The Forty Club (XL) is an
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
club
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a '' Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands and enterprises ...
, established by
Henry Grierson in 1936 and playing its first matches in 1937.
Grierson's original intention was to enable good players to enjoy cricket into middle age. In a letter to a prospective opponent in 1937 he explained who would play for the club: "Qualifications – over 40, good fellows, and useful cricketers. Professionals as well as amateurs. No sub., each paying his own exes."
[ Henry Grierson, "The History of the Forty Club", '']The Cricketer
''The Cricketer'' is a monthly English cricket magazine providing writing and photography from international, county and club cricket.
The magazine was founded in 1921 by Sir Pelham Warner, an ex-England captain turned cricket writer. Warner ...
'', 14 May 1960, pp. 140–41. The first match was against
Wellingborough School
Wellingborough School is a co-educational day independent school in the market town of Wellingborough in Northamptonshire. It was established in 1595 and is one of the oldest schools in the country. The school today consists of a Prep school ...
on 19 June 1937.
[
The club plays matches against schools with the aim of developing and encouraging cricket in schools. The players were originally required to be over 40 years old, though that has now been reduced to 35. Further, for the years 2013/14 the age bar has been removed completely as a move to encourage all age groups. It is reputed to be the largest wandering cricket club in the world. The Duke of Edinburgh was the club's patron. Currently it enjoys some 140 fixtures against schools and youth XIs each season, plus a further 75 or 80 fixtures against clubs during the school holidays.]
References
External links
Matches played by The Forty Club
at CricketArchive
Club cricket teams in England
1936 establishments in England
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