Guildford Bason

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Guildford is the location for the earliest definite reference to cricket in English history. A 1597 court case proves that a certain plot of land was used by boys who were playing the game in c.1550. Guildford Bason (or Basin) was on Merrow Down near Guildford and some early references are to the Down as venue rather than the Bason, so it is likely that the matches concerned were all played at the same place.

In July 1730, we have a reference to Merrow Down as the venue for a match between Mr Andrews’ XI and the Duke of Richmond’s XI (effectively a Surrey v Sussex match). In September 1741, Merrow Down is the venue for a famous match between, to quote the Duke of Richmond: "poor little Slyndon against almost your whole county of Surrey". Slindon, featuring Richard Newland, won "almost in one innings". We then have to fast forward to 1762 for another Guildford reference and, again, it is at Merrow Down with Guildford losing by 2 runs to Chertsey.

The first actual reference to Guildford Bason is the game played 31 July – 1 August 1769 between Caterham and Hambledon. Hambledon won by 4 wickets thanks to "the batting of Messrs Small and Bayton".

Sussex lawyer John Baker, a regular spectator at Georgian matches, described some of them in his diary. One is the All-England v Hampshire game in July 1772 which Baker attended with his parson friend, John Woodward. He writes that Hambledon was already batting when they arrived. It was a cheerful scene and "the Basin on Merrow Down" was ringed by a big crowd of spectators, most of them standing. Indeed, contemporary paintings of matches show no sign of seating accommodation for the ordinary folk. The local publicans were doing good business in their booths, some of them rented by the local nobility and thus the equivalent of the present-day sponsors’ tents or boxes. As in our own times, the occupants were often more interested in the food and drink than in the cricket. Guildford had fixed up a small grandstand "with benches above one another over his booth below", but it was already full. Baker then talks about "finding a small booth where we had a good cold dinner and good cider and ale". He says this was better and cheaper than the one they had on the following day in the White Hart booth.

The last we hear of Guildford Bason is the All-England v Hampshire match in August 1777. This produced a tense finish with Hampshire scoring 162-9 in the last innings to win by 1 wicket. Tom Taylor scored 62 and it required several runs by the last pair (Tom Sueter and Richard Nyren) to secure the win with Lumpy bowling to them.

English cricket venues in the 18th century

Artillery Ground | Bishopsbourne Paddock | Broadhalfpenny Down | Bromley Common | Dartford Brent | Duppas Hill Guildford Bason | Kennington Common | Laleham Burway | Lord's Cricket Ground | Mitcham Cricket Green | Moulsey Hurst Richmond Green | Vine Cricket Ground | White Conduit Fields

[edit] References

• Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians - various publications;
• At the Sign of the Wicket: Cricket 1742 – 1751 by F S Ashley-Cooper in Cricket Magazine (1900) (ASW);
• Cricket Scores 1730 - 1773 by H T Waghorn (WCS);
• Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket by G B Buckley (FL18);
• Fresh Light on Pre-Victorian Cricket by G B Buckley (FLPV);
• From the Weald to the World by Peter Wynne-Thomas (PWT);
• Scores & Biographies, Volume 1 by Arthur Haygarth (SBnnn);
• The Dawn of Cricket by H T Waghorn (WDC)