The Club

The History of Mulbarton Cricket Club

Mulbarton Village Cricket Club, as we know it today, started life playing at Dunston Hall. When this was sold for conversion into a Hotel, the cricket pitch was lost to make way for a golf course.

A lot of the players who were playing at the time lived in Mulbarton, some three miles away, and it was suggested that the club was moved back to Mulbarton, to play on Mulbarton common, where cricket was played between the two world wars. The Mulbarton parish council were approached about the proposed move, and duly accepted the proposal. Instrumental in this move was the then skipper (later to be Club President) George Henderson and Brian Tungate.

The club played its cricket on the common for the next three seasons. Not an ideal situation, as the venue was shared with Mulbarton Football Club, and the square was actually cut in the middle of the football pitch, which from time to time made for some very interesting wickets.

The setting for playing village cricket was ideal, however sharing a playing area with a football club, and the constant incursion by the rabbit population of Mulbarton common made the upkeep of the square a nightmare for the long suffering groundsman Neil Warner.

Fortunately these problems were not to long lived, as the Parish Council had purchased a peace of land adjacent to the Village Hall to be used as a recreation facility. Club Chairman & Parish Councillor Tom Carter pushed the Clubs cause, and a cricket square was laid down on the new facility, later to be known as Orchard Park.

Following much hard work, and many laborious hours of stone picking the move from Mulbarton common to Orchard Park was finally achieved when Mulbarton Village Cricket Club played East Harling in the inaugural match in June 1997.

Mulbarton Village Cricket Club has always been a socially orientated Club, playing in the main friendly Sunday matches, although for two years the Club participated in the South Norfolk Burgess Shield. Lack of player availability for Saturday games made things difficult, and league cricket was dropped at least short term from the Clubs agenda. Cricket in Mulbarton has however never been in a healthier state.

Following the formation of Mulbarton Youth Cricket Club in 1999. The Brainchild of current youth Secretary Joe Harris the youth Cricket Club has gone from strength to strength in is short history, culminating with a formal joining with the adult club at the end of the year 2000.

Season 2001 was an interesting season, with a mixture of both old and new opponents. An almost complete fixture list of both Youth and adult Cricket ensured the most extensive seasons cricket yet on Orchard Park. Giving the inhabitancy of Mulbarton, both young and old the opportunity to either watch or play our summer game, but most of all, to enjoy it.

The 2002 season never got off the ground, due to illness of the club chairman Tom Eastell and the terrible summer weather, a mis-matched season of very few games, caused the committee to discuss joining the Mid-Norfolk Sunday Cricket League.

After hours of work from Secretary Mike Savory and Groundsman Bob McKenzie, men's league cricket returned to Mulbarton in 2003 with the defeat at the hands of the more experienced Saxlingham, the home side acquitted themselves well, after an early collapse, Skipper Angus Curtis and Vice-Captain Savory rebuilt before the VC ran out of partners.

That first season in the MNSCL saw some very good Mulbarton performances, the double over Yarmathonians, the win away to Hales and most impressively, the victory over Vauxhall Mallards finished the season off nicely.

In the early spring of 2005 the two clubs of Mulbarton Youth C.C. and Mulbarton Village C.C. amalgamated and are now known simply as Mulbarton Cricket Club. The merger was made to benefit the club's administration and help the club to deliver an improved youth development programme.

2005 was also a pivotal season in another way, with the senior side winning the Kevin Grimmer Division 4 and winning promotion to the Peter Parfitt Division 3. The senior side went on to follow this up with consolidation in the division and making the 2006 Challenge Cup Final where they went down to Swardeston. In 2009, The Club will again be playing in the Peter Parfitt Division 3 of the Mid Norfolk Sunday League.

Mulbarton Cricket Club Youth

Started with just a handful of children in 1999, Mulbarton Youth Cricket Club (as it was then known), has grown to a large youth organisation that, last year, fielded teams at four age groups from U11 to U17.

In the early spring of 2005 the two clubs of Mulbarton Youth C.C. and Mulbarton Village C.C. amalgamated and are now known simply as Mulbarton Cricket Club. It is hoped that this merger will benefit our administration and help us to deliver an improved youth development programme.

We are very much a community based club with most of our members coming from within Mulbarton and surrounding villages, and take great pride in catering for all abilities, girls as well as boys, from age 7 up to senior level. The club is enjoying increasing success at this level, with the adult team achieving promotion last season and featuring a large number of young players who have come through our youth development programme