Canon Frome Cricket Club

Club History

The inaugural meeting to establish Canon Frome Cricket Club was held at the Hopton Arms Ashperton near Ledbury, Herefordshire in March 1938. The ground in 1938 was at Mainstone Court Pixley, close to the Trumpet crossroads.  In 1939 a full fixtures list was arranged and work commenced to prepare the square. Unfortunately Mainstone Court was sold soon after with the club having to move to a field at the Nupend, Ashperton.  The onset of the second world war further hindered club development with only a very few local games being played in 1940/41 before it was decided that Canon Frome Cricket Club Club should close down for the duration of the War.

A new start was made in 1946 and the Club quickly grew in strength.  The Nupend remained the ground until 1965 when Messrs Davies offered use of the present ground at Wassington, Ashperton.  So the 2005 season was the 40th year anniversary at Wassington.

When league cricket came to Herefordshire in 1973, Canon Frome Cricket Club joined the Hereford Times League and were league champions in 1979 and 1982.  The 2ndXI was formed in the 1970’s and joined the league in 1980.  In 1996, the club switched to the recently formed Marches League into which the Hereford Times League has gradually been absorbed.  The 1stXI were league champions in 2001. At the 2006 AGM the club elected to move from the Marches League to the Worcester Crusader league for the 2007 season.

A Junior Section has been run since the 1970’s and it is currently thriving; the Club runs Under 15 and Under 13 teams.

Canon Frome Cricket Club has not departed far from its original role as a traditional village club.  It has an old and venerable pavilion, a sloping pitch and short boundaries. Most of the players live (or were brought up) in local villages. The current members come from a variety of backgrounds and the atmosphere is invariably cheerful and friendly.

Common to many village cricket clubs Canon Frome Cricket Club has suffered theft of equipment, shortage of adult players, and shortage of people willing to help out with the pitch preparation and general maintenance at the club.  This has been compounded by bullocks on the square and moles in the outfield!  With the ground being located in a farming community the 2001 season was seriously restricted by the foot and mouth epidemic.

Canon Frome Cricket Club hit the international record books in 1980. In a 40 over match the club scored 419-6 against Much Marcle, the 15th highest score worldwide in Minor Cricket and 5th worldwide in “40 over” games. Considering the records go back to the late 18th century this was quite an achievement. We are looking to repeat or improve this performance and are always on the look out for players of all standards, young and old. Come and join us!

As a small and rather under-resourced club financed only by membership subscriptions our ability to expand and to invest in equipment and training facilities especially for our active youth members is somewhat limited. We would love to speak to any local companies who would be able to sponsor us and put something into a club which actively involves the local community.