07/08/2026
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🏏 ST CHAD’S BROOMFIELD CRICKET CLUB – OVER 140 YEARS OF CRICKET IN HEADINGLEY 🏏
As St Chad's Broomfield CC prepares for an exciting new chapter in the YPLN, we take a look back at the remarkable story of a club that has been part of the Headingley community for more than 140 years.
📜 WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
The roots of St Chad’s Cricket Club can be traced back to the early 1880s, when the original club was established in Far Headingley.
Those early cricketers played friendly matches on both Wednesdays and Saturdays, beginning a tradition which has survived for well over a century.
🏏 A HOME IN FRONT OF ST CHAD’S CHURCH
One of the most distinctive features of the club is its wonderful setting.
In 1922, St Chad’s began playing at the ground in front of St Chad’s Church – and more than a century later, cricket continues to be played there.
The connection between the church and cricket was once particularly strong.
Canon Charles Marshall, Vicar of St Chad’s from 1907 until 1947, was also a keen cricketer and played for the club throughout his 40 years in the parish.
Local history even records that if somebody wanted to get married at 3pm on a summer Saturday, Canon Marshall would apparently try to persuade them to move the ceremony to 2pm – allowing him to finish the wedding and lead the cricket team onto the field!
🌳 SECURING THE GROUND FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS
Another hugely important moment came in 1931.
An appeal was launched to purchase the cricket ground, together with land fronting Otley Road, from Lord Grimthorpe.
Around £3,500 was raised, securing the future of the cricket club and protecting the land in front of the church from development.
Part of that land subsequently became the peace garden, helping preserve one of Headingley’s most recognisable green spaces.
🤝 ST CHAD’S BROOMFIELD IS BORN
The modern club took shape in 1979, when St Chad’s merged with Headingley Broomfield Cricket Club to become St Chad’s Broomfield CC.
The newly merged club entered two teams into the Wetherby Cricket League.
A 3rd XI followed during the early 1980s and, as the club continued to expand, a 4th XI was introduced in 2014, followed by further senior teams in subsequent years.
🏆 CHAMPIONS
The club celebrated a major milestone in 2010, when its 1st XI won the Wetherby Cricket League Championship for the first time.
They were champions again in 2015, while the club’s midweek side also completed back-to-back championship successes in 2014 and 2015.
In 2017, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd XIs moved into the Airedale & Wharfedale Senior Cricket League, with further league success following in 2020.
Another league title arrived in 2023 after the club had moved into the Yorkshire Cricket Pyramid.
👩🦰🏏 CRICKET FOR EVERYONE
Perhaps the greatest indication of how far St Chad’s Broomfield has developed can be seen in the size and diversity of the club today.
From those original friendly matches in the 1880s, St Chad’s Broomfield has grown to around 20 senior and junior teams, encompassing Saturday, Sunday and midweek cricket alongside a flourishing junior section.
The club has also developed a rapidly growing women and girls’ section, while opportunities now extend into disability and adapted cricket.
It is a genuine community cricket club providing opportunities across ages, backgrounds and abilities.
🏠 ANOTHER HISTORIC MILESTONE
And 2026 has already provided another landmark moment.
In June, the club officially opened its new cricket pavilion, completing a project some 15 years in the making and representing a major investment in the future of the club and its community.
🔴 THE NEXT CHAPTER
From its beginnings in the 1880s, to establishing its home in front of St Chad’s Church in 1922, the merger with Headingley Broomfield in 1979 and more than a century of league and community cricket, this is a club with a fascinating story.
Now, another chapter is about to begin.
St Chad’s Broomfield Cricket Club will become part of the Yorkshire Premier League North structure.
More than 140 years after those first cricketers represented St Chad’s, the club continues to grow, develop and look to the future.
🏏 ST CHAD’S BROOMFIELD CC – OVER 140 YEARS OF CRICKET, COMMUNITY AND TRADITION.
Welcome to the YPLN, St Chad’s Broomfield CC. ❤️🏏
