1890 - Wilcot Cricket Club

Wilcot Cricket Club is a flourishing part of Wilcot life, and has been for many years. This photo may date from about 1935:

For many years, the team played at Stowell, by permission of Sir Philip Dunn. Its mainstays included Reg Houghton and Bill Cope.

 

This picture may date from 1954-5, with Reg Houghton , Peter Leek, Tony Bezzant and Mick Perry standing, while sitting are Peter Coles, Michael Williams, Ray Strong, John Noyes, Alan Pearce, Roy Lawrence and Tony Guildford:

Here are the support team, in about 1955; Reg Houghton is on the far left, with Brenda Coles, and May Coles in the centre; the scorer in front is Ray Strong

And here are the players a few years later, in front of the building at Stowell that served as a pavilion (with Dennis Harding standing on the left, Reg Houghton as umpire on the far right):

In about 1990, the club moved from Stowell to a field behind the village hall. It was made available by Sir Philip Dunn, and is now called ‘The Sir Philip Dunn Ground’ in recognition. It must be one of the most picturesque cricket grounds in the country:

For a long time, the changing rooms there were called the David Niven Memorial Changing Rooms, due to a delightful confusion of identities in a photo thought to show the famous film star with the cricket team. In fact it was Sir Philip Dunn.

There is now a new pavilion, the Williams pavilion, on the ground: