The 1946 County Championship was the 47th officially organised running of the

County Championship The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...

Yorkshire County Cricket Club Yorkshire County Cricket Club is one of 18 first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Yorkshire. Yorkshire are the most successful team in English cricketing hi ...

won their 22nd Championship title. The Championship was the first for six years due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and was decided on total points scored instead of the previous system of averages. All teams played 26 games.

Review

The 1946 County Championship had all teams scheduled to play 26 matches, although there were many incomplete games because of the weather "may be written down as the worst in living memory". Teams were awarded 12 points for a win and could also claim points for first innings lead in matches drawn or lost. In the end, the team with the most wins finished first and the team with the second most wins finished second, so the additional points did not really impact the outcome. According to ''Wisden'' in its 1947 edition, Yorkshire retained the title with "something to spare" but the competition was very close until the last few days. Middlesex and Lancashire "gave Yorkshire most reason for anxiety".''Wisden'' 1947 – Notes by the Editor
Retrieved on 14 October 2009. Captained by

Brian Sellers Arthur Brian Sellers (5 March 1907 – 20 February 1981) was an English amateur first-class cricketer, who played in 334 first-class matches for Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 1932 and 1948, and later became a prominent administrato ...

, Yorkshire's success was chiefly due to its two main bowlers Ellis Robinson and Arthur Booth who took 167 and 111 wickets respectively in all first-class matches. Yorkshire's pace bowlers were the veteran

Bill Bowes William Eric Bowes (25 July 1908 – 4 September 1987) was an English professional cricketer active from 1929 to 1947 who played in 372 first-class matches as a right arm fast bowler and a right-handed tail end batsman. He took 1,639 wickets ...

, who played for England in 1946, and future England player Alec Coxon. They took 65 and 69 wickets respectively. Seamer Frank Smailes, who also played for England against India, took 76 wickets. Booth was the season's surprise success as he was then 43 and had been a Minor Counties player before the war. Yorkshire had recalled him after many years absence as a replacement for the late

Hedley Verity Hedley Verity (18 May 1905 – 31 July 1943) was a professional cricketer who played for Yorkshire and England between 1930 and 1939. A slow left-arm orthodox bowler, he took 1,956 wickets in first-class cricket at an average of 14.90 ...

and Booth made the most of frequently damp conditions that suited his type of slow left arm bowling. Yorkshire's batting depended heavily on

Len Hutton Sir Leonard Hutton (23 June 1916 – 6 September 1990) was an English cricketer. He played as an opening batsman for Yorkshire County Cricket Club from 1934 to 1955 and for England in 79 Test matches between 1937 and 1955. '' Wisden Cricke ...

, supported by veterans

Wilf Barber Wilfred Barber (18 April 1901 – 10 September 1968) was a professional first-class cricketer who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club from 1926 to 1947. He played two Test matches for England in 1935 against South Africa. An opening bat ...

and

Maurice Leyland Maurice Leyland (20 July 1900 – 1 January 1967) was an English international cricketer who played 41 Test matches between 1928 and 1938. In first-class cricket, he represented Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 1920 and 1946, scoring ove ...

Norman Yardley Norman Walter Dransfield Yardley (19 March 1915 – 3 October 1989) was an English cricketer who played for Cambridge University, Yorkshire County Cricket Club and England, as a right-handed batsman and occasional bowler. An amateur, he c ...

batted well and took part in a Test trial. Runners-up Middlesex was captained by

Walter Robins Robert Walter Vivian Robins (3 June 1906 – 12 December 1968) was an English cricketer and cricket administrator, who played for Cambridge University, Middlesex, and England. A right-handed batsman and right-arm leg-break and googly bowler, he ...

and had a very strong batting lineup led by Denis Compton. The best Middlesex bowlers were Jim Sims and Jack Young.

Final table

* 12 pts for a win * 6 pts for a tie * 4 pts for a first innings lead in a match either drawn or lost * 8 pts for a win in a match under one day rules Yorkshire total includes eight points for win on first innings in match reduced by weather to one day. Somerset total includes two points for tie on first innings in match lost.

References

External links

CricketArchive – season summary

Bibliography

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "bible of cricket" was first used in the 1930s by Alec Waugh in a ...

1947 {{English cricket seasons 1946 in English cricket County Championship seasons