This was the first year of the Wake Cup, the first club competition in Sheffield - following on 3 years after the Sheffield Association Cup in football.
Willow didn’t appear to be bothered to finish their match against Hallamshire.
Thursday, 17 April 2025
Sunday, 13 April 2025
Amanda Stinson - A missed catch
A Missed Catch
In the summer of 1984, I was captain of the school’s first XI cricket team. We had an after-school match scheduled, but only ten players turned up. It wasn’t ideal, but we were used to scrabbling things together.
Someone suggested we ask one of the girls from the school hockey team to play—apparently she was “actually really good at cricket.” I scoffed at the idea and instead roped in a forgettable boy to bat at number 11 and field somewhere deep in the long grass.
That girl was Amanda Stinson.
If the name rings a bell, it should. Two years later, she was playing for England, earning four Test caps and appearing in five One Day Internationals.
As for the boy I picked instead—I couldn’t tell you his name if you paid me.
1984 was still a time of casual misogyny, even for a well-meaning, lefty-leaning liberal like me. Cricket was “for the lads,” and I genuinely thought I was doing the right thing by preserving that unspoken rule.
Looking back now, I can only shake my head—and hang it, too.
The moral? Never underestimate a hockey player. And always, always pick the person who can actually play.
The Wednesday Cricket Club
The Wednesday Cricket Club: Where It All Began
The Wednesday Cricket Club, founded in 1820, was one of the most prominent clubs in Sheffield—and played a crucial role not only in the city’s cricketing story, but in the origins of one of its most famous football teams.
Wednesday were either referred to as The Wednesday Club or Darnall Wednesday Club (to differentiate them from the Monday Club, The Thursday Club and The Friday Club.
The club was established by six local tradesmen—William Stratford, John Southren, Tom Lindley, William Woolhouse, George Dawson, and George Hardisty—who could only play on their day off: Wednesday. Stratford became the first president of the club, succeeded later by Richard Gillott. They played at various grounds around the city over the years, from Darnall to Hyde Park to, eventually, Bramall Lane.
In the first half of the 19th century, Sheffield was still the hub of northern cricket, with the Wednesday club at its heart. Many of the region’s top players turned out for them. Among them was Tom Marsden—possibly the greatest northern cricketer of his day—who was famously defeated by Fuller Pilch in a one-on-one match in Norwich in 1833. When the rematch was held at Old Darnall, over 20,000 spectators turned up to see if Marsden could win back his crown. (He didn't, but his legend only grew.) Marsden also scored one of the earliest double centuries in English cricket history—227 for Sheffield & Leicester against Nottingham.
The club’s legacy is further cemented by names like George Ulyett and Tom Armitage, who both played in England’s very first Test match in Australia in 1877. Ulyett was not only a fearsome cricketer—he also turned out as a goalkeeper for the Wednesday football team in the 1880s. It was common back then for sportsmen to switch codes with the seasons, and Wednesday was no exception.
In fact, in 1867 the club formed a football side to keep players fit through winter. That side—originally just "The Wednesday Football Club"—grew to national prominence, winning the FA Cup in 1896 and the Football League in 1903. By 1929, it had officially become Sheffield Wednesday F.C.—but its cricketing roots remained a proud part of the story.
Sadly, the cricket club folded in 1924 due to financial issues. But in 2011, a group of Sheffield Wednesday supporters brought it back to life. Starting from Section 7 of the Mansfield District League, the revived club had climbed to Section 2 by 2017, with their midweek team playing in Division A of the Sheffield Alliance Midweek League.
Home Grounds and Historic Moments
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The original Darnall ground collapsed (literally!) during its first major game: Sheffield vs Nottingham, attended by 2,000 people.
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It was replaced by Darnall New Ground, a much larger venue which hosted a crowd of 8,000 in 1828 for a game between a Yorkshire/Leicestershire/Nottinghamshire XI and a Rest of England side.
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Wednesday later moved to Hyde Park, a stadium with a capacity of 16,000. It became their main home for many years.
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In an 1833 match against Nottingham, player George Dawson was the victim of a controversial run out, famously recorded in the scorebook as “cheated out”.
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In 1841, Wednesday’s Harry Sampson scored 162 runs on ice—yes, on a frozen pitch—against Sheffield Town.
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The club also experimented with a move to Newhall, but the poor wicket and distant location put people off.
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In 1855, Wednesday (with figures like Stratford and Ellison at the helm) helped lease and develop Bramall Lane, which went on to become one of the most iconic sports grounds in the country. The first match there involved players from several local clubs.
Continued Sheffield Cricket History
Sheffield v Leeds, Nottingham... and the Birth of Big Matches
By the 1760s, Sheffield’s cricketing ambitions were spreading beyond its own boundaries. The Leeds Intelligencer reported in July 1761 that a game was to be played between Sheffield and Leeds at Chapeltown—marking the first recorded match in the Leeds area. Just four years later, on 26 August 1765, Leeds and Sheffield met again at Chapeltown Moor in what the London Chronicle described as a "great match". Sheffield narrowly won, and the fact that a London paper covered it speaks volumes: cricket had not only taken root in Yorkshire—it was already producing contests of real quality and interest.
The rivalry didn’t stop at the West Riding border. In 1771, Sheffield travelled to Nottingham for what became the first documented cricket match in Nottinghamshire. Held on the Forest Racecourse, the game ended in controversy after a dispute over rough play. A Sheffield batsman named Osguthorpe was reported to have "kept in batting for several hours together"—not a bad line to include in any batting résumé.
The two sides met again in 1772, this time in Sheffield, with the hosts claiming victory. These early Sheffield vs Nottingham matches may well be the beginning of county-level cricket in the north of England, long before formal structures existed. Just as clubs like Hambledon or Dartford had represented their counties in the south, Sheffield did so for Yorkshire.
From Sheffield to Yorkshire: 19th Century Growth
As the 19th century progressed, Sheffield’s cricketing stature only grew. It played against many of the major northern clubs and hosted matches of increasing importance. A match in 1833 against Norfolk was the first time the team was styled simply as “Yorkshire”—a signal of where things were heading.
The real breakthrough came in 1849. Though Sheffield and Manchester had met on the cricket field before, this time the game was billed as Yorkshire vs Lancashire, played over three days at Hyde Park, Sheffield. This wasn’t just a match; it was the first Roses Match. Yorkshire won by five wickets—and a historic rivalry was born.
In the winter of 1854, the club made a bold move: it secured a 99-year lease from the Duke of Norfolk to build a new ground near Bramall Lane. The first match at the now-iconic venue was played on 30 April 1855. Fittingly for Sheffield cricket, the game was an uneven one—“The Twenty-two” defeated “The Eleven” by an innings and 28 runs!
With cricket continuing to grow in popularity, a Match Fund Committee was established in Sheffield in 1861 to oversee the county’s fixtures. This mirrored the earlier formation of Sussex CCC from a similar fund. Two years later, in January 1863, that same committee founded the Yorkshire County Cricket Club during a meeting at the Adelphi Hotel, right in the heart of Sheffield.
Yorkshire’s first inter-county match came just a few months later, in June 1863, against Surrey at The Oval. It ended in a rain-affected draw, but it marked the beginning of a new era. Sheffield had done its work. It passed the torch to the county side it helped bring into being and gracefully stepped back from the first-class stage.
using Sheffield Cricket Club - Wikipedia
Sheffield Cricket early history
The Origins of Sheffield Cricket
Cricket in Yorkshire can trace its earliest roots back to 1751, with local matches played in Sheffield and a notable game between the Duke of Cleveland’s XI and the Earl of Northumberland’s XI at Stanwick, near Richmond. It was around this time that cricket began to take hold in the north, and Sheffield was soon at the heart of it all.
The Sheffield Cricket Club likely formed shortly after these first recorded matches and rapidly established itself as a dominant force in northern cricket. The club played against teams from other northern towns and even took part in early inter-county fixtures. By the early 19th century, it had become the focal point for cricket in Yorkshire. In fact, some of the teams fielded by Sheffield during this period were even referred to as “Yorkshire,” making the club a direct forerunner of the modern Yorkshire County Cricket Club.
From 1827 to 1855, depending on the calibre of their opponents, Sheffield teams were often considered to have first-class status—a reflection of the club’s importance in the broader landscape of English cricket.
One of the more curious early records comes from William White’s History & General Directory of the Borough of Sheffield (1833). He notes that in 1757, the Town Trustees paid 14 shillings and 6 pence to the cricket players on Shrove Tuesday to entertain the public and, in doing so, to discourage the "infamous practice of throwing at cocks." Though White doesn’t cite his source, it’s likely drawn from town or parish records. This glimpse into mid-18th-century Sheffield life shows not only the early presence of cricket, but how it was already being used as a tool for social improvement.
By the end of the 18th century, Sheffield had clearly become the hub of cricket in the region—organising matches, drawing crowds, and laying the groundwork for Yorkshire’s enduring love of the game.
from Sheffield Cricket Club - Wikipedia
Wake Cup - Different Names
1880 Wake Challenge Cup
Hallam beat Pitsmoor
1881 Wake Challenge Cup
Elsecar beat Chesterfield
1882 Wake Challenge Cup
Elsecar beat Lockwood Brothers
1883 Wake Challenge Cup
Elsecar beat Nether Hallam Rangers
1884 Second Wake Challenge Cup
Pitsmoor beat Pitsmoor United
1885 Second Wake Challenge Cup
Pitsmoor beat Eckington Halfway-House
1886 Wake Charity Cup
Pitsmoor beat Shiregreen
1887 Wake Charity Cup
Tankersley beat Brimington
The Wake competition became the Wake Charity Cup in 1886 and 1887 - but then was withdrawn.
In 1886, proceeds went to the General Infirmary, Jessop's Hospital and the Children's Hospital.
Obituary: Mr. W. R. Wake (Registrar of the Sheffield County Court)
The sudden death of Mr. W. R. Wake on Saturday morning has come as a shock to many in Sheffield. After becoming unwell just two days earlier, Mr. Wake passed away at 1:15 a.m. on Saturday, at his home in Norwood Rise. He was only 43 years old.
Mr. Wake had been at work at the Sheffield County Court as recently as Wednesday morning, but had to leave early due to illness, which was initially believed to be influenza. Sadly, his condition rapidly worsened, developing into pneumonia. Despite the care of his doctor, Mr. Richard Favell, he declined quickly and could not be saved.
Born into a well-known local family, Mr. Wake was the eldest surviving son of Mr. William Wake of Osgathorpe House. After finishing school, he trained in law under Mr. Arthur Wightman and later joined the family law firm, Wake and Sons, alongside his father and brother, Philip. In 1884, following the death of Mr. Stephen Harry Wake, he was appointed Deputy Registrar of the County Court, and in 1894 he succeeded his father as Registrar. He also held the post of District Registrar for the Supreme Court.
Mr. Wake was widely known and respected not just for his professional role, but for his deep involvement in Sheffield’s sporting life. A keen sportsman in his youth, he played both football and cricket. He was an early member of the Sheffield Club, even playing for Surrey at one point, and later joined the Thursday Wanderers—winning the Sheffield Football Association Challenge Cup with them before stepping back from active play. He remained a passionate supporter of football throughout his life and was especially loyal to the Wednesday Club.
His love of cricket was just as strong. He served on the Yorkshire Committee for many years and even played in several county matches in the late 1870s. Perhaps his most lasting legacy in Sheffield cricket is the Wake Cup, a competition he founded with a trophy worth 100 guineas. Originally run for his benefit, it was later transformed into the Wake Charity Cup, with all proceeds donated to local charities. Eventually, the cup came under the management of the Midland Cricket League. Mr. Wake was also a longtime supporter of the Pitsmoor Cricket Club and was well known for his generosity towards players in need.
Outside of sport, he enjoyed shooting and other country pursuits. He married three years ago, though he leaves no children. His death will be deeply felt in many circles across Sheffield.
Mr. Wake’s funeral will take place on Tuesday at 11 a.m. at the Roman Catholic burial ground in Handsworth. The service will be conducted by the Rev. Canon Walshaw.
Top Hats and Cricket Ball
Welcome to the Sheffield Cricket Blog
What began as a curiosity about Sheffield Wednesday Cricket Club has grown into a full-blown fascination with the rich and often overlooked history of cricket in Sheffield. From the smoky days of the 18th century to the bustling club competitions of the early 20th, this blog is my attempt to explore and document the long and varied story of the game in this remarkable city.
While I enjoy diving into the statistics and records—who scored what, when, and where—I'm equally drawn to the quirky tales, forgotten characters, and local legends that bring the numbers to life. Lately, my research has taken me into the early days of organised competition in Sheffield, especially the Wake Cup and the Sheffield Cricket Association Cup, both of which played a major role in shaping the city’s club cricket scene.
Whether you're a fellow cricket historian, a numbers enthusiast, or just someone who enjoys a good story from the past, I hope you find something here to enjoy.