Blog
A collection of thoughts and opinions, interspersed with a few facts.
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A HISTORY OF KENT CRICKET IN FOURTEEN CRICKETERS (PART 8)
25 November 2025
Frank Woolley Frank Woolley is generally regarded as Kent’s greatest all-round cricketer and certainly statistically there is nobody to touch…
A History of Kent Cricket in Fourteen Cricketers (Part 7)
5 November 2025
FRED HUISH On 17, 18 and 19 August 1896, Kent played Gloucestershire at Cheltenham College, a match which Kent finished…
A History of Kent Cricket in Fourteen Cricketers (part 6)
18 October 2025
What should one say about George Canning Harris, the man who was Kent cricket from his appointment to the committee…
A History of Kent Cricket in Fourteen Cricketers (part 5)
17 September 2025
Edgar Willsher (known as Ned) was born, apparently with only one lung, on 22nd November 1828 in Rolvenden.
A History of Kent Cricket in Fourteen Cricketers (part 4)
18 August 2025
Alfred Mynn – The Lion of Kent Alfred Mynn – a big man On 7th and 8th July 1834, a match was…
A History of Kent Cricket in 14 Cricketers (3)
7 July 2025
Herbert Jenner From 16th to 18th June 1828, the Marylebone Cricket Club played Kent at Lord’s. Kent won the game by six…
A History of Kent Cricket in Fourteen Cricketers (Part 2)
23 June 2025
2. John Deedes Playing alongside John Willes in that match at Lord’s, if only for a few balls before Willes…
A History of Kent Cricket in Fourteen Cricketers
3 June 2025
To begin at the beginning – that would be good, if only we could. Do we start with the shepherds…
KCHT Chair's Statement at AGM 2025
13 May 2025
At the Annual General Meeting of the Kent Cricket Heritage Trust, held on 10 May at the Spitfire St. Lawrence…
Purple Patches and Dying Careers
23 February 2025
The other day I stumbled across the scorecard of a match played in 1953 – Kent v Surrey at Blackheath,…
THE CRICKET BALLS OF KENT
4 December 2024
At the start of the 2024 season, the ECB decided to experiment with two types of cricket ball, Kookaburra and…
A Recent Acquisition
23 September 2024
This article appeared in the Christmas 2019 edition of Inside Edge, the journal of the Kent Cricket Heritage Trust. From…
A Cricketer's Life
6 June 2024
On Thursday 11th July 2024 Kent County Cricket Club hosts the 3rd match in England Women’s Cricket’s IT20 series against New…
Heritage Trust Chair's Report 2023/24
29 May 2024
On Friday 24 May 2024, the Annual General Meeting of the Kent Cricket Heritage Trust was held at the Spitfire…
Betty Archdale, captain of Kent and England
6 March 2024
Helen Elizabeth “Betty” Archdale, of Kent and England, captained the first women’s team to tour Australia and New Zealand, in…
The Walter Lawrence Trophy
25 January 2024
The Lawrence Trophy was instituted in 1934 by Sir Walter Lawrence, a successful builder and keen promoter of all sports,…
THE KENNEDY GATES
10 September 2023
When the redevelopment of the St Lawrence Ground began over a decade ago, the turnstile gates on the Old Dover…
DOCTOR GRACE IN PETTICOATS
7 August 2023
In 1922, British Pathé News filmed a young woman called Muriel Maxted batting and bowling in Ashford. (You can find…
ESCAPE TO VICTORY
29 May 2023
This is the story of a remarkable man, captain of Kent for a season, but a national war hero for…
THE MISSING 499 PRINTS – AN UPDATE
13 May 2023
Thanks to all who actually read and paid attention to my previous blog about the Terence Macklin print. We have…
HELP! – THE MYSTERY OF 499 MISSING PRINTS
13 April 2023
We need your help. Any information leading to a successful outcome will be appreciated. Recently, while we were sorting through…
Clearing The Lime Tree
25 February 2023
The famous Canterbury Lime Tree, which stood on the St Lawrence ground for at least 180 years, was blown down…
A VICTORIAN ECCENTRIC
12 January 2023
In the 19th century, there were many amateur cricketers – and a few professionals – who lived their lives in a way…
THE CURIOUS TALE OF BOB THE BELL MAN
23 December 2022
While sorting through some photographs in the club’s huge collection, we came across a picture inscribed “Bob The Bell Man,…
KENT CRICKET IN DECEMBER
24 November 2022
December seems to be the quietest month of the year for cricket in England, and Kent is, at first glance,…
FOUR REIGN CRICKETERS
19 September 2022
The sad death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II means that after seventy years there is a new monarch on…
ANTIQUES, ROAD SHOWS AND ROAD TRIPS
24 August 2022
This has been an exciting summer for both Kent cricket and BBC Television, especially their Antiques division. I qualify for…
A Photograph from Brighton, 1907
11 July 2022
We have recently had donated to the Kent collections a number of photographs dating back to the first and second…
SWINGING SCOTLAND
25 May 2022
The other day, a 51 year old man named Richard Scott broke a world record by sitting continuously on a…
A VERY FAST BOWLER
28 April 2022
Kent has never had much of a reputation for producing fast bowlers. Spin bowlers – yes, definitely; medium pacers –…
WOOLLEY MEMORIES
7 March 2022
Birthdays are a mixed blessing. One a year is probably enough, but they are fun when they happen, even though…
SIXTY YEARS AGO
18 January 2022
I was looking through, as you do, my collection of Kent CCC Annuals, and happened to open the 1963 edition…
KENT IN INDIA 1721
10 December 2021
Historians suggest that the first known cricket on Indian soil was played three hundred years ago this year. Were Indians…
FATHERS AND SONS
22 November 2021
Over the years, many fathers and sons have distinguished themselves on the first-class cricket field. We can straight away think…
THE HERITAGE OF 2021
7 October 2021
The cricket season of 2021 was a strange one. The county championship was divided into three parts, like Caesar’s Gaul,…
CHATHAM CRUSADERS CRICKET CLUB
12 August 2021
The club has just been given two team photographs of Chatham Crusaders Cricket Club, dating from 1910 and 1911. The…
A WHOLE NEW BALL GAME
2 August 2021
(The views expressed in this blog are not necessarily endorsed by KCCC or KCHT) When Matt Milnes was called up…
AN EXTRAORDINARY GAME – KENT v SUSSEX, JULY 11-14 2021
15 July 2021
The Covid pandemic has created many odd cricketing situations, but – so far – none has been quite as odd…
KENT’S FIRST ‘FOREIGNER’
28 June 2021
This is the story of Kent’s first cricketing import. Of course, when this particular player moved to Kent from ‘abroad’,…
WHEN CAPPED KENT PLAYERS GO AGAINST EACH OTHER
10 June 2021
The Second Test between England and New Zealand, starting on 10 June at Edgbaston, featured two capped Kent cricketers. Nothing…
Winning at Canterbury
19 April 2021
I was looking at an early book on Kent cricket, snappily entitled “Kent Cricket Matches 1719 – 1880”, written by…
W.G. GRACE – THE KENT CONNECTION
23 March 2021
David Robertson tells us the story of the Great Cricketer in Kent: More than 150 years after his first appearance…
FOOTBALLING CRICKETERS – THE CHARLTON CONNECTION
6 February 2021
Charlton Athletic is a team that is deemed to be in Kent when they are playing well, but definitely in…
FOOTBALLING CRICKETERS (OR CRICKETING FOOTBALLERS) – Part One
5 January 2021
We all know that Joe Denly once hurt his ankle playing football in a kickabout, causing him to miss a…
Never Too Old
23 December 2020
I was browsing, as you do, through my collection of back copies of The Cricketer magazine, and I happened to…
A SESQUICENTENARY ONLY COMES ALONG ONCE EVERY 150 YEARS
3 December 2020
6th December 2020 marks the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the Kent County Cricket Club, a…
WHERE IS CHESTER-LE-STREET?
18 November 2020
On 18th January 2000, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? featured a chap called Peter Lee (definitely not the former Lancashire and England…
ALL OUT NOUGHT
6 November 2020
I was reading something about the Olympics, and whether or not they would ever allow cricket to be one of…
THE DAY I WON MY COUNTY CAP
20 October 2020
I recently thought I’d ask a few of Kent’s stalwarts what they remembered of the day they won their county…
THE HSBAKPIODIFE SUCCESSION
14 September 2020
Sam Billings hit 118 in a losing cause for England against Australia in the first of three ODIs at Old…
THE HSBAKPITFE SUCCESSION
3 September 2020
At the Ageas Bowl on the second day of the Third Test against Pakistan, Zak Crawley completed his innings of…
Kent Cricket Heritage Trust AGM 2020
28 August 2020
The KCHT Annual General Meeting, which was to have been held on 22 May, after close of play on the…
THE HAT-TRICK MAN
7 August 2020
I have played cricket at school, club and village level for over fifty years, and have fooled hundreds of batsmen…
KENT COUNTY CRICKET GROUNDS
29 June 2020
I have been far too slow to comment on the recently published book by Howard Milton and Peter Francis, entitled…
KENT’S GREATEST (WITH THREE INITIALS)
10 June 2020
Whenever I find it a bit hard to drop off – a rare occasion, I must admit – I like…
CHEESMAN OR HODSOLL – KENT’S FIRST CRICKETER?
25 May 2020
John Drew writes: Last autumn, my cousin Richard and I – our grand-uncle, on the unimpeachable testimony of his daughter,…
A BIT MORE MONCKTON BUSINESS
21 May 2020
DAVID ROBERTSON writes: When I read the previous post I was especially attracted to the juxtaposition of the two principal…
THE LAWYER AND THE CORPORAL
12 May 2020
This is the story of two cricketers from Kent, whose paths crossed briefly, but whose lives then went in very…
MORE TALES FROM NUMBER ELEVEN – HOW NOT TO BAT
23 April 2020
My blog yesterday about the batting skills of Norman Graham and Kevin Jarvis prompted Charlie Rowe to share a few…
COME IN, NUMBER ELEVEN, YOUR TIME IS NOW
22 April 2020
Big Norman Graham (left) and Kevin Jarvis (right), two of Kent’s better bowlers and lesser batsmen …
NORMAN HARDING – THE BOWLER BEATEN BY AN EPIDEMIC
31 March 2020
Norman Harding 1916 – 1947 As I write this, about ten days into what might be three or more…
THE BLAKERS OF KENT
20 March 2020
If you take a stroll down the promenade at Hythe, between the fish restaurant and the Imperial Hotel, you will…
MRS. COWDREY’S MARMALADE
20 February 2020
This time of year, I am told, is a good time for marmalade-making. Where you get the oranges from in…
WE NEED A LIBRARY
10 January 2020
Next week, we are going to begin the winter cull of books in the Kent CCC collection. We, in common…
WHAT’S THE POINT OF THE PAST?
15 November 2019
Sometimes, when I am sitting knee deep in old scorecards or surrounded by slightly tatty copies of the Kent Annual,…
THE HISTORY MEN
19 September 2019
Kent have just completed the biggest win, by runs margin, in their history, and the fourth biggest ever win in…
A SHAMELESS PLUG
9 July 2019
My new book, Stories of Cricket’s Finest Painting: Kent v Lancashire 1906, is published on 10 July. This is…
KENT AND THE WORLD CUP
14 June 2019
The ICC World Cup is going on all around us (or at least, in those parts of the country not…
KENT'S WOMEN ARE WINNERS
22 May 2019
A couple of weeks ago I was at the Polo Farm ground near Canterbury to watch the start of the…
THE OLD BOYS CLUB
24 April 2019
M.E. Trescothick, lbw b Stevens 5. Marcus Trescothick …
TWO DOUBLE HUNDREDS
5 March 2019
In February this year, the 28 year old Sri Lankan batsman Angelo Perera, captaining the Nondescripts against the Sinhalese Sports…
A GREAT COACH
26 November 2018
I was recently at the annual dinner of the Kent League, a very enjoyable occasion which celebrated the successes of…
WHAT DID YOU DO IN THE WAR, FATHER?
12 November 2018
Two different stories grabbed my attention this week, and then combined in the shape of one Kent cricketer. The first…
Fred 'Nutty' Martin – An Underrated Great
11 October 2018
We have recently been asked, “Do you have any information or archive material re Fred “Nutty” Martin? I’m curious as…
DECISIONS, DECISIONS!
5 October 2018
One thing about having a collection of memorabilia, portraits, cups, books, blazers and cricket balls – along with all the…
CHARLES TAYLOR AND CANTERBURY CRICKET WEEK
27 August 2018
This year we held the 167th Canterbury Cricket Week, in July rather than August because of the vagaries of the…
KENT’S FIRST OVERSEAS PLAYER
25 July 2018
We have been wondering recently who was Kent’s first overseas player. These days, every county has a whole raft of…
LAND AND WATER
2 July 2018
Sometimes a stone gets turned over almost by accident, to reveal a long forgotten part of Kent cricket history, and…
NAMING OF PARTS
9 June 2018
Henry Reed, the Second World War poet, wrote a poem called “Naming Of Parts.” It begins “Today we have naming…
TRUST CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT 2017/18
28 April 2018
The Kent Cricket Heritage Trust’s AGM will take place on 11th May, in the Chiesman Pavilion after close of play.…
MORE UFTON THAN KNOTT
29 March 2018
On television this morning, the local BBC news showed a press conference with Jason Gillespie, newly installed as coach at…
GAMBLING: THE PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CRICKET
16 February 2018
I recently spent some time with a dozen of the young players of the Kent Academy. I was not, fortunately,…
PRESIDENTS AND PLAYERS
25 January 2018
I need to apologise for a grievous error in my previous blog. I stated, almost unequivocally, that “our President in…
THE COMMITTEE ROOM OF DELIGHTS
21 December 2017
As we break for Christmas and the New Year holiday, the Committee Room at the Spitfire Ground is still acting…
HIDDEN TREASURES (AND PLENTY OF JUNK)
10 November 2017
If ever you are able to go behind the Woolley Stand and go in the door marked ‘Committee Room’, and…
THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE UMPIRE IN THE POND and other oddities of Kent cricket
5 October 2017
We are trying to compile a list of curiosities and oddities of cricket in Kent. It cannot possibly be comprehensive,…
MEMORIES ARE MADE OF THIS
12 September 2017
We have recently had a few donations to the club’s archive, each of which has added to our knowledge of…
The History of Kent County Cricket Club – Part Eight: From the 1980s to Today
22 August 2017
Concluding the history of the club, based on the original article written by the Hon. Curator of Kent CCC, David…
The History of Kent County Cricket Club – Part Seven: The Glory Years
31 July 2017
Continuing the history of the club, based on the original article written by the Hon. Curator of Kent CCC, David…
The 300 Club: Dickson and Ashdown (and Woolley and Cowdrey)
12 July 2017
Sean Dickson’s recent 318 against Northamptonshire at Beckenham established several records. It was the highest score ever made by a…
The History of Kent County Cricket Club – Part Six: The Post-War Years
28 June 2017
Continuing the history of the club, based on the original work by the Hon. Curator of Kent CCC, David Robertson.…
The History of Kent County Cricket Club – Part Five: Wicketkeepers
16 June 2017
Continuing the history of the club, based on the original article written by the Hon. Curator of Kent CCC, David…
THE HISTORY OF KENT CRICKET – Part Four: THE INTER-WAR YEARS
25 May 2017
Continuing the history of the club, based on the original article written by the Hon. Curator of Kent CCC, David…
SIGNS OF HERITAGE AT CANTERBURY
15 May 2017
The next time you come to the Spitfire St. Lawrence Ground, you will, unless you are remarkably unobservant, notice that…
A New Frank Woolley Portrait
5 May 2017
It has for many years been an issue at Canterbury – why is there no portrait of Frank Woolley, probably…
THE HISTORY OF KENT CRICKET – Part Three: County Champions
20 April 2017
Continuing the history of the club, based on the original website article written by the Hon. Curator of Kent…
THE HISTORY OF KENT CRICKET Part Two – Lord Harris Takes Charge
17 April 2017
Continuing the history of the club, based on the original website article written by the Hon. Curator of Kent CCC,…
THE HISTORY OF KENT CRICKET
13 April 2017
Recently, Kent County Cricket Club updated its website, and created a timeline on the website which recalls the outstanding events…
WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER
17 March 2017
Every six months or so, at the beginning and end of each season, those people who spend their days helping…
OF INKSTANDS AND COUNTY CAPS
15 February 2017
We have acquired a new inkstand. It is not the sort of thing that Staples or W.H. Smith would have on…
Cricket in Crisis?
21 January 2017
In the latest edition of our quarterly newsletter “Inside Edge” (email david.robertson81@btinternet.com if you want to have a copy), John…
What James Tredwell owes to James Seymour
10 January 2017
2017 is James Tredwell’s Testimonial Year. The festivities kick off with a lunch (which I suspect will run way beyond…