History of the Club
Although the cricket club was founded in 1829, the history of the sport dates back even further, the first recorded game in the city was played a century before in 1729.
Earliest references to the game of cricket in Gloucestershire goes back to the reign of George II. F.S Ashley-Cooper’s book “Gloucester County Cricket” states weighty evidence of the game being played in the County is supplied by the issue of the weekly Journal or British Gazeteer of Sept 20th 1729 which published the following – on Monday 22nd, will be played in the town ham of this city, by 11 men of a side, a game at cricket, for upwards of 20 guineas.
The number of representative clubs in this part of the country were very few and far between, with Lansdown club of Bath being one of the oldest still to survive, and one of the first references to a game of club cricket is between Lansdown & Kingscote, indeed it was against Kingscote that the first recorded game took place involving the Gloucester club. The occasion was on July 12th 1829 when clubs of Gloucester & Cirencester joined forces to take on Kingscote on latter ground. Two further matches were played subsequent to that date, both involving the same three clubs.
Earliest Recorded Game V Cheltenham
It was not until August 1833 that a report appeared, this probably the first game between the Gloucester & Cheltenham clubs. The report stated “the game was won by Gloucester in most gallant style”.
Move to the SPA
In the early 1860’s the limitations of the Town Ham, which lay on a very low-lying ground, near the river severn and on occasions 3ft of water had been recorded , this was clearly a concern of the club. Moves were made to find a new home which turned out to be the Spa which had sometimes been a privately owned pleasure ground. The first recorded game played on the Spa was on June 6th 1863 when Tewkesbury were the visitors, this year saw the beginning of another well known local club, The Gloucester Wagon Co.
Merge of Two Clubs Gloucester City CC & Winget CC
In 2005 the merger of the above two clubs was agreed to become one club under the name of Gloucester City Winget CC, thus ensuring the history of both clubs remains intact.
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