Cinderford St John's Cricket Club, formed 1880 (General)

by Jefff , West London, Middlesex, Friday, April 11, 2014, 18:37 (3878 days ago) @ Jefff

I really should have known about the links between the Crawshay family and Cinderford's cricket club which was formed in 1880, sadly just a few months after Henry's death.

"A cricket club formed by members of St. John's church in 1880 played on waste ground before moving to Abbotswood in Ruspidge, where a cricket ground had been laid out by 1856 on Henry Crawshay's land. In 1899 the club built a pavilion there. In 1910 Cinderford also had the Red Rose cricket club. The Abbotswood ground was ploughed up in 1940, and after the Second World War St. John's club played in several places before moving in 1970 to a new ground at Whimsey."
From: 'Forest of Dean: Social life', A History of the County of Gloucester: Volume 5: Bledisloe Hundred, St. Briavels Hundred, The Forest of Dean (1996), pp. 381-389.
URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=23270

In 2000 our local publishers produced an excellent book to commemorate the Club's 120th year, despite one or two dodgy faces in the most recent team photos this book is an excellent read.
http://lightmoor.co.uk/view_book.php?ref=L9075

This link also shows two early team photos. It's thought the club was formed by local choirboys from St John's Church, probably also pitboys from the local Crawshay mines. By the early 1900s Cinderford could boast fifteen cricket clubs but over the years these teams were absorbed into the only Cinderford cricket team remaining today.

The book shows how the current ground was only created after herculean efforts by volunteers. It's impossible to imagine now their excellent surface had been a moonscape of muddy craters and spoil heaps from the old Duck (Broadmoor) Colliery underneath and Regulator, Winner and Whimsey pits on the boundary edge. With this headquarters and large pavilion (with skittle alley of course) the Club has gone from strength to strength, nowadays even playing at the same level as the Forest's senior club Lydney; an unimaginable feat in years past when the Lydney ground hosted County matches including international Touring sides.
However Whimsey's traditionally "marshy" foundations still occasionally give drainage issues, as late as June in 2013 the outfield was virtually underwater due to a very wet winter & high local watertable, many matches being postponed. Those wild boar don't help much either..
http://www.theforester.co.uk/content/newsimages09/F7341_1_BOAR.jpg