HISTORY OF LONDESBOROUGH PARK C C

Londesborough Park Cricket Club was founded by the park owner, the Duke of Devonshire, and the estate was inherited by Lord Londesborough in 1860.

Lord Londesborough readily invested in a professional cricket coach/player to ensure success for the privileged few who enjoyed country-house style cricket - only by invitation of course!!.

The second Lord Londesborough was the second largest landowner in the East Riding after Sir Tatton Sykes and was a close friend of the Prince of Wales. He was a patron of the Yorkshire County Cricket Club, sponsoring a couple of matches against Middlesex in 1874 and was one of the prime movers behind the Scarborough Cricket Festival. He went on to become President of the MCC, but he did not forget his roots and tried to keep in touch with matters at the Londesborough Park Cricket Club.

Matches were held regularly on the estate at the Park Farm ground, where the current club still plays. It is thought to have the longest history of continuous use of a cricket ground in East Yorkshire.

In 1905 further sporting developments took place in the Park with the creation of the testing nine-hole golf course. Laid out by the famous Harry Vardon in the magical setting of the rolling parklands, the only remaining evidence until 2003 was the decaying clubhouse. Now demolished around its 100th birthday this left a neat gap in the wood seen to your left just before you climb the last hill out of the park prior to entering back into the village of Londesborough.

The golf club struggled to maintain its membership after the war years due mainly to financial and transport problems which sadly contributed to its closure in 1947.

Countless locals, visiting players and teams (including royalty) from all parts of the country have, since the mid 1800s, enjoyed playing in the unique setting of the Park Estate for what has always been classed as 'friendly' cricket fixtures. This all changed when the Club became a founder member of the newly formed competitive league called the East Riding Cricket Pennant Alliance in 1956.

Just before the move to league cricket off-spinner Bill Featherby, who played twice for Yorkshire, was still plying his trade well into his sixties at the Park. He was born at Goodmanham Lodge, near Market Weighton, and made his county debut against Derbyshire at Sheffield.

Londesborough Park won the East Riding Pennant Alliance League in 1964 and, as a founder member team, strengthened the their club with a second XI joining into the newly-formed East Riding Federation- a league they won in 1985.

Success in the existing East Riding Sunday Cricket League came in the same year which coincided with a busy period of numerous local evening cup competitions. Again success was regular but at that time Park would enter up to 14 competitions per season. They would always include the Club’s own competition, the Dr. Ashwin Trophy, originally set up by the club’s previous estate owner about 50 years ago to allow local village teams the chance of playing cricket at the ground.In 2004 Anthony Ashwin took over the role of Club President after the loss of his father in March 2003. Anthony's children who live just over the fence at Park Farm already enjoy cricket action with the U11 team.