County Championship
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| County Championship | |
| Administrator(s) | England and Wales Cricket Board |
| Cricket format | First-class |
| First tournament | 1890 |
| Tournament format(s) | round-robin |
| Total participants | 18 |
| Current champion | Sussex |
| Most successful | Yorkshire (30 titles) |
| Most runs |  Jack Hobbs |
| Most wickets | Wilfred Rhodes (3,608) |
The County Championship is the domestic first class cricket competition in the United Kingdom, mainly in England. All but one of the teams are named after, and were originally representatives of, historic English counties, the exception being Glamorgan, which is a Welsh county.
[edit] History
The official County Championship was constituted in a meeting at Lord's Cricket Ground of MCC with representatives of the principal county clubs in December 1889. The new competition began in the 1890 season and at first featured Gloucestershire CCC, Kent CCC, Lancashire CCC, Middlesex CCC, Nottinghamshire CCC, Surrey CCC, Sussex CCC and Yorkshire CCC.
Until 1890, the concept of an unofficial championship existed whereby various claims would be made by or on behalf of a particular club as the Champion County, a term which now has the specific meaning of an unofficial claimant for the County Championship title prior to 1890. The term County Champions applies to a team that has won the official title since 1890.
The most usual means of claiming the unofficial title was by popular or press acclaim. There is evidence of such claims being made as early as the 1728 season and the reference found in that season implies that the concept was already in existence then.
In the 1870s, it became widely accepted that the side with fewest losses should be the champions. Various lists of unofficial champions have been compiled by cricket historians using reverse analysis, but they are not usually in complete agreement. An important year was 1873, when new player qualification rules came into force. Before this, it was quite common for a player to play for both the county of his birth and his county of residence during the course of a single season.
For information about the unofficial titles, see : Champion County.
The first official championship in 1890 required the teams to play 14 scheduled matches (i.e., playing each other twice, one game at "home" and one "away"). The final positions in 1890 were based on number of wins minus the number of losses. Later, a points system was introduced but it has been subject to several variations.
In the 1891 season, Somerset CCC competed in the championship and in 1895 Derbyshire CCC, Essex CCC, Hampshire CCC, Leicestershire CCC and Warwickshire CCC all joined; the rules were changed so each side had to play at least 16 matches per season. Until World War II, counties played differing numbers of matches and the points system had to be modified so that the ratio of points to finished games (games minus draws) decided the final positions.
In 1910 the system was modified again so that the order was based on ratio of matches won to matches played, whilst from 1911 to 1967 a variety of systems were used that generally relied on points for wins and for first innings leads in games left unfinished. Since 1968, the basis has been wins (increased from 10 points in 1968, to 12 in 1976, to 16 in 1981, then back down to 12 in 1999 and up to 14 in 2004) and "bonus points", which are earned for scoring a certain number of runs or taking a certain number of wickets in the first 130 overs of each first innings. In an effort to prevent early finishes, points have been awarded for draws since 1996.
Of the current 18 sides in County Cricket the remaining joined at the following dates:
- Worcestershire CCC in 1899
- Northamptonshire CCC in 1905
- Glamorgan CCC in 1921
- Durham CCC in 1992.
An invitation in 1921 to Buckinghamshire CCC was declined, due to lack of proper playing facilities, and an application by Devon CCC in 1948 to join was rejected.
All matches prior to 1988 were scheduled for three days, with the exception of 1919, when there was an experiment with two day matches. From 1988 to 1992 some matches were played over four days. From 1993 onwards, all matches have been scheduled for four days.
More information about the history of the County Championship can be found here.
[edit] 2008 County Championship
The County Championship is currently sponsored by financial services company Liverpool Victoria. The teams competing in each division in 2008 are as follows:
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As of 2006, the bottom two teams in the first division at the end of the season are demoted to the second division for next season. Likewise, the two top finishers from the second division are promoted to the first division for next season, giving them a chance to win the county championship.
[edit] Doubts about the future of the competition
By 2008 many voices in English cricket were heard questioning the future of the County Championship in the light of the shaky financial structure of many counties, poor attendances and the irresistible rise of Twenty20 cricket. Amongst those questioning the whole basis of the competition was Frank Keating of The Guardian who said on 15th April 2008:
"sheepishly stirs another summer of what has tragically become a drawn-out primeval charade, the English County Championship. For decade upon decade it was a cherished adornment of the summer sub-culture, certainly for my generation when heroes were giants and giants were locals. About a quarter of a century ago the championship began fraying and then in no time unravelling. It is now a pointless exercise, unwatched, unwanted, serviced by mostly blinkered, greedy chairman-bullied committees and played by mostly unknown foreign and second-rate mercenaries."
However doubts have been raised over many decades concerning the competition's viability, yet it still survives. The Changing Face of Cricket(1963)by Clarke and Batchelor, made similar predictions about County Cricket.
[edit] Standings
Liverpool Victoria County Championship - Final Standings for the 2007 Season
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Division One Table.
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Division Two Table.
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For live scores from all domestic cricket see here
[edit] Points system
The county championship works on a points system, the winner being the team with most points in the first division. The points are awarded as follows:
Win: 14 points.
Tie: 7 points.
Draw: 4 points.
Loss: No points awarded.
Teams may also collect bonus points, for batting and bowling. These points can only be obtained from the first 130 overs of each team's first innings. The bonus points are retained regardless of the outcome of the match.
- Batting
- 200-249 runs: 1 point
- 250-299 runs: 2 points
- 300-349 runs: 3 points
- 350-399 runs: 4 points
- 400+ runs: 5 points
- Bowling
- 3-5 wickets taken: 1 point
- 6-8 wickets taken: 2 points
- 9-10 wickets taken: 3 points
[edit] Deductions
Occasionally, a team may have points deducted. These are normally small deductions, between 0.5 and 1 point. Deductions are most commonly handed out for slow over rates or poor pitches. However, in 2005, Surrey were awarded an 8 point penalty for ball tampering. At the end of the 2005 season, this deduction resulted in their relegation to the second division. Also, in 2007, Glamorgan were deducted 8 points for an unprepared wicket at Swansea.
[edit] Official county champions
The official championship began in the 1890 season and until 2000 there was a single division.
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There have been two divisions since 2000.
| Year | County Champions | Relegated from 1st Division | 2nd Division Winners | Promoted from 2nd Division |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Surrey | Hampshire, Durham, Derbyshire | Northamptonshire | Essex, Glamorgan |
| 2001 | Yorkshire | Northamptonshire, Glamorgan, Essex | Sussex | Hampshire, Warwickshire |
| 2002 | Surrey | Hampshire, Somerset, Yorkshire | Essex | Middlesex, Nottinghamshire |
| 2003 | Sussex | Essex, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire | Worcestershire | Northamptonshire, Gloucestershire |
| 2004 | Warwickshire | Worcestershire, Lancashire, Northamptonshire | Nottinghamshire | Hampshire, Glamorgan |
| 2005 | Nottinghamshire | Surrey, Gloucestershire, Glamorgan | Lancashire | Durham, Yorkshire |
| 2006 | Sussex | Nottinghamshire, Middlesex | Surrey | Worcestershire |
| 2007 | Sussex | Warwickshire, Worcestershire | Somerset | Nottinghamshire |
[edit] Number of wins by county 1890-2007
- Yorkshire 30 (plus 1 shared)
- Surrey 18 (plus 1 shared)
- Middlesex 10 (plus 2 shared)
- Lancashire 7 (plus 1 shared)
- Kent 6 (plus 1 shared)
- Essex 6
- Warwickshire 6
- Nottinghamshire 5
- Worcestershire 5
- Glamorgan 3
- Leicestershire 3
- Sussex 3
- Hampshire 2
- Derbyshire 1
The four current first class counties with no county championship titles are Durham, Gloucestershire, Northamptonshire and Somerset. (Gloucestershire won some unofficial titles prior to 1890.)
[edit] Wooden spoons
Since the expansion of the Championship from 9 counties to 14 in 1895, the wooden spoon for finishing bottom has been 'won' by:
- Derbyshire 14
- Somerset 12
- Northamptonshire 11
- Glamorgan 10
- Nottinghamshire 8
- Sussex 8
- Gloucestershire 7
- Leicestershire 7
- Worcestershire 6
- Durham 5
- Hampshire 5
- Warwickshire 3
- Essex 2
- Kent 2
- Yorkshire 1
Lancashire, Middlesex and Surrey have never finished bottom. Leicestershire have shared last place twice, with Hampshire and Somerset.
[edit] Sponsors
- 1977-1983 Schweppes
- 1984-1998 Britannic Assurance
- 1999-2000 AXA ppp Healthcare
- 2001 Cricinfo
- 2002-2005 Frizzell
- 2006-present Liverpool Victoria
[edit] Highest team scores
- 887 Yorkshire v Warwickshire Edgbaston, Birmingham 1896
- 863 Lancashire v Surrey The Foster's Oval, Kennington 1990
- 850-7d Somerset v Middlesex Taunton 2007
- 811 Surrey v Somerset Kennington Oval 1899
- 810-4d Warwickshire v Durham Edgbaston, Birmingham 1994
- 803-4d Kent v Essex Old County Ground, Brentwood 1934
- 801-8d Derbyshire v Somerset County Ground, Taunton 2007
[edit] Lowest team scores
- 12 Northamptonshire v Gloucestershire Spa Ground, Gloucester 1907
- 13 Nottinghamshire v Yorkshire Trent Bridge, Nottingham 1901
- 14 Surrey v Essex County Ground, Chelmsford 1983
- 15 Hampshire v Warwickshire Edgbaston, Birmingham 1922
- 16 Warwickshire v Kent Angel Ground, Tonbridge 1913
- 20 Sussex v Yorkshire The Circle, Hull 1922
- 20 Derbyshire v Yorkshire Bramall Lane, Sheffield 1939
[edit] Most runs against another team in one season
- 547 WG Grace Gloucestershire v Sussex 1896
- 537 MR Ramprakash Surrey v Northamptonshire 2006
- 534 G Boycott Yorkshire v Nottinghamshire 1983
- 531 CB Fry Sussex v Nottinghamshire 1905
- 527 RM Poore Hampshire v Somerset 1899
- 526 JG Langridge Sussex v Derbyshire 1949
- 507 H Sutcliffe Yorkshire v Essex 1932
- 502 C Washbrook Lancashire v Sussex 1947
- 501 BC Lara Warwickshire v Durham 1994
[edit] See also
- Pro40 - the one day league competition.
- Friends Provident Trophy - the one day knock out competition.
- Twenty20 Cup - the Twenty20 format competition.
[edit] External links
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