Greatest Cricket Moments

First Documented Cricket at Hove — Sussex Club Match, July 1808

1808-07-19Brighton vs HoveBrighton v Hove, Hove village ground, 19 July 18081 min readSeverity: Mild

Summary

On 19 July 1808 a Brighton club side played a Hove village side on a strip laid out behind the church at Hove — the earliest documented cricket match at Hove, and the founding entry of a venue that would, by the late nineteenth century, become the headquarters of Sussex County Cricket Club.

Background

Hove had been a fishing settlement since the medieval period. Its rapid expansion as a Brighton suburb came after 1820.

What Happened

Hove in 1808 was a fishing village of perhaps 200 inhabitants, a mile west of the rapidly-growing town of Brighton. A small cricket strip had been laid out behind St Andrew's Church on the village's edge. The July 1808 match — Brighton's club side against the Hove village XI — is the earliest with surviving record, noted in a Brighton newspaper as a Brighton win by 35 runs. Hove village fielded only nine men; Brighton agreed to play the same number.

Timeline

19 Jul 1808

First documented cricket at Hove

1839

Sussex CCC founded

1872

Present Hove County Ground opens

Aftermath

Cricket continued at Hove through the nineteenth century. The present Hove ground (the County Ground, opened 1872) is half a mile from the 1808 site.

⚖️ The Verdict

The earliest documented cricket at Hove and the founding entry of one of cricket's important grounds.

Legacy & Impact

Sussex CCC's headquarters at Hove descend from these earliest village matches. The 1808 fixture is the earliest documented in the chain.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the 1808 ground the same as today's Hove ground?▾
No. The 1808 strip was behind St Andrew's Church; the modern County Ground is half a mile away. The continuity is of place rather than of pitch.

Tags

#regency-cricket#underarm#hove#brighton#sussex#1808#iconic-moment

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