Capacity 10,000 Establishment 1925 | Phone +44 20 3490 2370 | |
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Owner Leander Sports and Leisure Hours Open today · 8AM–10PMTuesday8AM–10PMWednesday8AM–10PMThursday8AM–10PMFriday8AM–10PMSaturday8AM–10PMSunday8AM–10PMMonday8AM–10PM | ||
The County Ground, Beckenham (previously known as the Lloyds TSB Sports and Social Club Ground) is a cricket ground in Beckenham, England. The ground is owned by Leander Sports and Leisure and is used as an outground by Kent County Cricket Club for First XI fixtures, as well as for other matches. As of 2016 the Kent Women cricket team play the majority of their matches at the ground
Contents
- Cricketing history
- Redevelopment
- Records on the ground
- First class cricket
- List A cricket
- Twenty20 cricket
- References
The ground was first used for first-class cricket in 1954. It hosted two games during the 1993 Women's Cricket World Cup and has been used by Kent as a regular outground since 2003. The ground was redeveloped in 2013–14 and facilities include a 2048-seater stand, an indoor cricket school and 3G football pitches.
Cricketing history
The ground was first used by the Kent first XI in 1954 when it hosted a County Championship match against Gloucestershire. Kent had previously played home matches at Foxgrove Road in Beckenham between 1885 and 1905, and played one John Player League match at the nearby Midland Bank Sports Ground in 1970. The county have had a tradition of playing at outgrounds in what is now south-east London. Until 1965, Beckenham, along with other parts of south-east London, was part of the county of Kent and is treated by the club as being "Metropolitan Kent". Grounds in nearby Blackheath, Catford, Crystal Palace and Dartford have all also been used by the club in the past for a total of more than 150 matches and the first match played by the county club after its initial foundation in 1842 was played at White Hart Field in Bromley.
The ground was used for two women's One Day Internationals during the 1993 Women's Cricket World Cup but, after a single game in 1954, Kent did not use it again until the 2003 season. As of September 2016 it has hosted five County Championship matches, five List A matches and has mainly been used for Twenty20 cricket, most commonly matches against near neighbours Surrey as the opposition. Notable matches include a one day game against the touring West Indians in 2004 and the 2008 Friends Provident Trophy quarter final, a game which had to be moved from the county's usual base at the St Lawrence Ground in Canterbury due to heavy rainfall. Two matches in May 2017 will see Sri Lanka play Scotland ahead of the 2017 Champions Trophy.
The County Ground is also used by Kent's second XI and junior sides as well as being the main ground used by the Kent Women's cricket team.
Redevelopment
Redevelopment of the ground saw Kent play no matches at it in either 2013 or 2014, returning in 2015 with six days of cricket scheduled, including a County Championship match and two NatWest t20 Blast fixtures. The £30million redevelopment has seen the club open a new indoor cricket centre and a function centre and the ground now features a permanent 2,048-seat spectator stand and all-weather sports facilities.
The ground owners, Leander Sports and Leisure, built 48 houses on part of the site in order to fund the redevelopment which includes a number of year-round facilities including an indoor cricket school, 3G football pitches and a physiotherapy clinic. Redevelopment was seen as essential in order to keep the ground as a financially viable cricketing venue, with the aim of developing a significant base for Kent in the north-west of the county, to develop younger cricketers and as a general sports development hub in metropolitan Kent. Kent took an initial 20 year lease on the ground and have the aim of further developing the ground in the future.
Records on the ground
All records last updated 16 February 2017