Queen's Park, Chesterfield
 |
|||
| Ground information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Location | Chesterfield | ||
| Establishment | 1898 | ||
| Capacity | 7,000 | ||
| End names | |||
| Lake End Pavilion End |
|||
| Team information | |||
|
|||
| As of 5 October 2008 Source: Cricinfo |
|||
Queen's Park is a county cricket ground located in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England and lies within a park in the centre of the town established for Queen Victoria's golden jubilee in 1887. It is among the most attractive cricket grounds in the world, with a small pavilion and surrounded by mature trees.
The park is the home of Chesterfield CC and also played home to Derbyshire CCC for 100 years between 1898 and 1998, before the county team returned in 2006 after an 8-year absence. It was at one time surrounded by a banked cycle track. It is a small ground and slow to dry after rain, thus can provide a green wicket. The size of the ground however, lends itself to rapid scoring on good wickets.
In 1886, the then Mayor of Chesterfield proposed that a public park be created to mark Queen Victoria's upcoming golden jubilee in 1887. However, it took the Local Government Board a further six years to agree on costs and the park was eventually opened to the public on 2 August 1893. Chesterfield Cricket Club was granted exclusive use of the ground in February 1894, and the first game was played there on 5 May 1894.
There was an unusual incident during the County Championship match between Derbyshire and Yorkshire in mid-1946. After two overs were bowled in the Derbyshire first innings, Yorkshire captain Len Hutton asked for the length of the pitch to be measured. It was found to be 24 yards long, instead of the regulation 22 yards. The pitch was correctly reset, and the game continued.
After a century of first-class cricket at Chesterfield between 1898 and 1998, the next seven seasons saw Derbyshire play no First Class or List A matches on the ground.
However, following a multi-million pound refurbishment and upgrade of the entire park including the cricketing facilities, Derbyshire returned by taking on Worcestershire in a County Championship Division Two game between 26 and 29 July. The game ended in a draw, with Australian Marcus North avoiding defeat for the home side by scoring 161 runs, including 24 boundaries. Attendances for all four days was high, and saw Derbyshire announce a four-year deal to play County Cricket at the ground soon after the game.
...
Wikipedia