County Ground, Stoke-on-Trent facts for kids
A modern day view of where the ground was located
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| Ground information | |||||
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| Location | Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire | ||||
| Coordinates | 53°00′35″N 2°10′48″W / 53.0098°N 2.1800°W | ||||
| Establishment | 1885 (first recorded match) | ||||
| Team information | |||||
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| As of 15 August 2010 Source: Ground profile |
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The County Ground was a place where cricket games were played in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. It was located near the Stoke-on-Trent railway station.
Contents
History of the County Ground
The first known cricket match at the County Ground happened in 1885. In this game, the Staffordshire team played against Derbyshire.
Early Important Matches
Big, official cricket matches, called first-class cricket, started here in 1886. An England XI (a team made up of players from England) played against the Australians who were visiting. In this match, an Australian player named George Giffen took two "five-wicket hauls." This means he took five or more wickets in an innings twice, which is a great achievement for a bowler.
Two years later, in 1888, the England XI played the Australians again. The Australians won by a very large margin. In that game, the England XI team was bowled out for only 28 runs in their first turn at batting. An Australian bowler named Charles Turner took an amazing 9 wickets for only 15 runs. This was the best bowling performance ever seen at the ground in a first-class match.
The Australians came back in 1890 during the Ashes series. They played another first-class match against a Staffordshire XI team and won by 88 runs.
Staffordshire's Home Ground
In 1895, the Staffordshire team played their first ever Minor Counties Championship match at the County Ground. They played against Northamptonshire. For many years, this ground was Staffordshire's main home. They played 70 Minor Counties Championship matches here before World War I started in 1914.
In 1912, a combined Minor Counties cricket team played its first ever first-class match at the ground. They played against the South Africans who were touring. The game ended in a draw because of bad weather.
Decline and New Use
After World War I, the County Ground was used less often for cricket. The Staffordshire team started playing more games at other places in the county. Between 1922 and 1936, only seven more Minor Counties Championship matches were held here. Staffordshire played their last game at the ground against Durham in 1936.
First-class cricket returned one last time in 1929. The Minor Counties team played the touring South Africans again, and that match also ended in a draw.
Around the 1920s, the football team Stoke City thought about moving from their old stadium, the Victoria Ground, to the County Ground. However, this move never happened. By 1955, the North Staffordshire Technical College took over the land. Soon after, they built new buildings on the site. Today, the area where the County Ground once stood is part of the Staffordshire University campus.
Cricket Records at the Ground
Here are some of the best performances recorded at the County Ground in first-class cricket matches:
First-class Records
- Highest team score: 248 runs by the Australians against the England XI in 1905.
- Lowest team score: 28 runs by the England XI against the Australians in 1888.
- Highest individual score: 92 runs by William Cook for the Minor Counties against the South Africans in 1929.
- Best bowling in one innings: 9 wickets for 15 runs by Charles Turner for the Australians against the England XI in 1888.
- Best bowling in a whole match: 13 wickets for 48 runs by Charles Turner (from the same match mentioned above).
