| 1734 English cricket season | |
| Cricket formats | first-class and single wicket |
In the 1734 English cricket season, four counties (Kent, Middlesex, Surrey and Sussex) and two clubs (Croydon and London) took part in all the known games.
Importantly for the expansion of cricket throughout England, road transport continued to improve under the twin schemes of turnpikes and stagecoaches. Relays of horses were first provided in 1734 for stagecoaches on the London-Newcastle route, enabling journey time to be reduced from twelve days to nine. The service was called the Flying Coach.
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| Date | Match Title | Venue | Result | |
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| 12 June (W) | Kent v London[1] | Dartford Brent | London won | |
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London beat Kent on Dartford Brimp (sic) "though there was 6 to 4 laid against London in the middle of the game". |
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| 19 June (W) | London v Kent[1] | Artillery Ground | London inns & 25 | |
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Team scores are known: Kent 31 & 51; London 107. A resounding win for London, especially given their victory at Dartford the previous Wednesday. |
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| c.25 July (Th) | Croydon v London[2] | Duppas Hill, Croydon | Croydon won | |
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No details are given of this game except the winners. The report includes a pre-announcement of the following game. |
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| 1 August (Th) | London v Croydon[1] | Artillery Ground | London won | |
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All we know is that London won the game. Reported in the Grub Street Journal of Thu 8 August. |
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| 26 August (M) | London v Surrey[1] | Kennington Common | result unknown | |
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Pre-announced in the London Evening Post of Thu 22 August. It says: "the wickets to be pitched precisely (sic) between 12 and 1 o'clock"! An early Colemanballs, perhaps? |
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| 6 September (F) | Kent v Sussex[2] | Sevenoaks Vine | Kent won | |
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Lord Middlesex (1710–1769) and his brother Lord John Philip Sackville (1713–1765) played for Kent; and Sir William Gage for Sussex. On a biographical note, Lord Middlesex (Charles Sackville) was 2nd Duke of Dorset 1765–1769. The famous 3rd Duke of Dorset was his nephew, being the son of Lord John Philip Sackville. |
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| 11 September (W) | Sussex v Kent[3] | Lewes | result unknown | |
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The report of the previous game states that "the same Gentlemen were to play on the Downs near Lewes in Sussex"[2]. |
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Thu 13 June. The St James Evening Post reported a couple of serious injuries in a private match at the Artillery Ground. "...a stander-by (sic) had the misfortune to have his knee-pan (i.e., patella) put out by a blow from the ball, and another was much bruised in the face by a like accident"[1].
A game between London and Sevenoaks, arranged for Monday 8 July on Kennington Common, was not played due to the non-appearance of the Sevenoaks team. The Whitehall Evening Post reported that according to the Articles of Agreement their deposit money was forfeited. Since the first mention of Articles of Agreement in 1727 (Richmond v Brodrick), it had surely become common practice to draw up such an agreement before each major match, especially if large stakes were involved[4].
September. A report included in WCS states that London was due to have played Croydon but that the Croydon team withdrew "having been regaled with a good dinner"! The London Club thereupon announced its intention to have one more match before the end of season and so challenged any eleven men in England except that "they will not admit of one from Croydon"[2].
The game on 6 September (see above) is earliest known use of Sevenoaks Vine as a venue. It is one of the oldest cricket grounds in England. It was given to the town of Sevenoaks in 1773 by John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset (1745–1799) and owner of Knole House, where the ground is sited. The land was thought previously to have been used as a vineyard for the Archbishops of Canterbury (hence the name). The weatherboard pavilion is 19th century. The Vine Cricket Club must pay Sevenoaks Town Council a rent of 2 peppercorns per year - one for the ground and one for the pavilion. They, in turn, must pay Lord Sackville (if asked) one cricket ball on the 21st July each year[4].
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