Scottish County Championship
| Countries | Scotland |
|---|---|
| Administrator | Scottish Cricket Union |
| First edition | 1902 |
| Latest edition | 1995 |
| Tournament format | One division |
| Number of teams | 10 (final season) |
| Most successful | Perthshire (29 titles) |
The Scottish County Championship was a cricket competition which ran between 1902 and 1995, administered by the Scottish Cricket Union from 1908 onwards. The championship was founded after proposals from Perthshire and was seen as a formalised version of the county game in Scotland, which had been taking place unofficially for several years.[1]
History
[edit | edit source]In Scotland, the idea of replicating the English County Championship had been discussed for many years, without any true support materialising.[2]
During a meeting between county team secretaries in Edinburgh in December 1901, five counties agreed to formally recognise the matches between each other in a league format. Although inter-county matches had been tabulated for several years, not all teams had played each other home and away each year. The formation of a league with standardised fixtures was seen as the next natural progression of cricket in Scotland, which had become increasingly popular in previous years.
The founding members were:
- Aberdeenshire
- Fifeshire
- Forfarshire
- Perthshire
- Stirlingshire
Western County Championship (1908-1910)
[edit | edit source]Although a regionalised 'district' county championship had been discussed as early as 1903, no concrete plan had been backed by county clubs in parts of the country not represented in the Scottish County Championship.[3]
With the success of the county championship, several county sides in the west of Scotland formed the Western County Championship in 1908. It was hoped that interest would spark rejuvenated attendances as had happened with the 'northern' teams. Starting in 1908 three teams, Ayrshire, Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire, competed against each other for the championship. They were followed by Dumbartonshire the following year. Both Ayrshire and Dumbartonshire eventually joined in the Scottish County Championship.
The winner of the Western County Championship would then play against the winner of the Scottish County Championship to determine the outright Scottish champion. In the first year of this setup, county winners Aberdeenshire refused to play their western counterparts Renfrewshire.[4] In the second season, Forfarshire played Renfrewshire but the match ended in a draw.[5]
The last recorded season of the Western County Championship was in 1910. By this point, the league had adopted a second name, the 'Scottish County Championship Western Division.' Unlike their northern equivalents, the first teams of the western counties still played club cricket on Saturdays, meaning all county fixtures were played midweek.
Teams
[edit | edit source]
Team information
[edit | edit source]| County Club | Ground | Location | First season in Championship |
First title | Last title | Titles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeenshire | Mannofield | Aberdeen | 1902 | 1903 | 1988 | 19 (2 shared) |
| Arbroath County | Lochlands | Arbroath | 1989 | 1989 | 1993 | 2 |
| Ayrshire | Cambusdoon | Ayr | 1984 | 1990 | 1991 | 2 |
| Clackmannan County | The Arns | Alloa | 1905 | 1924 | 1960 | 2 |
| Dunbartonshire | Auchenhowie | Milngavie | 1971 | - | - | 0 |
| Fifeshire | McKane Park | Dunfermline | 1902 | 1926 | 1939 | 9 (1 shared) |
| Forfarshire | Forthill | Dundee | 1902 | 1902 | 1992 | 15 (1 shared) |
| Perthshire | North Inch | Perth | 1902 | 1904 | 1978 | 29 |
| Stirling County | Williamfield | Stirling | 1902 | 1952 | 1985 | 2 |
| Strathmore County | Lochside | Forfar | 1984 | 1994 | 1994 | 1 |
| West Lothian County | Boghall | Linlithgow | 1930 | 1965 | 1995 | 3 |
Timeline
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See also
[edit | edit source]References
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