Winchmore Hill Cricket Club - Our History

The club was founded in the autumn of 1880 as Winchmore Hill Village Cricket Club by John Moore, who was Head Gardener to the Busk family at Ford's Grove. 'Village' was dropped from the name in 1912, when the current club title was adopted.

The pavilion dates back to 1922 and is a former Officer's Mess from a wartime army camp in Wimbledon. The cost of the pavilion, £1,750, was borne mostly from donations and loans by the President and members.

In the 1950s, the West Indies batsman, Allan Rae, played for Winchmore Hill CC whilst completing a Law degree in England. During this time he also scored centuries for the West Indies at Lord's and The Oval. In July 1949, a tour match organised by Rae between the West Indies and Winchmore Hill was played at The Paulin Ground, featuring players such as Learie Constantine and Everton Weekes.

In 2012, Winchmore Hill CC secured their maiden Premier League title in the penultimate game of the season against Ealing Cricket Club.

In 2013, Winchmore Hill CC became part of Winchmore Hill Sports Club in recognition of the multi sport nature of the club. Other sports played at The Paulin Ground include football, tennis, hockey and table tennis.

Following the clubs maiden Middlesex Premier League title, a period of poor performance followed and the 1st XI was relegated in both the 2013 and 2014 seasons to the Middlesex County Cricket League (MCCL) Division 3.

In 2017, Winchmore Hill CC were champions of MCCL Division 3 and promoted to MCCL Division 2. The club boasts 3 cricket pitches with electronic scoreboards, high quality nets and a multi-use games area (MUGA). The club's first team pitch has consistently been ranked as one of the best pitches in the league.

Winchmore Hill CC has a longstanding link with Kensington Cricket Club in Adelaide, and many of the club's overseas players have played for both clubs.

The four years 1919 to 1922 were important landmarks in the Club's development with the addition of the two winter sports of Football and Ladies Hockey, thereby completing the constitution of the four main outdoor playing sections as they are today. The Football Section was formed in the spring of 1920 and the Grange Ladies Hockey Club became a section of the parent club with each section being self-managing.

In order to provide better dressing accommodation for an ever increasing membership, it was during the winter of 1921/22 that a new pavilion was erected. The building itself came from the wartime army camp at Wimbledon and apart from a new extension of 1974 is still in use today. ​

Mr. W.T. Paulin purchased the grounds when the Ford's Grove estate was auctioned in 1920. His daughter, Irene, became President of the club and secured its future by directing in her will, upon her death in 1960, that a 99-year lease be granted to the club. The club lease, which is held in trust by the club’s trustees, therefore has around 40 years remaining.

We formally changed our name to Winchmore Hill Sports Club in 2013 in recognition of the multi sport nature of the club.

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