Somerset County Cricket Club is one of eighteen
first-class county clubs within the domestic
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 striki ...
structure of
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. It represents the
historic county of
Somerset
( en, All The People of Somerset)
, locator_map =
, coordinates =
, region = South West England
, established_date = Ancient
, established_by =
, preceded_by =
, origin =
, lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset
, lord_ ...
. Founded in 1875, Somerset was initially regarded as a
minor county
The National Counties, known as the Minor Counties before 2020, are the cricketing counties of England and Wales that do not have first-class status. The game is administered by the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), which comes unde ...
until official
first-class status was acquired in 1895. Somerset has competed in 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 ...
since 1891 and has subsequently played in every top-level domestic cricket competition in England. The club's limited overs team was formerly named the Somerset Sabres, but is now known only as Somerset.
Somerset's early history is complicated by arguments about its status. It is generally regarded as a
minor county
The National Counties, known as the Minor Counties before 2020, are the cricketing counties of England and Wales that do not have first-class status. The game is administered by the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), which comes unde ...
from its foundation in 1875 until 1890, apart from the 1882 to 1885 seasons when it is considered by substantial sources to have been an ''unofficial''
first-class team, holding
important match status. There are, however, two matches involving
W. G. Grace
William Gilbert Grace (18 July 1848 – 23 October 1915) was an English Amateur status in first-class cricket, amateur cricketer who was important in the development of the sport and is widely considered one of its greatest players. He played ...
in 1879 and 1881 which are considered first-class by some authorities. In 1891, Somerset joined 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 ...
, which had just become an officially recognised competition, and has important match status from 1891 to 1894. The county is classified as an ''official'' first-class team from 1895 by
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...
(MCC) and the County Championship clubs; classified as a
List A
List A cricket is a classification of the limited-overs (one-day) form of the sport of cricket, with games lasting up to eight hours. List A cricket includes One Day International (ODI) matches and various domestic competitions in which the numbe ...
team since the beginning of
limited overs cricket
Limited overs cricket, also known as one-day cricket or white ball cricket, is a version of the sport of cricket in which a match is generally completed in one day. There are a number of formats, including List A cricket (8-hour games), Twenty ...
in 1963; and classified as a senior
Twenty20
Twenty20 (T20) is a shortened game format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have a single innin ...
team since 2003.
Somerset have never won the County Championship, their highest finish being second, which they achieved in 2001, 2010, 2012, 2016, 2018 and 2019. The club won their first silverware in the late 1970s, winning both the
Gillette Cup and
John Player League in 1979. In the years since, Somerset have experienced some success in one-day cricket, winning the Gillette Cup on two further occasions, the
Benson & Hedges Cup
The Benson & Hedges Cup was a one-day cricket competition for first-class counties in England and Wales that was held from 1972 to 2002, one of cricket's longest sponsorship deals.
It was the third major one-day competition established in Englan ...
twice and the John Player League once more. The team has reached the final of the Twenty20 cup competition on five occasions, winning it in 2005. They won the 2019
Royal London One-Day Cup
The Royal London One-Day Cup is a fifty-over limited overs cricket competition for the England and Wales first-class counties. It began in 2014 as a replacement for the ECB 40 tournament, which ran from 2010 to 2013. In contrast to its 40-over ...
, their first since emerging victorious in the 2001 edition.
The club has its headquarters at the
County Ground,
Taunton
Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...
, where in the present-day almost all of its games are played. Since 2005, Somerset also play at
Taunton Vale against
MCC Universities teams (including
first-class matches in 2012 and 2015); Taunton Vale is also the regular home venue for the Second XI team. The club have played at a
number of other grounds in their past, with a significant number of matches at
Clarence Park (until 1996),
Weston-super-Mare and the
Recreation Ground,
Bath
Bath may refer to:
* Bathing, immersion in a fluid
** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body
** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe
* Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities
Plac ...
(until 2011).
Honours
First XI honours
*
One-Day Cup (4) –
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
,
1983
The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...
,
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
,
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
*
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
(1) –
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
*
Benson & Hedges Cup
The Benson & Hedges Cup was a one-day cricket competition for first-class counties in England and Wales that was held from 1972 to 2002, one of cricket's longest sponsorship deals.
It was the third major one-day competition established in Englan ...
(2) –
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
,
1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
*
Twenty20 Cup (1) –
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
Second XI honours
*
Minor Counties Championship
The NCCA 3 Day Championship (previously the Minor Counties Cricket Championship) is a season-long competition in England and Wales that is contested by the members of the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), the so-called national cou ...
(2) – 1961, 1965
*
Second XI Championship
The Second XI Championship is a season-long cricket competition in England that is competed for by the reserve teams of those county cricket clubs that have first-class status. The competition started in 1959 and has been contested annually ever ...
(2) – 1994, 2004
History
Earliest cricket in Somerset
In the seventeenth century, the
related sport of "Stow-Ball", or "Stob-Ball" was being played in north
Somerset
( en, All The People of Somerset)
, locator_map =
, coordinates =
, region = South West England
, established_date = Ancient
, established_by =
, preceded_by =
, origin =
, lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset
, lord_ ...
, as in neighbouring
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
and
Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
, as well as parts of
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...
. This sport most likely used either the base of a tree or its remaining
stump
Stump may refer to:
* Stump (band), a band from Cork, Ireland and London, England
* Stump (cricket), one of three small wooden posts which the fielding team attempt to hit with the ball
*Stump (dog): Clussexx Three D Grinchy Glee (born 1998), 200 ...
as its
wicket
In cricket, the term wicket has several meanings:
* It is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch. The fielding team's players can hit the wicket with the ball in a number of ways to get a batsman out. ...
, as both 'stow' and 'stob' are dialect words for 'stump'. However, 'stow' could also refer to a frame used to support crawling tunnels in
mines such as those
lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
mines in north Somerset, providing another possibility for the wicket. The ball was made of a
leather
Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...
case, stuffed with boiled quills, and was four inches in
diameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid for ...
, roughly the same size as a modern
softball
Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
, while the bats, known as 'staves' were shaped similarly to a
field hockey stick
In field hockey, each player carries a stick and cannot take part in the game without it. The stick for an adult is usually in the range 89–95 cm (35–38 in) long. A maximum length of 105 cm (41.3") was stipulated from 2015. Th ...
and typically made of
withy or
willow
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...
.
![FrederickPrinceOfWales1741](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/FrederickPrinceOfWales1741.jpg)
The earliest confirmed reference to cricket in Somerset is a match on 13 July 1751 that was played in memory of the late
Frederick, Prince of Wales
Frederick, Prince of Wales, (Frederick Louis, ; 31 January 170731 March 1751), was the eldest son and heir apparent of King George II of Great Britain. He grew estranged from his parents, King George and Queen Caroline. Frederick was the fath ...
who was a noted patron of the sport. The first officially organised club to be recognised in Somerset was
Lansdown Cricket Club
Lansdown Cricket Club, formed in 1825, is recognised as the earliest official organised cricket club in Somerset. Originally based in Lansdown, since 1869 the club has been based at Combe Park, Bath, adjacent to the Royal United Hospital.
Fou ...
, formed in 1825, although a Bath cricket club seems to have preceded it with a similar collection of enthusiasts from around 1817–1824.
With a limited number of other organised clubs to play, fixtures were few and far apart in the founding years, with matches being played against Clifton, Sidmouth and Teignmouth. Lansdown placed Somerset in the cricketing world, and played a number of matches against 'England XI' in various forms.
[Foot (1986), p14.]
In 1865, the first attempt at a county side was made with the formation of ''Yeovil and County Cricket Club''.
They performed poorly in their opening matches against local club sides, and on one occasion, even lost three players to their opposition the day before the match was scheduled to begin. In spite of these problems, they did play a 'county' fixture, against the ''Gentlemen of Devon''; the match was abandoned due to rain. The first recorded occasion of a ''Gentlemen of Somerset'' side playing comes five years previously however, when a Somerset side travelled down to Culm Vale to take on the ''Gentlemen of Devon'', this match also resulting in a draw.
Origin of club
The formation of Somerset County Cricket Club was decided in 1875 after the playing of one such match between the ''Gentlemen of Somerset'' and the ''Gentlemen of Devon'' at
Sidmouth in
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...
. Having played a two-day match, which the Somerset team won by eight wickets, the Gentlemen of Somerset and their friends held a meeting and resolved the Somerset should have its own county cricket club. Somerset is the only one of the present first-class counties in English cricket whose county cricket club was founded outside the boundaries of the traditional county. After their resolution, the gentlemen continued playing games under the name ''Gentlemen of Somerset'', but their fixtures became more regular; rather than occasional games against the ''Gentlemen of Devon'', they played host to teams from Dorset and Devon in 1876, and in 1877 visited Dorset, Worcestershire, Warwickshire and Wiltshire in addition to their trip to Devon.
The following 1878 season, two matches were played by a ''Somerset'' team; a two-day match against
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...
played at
St Albans
St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
finished in a draw, while
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
were beaten by an innings and 47 runs later in the month at
Bath
Bath may refer to:
* Bathing, immersion in a fluid
** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body
** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe
* Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities
Plac ...
. In 1879, Somerset played nine matches, albeit one of them against a
Wells
Wells most commonly refers to:
* Wells, Somerset, a cathedral city in Somerset, England
* Well, an excavation or structure created in the ground
* Wells (name)
Wells may also refer to:
Places Canada
*Wells, British Columbia
England
* Wells ...
team. During these early seasons, Somerset were never far from insolvency. An initial letter sent out after the formation of the club had only managed to raise £70 17s, while gate receipts in the first season raised the club £1 15s 8d. Despite this, fixtures continued to be arranged, and the amateurs kept on playing; bringing their own kit and paying for their own tickets for travel to away matches.
There are alternative versions of when Somerset's first first-class match took place, and matches in 1879 and 1881 are central to the statistics of
W. G. Grace
William Gilbert Grace (18 July 1848 – 23 October 1915) was an English Amateur status in first-class cricket, amateur cricketer who was important in the development of the sport and is widely considered one of its greatest players. He played ...
– see the article on
Variations in first-class cricket statistics
Variations in published cricket statistics have come about because there is no official view of the status of cricket matches played in Great Britain prior to 1895 or in the rest of the world prior to 1947. As a result, historians and statistici ...
. If those games are discounted, then Somerset CCC played its initial first-class match against
Lancashire CCC
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in English cricket. The club has held first-class status since it was founded in 1864. Lancashire's home is Old Trafford Cricket Ground, although the team also play ...
at
Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
on 8, 9 and 10 June 1882 and joined the (then unofficial)
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 ...
. This first-class status lasted for only four seasons: after the 1885 season, Somerset failed to arrange sufficient fixtures with the other first-class teams to be accorded first-class status.
In 1890, following a successful recruitment policy at universities by the club's first full-time secretary,
Henry Murray-Anderdon, Somerset played 13 games, including 2 against
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
, winning 12 of them and tying the other against Middlesex, furthering their ambition to be a first-class county.
At the third annual meeting of
The County Cricket Council
The County Cricket Council was a short lived body intended to regulate county cricket in England. It existed from 1887 to 1890.
The council was the brain-child of Lord Harris. In November 1886 he had sent a letter to the County Secretaries asking ...
on 9 December 1889 the counties decided to create a sub-committee to consider whether an official classification of the counties should exist and how counties might rise from one class to another. Somerset was one of the 6 counties represented on the committee. The committee met on 11 August 1890 and proposed three classes of counties. The existing 8 first-class counties would remain with Somerset one of 8 second-class counties proposed. A system of promotion and relegation was suggested. These proposals was debated at the fourth annual meeting of The County Cricket Council on 8 December 1890. They were not well received. Eventually a vote was taken on whether The County Cricket Council itself should be suspended
sine die
In mathematics, sine and cosine are trigonometric functions of an angle. The sine and cosine of an acute angle are defined in the context of a right triangle: for the specified angle, its sine is the ratio of the length of the side that is oppo ...
. The motion was passed on the casting vote of the Chairman and The County Cricket Council effectively ceased to exist. "This utterly unexpected result fairly took those present by surprise, and they dispersed hurriedly – a most undignified ending to what we are compelled to describe as a most unbusinesslike meeting."
Mr. H.T. Hewett and
Mr. T. Spencer were present for Somerset. On the following day, 9 December 1890, the county secretaries met to decide the fixtures for 1891, which they did on the usual basis of arranging "home and home" matches against whichever counties they wished. "The most noticeable feature ... is the encouragement given to Somersetshire by the chief county clubs. Middlesex played the western shire last summer, but Kent, Surrey, Yorkshire, Gloucestershire and Lancashire will next summer test the merits of the eleven, which showed such good all round cricket, under
Mr. H.T. Hewett's command, last year." By arranging these 12 matches against first-class counties Somerset became a
de facto
''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
first-class county without any proposal or vote to that effect. Hewett, Spencer and
Mr. W.N. Roe were present for Somerset.
Pre-First World War
In Somerset's second season, 1892, they finished third, but it was to be 66 years before they finished as high again. Until the Great Depression, the team regularly comprised a number of more or less talented amateurs and just a handful of professionals. They enjoyed over many decades a reputation for cheerful inconsistency, highlighted by three wins over an all-conquering
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
side in 1901 and 1902, when they did not lose to any other county.
Famous names from the pre-First World War period included the England players
Sammy Woods,
Lionel Palairet
Lionel Charles Hamilton Palairet (27 May 1870 – 27 March 1933) was an English amateur cricketer who played for Somerset and Oxford University. A graceful right-handed batsman, he was selected to play Test cricket for England twice in 190 ...
and
Len Braund
Leonard Charles Braund (18 October 1875 – 23 December 1955) was a cricketer who played for Surrey, Somerset and England.
Len Braund was an all-rounder, a versatile batsman who could defend or attack according to the needs of the game and a l ...
; the fast bowler
Tom Richardson also played for the county once after his retirement from
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
. In 1908, Woods persuaded the England
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
international
John Daniell to become captain with the team struggling financially, and Daniell stayed, mostly playing as captain and often acting as secretary too, for almost 20 years.
[Foot (1986)] However, in the immediate period before World War I, with the loss of the key amateurs who promoted the club to first-class status and financial difficulties forcing the club to dis-engage most of its few professionals, Somerset finished last four times in six years and lost fifteen and drew three of eighteen games in
1910
Events
January
* January 13 – The first public radio broadcast takes place; live performances of the operas '' Cavalleria rusticana'' and ''Pagliacci'' are sent out over the airwaves, from the Metropolitan Opera House in New York C ...
.
Between the wars
In the first season of the County Championship after the First World War, 1919, Somerset finished fifth in the table, the highest since 1892.
[Swanton (1986), p394.] But that was the highest position in the inter-war years, and mostly the side finished at or below halfway down the table, though there were no more bottom places in this period.
The team continued to be a mix of a few highly talented amateurs and a few good professionals, with the side often made up with amateur players who appeared in only a few games. Among the amateurs, the west Somerset farmer
Jack White, who succeeded Daniell as captain in 1927, played for England as a left-arm orthodox spinning
all-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are consi ...
and also captained the Test side in Australia in 1928–29. The briefest
Test match career of them all was "enjoyed" by another amateur,
Jack MacBryan
John Crawford William MacBryan (22 July 1892 – 14 July 1983) was an English cricketer who played for Cambridge University and Somerset and made one almost imperceptible appearance in a Test match for England. MacBryan was also a field hoc ...
, whose only game for England was the rain-ruined match against
the South Africans in 1924, in which he neither batted nor bowled. Of the professionals, fleeting international careers were enjoyed by the hard-hitting batsman
Harold Gimblett
Harold Gimblett (19 October 1914 – 30 March 1978) was a cricketer who played for Somerset and England. He was known for his fast scoring as an opening batsman and for the much-repeated story of his debut. In a book first published in 1982 ...
, whose entry into first-class cricket was the stuff of legends,
and by
Arthur Wellard
Arthur William Wellard (8 April 1902 in Southfleet, Kent – 31 December 1980 in Eastbourne, Sussex) was a cricketer who played for Somerset and England. A late starter in county cricket, having been told by his native county, Kent, that he wo ...
, fast bowler and a mighty smiter of sixes.
Post-Second World War
In postwar cricket, the happy-go-lucky Somerset attitude was no longer sustainable, and the side finished bottom of the Championship for four consecutive seasons from 1952.
With the strong possibility of going out of business, drastic change was inevitable. Somerset recruited heavily from other countries, taking
Colin McCool
Colin Leslie McCool (9 December 1916 – 5 April 1986) was an Australian cricketer who played in 14 Test matches between 1946 and 1950. McCool, born in Paddington, New South Wales, was an all-rounder who bowled leg spin and googlies with ...
and
Bill Alley
William Edward Alley (3 February 1919 – 26 November 2004) was a cricketer who played 400 first-class matches for New South Wales, Somerset and a Commonwealth XI.
Whilst in Australia, Alley was also a middleweight boxer, and was undefe ...
from Australia, and from other counties. In 1958, under the captaincy of the first professional cricketer to captain the team,
Maurice Tremlett
Maurice Fletcher Tremlett (5 July 1923 – 30 July 1984) was an English cricketer, who played for Somerset, Central Districts and England.
For a couple of years in the late 1940s, Tremlett looked as though he might be the answer to some of Engl ...
, the side again finished third, and this was repeated in 1963 and 1966 under different captains,
Harold Stephenson and
Colin Atkinson
Colin Ronald Michael Atkinson (23 July 1931 – 25 June 1991) was an English first-class cricketer, schoolmaster and the headmaster of Millfield School.
Education
Born at Thornaby, Yorkshire, Atkinson was educated at St. Mary's Grammar Sc ...
, who later became headmaster at
Millfield School
Millfield is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) located in Street, Somerset, England. It was founded in 1935.
Millfield is a registered charity and is the largest co-educational boarding scho ...
.
There was a further dip in fortunes towards the end of the 1960s, but, though County Championship success continued to elude the county, Somerset finally found in the 1970s the makings of a successful one-day team under the combative, inspirational captaincy of Yorkshireman
Brian Close
Dennis Brian Close, (24 February 1931 – 13 September 2015) was an English first-class cricketer. He was picked to play against New Zealand in July 1949, when he was 18 years old. Close went on to play 22 Test matches for England, ...
. A trio of world class players,
Viv Richards
Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards (born 7 March 1952) is an Antiguan retired cricketer who represented the West Indies cricket team between 1974 and 1991. Batting generally at number three in a dominant West Indies side, Richards is widely ...
,
Joel 'Big Bird' Garner and the England
all-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are consi ...
Ian Botham
Ian Terence Botham, Baron Botham, (born 24 November 1955) is an English cricket commentator, member of the House of Lords, a former cricketer who has been chairman of Durham County Cricket Club since 2017 and charity fundraiser.
Hailed as one ...
made the team for the first time in its long history a formidable trophy winning proposition.
The real success came after Close had retired. Under the captaincy of left-handed opener
Brian Rose, Somerset won their first ever silverware by taking the
Gillette Cup and the
Sunday League in 1979.
[Swanton (1986), pp510–517.] In the same 1979 season, Somerset's newfound ruthless streak provoked controversy in the
Benson & Hedges Cup
The Benson & Hedges Cup was a one-day cricket competition for first-class counties in England and Wales that was held from 1972 to 2002, one of cricket's longest sponsorship deals.
It was the third major one-day competition established in Englan ...
limited-overs competition when Rose declared the Somerset innings closed in the match against
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
, in an attempt to safeguard passage through to the quarter-final on run rate: the county was subsequently disqualified from the competition at a special meeting of the
Test and County Cricket Board
The Test and County Cricket Board (TCCB) was the governing body for Test and county cricket in Great Britain between 1968 and 1996. The TCCB was established in 1968 to replace the functions of the Board of Control for Test Matches (established in ...
. Rose also captained the side to the Benson & Hedges Cup in 1981 and 1982, and the renamed
NatWest Trophy (formerly the Gillette Cup) in 1983.
In September 1983, in the
NatWest
National Westminster Bank, commonly known as NatWest, is a major retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom based in London, England. It was established in 1968 by the merger of National Provincial Bank and Westminster Bank. In 2000, it ...
final at
Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and ...
, Somerset beat
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
to win the trophy for the first time in their history.
Controversy returned to Somerset in the mid-1980s. With the successful side ageing, new captain
Peter Roebuck led the move to make changes and the overseas stars Viv Richards and Joel Garner were sacked, replaced by the New Zealander
Martin Crowe. Ian Botham resigned from Somerset in protest and moved to Worcestershire.
Recent years
![Somopeners](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Somopeners.jpg)
Success has been elusive in recent years, although New Zealand born
Andy Caddick
Andrew Richard Caddick (born 21 November 1968) is a former cricketer who played for England as a fast bowler in Tests and ODIs. At 6 ft 5in, Caddick was a successful bowler for England for a decade, taking 13 five-wicket hauls in Test mat ...
and opener
Marcus Trescothick have proved major pillars of the
England Test team and overseas stars such as
Jamie Cox
Jamie Cox (born 15 October 1969) is an Australian cricketer and former opening batsman for Tasmania in Australia's domestic competitions.
He then played county cricket in England where he captained Somerset. He is a former member of the Cricke ...
have given sterling service for the club, resulting in their appearance in the
NatWest Trophy final in 1999 and the
C & G Trophy final in 2001 and 2002, winning in 2001 over
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...
. In 2001, the team finished second in the first division of the County Championship, its highest-ever placing. But true to its contrary traditions, the county was relegated to the second division at the end of the following season.
Under the guidance of the Director of Cricket
Brian Rose, the team has adopted a youth policy, which Rose accepts will lead to a succession of good and bad results in the short term. To balance the youth policy, for two seasons the club was led by high-profile overseas stars
Ricky Ponting
Ricky Thomas Ponting (born 19 December 1974) is an Australian cricket coach, commentator, and former cricketer. Ponting was captain of the Australian national team during its "golden era", between 2004 and 2011 in Test cricket and 2002 and 20 ...
and
Graeme Smith to enable coaching of the young group of players. In July 2005, as perhaps a portent of better times to come, the county was the surprise winner of the third
Twenty20 Cup, beating
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
in the final at
The Oval
The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...
.
The 2006 season was up and down in results, but in June 2006 Rose announced the signing for six weeks of the
Australian cricket team
The Australia men's national cricket team represents Australia in men's international cricket. As the joint oldest team in Test cricket history, playing in the first ever Test match in 1877, the team also plays One-Day International (ODI) an ...
opening batsman
Justin Langer
Justin Lee Langer (21 November 1970) is an Australian cricket coach and former cricketer. He is the former coach of the Australia men's national team, having been appointed to the role in May 2018 and leaving in February 2022. A left-handed ba ...
, while countryman
Dan Cullen
Daniel James Cullen (born 10 April 1984) is a former Australian first-class cricketer who played for South Australia and Somerset in a career that lasted from 2004 to 2009. He was a right-arm off break bowler who appeared six times for Austra ...
was on duty with Australia A. Langer responded by hitting the highest score in the county's first-class history, but without him, the team struggled in both short and long versions of the game, failed to repeat their Twenty20 success and languished at or near the bottom of both County Championship and Pro40 second division tables.
In 2007 Langer, having returned to the team, was named captain.
Cameron White was the other overseas player. Somerset's season began brightly, including a county-record 850/7 declared against
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
in their first Championship match, but a few weeks later Somerset were on the wrong end of a huge total when they conceded 801/8 declared to
Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...
. However, they recovered well from this setback and achieved promotion, returning to Division One of the Championship for the first time since 2002, after beating
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
at Chelmsford with five sessions to spare. They were also promoted to Division One of the Pro40 league.
While 2008 was an improved season, 2009 brought marginally less success. Langer announced his retirement from all forms of cricket at the end of the 2009 season, making the
2009 Champions League Twenty20
The 2009 Champions League Twenty20 was the first edition of the Champions League Twenty20, an international club cricket tournament. It was held in India between 8 October and 23 October 2009 and featured 12 domestic teams from Australia, England, ...
in India his last competitive competition for the club.
2010–15
On the departure of Justin Langer,
Marcus Trescothick was named as club captain for the 2010 season. It was a memorable season for Somerset, although somewhat bitter-sweet. In one of the most successful seasons in the club's history, Somerset finished as runners-up in all major domestic competitions. In August the club went down to Hampshire in the
Friends Provident t20 final, after failing to effect a run-out from the last ball that would have secured them the title. In the County Championship, they finished second to
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
. While level on points at the close of play on the last day of the Championship season, Nottinghamshire lifted the title by virtue of more wins during the year. They were then beaten by
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
in the
Clydesdale Bank 40 final.
In the 2011 season, Somerset again performed well in all three domestic competitions finishing 4th in the County Championship, and runners up again in the Twenty20 competition to Leicestershire and also in the CB40 final to Surrey. Taunton-born keeper-batsman
Jos Buttler secured a call up for England for 20/20 cricket. By virtue of finishing runners up in the domestic Twenty20 competition, Somerset qualified for the T20 Champions League competition in India featuring many of the world's best 20/20 teams.
Roelof van der Merwe
Roelof Erasmus van der Merwe (born 31 December 1984) is a Dutch-South African professional cricketer who has played internationally for both South Africa and the Netherlands, one of the few players to represent more than one international team ...
returned as their overseas player for this competition. Somerset performed exceptionally well, progressing from the preliminary round to the semi-final where they lost to the Mumbai Indians, in the process picking up considerable prize money.
During the 2012 season, Somerset were ravaged by injuries to the extent that on two occasions the county were reduced to their last 11 available players, with members of the coaching and support staff having to fill in as 12th men. Despite this it was another successful season with Somerset again finishing runners-up in the
Championship, though they finished 24 points behind the winners, only losing one match all year.
Nick Compton
Nicholas Richard Denis Compton (born 26 June 1983) is a South African-born English former Test and first-class cricketer who most recently played for Middlesex County Cricket Club. The grandson of Denis Compton, he represented England in 16 ...
carried a batting lineup that at times missed key players such as Trescothick and
Craig Kieswetter due to injury, averaging an incredible 99.25. In one-day competitions, Somerset couldn't quite make up for a poor start in the
CB40
The ECB40, last known as the Yorkshire Bank 40 (YB40) for sponsorship reasons, was a forty-over limited overs cricket competition for the English first-class counties. It began in the 2010 English cricket season as a replacement for the Pro40 a ...
, losing their first 4 games, before winning their next 6 completed matches and narrowly missing out on the semi-finals. In the reformatted
t20, Somerset topped their group and won the home quarter-final against
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
to send them on another trip to finals day, only to fall short to Hampshire in the semi-final.
In 2013, Somerset took a backward step in the
Championship, as the batting lineup largely struggled. A late win over
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
in September, the side's first and only Championship win at Taunton all year, basically assured them of safety and Somerset ended up in 6th place. Somerset found much better success in the one-day formats, topping their group in the
YB40, winning 8 out of their 12 games only to be bowled out for just 119 in the semi-final and lose by 8 wickets.
Peter Trego was the tournament's leading run-scorer with 745 including 2 hundreds and 5 fifties in 12 innings. The now familiar pattern of success in the group stages and disappointment in the latter stages was repeated in the
t20 as Somerset were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Surrey. Before the season
Brian Rose's tenure as Director of Cricket ended and he was replaced by
David Nosworthy
David Owen Nosworthy (born 25 December 1967) is a South African former cricketer. A right-handed batsman and occasional right-arm medium and off break bowler, he enjoyed modest success as a player playing 29 first-class matches and 14 list A ga ...
.
Somerset had an indifferent 2014, as they failed to make much headway in the
Championship and, for the first time since 2007, weren't able make the knockout stages of either one-day competition. Somerset again placed 6th in the Championship, although they were in no danger of relegation unlike the previous season. The beginning of the season had seen the departure of crowd favourite Buttler to
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, and towards the end was marred by what turned out to be a career-ending eye injury to Kieswetter.
2015
Before the start of the 2015 season, plenty of changes took place at the club.
Matthew Maynard
Matthew Peter Maynard, (born 21 March 1966) is an English cricket coach and former cricketer. He played in four Tests and fourteen ODIs for England.
Maynard was a batsman (and, later in his career, wicketkeeper) known for his aggressive and da ...
stepped into the role of Director of Cricket after the club parted ways with Nosworthy. With the loss of Kieswetter, Somerset also lost another senior batsman in Compton as he moved back to London.
Alfonso Thomas became captain in one-day competitions with Trescothick remaining as club and First-class captain. Somerset also made some new signings, including
Chris Gayle for the start of the
t20 Blast
The T20 Blast, currently named the Vitality Blast for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket competition for English and Welsh first-class counties. The competition was established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (E ...
. For the most part, the season followed much the same path as the last, with Somerset failing to reach the latter stages of either limited overs competition and battling for the lower places in the
Championship. Despite Gayle providing 328 runs in his three innings with the club, Somerset languished second from bottom in the t20 Blast. With Thomas sent out on loan, new signing
Jim Allenby took over the captaincy for the
One-Day Cup and despite winning their last three matches, Somerset missed out on a quarter-final spot. In the
Championship Somerset looked to be in relegation trouble for much of the season, but led by a late run of form from Trescothick and thanks to a maximum points victory in their final game, Somerset avoided the drop by a margin of 22 points and finished 6th in Division One for the third consecutive year.
James Hildreth
James Charles Hildreth (born 9 September 1984) is a former English professional cricketer who played for Somerset County Cricket Club. He attended Millfield School, Somerset. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional right-arm medium pace bow ...
was the leading Championship run-scorer in Division One.
2016
The 2016 season saw dramatic improvements in two of the three competitions.
Chris Rogers Chris Rogers may refer to:
* Chris Rogers (cricketer) (born 1977), Australian cricketer
* Chris Rogers (jockey) (1924–1976), thoroughbred horse racing jockey
* Chris Rogers (journalist) (born 1975), British newscaster
* Chris Rogers (mathematicia ...
was brought in to captain the
Championship side on a one-year basis, and having been mid-table for most of the season, Somerset went on a late surge which put them right in contention for the title going into the last round of matches. Somerset defeated
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
in their match, with Rogers scoring tons in both innings of the last game of his career, but needed
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...
and
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
to draw their match on the final day. With the game drifting, Yorkshire employed declaration bowling in order to allow Middlesex to set a target. However, as the close neared, it became clear that Yorkshire were not going to reach the target and Middlesex appeared not to have quite enough time to bowl Yorkshire out. In heartbreaking fashion, Yorkshire's lower order collapsed to hand Middlesex the title and leave Somerset finishing runners-up. Somerset had four batsmen reach 1000 runs in the Championship, those being
Trescothick,
Hildreth, Rogers and for the first time in his career,
Peter Trego. Spinner
Jack Leach
Matthew Jack Leach (born 22 June 1991) is an English professional cricketer who plays internationally for the England Test cricket team. In domestic cricket, he represents Somerset. Leach made his Test debut in 2018. He plays as a left-arm ort ...
claimed 65 wickets, finishing second in the Division One wicket takers list. Somerset enjoyed a good run of success in the
One-Day Cup too, reaching the semi-finals before losing to eventual champions
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
. Captain
Jim Allenby was the leading run-scorer, passing 50 in five of his ten innings in the competition.
Lewis Gregory
Lewis Gregory (born 24 May 1992) is an English cricketer who plays for Somerset County Cricket Club. A right-handed batsman and right-arm Seam bowling, seam bowler, Gregory made his senior cricket debut in 2010, representing Somerset against th ...
and
Tim Groenewald
Timothy Duncan Groenewald (born 10 January 1984) is an English-South African former professional cricketer. He played as a right-arm medium-fast bowler for Warwickshire, Derbyshire, Somerset and Kent County Cricket Clubs before retiring during th ...
both performed well enough to qualify for the South team for the inaugural North v South one-day series at the start of the next season. In stark contrast, Somerset's
t20 Blast
The T20 Blast, currently named the Vitality Blast for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket competition for English and Welsh first-class counties. The competition was established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (E ...
campaign was disastrous, the club finished bottom of the South Group and lost their last seven games in a row.
2017
Before the 2017 season, Somerset announced that at the age of 22,
Tom Abell would be appointed as club and Championship captain. Somerset made a disastrous start to the
Championship, losing four of their first six games of the season. Despite a victory in the seventh game against Yorkshire at
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to:
People
* Scarborough (surname)
* Earl of Scarbrough
Places Australia
* Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth
* Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong
* Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...
, Somerset's prospects of survival looked very poor indeed at the halfway mark of the season. A strong draw against
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
was followed by victories against
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...
and
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, and although Somerset lost their penultimate game against Surrey, their fate was still in their own hands. Somerset needed to beat Middlesex in the final match of the year at Taunton with one more bonus point than their opponents to assure safety. Thanks to a 9-wicket match haul from
Jack Leach
Matthew Jack Leach (born 22 June 1991) is an English professional cricketer who plays internationally for the England Test cricket team. In domestic cricket, he represents Somerset. Leach made his Test debut in 2018. He plays as a left-arm ort ...
on a turning pitch, and a century from
James Hildreth
James Charles Hildreth (born 9 September 1984) is a former English professional cricketer who played for Somerset County Cricket Club. He attended Millfield School, Somerset. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional right-arm medium pace bow ...
in the second innings, Somerset comfortably beat Middlesex by 231 runs to condemn last year's champions to relegation, and ensure their 10-year run in Division One would continue for another season. Leach finished with 51 wickets, while
Craig Overton
Craig Overton (born 10 April 1994) is an English cricketer who plays for Somerset and England. He is an all-rounder who bowls right-arm medium-fast and bats right-handed. He made his international debut for England in December 2017. His twin bro ...
's 46 wickets were enough to see him called up for that winter's
Ashes tour. As a mark of how the batting unit struggled, overseas player
Dean Elgar
Dean Elgar (born 11 June 1987) is a South African cricketer who plays Tests and ODIs, and is the current Test captain. He is a left-handed opening batsman and a slow-left arm bowler.
Elgar captained the 2006 Under-19 Cricket World Cup in Sri ...
was the only batsman to average over 36 with the bat, and Elgar was absent from the second half of the season. New signing
Steven Davies
Steven Michael Davies (born 17 June 1986) is an English first-class cricketer, a left-handed batsman who plays for Somerset. He bats in the middle order in first-class cricket and opens in limited-overs. He started as a wicket-keeper, playing ...
was the leading run scorer with 775. Somerset again enjoyed good success in the
One-Day Cup, winning five of seven completed matches and qualifying second in the South Group for a home quarter-final against
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
. Somerset lost an incredible game in which 834 runs were scored, falling short of Nottinghamshire's 429/9 by 24 runs. Elgar also enjoyed great success in this competition, scoring 519 runs in the 6 games he played. Somerset were again involved in a thriller in the final round of games of the
t20 Blast
The T20 Blast, currently named the Vitality Blast for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket competition for English and Welsh first-class counties. The competition was established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (E ...
, where a 98-run victory against
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
saw them through to the quarter-finals by 0.07 on
Net run rate for the first time since 2013. Somerset faced a difficult trip to
Trent Bridge, and lost to Nottinghamshire by 5 wickets. At the end of the year it was announced that both one-day captain
Jim Allenby and Director of Cricket
Matthew Maynard
Matthew Peter Maynard, (born 21 March 1966) is an English cricket coach and former cricketer. He played in four Tests and fourteen ODIs for England.
Maynard was a batsman (and, later in his career, wicketkeeper) known for his aggressive and da ...
would not be returning for 2018.
2018
Under new director of cricket
Andy Hurry, who returned to the club, and new head coach
Jason Kerr, Somerset enjoyed an excellent start to their
2018 Championship campaign, winning three of their first five matches whilst drawing the other two. However, a heavy innings defeat to
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
in the next round proved to be pivotal, as Surrey would go on to run away with the Championship title winning 10 of their 14 matches. Nonetheless, Somerset themselves won 7 games and only lost twice, but were consigned to yet another runners-up finish. James Hildreth broke the 1000 run barrier, whilst
Lewis Gregory
Lewis Gregory (born 24 May 1992) is an English cricketer who plays for Somerset County Cricket Club. A right-handed batsman and right-arm Seam bowling, seam bowler, Gregory made his senior cricket debut in 2010, representing Somerset against th ...
and
Craig Overton
Craig Overton (born 10 April 1994) is an English cricketer who plays for Somerset and England. He is an all-rounder who bowls right-arm medium-fast and bats right-handed. He made his international debut for England in December 2017. His twin bro ...
finished with 37 wickets each. Somerset struggled to find consistency in their
One-Day Cup campaign, but nevertheless entered the final round of matches with a chance to qualify for a playoff. Despite winning their final game against eventual champions
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
,
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
secured the win they needed to reach the playoffs in place of Somerset. The 2018 season saw Somerset take a further step forward in their
t20 cricket under new t20 captain Gregory, as they reached finals day for the first time in 6 years. Despite losing two of their first three games, Somerset ended up finishing top of the South Group, winning 10 of their 14 matches to earn a home quarter-final and a chance to exact revenge for the previous year on Nottinghamshire. They were able do so, winning by 19 runs on a reserve day due to the weather, sending them to finals day. There Somerset lost out to
Sussex
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...
in the semi-final by 35 runs as Sussex were able to put a sizeable score of 202 on the board. The improved performance in the competition was in no small part due to the impact of overseas signings
Corey Anderson, who was the team's leading run-scorer with 514 runs at a strike-rate of 169.1, and
Jerome Taylor
Jerome Everton Taylor (born 22 June 1984) is a Jamaican cricketer who has played as a fast bowler for the West Indies. Taylor eventually picked up 100 wickets for the Windies in both tests and odis. During 2017 he reversed an initial decision t ...
who claimed 22 wickets in his 11 matches.
Jamie Overton
Jamie Overton (born 10 April 1994) is an English cricketer who plays for Surrey County Cricket Club. He is a right-arm fast Bowling (cricket), bowler who also bats right-handed. He made his debut for Somerset County Cricket Club, Somerset in the ...
was Somerset's leading wicket-taker with 24 in his 16 games.
2019
2019 was to prove to be the year Somerset finally broke their 14-year trophy drought, as they claimed victory in the
2019 Royal London One-Day Cup
The 2019 Royal London One-Day Cup tournament was a limited overs cricket competition that formed part of the 2019 domestic cricket season in England and Wales. The tournament was won by Somerset, their first win in the tournament since 2001. ...
, to end a run of 10 runners-up finishes across all formats over a 10-year span. The campaign began in brilliant style as Somerset secured their largest-ever List A margin of victory by beating
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
by 264 runs in their opening match. Victories in their next three games including a win against
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
in the first-ever game played under the new permanent floodlights at the County Ground, meant at the halfway stage in the competition, qualification to the knockout stages seemed assured. However, defeats in their next three including a resounding loss to
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...
, who chased a target of 216 in the 32nd over, left Somerset needing a win in their final game just to make it into an away play-off game. They were able to defeat
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
by 5 wickets, setting up a play-off game against
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
at
New Road. A century from
Tom Banton
Thomas Banton (born 11 November 1998) is an English cricketer. He made his international debut for the England cricket team in November 2019.
Domestic and franchise career
Banton made his Twenty20 cricket debut for Somerset in the 2017 NatWest ...
, and a five-wicket haul from overseas player
Azhar Ali saw Somerset to a comfortable win by 147 runs. In the semi-final, Somerset once again faced
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
in a knockout game, at Trent Bridge. Somerset posted exactly the same score of 337 as they had in the play-off match, and the total once again proved to be more than enough, as Nottinghamshire were bowled out for 222, meaning Somerset reached the
Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and ...
final where they would face defending champions Hampshire. Hampshire won the toss and chose to bat but Somerset, thanks mainly to the opening spell of
Josh Davey
Joshua Henry Davey (born 3 August 1990) is a Scottish cricketer, who plays for Somerset County Cricket Club having previously played for Middlesex as well as representing his country in One Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 Internationals. ...
and eventual man-of-the-match
Jamie Overton
Jamie Overton (born 10 April 1994) is an English cricketer who plays for Surrey County Cricket Club. He is a right-arm fast Bowling (cricket), bowler who also bats right-handed. He made his debut for Somerset County Cricket Club, Somerset in the ...
in the middle overs, were able to take wickets at regular intervals, and despite a ninth-wicket stand of 64, Hampshire's total of 244/8 looked to be short of what would be required. This proved to be even more the case when Banton and Azhar Ali put on an opening partnership of 112, and despite losing both in quick succession, Somerset always looked in control. Fittingly the winning runs were scored by
James Hildreth
James Charles Hildreth (born 9 September 1984) is a former English professional cricketer who played for Somerset County Cricket Club. He attended Millfield School, Somerset. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional right-arm medium pace bow ...
, who had also hit the winning runs as a 20-year-old in Somerset's last trophy win in 2005.
Ground history
Players
Current squad
* No. denotes the player's squad number, as worn on the back of their shirt.
* denotes players with international caps.
* denotes a player who has been awarded a
county cap.
Former players
Captains
Club officials
Committee
* President:
Peter Wanless
Sir Peter Thomas Wanless, (born 25 September 1964) is an English executive and former civil servant. Since 2013, he has been the chief executive officer of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC). In June 2022, he ...
* Chairman:
Michael Barber
* Honorary Treasurer: Nick Farrant
* Chief Executive: Gordon Hollins
* Directors:
Vic Marks
Victor James Marks (born 25 June 1955) is an English sports journalist and former professional cricketer.
An off spin bowler, Marks played in six Test matches and thirty four One Day Internationals for England. His entire county cricket car ...
, Rowena Sellens, Rachel Baillache, Nathan Goddard
* Members Directors: Richard Brice, Geoff, Vian, Christine Brewer
* Somerset Cricket Foundation Representative: Dr Habib Naqvi
Coaching staff
* Director of Cricket:
Andrew Hurry
* Head coach:
Jason Kerr
* Batting coach: ''Vacant''
* Bowling coach: ''Vacant''
* Fielding coach: Paul Tweddle
* Second XI coach:
Gregor Kennis
Gregor John Kennis (born 9 March 1974) played first-class and List A cricket for Surrey between 1994 and 1997 and for Somerset between 1998 and 2000. He was born in Yokohama, Japan.
Kennis was a right-handed batsman who opened the innings in ...
* Head of Talent Pathway: Matt Drakeley
Administration and coaching history
Presidents
Those who have held the office of Somerset President are:
See also
*
List of Somerset first-class cricket records
*
List of Somerset List A cricket records
This is a list of Somerset List A cricket records; that is, record team and individual performances in List A cricket for Somerset County Cricket Club.
Team
* Highest Total For: 413/4 v Devon at Recreation Ground, Torquay, 1990
* Highest Total Ag ...
*
List of Somerset Twenty20 cricket records
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
Further reading
*
H S Altham, ''A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914)'', George Allen & Unwin, 1962
*
Derek Birley, ''A Social History of English Cricket'', Aurum, 1999
*
Rowland Bowen, ''Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development'', Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1970
*
Roy Webber, ''The Playfair Book of Cricket Records'', Playfair Books, 1951
*
Playfair Cricket Annual – various editions
*
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 ...
– various editions
External links
Somerset CCC Official Siteat cricketarchive.com
{{English first-class cricket clubs
Sport in Taunton
English first-class cricket teams
History of Somerset
Cricket in Somerset
Cricket clubs established in 1875
1875 establishments in England