number of pupils 630 Notable fixtures MCC, Sussex Martlets Cricket professionals Andy Waller (Zimbabwe) and Rob Ferley (Kent & Nottinghamshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC Girls’ cricket Girls can play in the

ELLESMERE COLLEGE Ellesmere Shropshire SY12 9AB Established 1879 Number of pupils 550 Notable fixtures MCC, Merchant Taylors’ Crosby, Shrewsbury, Birkenhead, Wrekin College, Shropshire Gentlemen Director of cricket Rod Jones Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U17, U15AB, U14AB, U13, U12, U11AB, U9 Girls’ cricket There were more than 20 fixtures for girls in 2017. Ellesmere enter the Lady Taverners U13 and U15 Cricket competitions, reaching the national final in 2013 as regional champions. The college hosts county fixtures and festivals.

Facilities Three grass squares

26 | thecricketer.com

E AS T BOURNE COLLEGE // ELLESMERE COLLEGE

boys’ team with a girls’ cricket activity running in the summer Facilities Project 150, marking the school’s sesquicentenary, delivered a £33m investment in a world-class indoor five-lane facility, and was opened in April 2017. The College boasts five cricket squares and an eight-lane state-of-the-art allweather practice facility Club/county affiliation Sussex and Eastbourne CC Cricketers of note Ed Giddins (Sussex, Warwickshire, Hampshire & England), Matt Hobden and Harry Finch (both Sussex) Finest moment on the field

Winning the inaugural Arch Trophy in Dubai in 2008, beating Wellington in the final. Also being the first school side to tour Nepal as part of the same tour. Openers Henry Braybrooke and John Kelsey put on an unbroken 403 at the college in 1899 Extras The Memorial Ground has hosted county fixtures and College Field is regarded as an iconic venue, situated right on the south coast. Pupils, staff and members of the public stop to lean over the wall to watch matches. It is quite remarkable that the square has rugby played on it during the

Michaelmas Term. The fixture list is highly competitive and includes the best schools in the south-east as well as a number of clubs. The college also enters the National T20 Cup and the Langdale and Blackshaw T20 competitions. One girl currently represents Sussex Women Cultural cricketers Eddie Izzard

and one artificial, 12 grass nets, six outdoor artificial nets, six indoor lanes Club/county affiliation Shropshire Brief history Ellesmere College was opened in 1884 and dedicated to St Oswald. It was Nathaniel Woodard’s seventh school. At the time of opening he was the subdean of Manchester Cathedral and Canon Woodard’s religious principles were central to the philosophy of his Anglican school’s foundation. By the time he died in 1891 he had founded 11 schools.

Today, the Woodard Foundation educates over 30,000 pupils across academy, independent and state-maintained schools providing high-quality education in an actively Christian school environment for all Cricketers of note Dewi Penrhyn-

Jones (Glamorgan). At present Ellesmere have two players involved with Leeds/Bradford and Cambridge MCCU, with one playing for Northants 2nd XI Best prospect Connor Davies played for Wales Minor Counties at Abergavenny, aged just 16

Extras The school has been ranked 40th out of 2,600 independents schools for sport, and is the leading school in Shropshire. The southwestern side of the school, with its gothic façade, looks out over a quadrangle, terraces and playing fields towards the hills of Wales.

Rob Ferley Director of cricket

EMANUEL SCHOOL // EPSOM COLLEGE

EMANUEL SCHOOL Battersea Rise London SW11 1HS Established 1594 Number of pupils 870 Notable fixtures MCC, Ignatius Park Queensland, City of London Freemen’s, Tiffin Director of cricket Mark Stear (Berkshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13 & U12 ABCD Girls’ cricket Teams at U15A&B, U14A&B, U13A-C, U12A-C. Every girl in years 7 and 8 is playing cricket, with the following sides playing regular fixtures and entering Surrey cup competitions: U15AB, U14AB, U13ABC, U12ABC Facilities Two sites: the main school houses the main square – minutes away from Clapham Junction – and a junior square. The school also has access to the Old Boys’ ground, Blagdon’s. Sports hall includes four indoor nets, three outdoor nets, an artificial surface and one cage Club/county affiliation Surrey, Spencer CC, Bank of England CC, Barmy Army Colts

Staffordshire and Shropshire sides both use the facilities for training in winter and matches in summer. Senior sides have toured La Manga in recent times Finest moment on the field Regional champions and national semi-finalists of the 2015 National U14 ESCA competition, U15 Lady Taverners 2013 National Indoor finals, and reaching the last 16 of the HMC T20 in 2016 Cultural cricketers Bill Beaumont (England rugby), the present Duke of Westminster Gareth Owen Master in charge of cricket

Cricketers of note Stuart Surridge (Surrey), Ian Payne (Surrey & Gloucestershire), Izzy Cannon (England age-group girls) Best prospect Nancy Hughes (1st XI opening batsman and Middlesex women’s player) is said by the school to have a very good chance of making it to the top of the women’s game Brief history The first recorded captain of cricket, J Wheater, was appointed in 1891. The school became a voluntary-aided grammar in 1944 until it resumed independent status at the end of the 1970s. In 1995, Emanuel returned to being a co-educational school Finest moment on the field Emanuel are the current holders of the U14 London Cup Extras The main school site is a beautiful setting next to the site of the Clapham Rail Disaster. The school field is immaculately kept given the use it sees throughout the rugby and cricket seasons and it surprises many visitors as passers-by will only see a set of school gates. Emanuel has hosted a number of high-level games, recently Sri Lankan Unity U19 XI v Trinity Schools’ Select XI,

organised by the Foundation of Goodness, patronised by Sarah Botham Cultural cricketers Surridge is one of four Surrey presidents who went to Emanuel. Sir Tim Berners-Lee, founder of the world wide web, played for the school. Hero Fiennes-Tiffin played 11-year-old Tom Riddle, the young version of the antagonist Lord Voldemort, in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, but more notably represented Emanuel U13As in 2009. His Royal Highness Abdul-

Hakeem (nephew of the Sultan of Brunei), Tom Smith (Scotland and British Lions), played U12/13. Dr Iqbal Malik (heart surgeon) played 2nd XI in 1984. Will Seracold and Dom Tripp (England touch rugby), Stuart Hinton (snooker player) also played at various levels

Extras Before coming to Epsom, Sciver was born in Tokyo. Dubaibased academy team G Force spend three weeks at the school during the summer break. The 20 college coaches are supported by the expertise of Matt Holmes,

director of the In-Touch Cricket Academy, based at the college.

College teams have recently toured Dubai and Barbados. The college sides also have strong links with the Old Epsomians, with a match played every year on Founders’ Day

Tom Gwynne Director of cricket

EPSOM COLLEGE College Road Epsom KT17 4JQ Established 1855 Notable fixtures MCC, XL Club, Eastbourne, Hurstpierpoint Cricket professional Neil Taylor (Kent, Sussex & England A) Teams Eight teams from seniors to U15 and U14. Lower school opening in September 2016 which will organise U12 and U13 fixtures Girls’ cricket One team Facilities Outstanding facilities include three grass wickets and an all-weather pitch. Practice facilities included grass wickets, 10 astro nets and the use of a five-lane indoor school Club/county affiliation Surrey, Banstead CC and Ashtead CC Cricketers of note Nat Sciver (England Women)

thecricketer.com | 27

TOP 100 SCHOOLS

ETON COLLEGE Windsor Berkshire SL4 6DW Established 1444 Notable fixtures Millfield, MCC, I Zingari, Harrow (at Lord’s), Cowdrey Cup (Radley,

FELSTED SCHOOL Felsted Dunmow Essex CM6 3LL 28 | thecricketer.com

E T ON COLLEGE // FELS T ED SCHOOL

Tonbridge, Charterhouse, Wellington, Harrow), Silk Trophy (Shrewsbury, Oundle and one overseas side). The 1st XI have also played overseas teams St Peter’s Adelaide, Prince Alfred Adelaide, Melbourne Grammar, Scotch College Melbourne, Maritzburg, St Kentigerns, Christ College Canterbury. Recent opponents

Established 1564 Notable fixtures MCC, Oakham, Oundle, Bedford Cricket professional Jason Gallian (Essex, Nottinghamshire & England)

for junior sides include Bethnal Green Academy, Refugee Council Afghans, Brighton College Women, England Women Development XI, MCC Slough hub Cricket professional Tim Roberts (Lancashire & Northamptonshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, 6th XI, U16ABCD, U15ABCDEF, U14ABCDEFG Facilities Three indoors nets and two grass net areas, 16 40m long x 4m high artificial nets, 12 grass pitches and five synthetic-grass pitches Brief history The school has produced more than 750 first-class cricketers. 1706 saw the first written record of a game of cricket at Eton College – in the poem Certamen Pilae, by William Godwin, master of Bristol Grammar. August 2 1805 witnessed Eton v Harrow at Lord’s (Eton won by the comprehensive margin of an innings and two runs). In 1882/83, The Hon Ivo Bligh, CT Studd and GB Studd toured Australia with England.

Bligh received the ashes of a bail. In

1897, BJT Bosanquet is said to have invented the googly. 1899 saw Lord Hawke captain England v South Africa. Gubby Allen represented England in Australia in 1932/33 and refused to bowl Bodyline. In 1961 Colin Ingleby-Mackenzie captained Hampshire to the Championship. Old boy Matthew Fleming represent England in 11 one-day internationals, and is the outgoing president of MCC. Will Vanderspar was Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year 2010. In 2014, John Rice retired after 30 years as cricket professional Recent cricketers of note Alex Loudon (Warwickshire), James Bruce (Hampshire) Extras Competitive inter-school sport is said to have started with cricket matches between the trio of Eton, Winchester and Westminster. As well as in excess of 500 school fixtures, Eton also runs a programme of 500-plus house matches with more than 40 schoolmasters involved, taking teams at all levels

Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U17, U15ABC, U14ABCD Girls’ cricket 1st XI and 2nd XI. An inspirational school and MCC hub for girls’ cricket. Hosts two Essex women’s matches a season

Facilities Five squares at the senior school, one indoor school, 10 artificial net lanes Club/county affiliation Essex Brief history The first cricket field was established in 1805 Cricketers of note Nick Knight (Essex, Warwickshire & England, above), Derek Pringle, John Stephenson and JWHT Douglas (Essex & England), Tim Phillips and Elliot Wilson (Essex) Extras Will be hosting a future edition of the Bunbury Festival, the prestigious regional festival for the best under-15 cricketers in the country, organised by David English Finest moment on the field T20 National Champions 2004, 2005

FE T T ES COLLEGE // FRAMLINGHAM COLLEGE

FETTES COLLEGE Carrington Road Edinburgh EH4 1QX Established 1870 Notable fixtures MCC, Merchiston Castle, Loretto, Strathallan, Glenalmond Director of cricket Bruce Russell Teams Seven in the senior college, three senior XIs, Colts AB, Junior Colts AB Girls’ cricket Offered in the prep and as an activity in senior college Facilities Four grass squares (with training cages on two), four indoor lanes, three outdoor artificial nets Club/county affiliation Grange CC, East of Scotland & Scotland Brief history Malcolm Jardine, an Oxford Blue and father of Douglas,

FRAMLINGHAM COLLEGE College Road Framlingham Suffolk IP13 9EY Established 1865 Notable fixtures MCC, XL Club, Gentlemen of Suffolk, Gentlemen of Essex, Essex Girls’ Development XI Cricket professional Johann

a future England captain, and KG MacLeod, described by Wisden as Scotland’s greatest all-round athlete, were the school’s finest cricketers. The school’s golden period came during the 1950s with cricketers of the calibre of JG Cumming, Richard Bowman and Donald Steel. After a slump in fortune during the 1980s and early 90s, Fettes cricket has revived led by Neil Millar and Scott MacLennan, both of whom won Oxford Blues, and latterly the Edwards brothers (Henry and William) who played for Scotland in Under-19 World Cups. The 1st XI has won the National HMC Schools T20 three times in last four years (2014, 2016 and 2017). Only one 1st XI match against a Scottish school has been lost (with 19 wins) during the last two summers

Extras The last director of cricket, Jack van Geloven was the last man to do the old double of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets in county

cricket. The beautiful and superbly maintained 1st XI ground and Yeo pavilion are a strong feature Cultural cricketers Tony Blair

Myburgh (Hampshire, Durham & Somerset) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC. Twelve boys’ teams from U19 to U13 Girls’ cricket 1st XI, U15, U14. Eight girls’ teams from U9 to U13 Facilities Three indoor nets, eight grass nets, four astroturf nets and four pitches Club/county affiliation Links with Essex, Northamptonshire and Somerset Brief history The cricket culture

has probably never been in such good health at the college Cricketers of note Herbert Wilson (Sussex), Norman Borrett (Essex), David Larter (Northamptonshire & England), Ashley Cowan (Essex), Rob Newton (Northants) Extras Headmaster Paul Taylor used to play for Surrey. Cowan broke the then-headmaster’s thumb in a match against the Masters’ XI in 1993. The Quilibets (consisting of staff and students, Old Boys and other friends of the

school) holds a week-long festival at Framlingham at the end of term against various nomadic teams Finest moment on the field Newton becoming the first schoolboy to register a doublehundred, against MCC in 2007 Cultural cricketers Jim Paice, former Conservative minister for agriculture and food, Ed Sheeran, Charlie Simpson from Busted and Fightstar, soprano Laura Wright and Keito Okamota from Hey! Say! JUMP

thecricketer.com | 29

TOP 100 SCHOOLS HAILEYBURY London Road Hertford SG13 7NU Established 1862 Number of pupils 810 Notable fixtures MCC, twoday games against Cheltenham, biennial touring games against Haileybury, Melbourne Director of sport Andy Searson Cricket professional Daan van Bunge (Middlesex & Holland), Geoff Howarth (Surrey & New Zealand) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15 AB, U14 ABC, U13 ABCD Girls’ cricket There is a girls’ open 1st XI, containing players from all age groups Facilities 15 nets, including three indoor nets, five grounds, PV1 – Hawkeye, Merlyn bowling machine Club/county affiliations Hertfordshire, with club links to Hertford CC, Hoddesdon CC, Broxbourne CC, St Margaretsbury

30 | thecricketer.com

HAILE Y BURY

CC, Harlow CC Brief history The game between Haileybury and Cheltenham began in 1893 and was played at Lord’s every year until 1968. The annual match continues today in 2-day format between the sides. 1983 saw the Haileybury Hermits play in the Cricketer Cup final under the captaincy of NJC Gandon. All the history is held in a fact-filled book entitled Haileybury Cricket written by David Rimmer, which maps Haileybury cricket from the beginning, including team lists and photos. The book is held in the historic pavilion, a listed building, designed by Reginald Bloomfield.

Haileybury’s professionals have included Graham Barlow, Peter Ellis, Jeremy Lloyds and more recently, Howarth, Nic Pothas, Mike Cawdron and van Bunge.

There have been 91 first-class cricketers, Sam Billings being the latest, and many other cricketing enthusiasts to emanate from Haileybury and be successful in areas other than sport, Clement

Attlee would be a prime example.

Sir Don Bradman famously visited the pavilion and bequeathed his Baggy Green, which lay in the Long Room for many years, and which Haileybury has now loaned to the Cricket Australia museum Cricketers of note Billings (Kent & England) is the latest to hit the headlines for England’s ODI teams, and there have been 91 first-class cricketers from Haileybury’s stable, including RJO Meyer (future founder of Millfield), AJT Miller and RGP Ellis to name but a few.

Maharajkumar of Vizianagram, OH, went on to captain India in their tour of England in the early 1900s Best prospects Harry Seagrave (Year 7) scored 316 runs in five games before half-term in 2017, including two unbeaten hundreds and two fifties, at an average of 120.3 and a strike rate of 194.09 Extras The school now runs a sporting exchange with Knox Grammar School, Sydney (alma mater of Michael Slater) whereby one of their young cricketers

come to Haileybury for an English summer and in return one of Haileybury’s young rugby players heads down under for the Australian Rugby season during July and August Finest moment on the field The 2015 season may have seen the finest hour, at least when batting second, as Haileybury chased down 308 to beat Stamford in May 2016 with a fifty from Ben Morris, followed by unbeaten hundreds from Freddie Walker (127*) and Ollie Heazel (104*). The old boys made the Cricketer Cup final in 1983 against Repton Pilgrims Cultural cricketers Jamie George, the Saracens, England & British & Irish Lions rugby player, scored 96 not out against Dulwich College in 2006. Clement Attlee enjoyed his cricket at Haileybury when a pupil at the turn of the 20th century, and famously sent a hand-written note to Jim Callaghan using the analogy: “You’re not playing for the 2nd XI now!” when appointing him to the cabinet for the first time

HAMP T ON SCHOOL // HARROW SCHOOL

HAMPTON SCHOOL Hanworth Road Hampton TW12 3HD Established 1556 Notable fixtures MCC, Eton,

quality of cricket coaching at Hampton is outstanding, with former first-class cricketers and ECB level 3 coaches Ami Banerjee (represented Bengal, India & Guernsey) and Chris Harrison Cricketers of note Zafar Ansari (England & Surrey), Toby RolandJones (England & Middlesex)

Harrow, Dulwich, Whitgift Cricket professional Chris Harrison Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABCD, U13ABC, U12ABC Facilities Five indoor nets, six cricket pitches and one astro

Club/county affiliation Middlesex Brief history Hampton School has excellent cricket facilities and is proud of its cricketing tradition. Hampton regularly fields 15 teams across all age groups and also has a flourishing coaching programme to enable boys of all abilities to play. Every two years the U15s and 1st XI tour abroad and recent destinations have included the UAE and Sri Lanka (2016) and India (2014). The school’s current fixture list is busy and strong in the summer term. The 1st XI have a strong and competitive fixtures and compete in the local 50/40 league and in the National Twenty20 Cup. The junior teams compete in the Middlesex and Surrey Cup. A key part of the highly successful cricket programme at Hampton is Hampton’s Cricket Academy and one-to-one coaching, available to all school cricketers throughout the year. The

he talked a good game. The match in 1914 was attended by more than 38,000 over two days. Even in 2008, it attracted a larger crowd than any of Middlesex’s first-class matches Cricketers of note Monkey Hornby, Archie MacLaren (both Lancs & England), Robin Marlar

(Sussex), Tony Pigott (Sussex & Surrey), Rob White (Northants), Gary Ballance (Derbyshire, Yorkshire & England), Sam Northeast (Kent), Nick Compton (Middlesex, Somerset & England) Extras Eton v Harrow is the oldest schools’ fixture at Lord’s

Cultural cricketers Sir Stanley Jackson (England Test player and Conservative Party chairman), Earl Alexander of Tunis was secretary of MCC, playwright Terrence Rattigan scored 29 against Eton in 1929.

Racehorse trainer William Haggas skippered in 1979

HARROW SCHOOL 5 High Street Harrow on the Hill Middlesex HA1 3HP Established 1615 Notable fixtures Eton (at Lord’s), MCC, Wellington, Tonbridge, Radley, Charterhouse, Cowdrey Cup Cricket professional Stephen Jones (Western Province) Teams Four senior teams, U16ABC, U15ABCDE, U14ABCDEF Facilities A two-lane purpose-built indoor school with Pitchvision, eight artificial and four grass outdoor nets. Nine squares all served by excellent pavilions Club/county affiliation Middlesex Brief history Cricket has long played a major part in the life of Harrow. From 1850 to 1939 this was largely due to the social significance of the Eton match at Lord’s which, along with Henley Regatta, sailing at Cowes and racing at Ascot became part of ‘the London Season’. The first recorded match in 1805 gained some publicity from the presence in the Harrow team of the poet, George Byron. Byron was no cricketer, indeed he had a club foot and batted with a runner, but

thecricketer.com | 31

Cricketing careers at Co-ed boarding and day from 7-18 years

Junior and Senior School Cricket Scholarships

Hosts of the Bunbury Festival 2017

TOP 100

SCHOOLS CRICKET

A-Z GUIDE 2017

Ellesmere College has a long and proud tradition stretching back to 1884 and sport has always been a key part of its offering.

With girls and boys teams, of all age groups, and a robust fixture programme. Ellesmere College offers young cricketers the perfect location for academic and sporting excellence.

Tel: 01691 622321 • www.ellesmere.com Ellesmere College, Ellesmere, Shropshire, SY12 9AB

Ben Duckett Northants & England T20 Blast Winner 2013 & 2016

Graeme White Northants & England Lions T20 Blast Winner 2013 & 2016

Why not come and see what Stowe has to offer at one of our Open Mornings. Sports Scholarships are available for 13+ and 16+ Entry. e | admissions@stowe.co.uk t | 01280 818205 w | www.stowe.co.uk

The King’s School in Macclesfield

Independent education for 3 to 18 year olds

• • • • •

Rated ‘excellent’ in all aspects in ISI inspection Inspirational teaching from Pre-School to Sixth Form One of the top performing independent schools in 2017 2016 A huge range of extra-curricular activities Bursaries and Scholarships available

Emanuel has a long history of sport for both boys and girls. If you would like to know more, we would love to hear from you. Come and see the school on one of our informal Wednesday Morning Tours (please phone to book), or our next Open Evening on Tuesday 1st May 2018, 6-8pm. Sports scholarships are available for exceptional cricketers.

Please contact us on 020 8870 4171 Email: enquiries@emanuel.org.uk www.emanuel.org.uk

The King’s School in Macclesfield - 01625 260000

HURS T PIERPOIN T COLLEGE // K IMBOLT ON SCHOOL

HURSTPIERPOINT COLLEGE College Lane Hurstpierpoint Hassocks Sussex BN6 9JS Established 1849 Number of pupils 780 Notable fixtures MCC, Whitgift, Wellington Cricket professionals Phil Hudson and Jimmy Anyon (Sussex) Teams 10–11 senior teams, 8–10 prep teams Girls’ cricket Girls can choose cricket as a summer sport and the school runs two senior and four junior teams

KIMBOLTON SCHOOL High Street Kimbolton Huntingdonshire PE28 0EA Established 1600 Number of pupils 670 Notable fixtures MCC, XL Club and a wide range of school sides including Oundle. The 1st XI also

Facilities Eight grass pitches, 10 grass nets, five artificial nets, sixlane indoor sports hall Club/county affiliation Sussex Brief history Although the school was founded in 1849 and it is clear that cricket was played not only when the school was at Shoreham but also at the Mansion House, there are no written records until the appearance of the Hurst Johnian magazine in 1858. In recent years the school has had success, winning the Woodard Schools Festival Cricketers of note George Garton (Sussex) Justin Bates (Sussex), Martin Speight (Durham & Sussex) Best prospect Tom Haines made his first-class debut for Sussex in 2017 as an upper-sixth former

features in an annual festival with Monmouth, Victoria College Jersey and New Hall Director of sport Matthew Gilbert Cricket professional Alex Tudor (Surrey, Essex & England) Teams Nine, but 10 in 2018 Girls’ cricket In its infancy, with a club offered to girls in the lower school. A developmental area that is gaining frequent attention and increasing popularity among pupils.

Extras The school believe they have one of the longest squares in the world

Finest moment on the field Won the National Schools T20 Competition in 2015

There have been two girls’ cricket fixtures to date Facilities Four indoor nets, six outdoor, two covered grass squares with pavilions, three artificial strips Club/county affiliation Huntingdonshire, Kimbolton CC Brief history Kimbolton has a long and proud tradition of cricket. In the early part of the 20th century, regular matches were played against University of Cambridge

colleges – it was a good standard for the boys, and the undergraduates enjoyed a day in the bucolic countryside. The appointment of Jack Hobbs in the 1930s as cricket professional had a profound impact on Kimbolton cricket. Mr Hobbs scored his final century in the Staff v Pupils match in the late 1940s.

More recently, Charlotte Edwards spent one summer as professional Cricketers of note Tom Huggins (Northamptonshire) Best prospect Joshua J Smith (17 years old) is a tremendous talent.

As a gifted batsman, off-spinner and athletic fielder, he is the fulcrum of a competitive 1st XI. His top score is 140 versus King’s Ely Extras With a backdrop of Kimbolton Castle and beautiful countryside, the 1st XI square makes for one of the most attractive venues in the country Finest moment on the field The most recent additions being three centuries and five 5 wickets for 18-year-old fast bowler David Adesida (6-5-1-5). A last-ball, onewicket win versus MCC XI in 2011 still features regularly as a talking point among Old Kimboltonians and common room staff Cultural cricketers Hobbs was joined in the staff team of the 1930s

by Tom Parker (Arsenal & England captain) and Harold Abrahams, the hero of Chariots of Fire thecricketer.com | 33

Top 100 Schools KING EDWARD’S SCHOOL, BIRMINGHAM Edgbaston Park Road Birmingham B15 2UA Established 1552 Number of pupils 825 Notable fixtures MCC, Malvern, Repton, Bromsgrove, Scotch College Melbourne. Three schools from Adelaide on a three-year cycle (Westminster, Prince Alfred, St Peter’s) Cricket professional Nathan Round (Worcestershire) Teams 11 Facilities Two grounds: 1st XI ground with four-lane artificial nets and standard grass nets;

KING’S COLLEGE, TAUNTON South Road Taunton Somerset TA1 3LA Established 1879 Notable fixtures MCC, Whitgift, Eton, Millfield, Cardiff MCCU, Exeter University Cricket professionals Rob Woodman (Somerset & Gloucestershire), Ben Phillips (Kent, Northants, Nottinghamshire & Somerset), Dennis Breakwell (Northants & Somerset) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, development XI and five junior teams Girls’ cricket 1st XI, U15. Runnersup in regional indoor Lady Taverners’ league, and beat Millfield Facilities A new cricket centre is due to be ready for this winter. Six squares all in close proximity, six grass nets and eight artificial strips, four indoor nets, four bowling machines and three pavilions Club/county affiliation Mostly Somerset, but also Warwickshire and Glamorgan Cricketers of note Jos Buttler (Somerset, Lancashire & England), Roger Twose (Warwickshire & New Zealand), Richard Harden (Somerset), Nicholas Boulton (Somerset & Worcestershire), 34 | thecricketer.com

K ING EDWARD’S SCHOOL, BIRMINGHAM // K ING’S COLLEGE, TAUN T ON

second site with three grass wickets and three-lane artificial nets. Four-lane indoor cricket nets Club/county affiliation Warwickshire Brief history KES has had a cricket XI since 1863, when eight matches were played. Since the late 1870s 1st XI matches have been played at Eastern Road, which is still the 1st XI square. In 2001 the school toured Australia and in 2010 and 2013 the West Indies. In 2016, the U15A and Bs toured Dubai Cricketers of note AC Smith, Ossie Wheatley, John Claughton, Vikram Banerjee, Mark Wagh, Anurag Singh Best prospect Vidhan Iyer Finest moment on the field Winning the XL Club Trophy in

2015 and finishing National U13 runners-up Cultural cricketers Theatre critic

Kenneth Tynan, naturalist and former Goodie Bill Oddie, author JRR Tolkein

Tom Webley (Somerset), Phil Lewis (Somerset), Craig Meschede (Somerset & Glamorgan), Alex Barrow (Somerset), Charlie Morris (Worcestershire), James Regan (Somerset), Neil Brand (Glamorgan), James Turpin (Cardiff MCCU) Finest moment on the field Last season the 1st XI took on a strong PCA Masters (all ex-England) and gave them a good run in front of thousands of spectators

Extras King’s believe they have the best results and production line of professional cricketers of any school in the country in terms of its size (around 450 pupils). King’s have beaten local rivals Millfield.

They have also just beaten Exeter University for the first time. The West Country schools circuit is one of the strongest and King’s tend to be up there each year. The school offers one-to-one work, group sessions, a strength and

conditioning coach, indoor cricket competitions and regular tours, including pre-season training camps to La Manga. The school also runs a cricket exchange programme for talented cricketers to play in South Africa. The school then receives an exchange pupil in return who plays development games for King’s and for a local club side. Breakwell has been professional or head groundsman for more than 30 years

K ING’S COLLEGE SCHOOL // L ANCAS T ER ROYAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL

KING’S COLLEGE SCHOOL Southside Wimbledon Common Wimbledon London SW19 4TT Established 1829 Number of pupils 1,360 Notable fixtures MCC, Dulwich College, St Paul’s, Epsom, Hampton Cricket professionals Gary Butcher (Surrey & Glamorgan), Pete Scott Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U15ABCD, U14ABCD, U13ABCDE, U12ABCDE, U11ABCDEF, U10ABCDEF, U9ABCDEFG, U8ABCDEFG Facilities Thirteen nets including six grass, three grass squares; off-site two grass squares, eight artificial nets, two artificial wickets Club/county affiliation Surrey & Wimbledon CC Brief history Cricket at King’s has always been an integral part of the boys’ schooling life. With over 300 boys participating in the senior school alone, the school is one of the few in the area to put out a 5th XI. The cricket benefits from excellent facilities and a fantastic coaching structure with a number of county and district age-group

LANCASTER ROYAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL East Road Lancaster LA1 3EF

players coming through the ranks.

Many of the leavers go on to represent university sides. Ruari Crichard and Alex Hunt played in 2015 Varsity Match Cricketers of note Russell Cake (Cambridge University), Samir Sheikh, RM Crichard

Best prospect Sanjay Patel (Surrey) Finest moment on the field Cake’s 108 for Combined Universities against the Australians in 1993 Extras Over 600 boys represented senior and junior school teams during the 2016 season. The 1st

XI play around 25 games a season including ‘The Ridgway Big Bash’ against local rivals Wimbledon College, with crowds of 300-plus Cultural cricketers Marcus Mumford of Mumford & Sons and ‘Whiz Kid’ Nick D’Aloisio, designer of the Summly app

Established 1469 Notable fixtures MCC, Sedbergh, Shrewsbury, Bolton School, Manchester Grammar, RGS Guildford, RGS Worcester, Woodhouse Grove, played in the annual RGS Festival at Guildford in July 2017, will host the six-team

festival in 2018 at Lancaster Head of cricket Ian Ledward Overseas professional Ian Perryman Teams 13 Facilities Four pitches, five squares, three astro outdoor nets, two portable batting cages, four indoor nets in the sports hall Club/counry affiliation Lancashire and Cumbria Brief history Cricket is played at the Harold Douthwaite fields where the main pitches have a stunning outlook over Morecambe Bay to the mountains of the Lake District. In the last 25 years the school has expanded and strengthened its fixture list. The school is proud that B-team cricketers will usually get at least eight matches a season against local schools. The school has produced a number of Cambridge and Oxford Blues for cricket. As a state grammar, Lancaster RGS

plays six fixtures every weekend through the summer, entirely against the top independent schools in the north of England.

The school is represented in at least two county age-group schools finals every year, and plays at least 120 matches across all ages over the course of a season Finest moment on the field Won the National Under-15 final in 1999, beating Charterhouse at Trent Bridge. Losing finalist of National U13 final at Headingley in 1997.

Finalists of the Sir Garfield Sobers U19 Tournament at Kensington Oval, Barbados in 2010, losing to Combermere School Cultural cricketers The late Cecil Parkinson, a minister in Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative governments, played for the school before winning a scholarship to Cambridge University, where he won a Blue in athletics

thecricketer.com | 35

Top 100 Schools

L ancing college // leices t er grammar school

LANCING COLLEGE Lancing West Sussex BN15 0RW Established 1848, by the Rev Nathaniel Woodard Notable fixtures Bede’s, Hurstpierpoint, Eastbourne, Epsom, King Edward’s Southampton Cricket professionals Raj Maru (Middlesex & Hampshire)

Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB Girls’ cricket There is a girls’ section. Alice Capsey has been awarded the Peter Robinson Cricket Scholarship from September 2017 Facilities Two indoor nets, sports hall, six astro nets, four grass squares Club/county affiliation Sussex Brief history Lancing, set in outstanding countryside and housed in fine buildings, educates boys and girls to develop a love of learning and to reach their full potential, enriched

by the arts and physical activities Cricketers of note Johnny Robinson (Surrey), Mason Crane (Hampshire & England), Will Fazakerley (Leicestershire) Extras In 2014 Lancing launched the Peter Robinson Cricket Scholarship for boys and girls of county standard Cultural cricketers Sir Tim Rice, the renowned author and lyricist – and former MCC president and founder of his own Heartaches CC – went to Lancing

Raj Maru Director of cricket

LEICESTER GRAMMAR SCHOOL London Road Leicester Leicestershire LE8 9FL Established 1981 Notable fixtures MCC, Loughborough Grammar, Oundle, Gentlemen of Leicestershire, Wellingborough, Ryde (IoW) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB, U11AB, U10, U9 Girls’ cricket At U15 and U13.

Cricket is taught to girls from Year 7 as the striking game within the curriculum. They play indoor matches during the winter months and outdoor in the summer.

Coaching sessions take place every Weds throughout the winter Facilities Three indoor nets, bowling machine, seven grass outdoor nets, three artificial, two match squares/ grounds, two Flicx pitches on their own area for junior games, electric scoreboard 36 | thecricketer.com

Club/county affiliation Affiliated to many local clubs and also Leicestershire, who have a number of fixtures at LGS, including the county academy. Girls’ teams play the county’s girls teams Brief history Leicester Grammar is a young school and the cricket set-up is even younger. A small amount was played at the school before 1994 but that year, with the appointment of a formal master in charge, cricket became more of a focus. A regular fixture list was developed and with the teams initially playing in the local leagues, LGS has now moved to the point where the school has a strong list of friendly and cup fixtures for all ages, alongside girls’ fixtures. As a day school it has been decided that LGS should play midweek, and in the last season well over 70 games were played by representative teams from LGS. The format of fixtures encompasses T20 through to all-day fixtures against MCC. In 2008 LGS moved to a purposebuilt site and now have fantastic facilities to develop the game at.

Coaching takes place throughout

the year, and the 1st and 2nd XIs toured Barbados in 2014, playing 10 fixtures, with the 1st XI returning unbeaten. In 2015 the U13s toured Holland, again returning unbeaten, but more importantly developing their game greatly. The 1st and 2nd XIs toured Sri Lanka in July 2017, and took two U13 teams – one boys, one girls – to the Isle of Wight Cricketers of note Avish Patel (Cambridge Blue 2015), Lucy Higham (Loughborough Lightning

& England Women’s Academy) Finest moment on the field Last May the U15 girls’ team reached the National Finals of the Lady Taverners U15 Indoor competition and spent the day competing for the trophy at Lord’s. The 1st XI defeated both Repton and Oakham in the national T20. This season LGS have beaten Oundle for the first time at 1st XI level and had another win against Stowe in the National T20

lord wandswor t h college // lore t t o school

LORD WANDSWORTH COLLEGE Long Sutton Hook Hampshire RG29 1TB

(Hampshire & Somerset), Tom Hicks (Dorset Minor Counties) Guy Hicks (England U15) Extras County and district teams use their grounds regularly Finest moment on the field Playing in the T20 Nationals last year and beating Radley College in a very close game Best prospect Will Wyatt, currently playing Hampshire U17 cricket as a U14 with a real chance to play for the Hampshire Academy

David Beven Head of cricket

Craig Prentis/Allsport

Established 1928 Number of pupils 587 Notable fixtures MCC, Charterhouse, Reed’s, Epsom, PGS Director of cricket David Beven Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15A, U15B, U15C, U14A, U14B, U14C, Junior ABC Girls’ cricket U18s, U15, Junior ABC. The girls played against MCC Women and are the current Lady Taverners Indoor Champions

Facilities Seven squares, including two artificial, 10 outdoor nets (four artificial), four indoor nets Club/county affiliation Hampshire Brief history Cricket at Lord Wandsworth has been going from strength to strength with a real push for girls’ cricket over the past few years. They currently have more than 70 girls playing across all age groups. The girls have been Hampshire Lady Taverners champions several times over the past few years in both U15 and U13 age groups. Boys compete well in a tough fixture list. The boys have several players throughout each age group who are playing county cricket for Hampshire and Surrey Cricketers of note Michael Bates

Loretto SCHOOL 1-7 Linkfield Road Musselburgh Scotland EH21 7RE Established 1827 Notable fixtures MCC, Fettes, Merchiston Castle, Glenalmond, Strathallan, Edinburgh Academy Cricket professional John Blain (Scotland & Northamptonshire) Teams 16 (1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 2 x U15, U14, U13, U12, U11 and two at U10 and U9) Girls’ cricket A squad of 20 Facilities Three grass squares (one main oval called Pinkie, and two nursery grounds called Newfield).

Indoor nets with four lanes and sixlane practice artificial Club/county affiliation The Grange CC & Scotland

Brief history Cricket was introduced in the 1860s by the pioneering headmaster Hely Hutchison Almond. The first official matches were played against Edinburgh Academy in 1863. In 1867 Richard Tomlinson, from Northants, became the school’s first cricket professional Cricketers of note Sam Hain (Warwickshire), George Munsey (Scotland & Northants), Simon Smith (Scotland). During his four years in the Loretto XI between 1908–1911, GL Hunting amassed a higher total of runs than any other pupil at Loretto. In 1910 he scored 1,081 in 23 innings without dismissal Extras A rather bizarre match took place in 1884. Loretto scored 407 against Edinburgh Academy and allowed their opponents just one hour to make the runs (they finished on 21 for 4). This was in

the days when it was against the rules to declare an innings. Loretto’s Pipes and Drums played at Lord’s on July 8 2017 for the Test against South Africa Finest moment on the field LR

Paterson scored the first century for Loretto against Fettes in 1885 (122). CW Berry took 320 wickets at an average of just under 7.5 in the four seasons for the Loretto XI between 1879–1882 thecricketer.com | 37

Top 100 Schools MAGDALEN COLLEGE SCHOOL, OXFORD Cowley Place Oxford Oxfordshire OX4 1DZ Established 1480 Notable fixtures MCC, Abingdon, St Edwards, Rugby, Haberdasher’s Aske’s, Marlborough, Radley, Eton, Stowe, South Oxfordshire Amateurs. Regular tourists: Melbourne Grammar (Australia), Grey High (South Africa). The MCS 1st XI squad toured Sri Lanka, playing five matches, in Easter 2017. Each year an U15 T20 Festival, involving eight schools, is held at MCS at the end of the summer term. The MCS U14 squad tour Cambridgeshire each May halfterm holiday Head of cricket David Bebbington Cricket professional Alan Duncan Master in Charge Tony Scriven Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC Girls’ cricket Played during sixthform game sessions Facilities Indoor cricket facility: five nets; three bowling machines, plus one Merlyn; five grass nets, three artificial outdoor nets. Seven

MALVERN COLLEGE College Road Malvern Worcestershire WR14 3DF Established 1865 Notable fixtures Shrewsbury, Harrow, Repton, Wellington, Bradfield, Millfield Master in Charge of Cricket Mark Hardinges (Gloucestershire) Cricket professional Noel Brett Teams Nine sides aged 14 and above Girls’ cricket In the last two years, there have been games against Shrewsbury and Clifton Facilities Three grounds, four artificial nets, 16 grass nets, indoor cricket facility Club/county affiliation Worcestershire

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magdalen college school, OXFORD // malvern college

grounds including the network of grounds at Oxford colleges Club/county affiliation Sussex, Oxfordshire Brief history Founded by William Waynflete, Magdalen College School was initially set up as a school of the university and quickly became established as one of the leading centres of learning in Europe. In 1894 the school acquired the playing fields now known as School Field, a unique island setting accessed via two listed white bridges. The cricket ground is considered one of the most picturesque in England, with a backdrop of punts on the Cherwell, the Botanic Gardens, Magdalen Tower and the dreaming spires beyond. In 1913 the unique pavilion was built and now stands as a tribute to those who played and lost their lives in the Great War. The school has expanded to become a centre of academic excellence Cricketers of note David Ligertwood (Durham & Surrey), John Martin (Somerset), Francis and Arthur Roberts (both Gloucestershire), Octavius Radcliffe (Gloucestershire & Somerset) Extras In recent years Magdalen has hosted the Lashings World XI and the PCA Masters. The

School Field ground is the only island cricket ground in schools cricket. Don Bradman played at the Christ Church ground three times for Australia (1930, 1934 and 1938) against Oxford University, but averaged ‘only’ 42 there. The Australian touring side played here from 1882 and it was here in 1884 that Oxford beat an Australian XI for the first and last time. The record biggest hit (as recorded by Wisden) was made on the school’s Christ Church ground in 1856 (the Rev W Fellows, while at practice on the ground, drove a ball bowled by

Charles Rogers 175 yards from hit to pitch). Lawrence Booth, editor of Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack since 2012, went to the school Finest moment on the field Ben Thompson becoming the youngest century-maker for the Oxfordshire minor counties side in 1998 with 111, against Herefordshire, aged 17 years and 250 days Cultural cricketers Sam Mendes (English stage and film director), Jim Rosenthal (sports presenter), Nigel Starmer-Smith (England rugby, Barbarians and rugby commentator)

Brief history The Senior Turf at Malvern is spectacular. Matches were played within 18 months of the school’s foundation in 1865.

Players included the seven Foster brothers, who dominated Malvern cricket from 1889. All played for Worcestershire, but RE ‘Tip’ Foster was the most outstanding, and is still remembered for his innings of 287 for England at Sydney on the 1903/04 tour to Australia, his Test match debut. The Tolchard brothers Jeff, Ray and Roger, were all outstanding players in the 1960s Cricketers of note Mike Cawdron and Dom Hewson (both Gloucestershire) and 2014 Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year Tom Kohler-Cadmore (Worcestershire & Yorkshire) Finest moment on the field The 1st XI were unbeaten against school opposition during the

2012 season, winning 12 games in succession Best prospect Jack Haynes (England U16 captain) Cultural cricketers Lord

MacLaurin of Knebworth, the former ECB chief executive and the recently-appointed MCC president, attended Malvern College

MARLBOROUGH COLLEGE // MERCHAN T TAY LORS’ SCHOOL, NOR T HWOOD

MARLBOROUGH COLLEGE Bath Road Marlborough Wiltshire SN8 1PA Established 1843 Number of pupils 936 Notable fixtures MCC, Rugby (two-day colour match); other big fixtures include Radley, Eton, Winchester, Cheltenham, Sherborne, Wellington, St Edward’s, Bradfield Director of cricket Mike Bush Cricket professional Mark Alleyne (Gloucestershire & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U16ABC, U15ABCD, U14ABCDE, Girls’ 1st XI Girls’ cricket Girls are integrated into boys’ teams; Charlotte Bawden (Surrey U19s & Durham University) made her debut for the 1st XI in 2015, Rosie Pembroke (Wiltshire) made

her Wiltshire Women’s debut in 2016 aged 14 becoming, by two years, the youngest to represent them. The college hosted Bradfield in their inaugural girls’ fixture in 2016 Facilities Sports hall which includes five indoor nets, nine grounds, 14 artificial nets and two cages Club/county affiliation Links with Marlborough CC, with boys involved in Hampshire, Middlesex, Somerset, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire set-ups Brief history Until 1972 the Marlborough v Rugby match was a regular fixture at Lord’s, and since then the two schools have played a two-day match against each other annually. In 2017 the schools played at Lord’s once more as part of Rugby’s 450th anniversary celebrations Cricketers of note AG Steel (played in first ever Test in 1880 and has his name featured on the Ashes urn), LH Gay, AJL Hill, NF Druce, JC Hartley (all England), RH Sponner (England and also England at rugby), Jake Seamer (Somerset), Mike Griffith (Sussex & president of MCC), Christopher Martin-Jenkins, Richard Savage

(Warks), Robbie Williams (Middx & Leics) Best prospect 2017 captain Billy Mead has been a mainstay of the Hampshire academy of late Extras The pavilion (built in 1874) was designed

by Victorian architect Alfred Waterhouse, famous for designing the Natural History Museum and Manchester Town Hall. Steel is reported to have invented the leg-break while at school at Marlborough Finest moment on the field Playing against Rugby at Lord’s – the fixture lasted from 1855 to 1972.

Recent victories in the two-day colours match include 2000, 2002 and 2015. The 1st XI scored a record-breaking 401 for 3 off 50 overs against Sherborne in April, 2017 with captain Mead scoring 214 not out in the win. Three weeks later Will Hammersely scored 209 off 99 balls for the U14A. In August 2017 the 1st XI defeated Rugby School by 25 runs at Lord’s to celebrate the 450th (Rugby) and 175th (Marlborough) anniversaries Cultural cricketers Siegfried Sassoon is reported to have been a keen cricketer at Marlborough

MERCHANT TAYLORS’ SCHOOL, NORTHWOOD Sandy Lodge Moor Park Northwood Hertfordshire HA6 2HT Established 1561 Notable fixtures Harrow, Eton, Millfield, Whitgift, MCC Cricket professionals Scott Galloway, Graham Furber, Adam Cuthbert, Graeme Calway, Leigh Wooldridge Teams 18 teams (U12 through to 1st XI) Facilities Outdoors: 12 grass squares, 20 grass nets, 12 astro nets.

Indoors: two nets, sports hall Club/county affiliation Middlesex, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire Brief history Merchant Taylors’ has a distinguished cricketing history.

The first recorded match on the school ground was between the Norwood Club and MCC in 1892.

Middlesex 2nd XI first played there

in 2002, and the ground hosted its inaugural first-class match in 2012 Cricketers of note Ravi Patel and Oliver Wilkin (both Middlesex) Extras Merchant Taylors’ is officially ‘The Home of Middlesex Youth Cricket’. Every Middlesex youth home game is played at the school. The school regularly

hosts first-class cricket, and most recently held a Championship and T20 Blast fixture in June 2016. The Australian team held pre-Ashes training camps in 2013 and 2015 at Merchant Taylors’. Australia captain Michael Clarke said the facilities were “world-class” Finest moment on the field In

2017, the Merchant Taylors’ U17 cricket team created history by becoming the first sporting team at the school to win a national championship. Reaching the National finals on the ESCA U15 Competition in 2015 and 2016 Cultural cricketers Comedian Michael McIntyre thecricketer.com | 39

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MILLFIELD // NEW HALL SCHOOL

MILLFIELD Street Somerset BA16 0YD Established 1935 Notable fixtures Surrey, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, MCC, Wales U17 Girls’ XI Director of cricket Mark Garaway Teams 14 Girls’ cricket U17 and U15. Play in Lady Taverners U15 indoor competition and U15 national hard-ball competition. U17 fixtures include matches against Wales U17, Somerset U17, MCC Facilities Eight indoor nets, bank of 12 grass nets, nine artificial outdoor nets, six grounds Club/county affiliation Millfield is fortunate to have associations with 27 counties, states and national governing bodies Brief history Millfield embarks on a major overseas tour once every two years. The most recent tour took 45 cricketers (two boys’ squads and one girls’) to Mumbai for a

NEW HALL SCHOOL The Avenue Boreham Chelmsford Essex CM3 3HS Established In 1642 the school was founded as a Catholic girls’ school.

Boys joined from 2005 Number of pupils 1,150

15-match programme. Millfield’s 12-month performance programme integrates specialist technical, tactical and lifestyle coaching with sports science input from the Millfield Institute of Sport and Wellbeing team. The programme is individually tailored to optimise the performance of each player. There are presently 53 boys and girls who are county age group, county academy, regional and international cricketers on the programme.

Millfield is not all about high performance, though, with more than 350 boys and girls involved in cricket. There are open and cricket club sessions run for cricketers of all ages and abilities throughout the week, and every pupil has the opportunity to be coached by ECB Level 3 and Level 4 coaches.

School competes in a number of tournaments for different age groups, including the U14 County Cup, Lady Taverners Indoor and Outdoor tournaments, the National Schools T20 competition, National U17 Cup and both the Lord’s Taverners and T20 U15

Notable fixtures MCC, during cricket week. Also compete against Felsted, Whitgift, Gresham’s, Norwich Director of cricket Paul Davidge Cricket professional Nasser Hussain (Essex & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket In the senior school, New Hall runs two girls’ teams over the summer months at U13 and

Cricketers of note Ian Ward (Surrey, Sussex & England), Paul Terry (Hampshire & England), Kieran Powell (West Indies), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset), Daniel BellDrummond (Kent), Tom Moores (Notts) and George Hankins (Gloucestershire) Extras Millfield had four England U19 players in the 2016 ODI series against Sri Lanka

Finest moment on the field In 2016 Millfield became the first school to hold three national titles at the same time (U15 T20, U17, U18 T20)

U15 level. These teams compete in both the National and County Cup tournaments as well as locally organised festivals. During the Lent term both U13 and U15 teams enter the Lady Taveners’ indoor competitions. Girls’ cricket is a major summer sport in the prep school with girls from U8–U11 competing regularly in fixtures Facilities Outdoor: four turf pitches, including a cricket-specific ground, six acres; one astro wicket, two open-backed cages and a four-lane outdoor net area. Indoor: Two-lane indoor nets, bowling machine and state-of-the-art fielding equipment Club/county affiliation Essex Brief history The cricket programme has evolved and developed quickly over a short period of time, with 10 teams regularly playing in the Trinity term and, as a school, completing more than 125 fixtures each season. The 1st XI compete against some of the very best schools and play a mixture of T20, 40-over and all day cricket. U12–U15 teams compete in

regular fixtures and have consistent success in the County Cups. The winter programme offers the best players an opportunity to further develop their skills in one of two academy groups. The junior academy embark on a biannual tour, which ventured to Sri Lanka at Easter 2017 Best prospect Sean Sullivan (Essex Academy & England U16), Nathan Khelawon Extras The success that New Hall has achieved in recent years highlights what quick progress the school has made since the introduction of boys just over 10 years ago. Regular success in County Cups, back-to-back success in the U13 National Cup and the number of boys or girls who represent the county are just some examples of the establishing cricketing programme at the school Finest moment on the field In 2016 the U13 team reached the final of the David English Bunbury National Cup where they were beaten by Solihull. In 2017 the U13 team reached the regional final

Mark Garaway Director of cricket coaching

thecricketer.com | 41

TOP 100 SCHOOLS NORWICH SCHOOL 71a The Close Norwich Norfolk NR1 4DD Established 1547 Number of pupils 1,087 Notable fixtures MCC, Oundle, Trent College, Harrow, The Perse, The Leys Head of cricket Jed Cawkwell Cricket professional David Thomas (Norfolk), Joe Gatting (Sussex & Hampshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC, U11ABC, U10AB, U9AB Girls’ cricket U15AB, U14A, U13ABC, U11ABC, U9AB, U8AB Facilities Two-lane purposebuilt cricket gallery, sports hall with cricket facilities; 14 grass nets (used in groups of four and a separate two), six astro nets, five grass cricket squares and two brand new Flicx pitches Club/county affiliation Links with four East Anglian Premier League clubs, Norfolk, and recently established partnership with Sussex Brief history Norwich School has a long and fascinating history. Its roots and the buildings it occupies date back to the foundation of the Cathedral in 1087. The 1st XI play in the Cathedral Close in Norwich with the Cathedral providing a stunning and historic backdrop. Cricket was first played at the Lower Close in around 1862 when the school was able to lease a meadow from the Dean

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NORWICH SCHOOL // OAK HAM SCHOOL

and Chapter. It took 80 cartloads of soil to level the ground that is still played on today.

Cricketers of note George Walker (Leicestershire & Derbyshire), Clive Radley (Middlesex & England) Best prospect Charlie Rogers (Norfolk EPP & Sussex Partnership Academy) Extras Norwich School is the home of the Norwich MCC Foundation Hub, providing excellent facilities, coaching and fixtures for cricketers from local state schools. Joe Wells (formerly of Kent and father of HG Wells) was the master from 1873– 75. The school team is reported to have had two very good seasons during his time. He was also the first man in first-class cricket to take four wickets in four balls Finest moment on the field The U15s lost a nail-biting semi-final to Sedbergh in the ESCA competition in 2014. Matthew Plater scored 200 not out in the final of the 2012 U14 Norfolk Bunbury Cup T20 Cultural cricketers Lord Nelson attended the school in the 1770s; Sir Edward Coke, Humphry Repton, Lt-Col Derek Seagrim, Major Hugh Seagrim, Lord Blake, Lord Ashcroft

OAKHAM SCHOOL Chapel Close Market Place Oakham Rutland LE15 6DT Established 1584 Number of pupils 1,063 Notable fixtures Eton, Harrow, Millfield, Bedford, Wellington College, Tonbridge, Felsted, MCC. The BOWS festival (Brighton, Oakham, Wellington and Sedbergh). U15s play in the Millfield School Festival Cricket professionals Neil Johnson (Zimbabwe) played professionally for 17 years before joining Oakham; Darren Bicknell (Surrey & Notts); Frank Hayes (Lancashire & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD, U13AB, U12ABCD; Girls’ 1st XI Girls’ cricket Oakham’s first girls’ team won their first game against Oundle, by 50 runs this summer Facilities Oakham has two grounds. Doncaster Close has four squares, 13 grass nets, seven artificial nets and a coaching net with bowling machine. The BAF Smith Pavilion, new for 2014, provides first-class facilities for

teams and guests. Wilson Fields has a purpose-built cricket pavilion, two square and grass nets, and hosts county games Club/county affiliation Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire Brief history Oakham has an enviable cricket reputation and in the last decade six former pupils have joined the professional ranks, including Stuart Broad. Coaches Frank Hayes and David Steele have been followed by Phillip DeFreitas, John Crawley and Johnson Cricketers of note JAS Taylor (Scotland), SKW Kelly (Bermuda), GH Maybury (Bermuda), Broad (England), Lucy Pearson (England), Matthew Boyce (Leics), Josh Cobb (Leics & Northants), Ian Saxelby (Notts), Alex Wyatt (Leics), Tom Fell (Worcs) Best prospect Lyndon James won Most Improved Young Player in 2016, and played Notts CCC 2nd XI Extras Last summer Oakham was a training and warm-up venue for the Women’s World Cup Finest momemt on the field In 2014 Oakham hosted the Bunbury Festival. The School reached and hosted the U15 Schools National Final. Winning the BOWS Festival in 2014 at Brighton. Beating Eton in the inaugural game in 2003. Barghav Modha taking all 10 wickets v Worksop in 2004.

Beating Harrow by nine wickets in 2004. Chasing 279 and beating Wellington by six wickets in 2010, when Fell made 152 Cultural cricketers Lewis Moody, Tom Croft and Alex Goode, comedian Miles Jupp and actor Matthew Macfadyen

ORMSK IRK SCHOOL // OUNDLE SCHOOL

ORMSKIRK SCHOOL Wigan Road Ormskirk Lancashire L39 2AT Established 1612. The amalgamation of two schools – Cross Hall High and Ormskirk Grammar – formed Ormskirk School in 2001 Number of pupils 1,500 Notable fixtures MCC, MCC Women, XL Club Head of PE Laura Goff Teams 1st XI, U15A, U14A, U13A, U12A; Girls’ 1st XI, U15A, U13A Girls’ cricket Ormskirk has a very strong programme of girls’ cricket, with lots of local, county and national success. Many girls go on to play local club cricket or play at the county level. Ormskirk were the winners of the Lady Taverners Competition in 2013, 2015 and finalists in 2017, Chance to Shine winners in 2013 and finalists for 2016. Ormskirk have also entered the School Sports Magazine girls’ T20 hard-ball competition for the first time this year, after developing such a strong interest from the girls

OUNDLE SCHOOL Church Street Oundle Northamptonshire PE8 4EE Established 1556 Notable fixtures MCC, take part in the prestigious Silk trophy (Eton, Shrewsbury, Oundle and a premier touring team each year). The U15s play in a festival involving St Peter’s, York, Oundle, Trent College and Cheltenham College Director of cricket John Crawley Cricket professional Van de Merwe Genis is in his 17th season Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16AB, U15ABCD, U14ABCD, U13ABCD Girls’ cricket The first girls’ match was against the Oundle Town CC women’s team in May 2016. There is now a growing fixture list Facilities A new sports hall is about to be constructed which is likely to house four more indoor nets with technology facilities for data

Facilities Indoor nets, outdoor nets, two grounds (St Helens Road and use of Ormskirk CC) Club/county affiliation Lancashire Brief history The market town of Ormskirk has a proud and long cricket heritage and the ex-members of the school have always been present in the Ormskirk 1st XI. When cricket declined in many comprehensive schools in the 1990s the school continued to retain a Saturday fixture list and promoted the sport through a parents’ support group which raised funds and supported staff. Girls’ cricket has continued to take off in the school, which has gone from strength to strength Cricketers of note Rachel Dickinson (Lancashire & EWDP U19), Laura Jackson (Lancashire), Jonny Armstrong (England Schoolboys) Best prospect Josh Murray, year 8 wicketkeeper Finest moment on the field Winning both the U13 Girls indoor and outdoor national finals in 2013, and being the first comprehensive school in history to be invited to play MCC Women in 2015 management and video facilities.

The current sports hall will remain and has four nets. A state-of-theart outdoor facility has just been constructed with 10 artificial nets.

There are also 10 further artificial nets. The school has eight grounds (including Oundle Town CC) Club/county affiliation Northamptonshire CCC and Oundle Town CC Brief history Cricket has been played at Oundle since at least 1830 although the first match for which a full score survives was against Uppingham in 1855. The awarding of proper cricket colours dates back to 1876 when the Rev Henry St John Reade (who played for Northants during his time at the school) took over as head. The current ground has been in use since the 1880s. Mike Mills, after whom the new pavilion is named, came to the school as a pupil in 1935, returned as a master after war service, was master-in-charge and then ran the Oundle Rovers side for many years – an active involvement spanning 70-odd years

Cricketers of note Nearly 50 first-class cricketers – dating back to John Morley Lee who played for Cambridge University and Surrey in the 1840s. No England players (yet) although notable ones include Reggie Ingle (captain of Somerset 1932-37), Frank Greenwood (captained Yorkshire to the title in 1931), Mike Mills (the last surviving captain against the 1948 Australians), Tom Harrison (Derbyshire and ECB chief

executive), Will Jefferson (Essex, Notts, Leics, England A) and Greg Smith (Leics & Notts) Extras The school is one of the first hubs for the MCC Foundation. WG Grace scored his 200th century in all cricket on the school’s ground Finest moment on the field The 1976 team was unbeaten against all school sides. The 2004 side, under Cameron Wake, won 15 matches with no defeats and lifted the Silk Trophy for the first and only time thecricketer.com | 43

TOP 100 SCHOOLS

PORTSMOUTH GRAMMAR SCHOOL 1 High Street Portsmouth Hampshire PO1 2LN Established 1732 Number of pupils 1,500 Notable fixtures Canford, Brighton College, King Edward VI Southampton, Winchester Head of cricket Scott Curwood Cricket professional Sam Lavery Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U12–15ABC, U8–11AB Girls’ cricket U13 girls compete in the Hampshire Cup. There are currently three PGS girls that

PRINCE HENRY’S HIGH SCHOOL Victoria Avenue Evesham Worcestershire WR11 4QH Established 1376 Notable fixtures MCC, Malvern

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PORT SMOU T H GRAMMAR SCHOOL // PRINCE HENRY ’S HIGH SCHOOL

represent Hampshire and five more at district level Facilities Indoor hall with five lanes. Hilsea Playing Fields is the sports ground, with eight artificial nets, six grass nets, two squares County affiliation Hampshire Brief history The school’s playing fields at Hilsea offer a unique setting, bordered to the north by Hilsea Lines which were built to protect the northern approaches of Portsea Island, and to the west by the upper reaches of Portsmouth Harbour. The school previously played at the East Hants Cricket Ground in Southsea, but moved to Hilsea in 1885. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whose brother Innes attended the school, is one of the

most famous batsman to appear at the crease at Hilsea. Doyle was opening for the South Hampshire Rovers against the school 1st XI Cricketers of note Wally Hammond attended Portsmouth Grammar during the First World War. The school has also produced county players at all levels; those who played first-class cricket for Hampshire, including Alfred Wood, Alfred Byng, John Palmer Parker, Thomas Chignell, Mike Barnard, Richard McIlwaine, David Rock and Jon Ayling Best prospect Charlie Dean has represented Hampshire at U13, U15 and U17. She is captain of the U17s. At the age of 13 she was selected in to the England

Women’s Development U15 squad.

In 2016 she became the youngest player to represent Hampshire Women in T20 and 50 overs Finest moment on the field Winning U15 Lord’s Taverners Trophy in 2011 or the Schools Sports Magazine National U17 in 2013 and 2015 Cultural cricketers James Clavell attended Portsmouth Grammar School from 1935 to 1940 where he played for the 1st XI. He wrote a novel drawing on his harrowing experiences, King Rat, which sold well and was turned into a film.

He moved to Hollywood as a screenplay and scriptwriter, where he had early success with the science-fiction film The Fly

Teams 1st XI, U16, U15, U15, U14 and staff XI Girls’ cricket Girls’ teams in the above age groups. Gill Richards, a former England player and the first female on the Lord’s groundstaff, is a member of the PE department Facilities Purpose-built cricket centre, with four lanes and access to bowling machines. One artificial

wicket on the playing fields Club/county affiliation Worcestershire, Pershore CC Brief history Prince Henry’s has developed a proud tradition of a fine cricketing experience for its students. The school regularly competes against the local independent schools in the later stages of the County Cup and are

fairly dominant against local state schools. On the back of these successes the 1st XI played MCC for the first time in 2016 Cricketers of note Daryl Mitchell (Worcestershire) Finest moment on the field In 2013 the school won the national eighta-side competition at Wantage Road

QUEEN’S COLLEGE, TAUN T ON // RADLE Y COLLEGE

QUEEN’S COLLEGE, TAUNTON Trull Road Taunton Somerset TA1 4QS Established 1843 Notable fixtures MCC, Millfield, XL Club, Taunton School, Blundell’s Director of cricket Arul Suppiah (Somerset & Malaysia) Cricket professionals Mark Davis (formerly England A & Somerset), Master in Charge Angus Hamilton (MCC playing member) Teams 10 senior teams and five junior teams. 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC Girls’ cricket Queen’s runs the Broderick Girls’ U15 tournament annually, with six schools taking part this year. The school also runs regular practice sessions every week from January to June Facilities Sports hall with four lanes (three bowling machines

RADLEY COLLEGE Kennington Road Radley Abingdon Oxfordshire OX14 2HR Established 1847 Notable fixtures Eton, Harrow, Tonbridge, Charterhouse, Wellington, Marlborough, Cheltenham, St Edward’s Oxford,

available and one junior bowling machine), eight artificial nets, grass nets available on main square and bottom square, six grounds available Club/county affiliation Somerset, Taunton St Andrews CC, Taunton Deane CC, Taunton Vale CC and Shapwick & Polden CC Brief history First known as the Wesleyan Collegiate Institute, Queen’s College was established by the Wesleyan Methodist Church in 1843. It was built by Giles and Gane in 1874 and has been designated as a Grade II-listed building. It first began admitting girls during the 1970s and is now fully coeducational. The college’s motto is non scholae sed vitae discimus (“We educate not just for school but for life”). The school has sports teams in cricket, rugby union, hockey, swimming, athletics, netball and tennis. The school also provides other popular disciplines such as rock climbing, kayaking, mountain biking, canoe polo, fencing, Duke of

Edinburgh Award, mountaineering, badminton and horse riding Cricketers of note Gary Palmer (Somerset), Ben Ackland (Ireland & Northamptonshire), Jake Lintott (Dorset), Matt Gitsham (Gloucestershire), Will Bates Finest moment on the field Joe Gore taking a hat-trick against

Downside (April 2016), Rudi Claassen scoring 105 not out against MCC (May 2016), Ben Ackland’s 1,000 runs in a season (2007) Cultural cricketers Racehorse trainer Martin Pipe and Conservative MP for Basildon & Billericay John Baron

Winchester, Bradfield, MCC and wandering sides Cricket professional Andy Wagner – 2013 Sky Sports ECB coach of the year – has just completed 33 seasons Teams 21 teams across four ages Facilities Five indoor nets, 26 outdoor artificial nets, 10 grass nets and 11 grass squares Club/county affiliation Middlesex Brief history Radley’s cricket

tradition is a strong one. The sport was launched as an alternative for rowing in the early 1850s and the first recorded fixture was against Bradfield in 1853. Since then there have been a number of ‘golden eras’ with the sides of the 1866–67, 1929–32, the 1990s and then 2006–08 deserving special mention Cricketers of note Ted Dexter (Sussex & England), Andrew Strauss (Middlesex & England),

Ben Hutton (Middlesex), Robin Martin-Jenkins (Sussex), Jamie Dalrymple (Middlesex, Glamorgan & England), Nick Gubbins (Middlesex) among others Finest moment on the field The 1999 side won nine out of 10 matches in timed cricket, taking 98 of a possible 100 wickets. The school won back-to-back Cowdrey Cup triumphs in 2007 and 2008 Extras The school hosted the 30th Bunbury Festival in 2016

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TOP 100 SCHOOLS REED’S SCHOOL Sandy Lane Cobham Surrey KT11 2ES Established 1813 Number of pupils 706 Notable fixtures MCC, Stock Exchange, XL Club, St Paul’s, Hampton, Hurstpierpoint Director of cricket Malcolm Dunn Cricket professional Keith Medlycott (Surrey) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABCDEF, U13ABCD, U12ABCD Girls’ cricket In the planning stage Facilities Four squares plus two more at satellite ground, eight grass nets, six artificial nets, four indoor nets; new state-of-the-art indoor centre with five lanes of nets and analysis software installed due to open for the 2017/18 school year Club/county affiliation Surrey Brief history Cricket has been played at Cobham since the school arrived from Watford just

REIGATE GRAMMAR SCHOOL Reigate Road Reigate Surrey RH2 0QS Established 1675 Number of pupils 1,000 Notable fixtures MCC, Dulwich, Epsom, St John’s Leatherhead, St George’s Weybridge, Christ’s Hospital, CLFS, Caterham, Sutton Valence, Eltham College, Sevenoaks, The Judd; Trinity Schools T20, St Albans Festival, RGS Sixes Tournaments, U17 National Cup, HMC T20 and Surrey County Cups 46 | thecricketer.com

REED’S SCHOOL // REIGAT E GRAMMAR SCHOOL

after the war. Reed’s inherited an extremely beautiful, if slightly small, ground formerly used by the Preparatory School Sandroyd.

The game became more important in the 1960s under two great headmasters, Bob Drayson and, probably the greatest influence, Rodney Exton. His experience drove the game to greater heights.

More recently, newly retired headmaster David Jarrett, a Blue at Oxford and Cambridge, encouraged the sport to reach its highest standard yet. Reed’s produced ‘Doug’ Taylor who opened the batting for England Schools, Adam Jones, who kept Jack Richards out of the Surrey Schools side, and Mark Rowland, who played at Hampshire and Sussex. Former captain James Morrison (now a professional golfer) was a team-mate of Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara. Presently, Reed’s have a number of boys playing for county and national academies. Reed’s regularly tour the Caribbean with two teams selected from boys across

three year groups so the touring experience can be enjoyed by many Cricketers of note Phil Salt (Sussex) Best prospect Nathan Tilley, Surrey Academy and current Reed’s 1st XI captain in year 12 Extras Surrey Women play their matches on Reed’s main wicket, with many international cricketers on show. Throughout the season

the school hosts many Surrey agegroup matches and tournaments Finest moment on the field Quarter-finalist of HMC National T20 2015, Surrey Cup winners at U14 and U15, 50/40 League winners 2014 and 2015 Cultural cricketers Celebrities who have played at Reed’s include Tim Henman, Tom Hardy and Alex Corbisiero

Director of cricket James Leck Cricket professional Joey Benjamin (Surrey, Warwickshire & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket U13s, who are involved in the Surrey County Cup; a U15s team will start next season Facilities Hartwood Sports Grounds – three squares/outfields and six outdoor nets; two indoor net facilities Club/county affiliation Surrey, Sussex, Reigate Priory Brief history Reigate Grammar was established in 1675 with a philanthropic focus, and the school still continues its strong heritage today offering a large number

of bursary places. Sport is a key element in the lives of Reigatians and cricket is the major summer term sport. Reigate offers students access to high-class facilities and coaching and looks to develop a love and appreciation for the game in all that play Cricketers of note Will Beer, Andy Babbington, Nick Faulkner Best prospect Sam Hall, Surrey Academy, represented the county 2nd XI (108 against MCC and 121 against Christ’s Hospital in 2017) Extras Reigate Grammar sport was judged excellent in the 2015 ISI inspection. An extensive touring programme including Grenada, Barbados and Dubai Finest moment on the field

Victories over MCC in 2014 and 2017 (chasing 220 in 45 overs for by five wickets with four balls to spare). This season the U15s reached finals day of the ESCA National T20 for the first time, while also reaching the U15 County Cup quarter-finals. The U12s also reached the quarter-final Cultural cricketers Laurie Reed (Rome Olympian 1960), Bill Frindall (scorer and statistician), David Walliams (comedian)

James Leck Head of cricket

REP T ON SCHOOL

REPTON SCHOOL Willington Road Repton Derby Derbyshire DE65 6FH Established 1557 Number of pupils 650 Notable fixtures MCC and a number of other major cricket schools make up a strong fixture list. The oldest fixtures include Uppingham (152 years), Malvern and Shrewsbury Director of cricket Ian Pollock Cricket professionals Howard Dytham, Andy Afford (Nottinghamshire & England A) and AJ Harris (Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Notts) Teams 10 teams across ages 13 to 18 Girls’ cricket No girls’ teams but Repton do offer some training. Girls play in boys’ A teams

Facilities Five indoor lanes, 10 outdoor nets, five grounds Club/county affiliation Derbyshire Brief history Repton was founded in 1557 on the seat of an Augustine priory in South Derbyshire.

It is now a flourishing, co-educational full boarding school. Repton is one of the UK’s oldest public schools and the buildings reflect its extensive heritage. The Square, where the 1st XI play is surrounded by ruins of the original Priory and in the shadows of St Wystan’s Church spire Cricketers of note The school has produced 11 Test players and 152 first-class cricketers since the 1880s. One of the most famous is CB Fry, one of England’s greatest-ever sportsmen (and once offered the throne of Albania).

Ross Whiteley (Worcestershire); Canada international Nitish Kumar, recently captain of ICC Americas, has played Caribbean Premier League for St Lucia Zouks, and made a first-class hundred for Loughborough MCCU and against

Northamptonshire in 2017. Other recent Old Reptonians include Chris Adams (Derbyshire, Sussex & England) and Derbyshire’s Tom Poynton and Paul Borrington. Two boys in the 2017 1st XI have played for Warwickshire 2nd XI Best prospect Anoop Chima made more than 400 runs in the 1st XI as an U14 player in 2017.

He joined Repton from Canada, following in the footsteps of Kumar Extras Offering modern cricket in a school with considerable heritage. Repton exposes the teams to a wide range of formats, from T20 to indoor to two-day. In the last two years they have hosted Derbyshire 2nd XI and a testimonial game for former Derbyshire captain Wayne Madsen Finest moment on the field Schools T20 Winners 2008, and then a record-breaking 15 wins in a season in 2013 Cultural cricketers There are photos of the great writer Roald Dahl in cricket teams during his time at Repton

thecricketer.com | 47

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royal grammar school, guildford // rugby SCHOOL

ROYAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL, GUILDFORD High Street Guildford Surrey GU1 3BB Established 1509 Notable fixtures Cranleigh, Whitgift, St Paul’s and MCC Teams 15 Facilities A newly refurbished pavilion, six artificial outdoor nets, five indoor nets and a wheel on cages for grass practice sessions.

Bradstone Brook is the perfect location and a wonderful setting to a day’s cricket on a Saturday.

Matches also take place at Wonersh CC Club/county affiliation Surrey and Guildford CC Brief history In 2013 both the 1st XI and 2nd XI won their respective leagues. The annual Royal Grammar Schools Cricket Festival is held on a rotational basis at all the Royal Grammar Schools in the country. RGS Guildford have won this seven times in the last 12 years.

RUGBY SCHOOL Lawrence Sheriff Street Rugby Warwickshire CV22 5EH Established 1567 Notable fixtures MCC (175 years’ standing), Marlborough (two-

In 2015 the 1st XI toured Sri Lanka and headed back there in February 2017 Cricketers of note Bob Willis (Surrey, Warwickshire & England)

Finest moment on the field 50/40 League winners 2014 & 2015 Extras The eminent cricket historian and writer David Frith, a former editor of The Cricketer who

has lived in Guildford for many years, believes that cricket may been played in Guildford in 1550, before even Broadhalfpenny Down at Hambledon

day) since 1855, Clifton College (two-day) Cricket professional Michael Powell (Warwickshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABCD Girls’ cricket U16 and U15 teams Facilities Eight indoor nets (at two sports centres), eight to 12 grass nets, six grass squares (two on the

historic ‘Close’) Club/county affiliation Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Brief history Cricket has been played on the Close from the early 19th century and there are detailed scorebooks dating back to 1831.

In the early years, fixtures were played against MCC, a number of the Oxbridge Colleges and wandering sides such as I Zingari and Free Foresters. Internal matches were played, with many lasting several days. The highlight of the season from the 1830s to the 1850s was The Tall against The Short (5ft 6in was the dividing point). In 1855, Rugby played Marlborough for the first time.

Miles Giffard played for the 1st XI and Cornwall and was later hanged for the murder of his parents.

The match has been played at numerous grounds, including The Oval, but Lord’s became its home for nearly 100 years until this came to an end in 1972. This two-day game continues today

and alternates between the two schools. Warwickshire have played at Rugby several times in the past 10 years. The 1st XI wear duck egg coloured shirts Cricketers of note PF Warner (Middlesex & England), HH Castens (South Africa), ER Wilson (England), RA Boddington (Lancashire), JL Bryan (Kent), MD Lyon (Somerset), Bev Lyon (Gloucs), MM Walford (Somerset) MA Eagar (Gloucs), RR Montgomerie (Northants & Sussex) Finest moment on the field 1979 v Marlborough: “Rugby were left with 177 to make in 80 minutes; the captain, David Cutter, reached this target with a mighty six off the penultimate ball.” Cutter’s son, James, was the 2016 captain of the 1st XI Extras Ex-pupil Giles Clarke was ECB chairman 2007–2015 Cultural cricketers In 1905 the bowling averages were headed by Rupert Brooke, later renowned for his war poetry thecricketer.com | 49

Top 100 Schools

RYDAL PENRHOS SCHOOL Pwllycrochan Avenue Conwy Wales LL29 7BT

SEDBERGH SCHOOL Station Road Sedbergh Cumbria LA10 5HG Established 1525 Number of pupils 530 Notable fixtures Regular fixtures against Lancashire, Yorkshire and Durham academies as well as top schools such as Shrewsbury and Bromsgrove. Annual BOWS Festival with Wellington College, Oakham & Brighton College Cricket master Chris Mahon Cricket professional Martin Speight (Durham & Sussex) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB Girls’ cricket Girls are able to play in boys’ teams when there is demand. However, a separate girls’ programme is starting next year Facilities Four pitches, six-bay 50 | thecricketer.com

RY DAL penrhos SCHOOL // sedbergh SCHOOL

Established 1885 Notable fixtures MCC, Merchant Taylors’ Crosby, Ellesmere, Oswestry, King’s Chester, Silcoats, Bolton, Ratcliffe, Stonyhurst Cricket master Mike Leach Cricket professional Will Owen (Glamorgan)

Teams 1st XI, U16, U15, U14, U13, U12, U11, U10, U9, U8 (just 20–25 boys in each year) Girls’ cricket Rolled out for the first time in 2016, with plans for development over next 12 months Facilities Senior square and pavilion used by Cricket Wales as

home venue for youth matches.

Four bays of indoor nets, four of outdoor nets installed this summer and four pitches in total Club/county affiliation Cricket Wales Brief history Rydal Penrhos are the only school north of the Brecon Beacons in Wales playing schools cricket, and produce Wales agegroup cricketers on a regular basis.

They produced the only Welsh player to make it through to the Wales and South West region of the Bunbury Festival in 2016. The highlight of the season is the Old Boys’ team, the Rydal Dolphins in Cricket Week, followed by the annual 1st XI Cricket Festival. The aim is for 10 games per team each season, weather permitting Cricketers of note Wilf Wooller (Glamorgan), IE Ferris (Lancashire), DM Walton (Worcestershire), MH Stevenson, WHH Sutcliffe (Yorkshire) Finest moment on the field Reaching the semi-final of the South and West Region of the Lord’s Taverners U15 in 2014 (lost to Portsmouth Grammar) Extras The venue for a first-class match between Wales and the South Africans in 1929, plus one Denbighshire match in 1934

outdoor net system, four-lane indoor facility Club/county affiliation Situated in Cumbria but strong links with all the northern first-class counties Brief history The first match was played in 1841 against Kirkby Lonsdale, though in those days the team was supplemented by masters and local players. The first proper school game was against Giggleswick in 1879 when the current ground was established.

A hundred years later the school undertook its first overseas tour to the West Indies and has toured regularly since with recent destinations including Barbados, South Africa and Sri Lanka Cricketers of note Jordan Clark (Lancashire). Current captain Harry Brook has recently signed a professional contract with Yorkshire and made his Championship debut against Middlesex in 2017. Norman

Mitchell-Innes is the only England player to have been produced by Sedbergh Best prospect Harry Brook, this year’s captain who is already playing county cricket for Yorkshire Finest moment on the field

Sedbergh has had considerable success in national competitions recently. In 2015 the U15s, U17s and 1st XI all reached National Finals.

The 1st XI went to Arundel for the National T20 finals day for the third year in a row

se venoaks SCHOOL // shenfield high SCHOOL

Eltham College Cricket professional David Smith Cricket master Chris Tavaré (Kent, Somerset & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13AB Girls’ cricket Girls play in some boys’ teams. Coco Streets plays for Sussex Facilities Three pitches, five

all-weather nets, three grass nets plus centre practice wickets, eight indoor nets Club/county affiliation Kent Brief history Sevenoaks were unbeaten by other schools for seven years in the 1970s. Four players went on to play professional cricket from that period. Former Essex cricketer Alan Hurd was

the inspirational coach. The late 1980s and early 1990s saw another series of excellent teams, including Omar and Shami Iqbal and Will House, who went on to win the Kent League with Sevenoaks Vine in 1997. Currently five players represent Kent, Surrey and Sussex age groups Cricketers of note James GrahamBrown (Kent & Derbyshire), Chris Tavaré (Kent, Somerset & England), Paul Downton (Kent, Middlesex & England), Guy Spelman (Kent), Will House (Kent & Sussex) and Tash Farrant (England Women) Best prospect Harry Houillon made his 1st XI debut in 2016 when in year 9, scoring 77 not out on debut. Now in year 10, he scored his maiden century, 103 not out, against Reigate Grammar. He plays for Kent U15s Extras Coaching is offered to boys and girls of all abilities and ages. A one-to-one programme has been going for five years and caters for over 40 pupils, starting at 7.30am throughout the year and is delivered by cricket professional David Smith. The Cricket Academies, for selected pupils both at Sevenoaks and other local schools, take place on Thursday evenings in Michaelmas term, run

by Rob Ferley. The school hosts two primary schools events each year

onto the Academy programme for 2017/18 Facilities Two outdoor synthetic nets, one astroturf wicket, two lane indoor nets including bowling machine. Use of Hutton CC and Shenfield CC for 1st XI and 2nd XI matches Club/county affiliation Essex, Shenfield CC, Hutton CC Cricketers of note Matthew Salisbury (Essex & Hampshire) Mady Villiers (Essex Women & Surrey HUB performance) Best prospect Tom Ballington (Shenfield CC 1st XI & Essex U17s) Extras The first state school to reach the Under-17 National Cup semi-final. Bi-annual tours to Cape Town South Africa – 2015, 2017 and 2019. Tour to Barbados as the first state school to play in the Sir Gary Sobers Tournament in 2010

Finest moment on the field Defeat of Bedford School by four runs to reach the National Cup semi-final in 2016. Beat Dulwich College to make the National Cup

quarter-final in 2013 Cultural cricketers Phillip Hammond (Chancellor of the Exchequer), Richard Madeley (TV presenter), Ross Kemp (actor)

Chris Tavare Cricket master

SEVENOAKS SCHOOL High Street Sevenoaks TN13 1HU Established 1432 Number of pupils 1,040 Notable fixtures MCC, King’s Canterbury, Judd, Sutton Valence,

SHENFIELD HIGH SCHOOL Alexander Lane Brentwood Essex CM15 8RY Established 1962 Number of pupils 1,100 Notable fixtures MCC, Millfield, Eastbourne College, Darren Lehmann Academy, Bancroft’s, St Albans, Bedford Cricket professional Richard Abson-Bennett (Level 2 coach, 1st XI player for Shenfield CC) Head of cricket Richard AbsonBennett Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14, U13, U12 Girls’ cricket U15 and U13s. School to have a Women’s 1st XI from next year with influx of U17 girls

thecricketer.com | 51

TOP 100 SCHOOLS SHERBORNE SCHOOL Abbey Road Sherborne Dorset DT9 3AP Established 1550 Number of pupils 560 Notable fixtures Millfield, King’s College Taunton, Marlborough, Cheltenham, Clifton, MCC Cricket professional Matthew Pardoe (Worcestershire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABC Facilities Seven grass pitches, 12 grass nets, 12 astroturf nets, fourlane indoor sports hall Club/county affiliation Dorset, Somerset and Hampshire Brief history The earliest record of cricket being played at Sherborne

SHREWSBURY SCHOOL Shrewsbury Shropshire SY3 7BA Established 1552 Notable fixtures Millfield, Eton, Malvern, Manchester Grammar, Sedbergh, MCC, Free Foresters Cricket professional Paul Pridgeon (Worcestershire), Adam Shantry (Northamptonshire, 52 | thecricketer.com

SHERBORNE SCHOOL // SHREWSBURY SCHOOL

School dates from August 1841 when Boarders played the Day Boys. The school’s first match against another school, King’s Bruton, was played in September 1846. In 1856 the school acquired its own pitch, The Upper, though it was two more years before the first proper pitch was levelled and records of the XIs began. In 1874 Sherborne made their sole appearance at Lord’s and scored a resounding victory over Rossall Cricketers of note Rev DS Sheppard (Sussex & England), Arthur Carr (Nottinghamshire & England), Jimmy Adams (Hampshire), Ollie Sale (Somerset) Best prospect Harry Fisher, wicketkeeper/batsman Extras Sherborne host minor counties games, which is a great chance for the boys to see an

excellent standard of cricket Finest moment on the field In 2015 the U15s reached the national final of the prestigious, two-year long ECB/ESCA Schools Trophy

competition losing by one run on the final ball of the match Cultural cricketers Chris Martin of Coldplay, and Downton Abbey actor Hugh Bonneville

Warwickshire & Glamorgan) Teams U18ABC, U17, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD Girls’ cricket U15 and U14 Facilities Six squares, 14 grass nets, four all-weather nets, four indoor lanes each with bowling machines (including a Merlyn), two astroturfs to practice fielding out of season. The only school to have a permanent, purpose-built, single-use indoor centre, about to go under a £50,000 refurbishment

Club/county affiliation Shropshire Brief history The school moved to the current site overlooking the town in 1882. Girls have been admitted to the sixth form since 2008 Cricketers of note James Taylor (Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire & England), Joe Leach and Ed Barnard (Worcestershire), David Lloyd (Glamorgan), Ruaidhri Smith (Glamorgan & Scotland),

Ed Pollock (Warwickshire), Oliver Westbury (Worcestershire) Finest moment on the field HMC U18 T20 Winners 2011 and 2013, Silk Trophy Winners 2006, 2009, 2013–15 Extras Shrewsbury represented England in the inaugural ISF World Schools T20 Championship in Mumbai in December 2016 Cultural cricketers Neville Cardus was assistant cricket coach 1912–16. Comedian Nick Hancock

SOU T H GLOUCES T ERSHIRE & S T ROUD COLLEGE // S T EDWARD’S SCHOOL, OXFORD

SOUTH GLOUCESTERSHIRE & STROUD COLLEGE Filton Avenue Filton Bristol BS34 7AT Established In 2012, following the merger between Filton College and Stroud College Number of pupils 15,000 students over three campuses in Bristol, Stroud and Berkeley Green Notable fixtures MCC, Millfield, Malvern, Blundell’s, King’s Taunton, Clifton College, BGS, Taunton School, Queen’s Taunton Cricket professional Simon Hinks (Kent & Gloucestershire) Teams SGS is a College of Further Education and has cricket opportunities for students aged 16 and above Girls’ cricket A Girls Academy is to be established but students can already participate in individual cricket programmes linked to Gloucestershire CCC. Notable students include Alexandra MacDonald (Gloucestershire & England Academy) Facilities Indoor facilities include

a four-lane cricket facility and two-lane facility courtesy of the County Ground, Bristol. Grass and artificial nets at two grounds Club/county affiliation Gloucestershire Cricketers of note Chris Dent (Gloucestershire & England U19s), Craig Miles (Gloucestershire, England EPP), James Bracey (Gloucestershire), Alexandra MacDonald (Gloucestershire Women) Best prospect Off-spinner George Drissell made his Gloucestershire debut in 2017 Extras The Bristol Academy of Sport has only ever received the top ranking of Outstanding by Ofsted since its inception over a decade ago. They have incredible facilities and support services – physiotherapy, sports sciences, strength and conditioning, video analysis. As a Further Education College students can study a range of A Levels, BTECs or apprenticeships alongside their cricketing ambitions Finest moment on the field As recently as 2015 SGS beat a strong Millfield side in the National Schools T20. In the past two seasons they have wins against some of the better HMC Schools sides in the south-west

ST EDWARD’S SCHOOL, OXFORD Woodstock Oxford Oxfordshire OX2 7NN Established 1863 Number of pupils 670 Notable fixtures Harrow, Eton, Winchester, Radley, Marlborough, Cheltenham, MCC, Free Foresters, Oxford University, Oxford MCCU Cricket master Richard Howitt Cricket professional David Simpkins (Gloucestershire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD Girls’ cricket Girls’ 1st XI played their first match in 2015 Facilities Six grounds, four-lane indoor nets in Douglas Bader Sports centre, six outdoor astro nets, eight outdoor grass nets, 18-strip cover on 1st XI square, a blotter and a Merlyn bowling machine Club/county affiliation Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire (whose satellite academy is based at St Edward’s through the winter) Brief history Cricket has always been played at St Edward’s, originating in the playground at New Inn Hall Street, Oxford and thence to various parts of the surrounding areas including public parks, Port Meadow, the Meads (today’s quad), Keble College and finally Upper One. The earliest records for the school XI date from 1873, in which six games were played, with three victories and three defeats. By 1879 the number of fixtures had risen to 19 (15 won).

Indeed, no XI in the school’s history surpassed that feat until the 2012 side recorded 16 victories and the 2013 side 17. The 1st XI has also had two unbeaten seasons, in 1968 and 1998 Cricketers of note RH Bencraft (Hampshire), EG ‘Teddy’ Wynyard (Hampshire & England), FW Terry (Somerset & Canada), P Hutchinson (South Africa), AM de Labat (New Zealand), PA Gibb (Yorkshire, Essex & England), RHJ Brooke (Gloucestershire), P Cranmer (Warwickshire) EJH Dixon (Northamptonshire), ANE Waldron (Hampshire), THC Hancock (Gloucestershire), MAH Hammond (Gloucestershire), CM Dickinson (Oxford MCCU) Best prospect Ben Charlesworth, who went on England U16 tour to Sri Lanka in 2017. Skipper AJ Woodland was Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year in 2016 Extras Upper One lies one mile from the centre of Oxford. Links to the world of cricket lie not merely in the playing of the wonderful game and the most notable old boy in that respect is cricket writer John Woodcock Finest moment on the field Beating the Oxford University Blues in 2014 and 2015 and Oxford MCCU at The Parks in 2017.

Also being the first school to win the John Harvey Cup for four consecutive years (2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016) Cultural cricketers Kenneth Grahame played for St Edward’s 2nd XI and was the Oxford Chronicle cricket reporter during his time at the school. Douglas Bader represented the 1st XI for four years

thecricketer.com | 53

TOP 100 SCHOOLS

ST PAUL’S SCHOOL Lonsdale Road London SW13 9JT Established 1509 Number of pupils 955 in the senior school and 447 in the

ST PETER’S SCHOOL, YORK Clifton York YO30 6AB Established 627 Notable fixtures MCC, Yorkshire Gentlemen, Free Foresters, Durham, Ampleforth, Denstone.

Two fixtures dating back to 1853 against Pocklington, and 1856 54 | thecricketer.com

S T PAUL’S SCHOOL // S T PE T ER’S SCHOOL, YORK

junior school Notable fixtures Eton, Merchant Taylors’ Northwood, Dulwich, MCC, Cranleigh, Radley, Hampton Director of cricket Nigel Briers (Leicestershire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABCD, U11ABCD, U10ABCD, U9ABCD,

U8ABCD Facilities Five indoor cricket nets, seven outdoor nets, eight grounds Club/county affiliation Middlesex Brief history St Paul’s School is a boys’ independent school, founded in 1509 by John Colet and located on a 43-acre site by the River Thames, in Barnes. It is one of the original nine British public schools, the so-called Clarendon Schools set up in 1861. According to its position in the national tables of GCSE and A Level performance, and with the second highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rates of any secondary school or college, St Paul’s is considered one of the leading academic schools in the country Cricketers of note Percy Fender (Sussex, Surrey & England), Aubrey Faulkner (South Africa) Best prospect Abdullah Nazir (17) is an able left-arm spinner.

He is currently playing 2nd XI and Academy matches with Sussex Extras The school used to play at

The Oval for 25 years up to 1884.

Surrey use the present ground for junior county matches. The first Duke of Marlborough, John Churchill, was at St Paul’s School in the early 1660s and there is much evidence that the practice of playing cricket had already reached London from Kent. It is, therefore, reasonable to conclude that St Paul’s School was one of the first schools to take up the game of cricket Finest moment on the field In 2015 Tom Powe (134) and Harveer Mahajan (105) both scored centuries against Hampton in a score of 301 for 4 off 50 overs.

Winning a record 12 matches against other schools from 13 fixtures in the 2016 season was a particular highlight Cultural cricketers Awardwinning novelist Patrick Neate and actor/director Harry Burton played 1st XI cricket, as did actor/voiceover Jonathan Kydd, actor Rory Kinnear played in junior teams

Extras The school is the thirdoldest in the UK and fourtholdest in the world. The school still contests some of the oldest schoolboy fixtures in the country Finest moment on the field U13 Oli Tomalin took 10 for 7 from 3.5 overs in the RNCF 2nd Cup match this year. Including a hat-trick and five wickets in six balls – all of the dismissals were clean bowled. St Olave’s have made the U13 RNCF finals day seven times in eight years, winning it beating Millfield by 64 runs in 2011. The U18s in 2013 got to the HMC T20 North of England Finalists. U15 Lord’s Taverners North of England finalists 2010

against Leeds Grammar that are still part of the fixture list Head coach Gareth Sharp Cricket professional David Foster Teams Seven in St Peter’s (1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, Development XI, U15AB, U14AB) and 10 in St Olave’s Prep U13, U12, U11, U10, U9 AB Girls’ cricket Girls’ cricket is very much on the Games programme radar. It is offered as an after-school club in the prep school Facilities Two sports halls, four bowling machines, 10 artificial

nets, six grass nets, four cricket grounds with county covers and sightscreens, four mobile batting cages, ECB Level 2 and 3 cricket coaches throughout the school Club/county affiliation York CC and Yorkshire Brief history “Older than the House of Commons, older than the Universities, older than the Lord Mayoralty, older even than the throne or nation itself” – Arthur F Leach, November 1892. Founded in 627 AD, with Guy Fawkes among its alumni, St Peter’s School is an independent co-educational day and boarding school (aged 3–18) in the centre of the historic city of York. The first recorded game of cricket played at St Peter’s was in 1853 when the school XI played Pocklington. Cricket now lies at the centre of the sporting calendar in the summer term throughout the school Cricketers of note Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire & England), Frank Mitchell (Yorkshire, England & South Africa), Norman Yardley (Yorkshire & England), Brian Sellars, Steve Coverdale, David Kirby (a former master-in-charge, housemaster and teacher)

S TAMFORD SCHOOL

STAMFORD SCHOOL Southfields House St Paul’s Street Stamford PE9 2BQ Established 1532 Notable fixtures MCC, XL Club Cricket professional Dean Headley (Middlesex, Kent & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC U13ABC, U12ABC Girls’ cricket It is played at the girls’ school, Stamford High School, and the Junior school, Stamford Junior School. From time to time, high-performing girls are incorporated into the boys’ coaching programme and matches Facilities Indoor nets at two

venues with four lanes each plus an array of bowling machines. Six lanes of artificial outdoor nets – with full run-ups – 40m long. Large main square with 15 strips – which is also used for practice sessions.

Second square of six strips. Two astro strips. Two additonal astro pitches at the junior school Club/county affiliation Links with Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire and Huntingdonshire Brief history Cricket was played in Stamford at least as early as 1771.

But organised games only came into fashion in schools after the 19th century was well advanced.

Under Gretton (1833–71) the school went to a field off Barnack Road for cricket. By 1885 the school was playing cricket on its own ground, but the playing

area was not large enough and the editor of The Stamfordian expressed the hope that the school “might acquire Mr Huckbody’s field as well”. This field is part of what is now the main playing field Cricketers of note MJK Smith (Leicestershire, Warwickshire & England, captained England at cricket and had one cap for England at rugby), Shan Masood (Pakistan), Zak Chappell (Leicestershire) Extras In the past few years a charity cricket event has been held that has raised more than £75,000 for The Matt Hampson Foundation, and attracts around 1,500–2,000 spectators. Players have included Herschelle Gibbs and Andrew Flintoff. Events are also held here such as a Lord’s Long Room dinner, which the school

introduced in 2011 and will look to do every five to 10 years. The school is interested in enthusing youngsters about the game, which is most important at any ability. The coaching programme is extensive starting in autumn half-term and running through to the end of the summer. Cricket is played from years 3 to 13 Finest moment on the field Recently 54 boys toured Sri Lanka.

The school is committed to touring every two years for year 9 and 10 as an open age group. In 2017, the U15s became Midlands Champions in the ESCA one-day cup Cultural cricketers Simon Hodgkinson (England), Ian Stafford (author & broadcaster), Colin Dexter (creator of Inspector Morse), Nick Anstee (former Lord Mayor of the City of London) thecricketer.com | 55

A rich history and evolving vision of cricketing excellence

A proud tradition

of cricketing excellence 11+, 13+ and 16+ scholarships available

Sports scholarships available at 11+, 13+ and 16+ at the Top co-educational day school in Surrey

(four years running, The Telegraph and The Sunday Times)

www.cliftoncollege.com

outstanding provision in a world class setting Sports scholarships available for boys and girls aged 13 to 18

www.Eastbourne-College.co.uk T: 01323 452323 • E: admissions@eastbourne-college.co.uk • Join us on HM C I ND E P E ND E NT S CH O O L • B OA RDING A ND DAY • B OYS A ND GI RLS 13 TO 18

Reigate Grammar School, Reigate Road, Reigate, Surrey RH2 0QS reigategrammar.org  RGSSport  @RGSSport

TOP 100

SCHOOLS CRICKET

A-Z GUIDE 2017

Contact: Mr James Leck, RGS Head of Cricket jcl@reigategrammar.org

s t ewar t ’s melville college // s t owe school

Queensferry Road Edinburgh Scotland EH4 3EZ Notable fixtures MCC, Fettes, Merchiston, Dollar, Edinburgh, High School of Glasgow, Glasgow Academy, Strathallan, Glenalmond, George Watson’s. With Cricket Scotland, Stewart’s Melville held a fixture for boys from state schools who are in the Scotland development squads to play against the school’s 1st XI Cricket professional Dewald Nel

STOWE SCHOOL Ouse Valley Way Stowe Buckinghamshire MK18 5EH Established 1923 Number of pupils 450 boys, 350 girls Notable fixtures Harrow, Marlborough, Radley, Bedford, Oakham, MCC, Uppingham, Oundle, Rugby, Abingdon, MCS Oxford, Bradfield, Oratory, Bedford Modern, Bromsgrove Director of cricket James Knott (Surrey & Bedfordshire) Cricket professionals Andy O’Connor and David Capel (Northants) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD Girls’ cricket There is a girls’ 1st XI. They are hoping to offer two teams from 2018. They have a young U14 wicketkeeper/batsmen who is on the Northants EPP programme.

Talented female cricketers can play in the boys’ teams Facilities Four lanes of indoor nets, three BOLA bowling machines, one Merlyn, 11 lanes of turf nets, 10 lanes of astro nets, seven turf squares Club/county affiliation Northants, Bucks, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Bedfordshire and Middlesex Cricketers of note Ben Duckett (Northants & England), Liam Gough (Essex), Graeme White (Northants & Notts), Mark

(Scotland, Kent & Worcestershire) Teams 16 boys’ teams are fielded, plus more than 70 girls playing aged five to seven Girls’ cricket PE teacher Pippa Johnston has launched girls’ cricket Facilities Six indoor nets at Mary Erskine’s Girls School. Four indoor nets at the boys’ school. Eighteen outdoor nets and the largest bank of all-weather practice wickets in Scotland, with 13 Club/county affiliation Scotland Finest moment on the field Since the Scottish Cup began five years ago, Stewart’s Melville College have played in four finals. This year 12 boys have played for Scotland U15s and U18s

James Knott Director of cricket

Nelson (Northants), Ben Howgego (Northants), Sean Morris (Hampshire), Rob White (Northants), Jason de la Pena (Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, Surrey & Kent) Best prospect Adam King, a wicketkeeper/batsman on the Northants Academy Extras The 1st XI and 2nd XI squares are in front and behind of what was once the palace of the Dukes of Buckingham – one of the most picturesque cricket settings in the world. Northants 2nd XI play an annual fixture and the school has also hosted a 1st XI Pro40, county youth fixtures and training camps.

Hosted the Bunbury Festival in 2017 and have also hosted the full Bunbury side. A comprehensive on and off-season programme that involves a lot of individual attention on technique, fitness, gameplans and the mental side of the game.

The school has reached the semifinals of the National T20 twice as well as the regional finals of the U15 National T20 twice Finest moment on the field Beating Menlo Park in the final of the 2015 T20 festival. It was the last game of the season and Menlo had just been crowned T20 champions

chapman and son

Stewart’s Melville College

in South Africa. An incredible bowling and fielding display saw Stowe restrict them to 116 for 9 and they managed to knock them off four down. It capped off a great season, where the 1st XI only

lost one match. There was also a National T20 semi-final win against a Shrewsbury side that included James Taylor. Stowe needed 15 off the final over and got it with four off the last ball thecricketer.com | 57

Top 100 Schools TAUNTON SCHOOL Staplegrove Road Taunton Somerset TA2 6AD Established 1847 Number of pupils 530 Notable fixtures Millfield (girls and one junior match) but plans for a block fixture next year, King’s Taunton, Sherborne, MCC Director of cricket Pete Sanderson Cricket professionals Marcus Trescothick (head of cricket development), Jack Leach (Somerset), Tom Abell (Somerset) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15AB, U14AB Girls’ cricket 1st XI, U16, U15, both winter and summer teams Facilities Eight grass pitches (four at any one time); 12 artificial surfaces outdoors and seven indoors across the whole school.

There are seven pitches available for the boys and girls across seniors and juniors Club/county affiliation Somerset and Somerset schools’ association Brief history Taunton School was founded in 1847 as a boys-only school for dissenters – those who

THE HABERDASHERS’ ASKE’S BOYS’ SCHOOL Butterfly Lane Elstree WD6 3AF Established 1690 Number of pupils Main school: 1124; prep and pre-prep: 288 Notable fixtures Bancroft’s, Berkhamsted, Felsted, MCC, Magdalen College, Merchant Taylors’ Northwood, St Albans, Exeter CC; annual fixture against the Fraser Bird XI – a side regularly features first-class cricketers; the school takes an annual Devon Tour Master in charge of cricket Stephen Charlwood Cricket professionals James Hewitt (former Middlesex & Kent) is employed by both Haberdashers’ and Middlesex and works alongside current head coach Dan Kerry as part of a developing partnership.

Haberdashers’ also employs an 58 | thecricketer.com

taun t on School // T he haberdashers’ ask e’s boys’ School

were not members of the Church of England. In the 1870s, the school’s governors purchased a site at the northern end of Taunton, on Staplegrove Road where they built a gothic-influenced building.

This Grade II listed building still dominates the school’s 90-acre campus today. In 1976 Taunton School completed its merger with Weirfield School to became one of the earliest fully co-educational independent schools in England. In 1990, in order to create closer links between the two junior schools and Taunton School, Taunton Junior School and Weirfield were renamed Taunton Junior Boys’ School and Taunton Junior Girls’ School, respectively. Following moderisation processes these schools still exist today as Taunton Preparatory and Senior Schools Cricketers of note Tom Abell (Somerset), Jodie Dibble (England, Western Storm, Somerset, Devon & Berkshire), Aftab Habib (England, Essex, Leicestershire & Middlesex), Ricky Bartlett (Somerset), Nicholas Pringle (Somerset), Piran Holloway (Somerset & Warwickshire), John Jameson (England & Warwickshire), Thomas Jameson (Warwickshire), John Cameron

external coach (Mark Broom, former Middlesex 2nd XI) to help in the prep school. Doug Yeabsley (Devon & Minor Counties) was a full-time member of staff for many years Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC, U11AB, U10AB, U9AB, U8AB Girls’ cricket Coaching for sister school Facilities Three grass squares, three synthetic strips, three artificial nets, five grass nets and an ‘open’ net plus a two-lane indoor centre that includes instant-replay and video-analysis systems Club/county affiliation Hertfordshire, Middlesex, Sidmouth and Exeter in Devon Cricketers of note Richard Yeabsley (Middlesex) Best prospect Naresh Rasakulasuriar (year 12); looking further ahead Tom Fielden and Jay Madan (year 6)

(West Indies), Alan Gibson (Oxford University), Alan Marshall (Somerset) and Jack ‘Farmer’ White (Somerset & England, who was Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1929) Best prospect Oscar Samuel (Somerset U15) Extras Link with Somerset, partly due to Pete Sanderson, director of cricket, who spent 23 years working at Somerset at all levels up from the playground to 10 seasons with the professional teams. The grounds are used for 2nd XI cricket and Somerset youth teams, both

boys and girls. The ECB/Somerset academy use the main ground and nets as a summer practice facility Finest moment on the field The highest score on The Front (main ground) was by Leslie Marshall who scored 213 in July 1926; Sachin Tendulkar scored an unbeaten hundred including hitting a ball on the railway track, and Abell set a school record for hundreds on the Front in 2012 Cultural cricketers Geoffrey Cox (Conservative MP), Alan Gibson (cricket writer) and Jeremy Wright (attorney general)

Extras There is huge enthusiasm for cricket, particularly from within the school’s Asian community.

Regular overseas tours are taken every two or three years. The school have been to Hong Kong, Singapore Malaysia, South Africa and Dubai, and returned to Sri Lanka for a fourth time in October.

The school also hosts visiting touring sides most years from Australia, South Africa and New Zealand Cultural cricketers Sir Martin Sorrell (CEO of WPP plc) was captain in 1963. Manoj Badale (exchairman of Rajasthan Royals in the IPL) was captain in 1986

t he judd school // t he k ing’s school, can t erbury

THE JUDD SCHOOL Brook Street Tonbridge Kent TN9 2PN Established 1888 Number of pupils 1,150 Notable fixtures Eltham College, Reigate Grammar, Sevenoaks School, Sutton Valence, King’s Canterbury, Caterham College Head coach Ralph Richardson Teams 14 team, ranging from 1st XI to U12 Girls’ cricket Girls in sixth form can play in senior sides Facilities School site: grass cricket square (with one artificial strip), eight artificial nets, four-lane indoor sports hall nets. New offsite playing fields: two grass cricket squares (with one artificial strip), one artificial strip Club/county affiliation Kent Cricketers of note David Fulton and Julian Thompson (Kent) Best prospect Sam Ward Extras Judd is a state grammar

school that continues to run a full Saturday fixture programme for all teams from year 7 to sixth form.

Judd regularly appears in the final

stages of county competitions in all age groups. Judd runs a winter academy for up to 90 students, and runs senior tours to Barbados

biannually (2018 tour has 33 players and three teams travelling) Finest moment on the field Semifinalists of the 2010 U13 ESCA

Hants & England), Claude Haines (Glamorgan), John Hellard (Somerset), Richard Juckes (Sussex), Robert Minns (Oxford University & Kent), John Phillips

and Ian Potter (both Oxford Uni & Kent), Graham Pritchard (Cambridge Uni & Essex), Alfred Richardson (Cambridge Uni, Somerset & Gloucestershire),

Jethro Robinson (Cambridge University & Sussex), Oliver Robinson (Sussex), Charles Rowe (Kent & Glamorgan), Philip Sankey (Cambridge Uni, Oxford & Kent)

The King’s School, Canterbury 25 The Precincts Canterbury Kent CT1 2ES Established 597 Notable fixtures MCC, Band of Brothers, Eastbourne, Reed’s, Felsted, Sutton Valence, Whitgift Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15AB, U14AB Girls’ cricket Introduced in 2016 by Susie Rowe, ex-England Women Facilities Three grass wickets, two astro wickets, 14 grass nets, four astro nets, two indoor nets. Kent 2nd XI visit for annual two-day and one-day games at the Birley’s Playing Fields Club/county affiliation Kent Cricketers of note Geoffrey Austin, Henry Barber, Henry Biron, Alfred Gillow, Edward Swann (all Kent), Cecil Bodington, William Maundrell and Cecil Paris (all Hampshire), Edward Collings and Wilfred Kempe (Somerset), Paul Dixey (Kent & Leicestershire), David Gower (Leicestershire,

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TOP 100 SCHOOLS THE KING’S SCHOOL IN MACCLESFIELD Cumberland Street Macclesfield Cheshire SK10 1DA Established 1502 Notable fixtures MCC, Sedbergh, Leeds Grammar, Bolton Grammar, RGS Lancaster, Manchester Grammar Director of cricket Stephen Moores Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB Girls’ cricket The school holds an annual cricket ‘away day’ for all year 5 boys and girls. They enter the Lady Taverners competition each year – at U13 and U15 age groups.

Recent leaver Hannah Gradwell played for the 1st XI for two seasons as well as Cheshire Women Facilities The school has five new all-weather nets at the boys’

THE LEYS SCHOOL Fen Causeway Cambridge Cambridgeshire CB2 7AD Established 1875 Notable fixtures MCC, Cambridge University Crusaders, Gentlemen of Cambridge, Norwich, Wellingborough, Felsted, Haileybury

T HE K ING’S SCHOOL IN MACCLESFIELD // T HE LE YS SCHOOL

site and three at the junior/girls site. Four grass squares and three artificial Club/county affiliation Cheshire, Macclesfield CC Brief history The recent celebration of 150 years of cricket on the current site unearthed a photo of the team in 1865 Cricketers of note Mike Davies (Northants), Peter Moores (Worcestershire & Sussex) Extras There are a number of players playing a high standard of league cricket locally, plus a lot of social cricketers. Moores, who went on to coach England and currently is head coach of Nottinghamshire, said: “We had a great schoolmaster at the King’s School in Macclesfield called Ian Wilson, who had such fantastic enthusiasm for the game that if we wanted to net until seven at night he would stay behind” Finest moment on the field In the 2011 festival the school 1st XI scored 853 runs, conceding just 144.

King’s scored four centuries in the three games, with Ben Marsden and Tom Foreman scoring one each and Andrew Hodgson two. They bowled Magdalen College School Oxford out for 14, with Jonny Marsden taking 6 for 7 and Tom Foreman 4 for 6

Cricket professional Richard Kaufman (Oxfordshire) Teams 11 Girls’ cricket There is girls’ cricket at Leys. The U15s reached the last 16 of the Lady Taverners Indoor Competition Facilities Purpose-built twolane indoor school, two bowling machines, video analysis equipment, two grass cages, five artificial lanes, four grass squares.

Planning approved for additional

six outdoor artificial lanes Club/county affiliation The best players move onto the Northants Academy. Many players play for Cambridgeshire or Hertfordshire Brief history The Leys was established in February 1875 and in its second term Cricket was introduced. Before the Great War, the school produced several firstclass cricketers, including Gordon Bevas for Nottinghamshire, William Brown for Gloucestershire

Stephen Moores Director of cricket

and Thomas Hill for Somerset.

The school’s most distinguished cricketer in that era, though, was Bernard Holloway, who played for Sussex and was a member of the MCC touring party in the first tour to the West Indies Cricketers of note Justin Benson (Leicestershire) Extras Hosted Unicorns (Minor County) Knockout Trophy oneday game (Cambridgeshire v Cumberland in 2017)

T HE MANCHES T ER GRAMMAR SCHOOL // T HE ORAT ORY SCHOOL

THE MANCHESTER GRAMMAR SCHOOL Old Hall Lane Manchester M13 0XT Established 1515 Notable fixtures Shrewsbury, Sedbergh, Leeds Grammar, MCC Director of cricket Mike Watkinson (Lancashire & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB, U12AB, U11AB, U10AB Facilities New indoor facility with four cricket nets, three grass squares (1st XI, intermediate and junior school), six grass practice pitches and four outdoor artificial practice nets. Artificial match pitch.

Extensive covering for all outdoor pitches Club/county affiliation Lancashire Brief history Boys are provided with many chances to represent the school. Academic staff and specialist coaches have helped develop the skills of sportsmen since the school moved out from the cramped city centre to a new site in Fallowfield, surrounded by pitches, during the 1930s. However, even before the move south of the city, former pupil Herbert Toft went on to play rugby union for England,

and Robert Crawshaw and Douglas Lowe had won Olympic gold medals in water polo and athletics respectively. More recently, Mike Atherton represented England in 115 Test matches and 54 ODIs Cricketers of note Atherton (Lancashire & England), John Crawley (Lancashire, Hampshire & England), David Green (Lancashire & Gloucestershire), Mark Crawley

(Lancashire & Nottinghamshire), Gary Yates (Lancashire), Mark Chilton (Lancashire), Scott Richardson (Yorkshire & Leicestershire), Lee Marland (Lancashire) Extras Manchester Grammar was founded to provide an education of the highest quality for those who qualified by virtue of their intelligence, regardless of parental

background. The school proudly remains true to this objective in modern times and has raised more than £25m to ensure that more than 200 pupils receive meanstested bursaries. Atherton and Chilton are both patrons of the fundraising, which aims to raise an endowment of over £100m Finest moment on the field Seven pupils went on to achieve national

editor of The Cricketer, said that he had “always had a soft spot for The Oratory since my old friend DCF Burton coached them to four successive victories in the late 1930s despite the place being almost devoid of boys. It seemed an annual miracle.” The 1st XI cricket field, behind the school,

was excavated and laid out in 1946/47 “as a tribute to those Old Oratorians who served in WW2 and in memory of those who gave their lives.” The pavilion was built in 1958 Cricketers of note Steve Tomlinson (Glamorgan), Benny Howell (Hants & Gloucs), Daniel Housego (Middlesex & Gloucs),

THE ORATORY SCHOOL Woodcote Reading Berkshire RG8 0PJ Established 1859 Notable fixtures Eton, Bradfield, Reed’s, St Edward’s Oxford Cricket professional Dan Housego (Middlesex & Glos CCC) Teams 12 Facilities Seven squares, 12 nets, four indoor lanes Club/county affiliation Oxfordshire Brief history In 1873 a ground was acquired at Ravenhurst under the headship of John Norris. The captain of school and a prominent OS cricketer – an opening bowler – in the late 1880s was John Pius Boland who won two gold medals at the Athens Olympics in 1896

Steve Tomlinson Director of cricket for tennis. The headmaster from 1921–1934 was Fr Edward Pereira (OS 1876–85), a county cricketer for Warwickshire who is believed to be the only Catholic priest to play first-class cricket. His school record for throwing the cricket ball (115 yards, 1 foot, 9 inches) still holds good. In 1896, he gave family money to expand the Ravenshurst Grounds and in 1900 to build a new pavilion. The Oratory took part in an annual match at Lord’s against Beaumont from 1926 to 1968. This was the only Lord’s fixture between Catholic public schools. In the late 1930s when the school was very small, a team was still fielded. EW Swanton, former

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Top 100 Schools

ROYAL GRAMMAR SCHOOL, WORCES T ER // T HE ROYAL HOSPI TAL SCHOOL

Royal Grammar School, Worcester Upper Tything Worcester Worcestershire WR1 1HP Established 1291 Notable fixtures MCC, all Royal Grammar Schools, King Edward’s Birmingham, King’s Worcester, Monmouth Cricket professional Phil Newport (Worcestershire & England) Teams 11 – 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15AB, U14AB, U13AB,U12AB Girls’ cricket Girls play in boys’ teams; U12 girls’ team started this year with the view to building to all age groups Facilities Five-lane indoor sports hall, 12 outdoor nets, two main grounds at the senior school (four

THE ROYAL HOSPITAL SCHOOL Holbrook Ipswich Suffolk IP9 2RX Established 1712 in Greenwich, London. In 1933, moved to its current 200-acre site in the Suffolk countryside overlooking the River Stour Number of pupils 750 Notable fixtures 1st XI v MCC, XL Club and touring sides from New Zealand (Mount Albert Grammar); U15 English Schools Cup v Haberdashers’ Aske’s, Minor Counties Festivals U11 and U12 Cricket professional Graham Napier (Essex) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12 ABC Girls’ cricket Girls’ cricket is in its second season and growing in popularity across age groups. They play fixtures and tournaments across the region Facilities Six grounds, two pavilions, six grass nets, four indoor nets and bowling machine, strength and conditioning gym, fitness suite and indoor pool Club/county affiliation Essex

62 | thecricketer.com

pitches in total) and a 16-acre site at the prep school used mainly for B team matches County affiliation Worcestershire Brief history Cricket has been played at Flagge Meadow for 130

years. Originally teams made up of masters and pupils played matches against local clubs. Then in the early 20th century matches for pupils only were started against Cheltenham Grammar (now

Brief history The Royal Hospital School was established in 1712 to educate boys for a life at sea.

Today the school is a leading HMC boarding and day school for over 750 boys and girls aged 11–18 years, but it still continues to provide support for seafaring families. Ex-professional Napier joined the school in September 2016 from Essex to establish the Graham Napier Cricket Academy, providing grassroots to elite player development Cricketers of note Don Topley (Essex) and Reece Topley (Essex & Hampshire) Best prospect Following in the family footsteps, grandson of cricketing legend Colin Cowdrey and son of Graham Cowdrey, Michael Cowdrey captained the 1st XI this year and is now following his passion with a season in Australia Finest moment on the field U15 tour to Sri Lanka in 2009 to visit partner schools. The tsunami of December 2004 killed more than 40,000 people in Sri Lanka alone and devastated the southern coastal areas of the island. This spurred the school to do something meaningful to help by supporting a school building project in the tsunami-ravaged region. Links were made with St Mary’s Convent

for girls and St Servatius College for boys, both in Southern Sri Lanka. These links extended beyond a simple short-term fundraising initiative to a long-term relationship and in the summer of 2006, 120 pupils and staff went on a Band and Cultural tour to Sri Lanka which generated a cultural awareness and understanding of the island and how it had been affected. The partnerships have continued and the tour in 2009 rekindled friendships made and support given.

Cultural cricketers On a sunny day in June 1997, TV presenter

Pate’s Grammar), King Edwards’ Stourbridge, King Edward’s Birmingham and Wolverhampton Grammar. And cricket has flourished since, the highlight of the season now being the RGS Festival involving the six Royal Grammar Schools across the country Cricketers of note Imran Khan (Worcestershire & Pakistan), Tim Curtis (Worcs & England), Dean Headley (Middx, Kent & England), Paul Bent, Steve McEwan , Chris Eyers, Neil Pinner (all Worcs) James Schofield (Hampshire), Tom Mees, Roy Woodcock, Kevin Griffith Extras Flagge Meadow is now the second ground for Worcestershire should New Road be unfit for first-class cricket, they host 2nd XI and academy matches, ECB county women’s matches as well as many youth fixtures

Graham Napier Director of cricket and comedian Griff Rhys Jones captained a team of celebrities in aid of the St Elizabeth Hospice.

More than 4,500 spectators witnessed the showbiz team battle against the Royal Hospital School 1st XI. Players included Rhys Jones, Samantha Janus, Richard E Grant, Clive Anderson, Jeff Banks, Rory McGrath and Hugh Laurie

tiffin SCHOOL // tonbridge SCHOOL

TIFFIN SCHOOL Queen Elizabeth Road Surrey KT2 6RL Established Probably in the 17th century, by local brewers the Tiffin brothers. The school has stood on its present site since the 1920s Notable fixtures MCC, Incogniti, 50/40 League in Surrey. Edinburgh Festival this year at George Watson’s College. Tiffin runs a 1st XI tour to Holland each July Teams 13 from 1st XI to U12 Facilities Four indoor nets, eight artificial nets, three cricket squares Club/county affiliation Surrey and Middlesex Brief history Tiffin is fortunate to have their own sports ground at Hampton Court, through the vision of their legendary headmaster, the Brigadier JJ Harper back in the ’60s Cricketers of note Alec Stewart (Surrey & England), Chris Aworth (Surrey), Mark Feltham (Middlesex), Gregor Kennis (Surrey & Somerset), Brendan O’Connell (Watrwickshire), Arun Harinath (Surrey) Extras Apart from seeing Alec Stewart through the ranks of the

TONBRIDGE SCHOOL High Street Tonbridge Kent TN9 1JP Established 1553 Notable fixtures Cowdrey Cup (Eton, Harrow, Wellington, Radley, Charterhouse). Annual cricket festival with Millfield and two touring sides (St Andrew’s of South Africa and Newington of Australia in 2017 Cricket professionals Ian Baldock and Richie Oliver (Worcestershire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, 5th XI, 6th XI, 7th XI, U16AB, U15ABCD, U14ABCDEF Facilities Seven grass squares, two astro wickets, 15 grass nets, 10 artificial nets, five indoor nets Club/county affiliation Kent, Surrey and Essex, Tunbridge Wells CC, Sevenoaks Vine CC,

school, the master in charge of cricket and of 1st XI cricket is now in his 42nd season at the school Finest moment on the field The 1st XI match v MCC in 1979 when Neil Stewart captained a 1st XI containing his brother, Alec, Mark Feltham, Simon Clews, Jon

Green and Paul Robinson, all of whom played for the Surrey Young Cricketers at the time and who toured Australia with Micky Stewart as manager. The MCC side in that match was captained by Micky and contained a very young Monte Lynch, who was yet to play

his first match for Surrey, Hugh ‘Flea’ Wilson, who played for Surrey and England and Mike Willett Cultural cricketers John Etheridge (The Sun cricket correspondent) played here at the same time as Alec and represented the school at a respectable 2nd XI level

Holmesdale CC Cricketers of note 67 first-class cricketers, 49 county cricketers, seven England players (JC Hartley, KL Hutchings, MC Cowdrey, RM Prideaux, CS Cowdrey, RM Ellison & Ed Smith). Current county player: Zak Crawley (Kent) Extras The 2017 season included 226 boys, 19 teams, 156 competitive fixtures, plus participation in four cup competitions and three house competitions. The school have had 67 first-class cricketers and seven Test payers, have won the old boys’ cricket tournament more than twice as many times as any other school, and have been the losing finalists more than any other school. The 1st XI ground, The Head, is renowned both locally and nationally, and having first been levelled for cricket in 1838 has been used ever since. The annual fixture against Clifton at Lord’s between 1914 and 1967 was proudly

reinstated in 2014 as part of the Lord’s bicentenary celebrations Finest moment on the field Won the Lord’s Taverners Kent Cup nine times out of the last 10 seasons. In The Cricketer Cup, the Old Boys have come second more times than any other school, and the only side to win it three times in a row

(2002–04) Cultural cricketers Tim RiceOxley of Keane was in the 1994 1st XI. Sir Herbert Baker, imperial and Commonwealth War Graves architect, captained the 1st XI in 1880 and 1881. Their annual old boys match has been renamed the KL Hutchings memorial match

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T REN T COLLEGE

TRENT COLLEGE Derby Road Long Eaton Nottingham Nottinghamshire NG10 4AD Established In 1868, and two cricket matches were recorded the next year

Notable fixtures MCC, plus Trent College play on a strong circuit in the midlands which also includes Oakham, Uppingham, Rugby, plus Derbyshire U17 Cricket professional Paul Johnson (Notts) Head of cricket Scott Boswell (Northants & Leicestershire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, 4th XI, U15 ABC, U14 ABCD, U13

ABCD, U12 ABCDE Girls’ cricket At U13, U15, U18 level Facilities Four indoor lanes, 11 grass nets, four grounds plus junior Club/county affiliation Strong links with Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire Brief history Trent had a top side by 1872, although it included five

teachers. The star was Holyoake who took 68 wickets for 276 runs Cricketers of note Russell Cobb (Leics), Noël Gie (Notts), Ben Spendlove (Derbyshire), Akhil Patel (Notts & Derbyshire) Shane Julien. Simon Webster, Michael Tilcock, Connor Marshall and Tim Wyatt on Notts’ books Extras Notts and Derbyshire 2nd XIs play at Trent College thecricketer.com | 65

Top 100 Schools

t rini t y school // uppinGham school

TRINITY SCHOOL Shirley Park Croydon Surrey CR9 7AT Established 1596 Number of pupils 950 Notable fixtures Whitgift, King’s Canterbury, Epsom College, Hampton, RGS Guildford, Ardingly College, Eastbourne College, Kings College School Wimbledon Director of cricket Richard Risebro Cricket professional Alistair Brown (Surrey, Nottinghamshire & England) Teams 22 teams ranging from U11 to U18 Girls’ cricket Trinity has recently become a co-educational sixth form, with Kira Chathli becoming the first lady cricketer to represent the 1st XI. In last year’s MCC fixture, Chathli received the MCC Spirit of Cricket award Facilities Four cricket squares, four astro nets, three grass nets, three roll on cages, two indoor sports halls with the main hall having five nets, fitness suit, strength and conditioning centre Club/county affiliation Surrey Brief history The first recorded cricket match involving Trinity School (then Whitgift Middle School) was in 1905 against Colfe’s. The school moved to their current ground in 1966. In 1987, Mark Butcher scored 152 runs and

UPPINGHAM SCHOOL High Street West Uppingham Oakham Rutland LE15 Established 1584 Notable fixtures MCC, Repton, Haileybury, Shrewsbury, Rugby, Oundle Cricket professional Trevor Ward (Kent & Leicestershire) Director of cricket Chris Read (Nottinghamshire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U16AB, U15ABC, U14ABCD 66 | thecricketer.com

took 9 for 17, including a hat-trick, against Alleyn’s. Butcher averaged 152 with the bat that year. Trinity dominated school cricket in the area throughout the 1990s, with Richard Nowell scoring 4,250 runs and taking 232 wickets and Dave Dyer securing 2,464 runs and 124 wickets. The 1st XI recorded six undefeated seasons within this period. This year the 1st XI reached the London and South East T20 Final and all age groups are in the county finals.

Cricketers of note Mark Butcher

Girls’ cricket They have played twice this season. One girl plays for the U15A team Facilities Seven pitches, 20 grass nets, five indoor nets Club/county affiliation Leics Brief history The first match was played against Oundle in 1855 – a fixture still played in modern times Cricketers of note Shiv Thakor (Leicestershire & Derbyshire), Jonathan Agnew, James Whitaker (both Leicestershire & England), Percy Chapman (Kent & England) Extras The Upper is one of the finest grounds in the country.

Several of their fixtures are over 100 years old

(Surrey & England), Gary Butcher (Glamorgan & Surrey), Scott Newman (Surrey, Middlesex & Kent), Nowell (Surrey) Best prospect Nathan Barnwell, a highly rated U14 opening bowler and top-order batsman currently in the Surrey EPP. Last year as an U13, Nathan made his 1st XI debut and took 3 for 15 and this year has represented the 1st XI all season Extras Trinity’s cricket programme is of the highest quality. Two county coaches are on the staff who are Level 3s. The Trinity Cricket

Academy has been set up with the aim of targeting the three to four talented cricketers in each age group, working with students to develop their cricketing skills in a range of disciplines. Trinity also offers sports scholarship for talented cricketers Finest moment on the field In 1995, Newman and Shehan de Silva put on three double-hundred partnerships (200 against the MCC, 239 against RGS Guildford and 289 against Hampton), which is still a school record

warwick School // wellingborough school

WARWICK SCHOOL

Craig Prentis/Allsport

Myton Road Warwick Warwickshire CV34 Established 914 Number of pupils 1,200 Notable fixtures MCC, Rugby, St Peter’s Festival Cricket professional/director of cricket Simon Francis (Hampshire, Somerset & Nottinghamshire) Director of sport Geoff Tedstone (Warwickshire & Gloucestershire) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U12–U15ABCs Facilities Four grass squares, two artificial wickets, four indoor lanes, three fully enclosed artificial nets, four open artificial nets, two mobile cages Club/county affiliation Warks Brief history Warwick School is a leading independent day and boarding school for boys aged 7-18, dating back to 914, making it one of the oldest boys’ schools. Set in 50 acres, it has a great extra-curricular programme with extensive sporting facilities, with national success achieved in different sports alongside academic successes

WELLINGBOROUGH SCHOOL London Road Wellingborough Northamptonshire NN8 2BX

Cricketers of note Neil Smith (England & Warks), Geoff Tedstone (Warks & Gloucs), Gordon Lord (Worcs), Gary Montgomery (Lancs), Charlie Mulraine and Huw Jones (both Warks) Best prospect Robert Yates (year 12), who scored his first century for

Warwickshire 2nd XI in May 2017 Extras The school has a stunning modern pavilion. They continue to challenge top cricket schools regionally without sports scholars Finest moment on the field 2017: U15 National T20 finalists; 2015: U15 Midlands ESCA finalists &

Midlands T20 semi-finalists; 2013: U13 National finalists in Bunbury Cup Cultural cricketers Dan Dalton MEP (at the school 1987–92); High Court judge The Hon Sir David Foskett, (1956–67); Chris Guyver, MCC committee (WS 1969–80)

Established 1595 Number of pupils 440 Notable fixtures MCC, XL Club, Stowe, The Leys Cricket master George Houghton Cricket professional David Sales (Northamptonshire), who is also the Northants CCC batting coach

Teams U14 through to 1st XI Girls’ cricket Offered as a games option but currently not sufficient numbers for fixtures in the senior school. The prep school this year abolished rounders, with every girl from years 4-8 now playing cricket as their major sport. This will mean a huge increase in the amount of girls’ cricket from 2018 Facilities Two indoor nets, seven brand-new artificial nets, four main squares and one additional artificial Club/county affiliation Northants Brief history Cricket at Wellingborough has a proud and strong tradition with our teams regularly competing, and winning against schools with more than double the number of pupils. In June 1937, Wellingborough were the first opposition for the XL Club, who continue to go in to play schools across the country. The Grove is a picturesque ground which boasts one of the few remaining thatched pavilions in

school cricket and the ground is most famous for witnessing Sir Ian Botham’s knock of 175 not out in 1986 for Somerset v Northants, when first-class cricket was still played at the school Cricketers of note Charlie Macdonell (Derbyshire) Best prospect James Sales (son of David), who is currently an U14 pushing for a 1st XI place Extras Len Hutton scored 269 not out for Yorkshire against Northants here in 1949. First-class cricket used to played here until the 1990s, and Wellingborough still hosts 2nd XI and age-group county cricket. At the foot of the steps to the pavilion is the doorstep from WG Grace’s Bristol home Finest moment on the field The unbeaten season of 2013, as well as George Groenland, who left in 2016, being named in Wisden 2017 as the batsman with the highest batting average in the country (13 innings, 763 runs at 127.16) thecricketer.com | 67

Top 100 Schools Wellington College Duke’s Ride Crowthorne Berkshire RG45 7PU Established 1859 Number of pupils 1,150 Notable fixtures MCC, Eton, Harrow, Tonbridge, Radley and Charterhouse in The Cowdrey Cup. The BOWS Festival with Brighton, Oakham and Sedbergh. A two-day fixture with Malvern. Overseas tour every two years Cricket professional Dan Pratt Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABC Girls’ cricket Six to eight games a season, and will begin a girls’ festival from 2017. The girls’ cricket programme is thriving in our younger years and will hopefully provide the platform for future years. A number of girls also play in boys’ teams too. Lissy Macleod is a recent leaver and she was involved with Berkshire, England Development Programmes and Southern Vipers in the 2016 Kia Super League Facilities Nine grounds, 15 grass nets, 14 artificial nets, five indoor nets and a new purpose-built

WELLINGTON SCHOOL South Street Wellington Somerset TA21 8NT 68 | thecricketer.com

welling t on college // welling t on school

indoor school in the offing Club/county affiliation A growing and developing connection with Middlesex, as well as Surrey and Berkshire History Cricket has been the summer boys’ sport since 1874.

Cricket at Wellington earned its name from 1880, largely due to the efforts and talent of Prince Christian Victor, after whom the college bowling prize is awarded Cricketers of note Ed Young (Surrey & Gloucs), Tom Curran, Sam Curran (both Surrey) Best prospect Jack Davies (Middlesex) Extras There was a wooden pavilion from 1861–1901 before being demolished due to damage caused by rats. The new pavilion, refurbished and painted pink, opened in 1994. A handful of Wellingtonians have played Test but none since 1930, when Maurice Allom took four wickets in five balls in the first Test played by New Zealand, and when FT Badcock, another Old Wellingtonian, bagged a king pair on debut Finest moment on the field National T20 Finals Day 2015 Cultural cricketers Will Young, Christopher Lee and Rory Bremner attended the school

Established 1837 Notable fixtures Blundell’s, Queen’s Taunton, Plymouth, Exeter University 2nd XI, Somerset U17s, Wales U15s, Cornwall U17s Cricket professional(s) Steffan

Jones, Paul ‘Sid’ Lawrence and Caroline Foster (née Atkins), former England women’s batsman Teams Wellington School run nine boys’ cricket teams and two girls’ teams – 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U13ABC Girls’ cricket Girls’ cricket is offered and is run by the former England opening batsman Atkins, who also coached Western Storm in the 2016 Kia Super League. Some of the girls play in boys’ teams Facilities The school has four indoor lanes with excellent lighting and enough room for any fast bowler to fit in a full run-up. They have nine grass outdoor nets, and four all-grass pitches Club/county affiliation Somerset, Devon and Cornwall Brief history Wellington is a small school that has made massive improvements over the last three years. The school has a fantastic

cricket programme in place that is second to none, as a result the quality of cricketer across the board that is being produced at the school is improving year on year. This year there have been 16 players from the school being represented at county level Cricketers of note Two boys were linked with a county after the completion of the 2017 school year Best prospects Sixth-formers Cassie Coombes and year 10 pupil Daisy Jeanes have both been selected for the Girls U17 Somerset squad Extras Apart from their fantastic cricket programme, they also hold Somerset Girls’ Winter District training programme and some of the Somerset Girls’ county age groups. An outstanding total of 16 Wellington senior-school pupils have been selected to represent their counties

whi t gif t School // wilson’s School

Whitgift SCHOOL Haling Park South Croydon Surrey CR2 6YT Established 1596 Notable fixtures Harrow, Wellington College, Cranleigh, Tonbridge Cricket professionals Neil Kendrick, David Ward (both Surrey) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15ABC, U14ABCDE; U13ABCDE, U12ABCDE, U11AB Facilities Five pitches and six indoor lanes with 25m bowler run-up Club/county affiliation Surrey Brief history Whitgift, a leading day and boarding independent school for boys aged 10–18, was founded in 1596 by John Whitgift, Queen Elizabeth I’s last Archbishop of Canterbury, and opened in 1600, making it Croydon’s oldest school.

The headmaster, Dr Christopher Barnett, is the 26th in the school’s

WILSON’S SCHOOL Mollison Drive Wallington Surrey SM6 9JW Established 1615 Number of pupils 1,170 Notable fixtures MCC, Whitgift, Epsom, Trinity, City of London Freemen’s, Caterham and King’s College Wimbledon Cricket professional Chris Bullen (Surrey) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15AB, U14ABC, U13ABC, U12ABCD Facilities There are two indoor nets in the sports hall at school plus two indoor nets are used at the Change Foundation ground, five outdoor non-turf practice nets, one grass square plus one non-turf match pitch. The school has a partnership with Cheam CC where 1st XI matches are played and also uses the two grass squares at Wallington Sports Ground Club/county affiliation Surrey, with access to free tickets for 50over and T20 matches

history. Haling Park, to which the school moved in 1931, was at one time the home of Lord Howard of Effingham, Lord High Admiral of the Fleet sent against the Armada, and it retains the appearance of an attractive country estate. Whitgift’s state-of-the-art boarding house was opened in 2013, by the School’s patron, HRH The Duke of York.

The first recorded match held on

the school ground occurred in 1898 when the school played University College School. Since 2000, the school has hosted several firstclass and List A Surrey matches.

Its maiden first-class match was when Surrey played against Nottinghamshire and, from 2003 to 2011, Whitgift hosted no fewer than nine first-class matches. It has also hosted 13 List A fixtures between

2000 and 2011 Cricketers of note Raman Subba Row (Surrey, Northants & England), Jason Roy (Surrey & England), Tom Lancefield, Freddie van den Bergh, Rory Burns, Dominic Sibley (all Surrey), Matt Spriegel (Surrey & Northants), Laurie Evans (Surrey & Warks) Extras 12 years of T20, 50-over and four-day festival cricket hosted here by Surrey Finest moment on the cricket field Shane Warne taking 5 for 12 for Hampshire against Surrey on the ground in 2006 Cultural cricketers England rugby star Danny Cipriani

Brief history Wilson’s run a strong Saturday and midweek fixture list with more than 150 matches throughout the season, with a notable 1st XI fixture against the MCC. Many boys have played representative cricket at junior age groups at district and county level and we have provided players for the prestigious Surrey Schools Cricket Association’s Hobbs Trophy U15 match at The Oval.

The school runs biennial tours, including to Dubai and Barbados.

A strong link is maintained with Old Wilsonians CC, who play in the Kent County League Cricketers of note Neil Kendrick (Surrey & Glamorgan) Best prospects U15 Callum Furmidge Extras Wilson’s provides exceptional cricket provision for state pupils in a private-school dominated area. Over the course of the season the split of these fixtures is close to 50 per cent state and 50 per cent private. This offers our pupils a good range of fixtures and opportunities. Each team (A and B in each age group) trains

in their games afternoon (unless they have a game) and once after school. An Emerging Player Programme has been introduced to provide identified players with specialist coaching opportunities.

They are always looking to develop the cricket at school further and the employment of head coach Bullen, the former Surrey player plus the use of other experienced coaches like John Fry (Sutton CC)

is a testament to this Finest moment on the field Beating MCC in the annual match in 2015, when Ollie Robertson hit a magnificent hundred Cultural cricketers John Galliano (fashion designer), Pascal Anson (artist and designer–mentor on the BBC’s The Big Painting Challenge) and actor Sir Michael Caine – then known as Maurice Micklewhite – are all rumoured to have played thecricketer.com | 69

Top 100 Schools WINCHESTER COLLEGE College Street Winchester Hampshire SO23 9NA Established 1394 Notable fixtures MCC, Eton, Harrow, Radley, Bradfield, Charterhouse Cricket professional Giles White (Hampshire) Director of cricket Paul Gover Teams 13 Facilities A sports hall with four nets, 11 artificial nets outside, seven pitches – including a walled ground, replete with in-boundary trees, the Meads, perhaps the most beautiful 2nd XI pitch in the country Club/county affiliation Hampshire Brief history Cricket in some form was played at Winchester from the 17th century onwards. The first inter-school match was in 1825 and the first recorded game against Eton was in 1826. Winchester

WOODHOUSE GROVE SCHOOL Apperley Bridge Bradford West Yorkshire BD10 0NR Established 1812 Number of pupils 701 Notable fixtures MCC, Manchester Grammar, St Peter’s York, Durham, Lancaster RGS, Leeds Grammar, Gresham’s, Queen Elizabeth Grammar Wakefield, Bradford Grammar, Ashville College, Huddersfield New College Cricket master Ian Frost Cricket professional Arnie Sidebottom (Yorkshire & England) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, U15, U14, U13, U12 Girls’ cricket The school has a tradition of developing female cricketers who are encouraged to play in school teams. Kathryn Leng was a pioneer, playing with and against boys on the northern circuit and she went on to represent England Women from 1994–2000.

Current player Rebecca Newark is a member of the Yorkshire Women’s 70 | thecricketer.com

winchester S T PAUL’S SCHOOL college //// Swoodhouse T PE T ER’S SCHOOL, grove YORK school

played annual matches played at Lord’s against Eton and Harrow from 1826 to 1854. Today, the school 1st XI is still known as Lords XI. The earliest recorded match played at Winchester is 1776 between College and Commoners, but the earliest match for which they have a score is College v Commoners in 1825. College refers to the scholars’ boarding house; Commoners boys in later boarding houses Cricketers of note Douglas Jardine (Surrey), Nawab of Pataudi Jr, Hubert Doggart (Sussex), JR Mason, JC Clay, HD Reed, J Shuter, Sir Henry Leveson-Gower, AJ Evans and DCH Townsend were all Old Wykehamist Test players and are commemorated in the pavilion, Hunter Tent. Away teams, including Australian touring sides, lunch under a portrait of Jardine Extras The matches against Eton and Harrow were played at Lord’s, but Winchester were reputedly banned for 100 years for an incident which resulted in a fire

being started in one of the stands.

Hampshire played one first-class game at the College, against Kent in 1875 Finest moment on the field Perhaps the 2009 and 2010 seasons are the most prominent of recent years, with 15 and 14 wins respectively. Last year, DA Escott

broke the Nawab of Pataudi’s aggregate, totalling 1,096. Escott became the only boy the school is aware of to have played all his school games for the 1st XI Cultural cricketers Willie Whitelaw MP, here 1931–36; Tim Brooke-Taylor, here between 1953–58

1st XI squad and was a member of the England U15 Development Squad in 2014 Facilities Set in the heart of the Aire Valley, Woodhouse Grove have four grass pitches, six artificial practice nets and one artificial pitch. The purpose-built sports centre includes four indoor nets Club/county affiliation Yorkshire Brief history Cricket at Woodhouse Grove has grown significantly in strength over the past 30 years. The school has undertaken overseas tours since 1998, when Zimbabwe was the destination. In March 2016 the 1st and 2nd XI squads enjoyed a successful tour of Grenada and St Lucia. In 2019 the touring destination will be Barbados and St Lucia. Woodhouse Grove enjoyed their most successful summer in 2014, when the 1st XI won all 18 completed fixtures and became the first northern school to win the National Schools T20.

Captain Dylan Budge also received the Wisden Schools Cricketer of the Year Award and represented the MCC Schools v ESCA U17 at Lord’s. Budge went on to make his

full debut for Scotland against Sri Lanka. The 2016 captain Bailey Worcester captained the MCC Schools XI v ESCA U17 at Lord’s Cricketers of note Craig Rika (Northamptonshire), Andrew Bairstow (Derbyshire), Uzair Mahomed (Durham), Ajmal Shahzad (England, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Nottinghamshire & Sussex), Dalton Polius (Windward Islands & West Indies U19), Larry Edward (Windward Islands), Dylan

Budge (Durham, Scotland) Best prospects Newark, Adbi Hasan Ahmed Extras Cricket has remained a crucial component of school life, underpinned by continuous development of facilities and the coaching programme. This has resulted in teams who consistently punch above their weight Finest moment on the field Ajmal Shahzad making his Test debut against Bangladesh in 2010

WORKSOP COLLEGE

WORKSOP COLLEGE Sparken Hill Worksop Nottinghamshire S80 3AP Established 1890 Notable fixtures MCC, Millfield, Shrewsbury, Worcestershire Academy, Nottinghamshire U17s, Leicestershire U17, Lincolnshire U19 Cricket professional(s) Neil Longhurst (Yorkshire 2nd XI & Cumberland) and Ian Parkin (Derbyshire 2nd XI) Teams 1st XI, 2nd XI, 3rd XI, U15, U14, U13, U12 Girls’ cricket Not currently available, but those individuals who play are integrated into boys’ teams Facilities Four pitches, four-lane indoor school, 18 lanes of outdoor grass nets across the campus Club/county affiliation Strong link with Notts, through Academy director Chris Tolley, and the England Performance Programme director Matt Wood. Their link with Notts, their Academy and

the EPP allows them to act as a satellite point for their boys to have further training with Notts Academy coaches, hosted at Worksop College. They have

hosted Notts 2nd XI fixtures for the past few seasons, along with the county age-group fixtures; their junior sides also playing against the equivalent county Brief history A generous gift of land from the Duke of Newcastle’s Clumber estate has been extended over the years to provide the 330-acre estate on which the college stands today.

Since the centenary celebrations in 1995, constant redevelopment has seen the addition of a new music school, two new computer centres, a sports hall, two floodlit astroturfs, an 18-hole golf course, two completely new departments, Modern Languages and Food and Nutrition, and the building of a new girls’ boarding house Cricketers of note Joe Root (Yorkshire & England), Samit

Patel (Notts & England), Richard Kettleborough (Yorkshire & Middlesex), Phil Sharpe (Yorkshire & England), Brett Hutton (Notts), Billy Root (Notts) Extras Worksop College is a small school in relative terms, but its cricketing prowess stands up there with the big boys. In some cases it is a real David v Goliath, but Worksop College are never prepared to back down; a real sense of unity and team spirit is an integral part of their philosophy Finest moment on the field The 1st XI completed an unbeaten season on their regular fixture card in 2008, and reached the last eight of the National T20 competition Cultural cricketers Craig Woodhouse (chief political correspondent at The Sun) is among those to have played

SPECIAL MENTIONS Aldenham School, Ampleforth College, Bancroft’s School, Bryanston School, Canford School, Chislehurst Grammar School, Christ’s Hospital School, Colchester Royal Grammar School, Colfe’s School, Dollar Academy, Elizabeth College Guernsey, Eltham College, Forest School, George Watson’s College, Gresham’s School, Hymers College, Ipswich School, Kirkham Grammar School, Loughborough Grammar School, Monkton Combe School, Mount Kelly School, Newcastle-under-Lyme School, Nottingham High School, Pangbourne

College, Pocklington School, Queen Elizabeth Grammar School Wakefield, Ratcliffe College, Reading Blue Coat School, St Albans School, St George’s College Weybridge, St Lawrence College Ramsgate, Sutton Valence School, The Glasgow Academy, The High School of Glasgow, The John Lyon School, The Perse School, Westminster School, Wolverhampton Grammar School, Woodbridge School, Worth School, Wycliffe College

thecricketer.com | 71

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T HE T OP 100 SCHOOLS 1 Bede’s School 2 Bedford Modern School 3 Bedford School 4 Beechen Cliff School 5 Berkhamsted 6 Bishop’s Stortford College 7 Blundell’s School 8 Bradfield College 9 Brentwood School 10 Brighton College 11 Bristol Grammar School 12 Bromsgrove School 13 Charterhouse School 14 Cheadle Hulme School 15 Cheltenham College 16 Clayesmore School 17 Clifton College 18 Cranleigh School 19 Culford School 20 Dauntsey’s School 21 Denstone College 22 Dr Challoner’s Grammar School 23 Dulwich College 24 Durham School 25 Eastbourne College 26 Ellesmere College 27 Emanuel School 28 Epsom College 29 Eton College 30 Felsted School 31 Fettes College 32 Framlingham College 33 Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys School 34 Haileybury 35 Hampton School 36 Harrow School 37 Hurstpierpoint College 38 Kimbolton School 39 King Edward’s School, Birmingham 40 King’s College, Taunton 41 King’s College School 42 Lancaster Royal Grammar School 43 Lancing College 44 Leicester Grammar School 45 Lord Wandsworth College 46 Loretto School 47 Magdalen College School, Oxford 48 Malvern College 49 Manchester Grammar School 50 Marlborough College

51 Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood 52 Millfield 53 New Hall School 54 Norwich School 55 Oakham School 56 Ormskirk School 57 Oundle School 58 Portsmouth Grammar School 59 Prince Henry’s High School 60 Queen’s College, Taunton 61 Radley College 62 Reed’s School 63 Reigate Grammar School 64 Repton School 65 Royal Grammar School, Guildford 66 Royal Grammar School, Worcester 67 Rugby School 68 Rydal Penrhos 69 Sedbergh School 70 Sevenoaks School 71 South Gloucestershire & Stroud College 72 Shenfield High School 73 Sherborne School 74 Shrewsbury School 75 St Edward’s School, Oxford 76 St Paul’s School 77 St Peter’s School, York 78 Stamford School 79 Stewart’s Melville College 80 Stowe School 81 Taunton School 82 The Judd School 83 The King’s School in Macclesfield 84 The King’s School, Canterbury 85 The Leys School 86 The Oratory School 87 The Royal Hospital School 88 Tiffin School 88 Tonbridge School 89 Trent College 90 Trinity School 91 Uppingham School 92 Warwick School 93 Wellingborough School 94 Wellington College 95 Wellington School 96 Whitgift School 97 Wilson’s School 98 Winchester College 99 Woodhouse Grove School 100 Worksop College

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