The Northern Cricket Society 1948

A unique chance to see the Northern Cricket Society team in action in their first season, batting and bowling in front of the historic Hovingham Hall.

1948 is the first season for the Northern Cricket Society, and here they put on a fine display of batting and bowling against a Hovingham XI at their ground in front of Hovingham Hall, home of Sir William Worsley, past captain of Yorkshire County Cricket Club.

The Northern Cricket Society was formed in January 1948, the first of its kind after the Cricket Society, founded in November 1945 at Great Scotland Yard, London. The match was probably arranged by Sir William Worsley, the owner of the Hovingham Estate, who also captained Yorkshire County Cricket Club in 1928-29, later becoming President of Yorkshire from 1960 until his death in 1973. In fact he may well have filmed this as well, as he was a keen amateur filmmaker, who filmed other cricket matches at Hovingham in the 1930s. The Northern Cricket Society has held a charity cricket match on Boxing Day without fail since 1949 – there is film of the 1952 match in the snow at Branhope, with a young Brian Close.