1731 English cricket season

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

In 1731, about 31 eleven-a-side cricket matches are known to have been arranged, more than double 1730, though not all may have actually been played. The London Cricket Club played in 17 of them, mostly at the Artillery Ground in Finsbury. Newspapers were starting to cover cricket more, but notices were brief and players were rarely named. One exception was Tim Coleman of London, who was named after playing for another team as a “given man.”

The season’s most controversial match ended in a riot on Richmond Green on 23 August. It was the third match between Duke of Richmond’s XI and Thomas Chambers’ XI (Chambers was a Middlesex patron). The match was agreed to start at 2 pm and finish by 7 pm. Richmond’s team arrived late, so play began late, and spectators expected time to be added on. Richmond’s team were losing and wanted to end at 7, while Chambers’ backers wanted the game to continue. The crowd rioted. The London Evening Post described the dispute, saying Chambers’ team wanted extra time but were forced to leave when the hour arrived, making it a drawn match.

This match is notable for being the earliest with known team totals, even though no individual scores are recorded. Richmond’s XI batted first and were all out for 79. Chambers’ XI replied with 119, giving Chambers a first-innings lead of 40. Richmond’s XI were 72 all out in the second innings, leaving Chambers’ XI with a target of 33 to win. The final total for Chambers’ XI isn’t clear, but reports suggest they were around 23–25 for five or six wickets when play ended. During the riot, some Richmond players had their shirts torn, and there was talk of a lawsuit over the play. By one report, the match was a draw.

Across the season, teams that were nominally counties took part in ten matches, though the county names were often imprecise. London played four matches against teams with county names: Kent (London lost by 3 runs on 24 May, then won on 8 June) and Surrey (London won on 17 April by 35 runs; 28 September result unknown). Surrey defeated Chambers’ XI on 6 September, and Kent also played parish teams. Only two matches were clearly inter-county: Kent v Middlesex at Kennington Common on 19 July, and Surrey v Kent at Dulwich Common on 4 September. The Kent v Middlesex result is unknown. The Surrey v Kent game ended in a draw after rain, with Surrey needing 12 to win with three wickets in hand when play stopped.

There is also one recorded single-wicket match: in July at Maidstone, Captain Beak vs Lieutenant Coke, two Royal Horse Guards officers. Beak won after three hours of hard play. This match is noted as a military contest; nothing more is known about Beak or Coke, though many army officers played important matches in later years.

The 1731 season also saw the first known ground enclosures. Kennington Common was roped off twice to keep spectators off the field. Notices for other matches advertised that grounds would be roped or staked, and spectators were asked to stay outside the roped areas. By the early 1740s, a two-pence admission fee was in use at the Artillery Ground.

On 2 October, Mitcham beat Ewell “by several notches.” The report mentions that Tim Coleman played for Ewell and usually for the London side, making him one of the earliest named cricketers in records. His full career remains unknown.