The History and the Present

The Club has its home in the peaceful village of Brightwell-cum- Sotwell just two miles from Wallingford on Thames in South Oxfordshire. The village today is made up of the two Parishes of Brightwell and Sotwell, which came together as a Civil Parish in 1948.

The main village lies at the foot of the south-facing slope of the Sinodun Hills and Brightwell Barrow rising 70m (231 feet) above the Thames flood plain. Records show that there has been a settlement in Sotwell for 1,000 Years, and it was in the 13th Century that a part of Sotwell was created as a detached area of Brightwell and Slade End.

The first written record of a Brightwell Village Cricket Team playing a match is in the Parson of North Moreton Albert Barff's Scrapbook of North Moreton (1858 to 1872). The Scrapbook is a collection of manuscripts and Barff writes "We had two games with Brightwell, in the first match Moreton beat, in the second Brightwell beat". As this is the first written record to be found so far, 1858 is the date that has been adopted as the year Brightwell Cricket Club was founded.

Brightwell Parish Records show that the Brightwell Cricket Club has played on the Recreational Ground, in Mackney Lane since 1897 when Brightwell Parish purchased the ground from a local farmer Edward Fairthorne. As with many village cricket grounds, in the beginning the cutting of the outfield was undertaken by a flock of sheep, which was very effective but resulted in the need to sweep the "Sheep Droppings" off the Square before the pitch could be prepared. The square being rolled by a working horse fitted with padded hooves pulling a roller.

Cricket was suspended during the war years and during the Second World War a Search Light was positioned on the centre of the cricket square. After the cessation of hostilities the club resumed playing with an expanded fixture list as improved motorised transport aided mobility and it became possible to play matches on Sundays.

The Cricket Square originally laid in the 1800's was moved in the mid 1960's from its original position to the right of centre of the current football pitch to a new location in the centre of the Recreation Ground. This was done to provide enough room to move the Football Pitch from the Southern end of the Recreational Ground to the current position adjacent to the main entrance.

The Heart of any club is the pavilion. The first cricket pavilion was a very grand affair with a thatched roof, veranda and white picket fence and would have originally been built towards the end of the 19th century. The fate of the original pavilion is unknown; the second pavilion started life as a railway signal box and served the club well for over 50 years until tragically, it was burnt down on the 25th December 1997.
Temporary Changing rooms and showers were created in the storage shed adjacent to the burnt down pavilion until 2003 when a state of the art facility was built which could be used for by all the community and named the Jubilee Pavilion in commemoration of the Queen Elizabeth the Second Jubilee.

Over its long history the Brightwell-cum-Sotwell Cricket Club has predominately played "Village Cricket" considered "Friendly Cricket". There is a competitive edge to most games balanced by friendly banter; as a result games are devoid of the intense competition experienced in League Cricket. Games are arranged with as many of the Surrounding Oxfordshire Villages as possible, interspersed with visiting Nomad and the occasional Touring Sides. All involved with the Brightwell-cum-Sotwell Cricket Club are looking forward to 2008, when the Club celebrates its 150th year, quite a legacy for the club and the village.

With the Senior Club just about to embark upon its 150th Anniversary celebrations, there perhaps couldn't be a more apt time to bring youth cricket to the village. In 2008 a brand new Junior Section of the club was established, with initially the formation of Under 11 and Under 9 age groups. It is the intention that the junior section will expand over time to take in an Under 13's. The aim of the junior section is really quite simple, to provide an opportunity for children to have their first taste of cricket, and to develop them to their full potential, at whatever level that might be. All of the coaching sessions will be organised and delivered by Level 2 ECB qualified coaches. At this age youth sport is not all about winning and the junior section will set out to ensure that the children obtain the maximum amount of enjoyment and fun out of the game of cricket.

For the Under 11 age group (11yrs and under as of the 31st August) the club holds indoor winter coaching sessions every Friday evening between at the Castle Leisure Centre in Wallingford. The nets commence in January. The indoor coaching sessions are absolutely vital in ensuring that the children get an excellent grounding in the core skills required for the season ahead. Then in April, outdoor practice will switch to The Recreation Ground in Brightwell every Friday evening.

For the Under 9 age group (9yrs and under as of the 31st August) the coaching sessions will last 1 hour and will take place at the Recreation Field in Brightwell every Saturday morning. The sessions will begin in May. The children will be introduced to 'Kwik Cricket', which is played with plastic bats, stumps and soft rubber cricket balls. The emphasis for these children is on fun and an early opportunity to grasp the core skills needed for all sports as well as cricket i.e. hand eye co-ordination, running, catching, throwing etc. All of the equipment will be provided, and the only thing your child needs to bring with them is a willingness to learn and sense of fun.

For more information on how to join the junior section please go to the contacts page.