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Benwell Hill Cricket Club

West Road,
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE15 7EU

Tel: 0191 274 1222
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Young men, mainly juniors, with a captain aged only seventeen years formed the Benwell Hill Cricket club in 1883 and played exclusively friendly cricket on various sites on the estate of Benwell Hill Hall (now Saint Cuthberts High School). The final site lay behind the pubs in Old Benwell Village and the humble meeting place was a Club Room on the end of the gardener's cottage. Ambition produced a gradual strengthening of the fixture list and was rewarded with a place in the Tyneside Senior League in 1905 - the ground was improving and a wooden pavilion appeared in 1906.

The first League title followed in 1913 and was proven to be no flash in the pan as professional, George Milne spearheaded further wins in 1921 and 1922, but more signification perhaps were the efforts of the members and supporters as the present Club continued to evolve. A move to land on Thorntree farm on Denton Bank and a judicious decision to purchase the land was taken - the pavilion was dismantled and it traveled too! Although no longer boasting a professional the work was rewarded when the Tyneside Charity Bowl was won in 1925, 1926, 1928 and 1929.

A rehearsal for the season to come took place in 1934 as the new Northumberland League was formed; ominously Benwell Hill finished in last position. Membership of this League continued until 1977, when pressure led to the creation of Northumberland County League.

Sporting a brick pavilion built in 1952, Benwell Hill prefaced a more enlightened era by playing Sunday cricket and successfully applying for permission for a licensed bar, despite serious misgivings from some members. Some cricketing success was achieved as the Wilson (League) Cup was won in 1955 and the Charity Bowl again in 1968. The first great ground leveling took place and a Squash Court was added in the seventies. The radical decision to return to the employment of a professional followed; Doug Ferguson the long-serving Mike Younger being the first incumbents.

The work of members far too numerous to mention over the past hundred years, on and off the field, was now to come to fruition. The facilities were considered adequate for representatives, Minor Counties and Durham II matches. More importantly, six major Cup competitions have been won since 1995. In addition, the ultimate goal, the League Championship was secured in 1996, 1998 and 1999. Professionals Chris Craven, Gary Gilder and Gareth Katz, all South Africans, contributed to the overall Club development, in which Junior cricket, ground improvements and social activities continue to play a large part.

Benwell Hill 1st team Squad - 2006