1930s

Blackhall Cricket Club - An Updated History by Graeme Smith.

In compiling this history, I am indebted to two excellent works - The 60th Anniversary booklet produced by Keith Etherington in 1989, and the publication Blackhall Between The Wars 1920-1940 produced by Blackhalls Local History Group. Many of the other opinions expressed are my own.

Blackhall Colliery Welfare Cricket Club was established in 1929. The spread of the Durham coalfield eastwards towards the coast had meant that a number of coastal pit villages had sprung up. The gradual rise in population of these villages meant that recreational facilities were required and, in common with the neighbouring villages, these facilities were provided by the Miners' Welfare Organisation. Originally the facilities provided were Cricket, Football, Tennis, Bowls along with Quoits and Swings.

Some evidence does exist of friendly games prior to 1929, but the club was formally established as a member of the Durham Coast League in this year. The earliest known minutes are in November of 1928 when Blackhall Cricket Club was officially formed. The club membership in that first season is recorded as 148.

In that first season the club finished seventh in the Coast League and in 1930 the club advertised for its first professional or (as stated in the minutes extracts) "Coach and assistant groundsman", a certain Mr H Coates, and the club purchased the house in the grounds for his use. Mr Coates withdrew from his position just prior to the season, and the club entered into discussions with a man named McKay. The miuntes show records of a 10-year agreement being discussed, but it is inconclusive whether McKay took up the post. I would suspect not. In July 1930 the first mention of engaging Jack Carr as pro is made.

Stories told by some of the older members of the club reveal that sporting pride was a big issue amongst the rival coastal villages and the "capture" of good players from other clubs was commonplace. My own Grandfather was brought from Easington to Blackhall in the early 1930s by the offer of a better paid job at Blackhall pit, purely on the condition that he played cricket at Blackhall rather than Easington. No cricket, no job.

In this manner Blackhall built a very successful side. They won the Coast League in 1931 and 1932, with the second team also winning the league in the latter year, an indication of how much the playing strength of the club had improved in 4 seasons. At this point the club were successful with their application to join the North Yorkshire & South Durham League, though the 2nd team did not gain entry to the NYSD until 1935, playing for two seasons in the NE Durham League.

Team shot from the 1930s

The impact was immediate. The 1st team won the A Division of the NYSD and the Kerridge Cup in 1933 in their debut year, in addition to winning the Saunders Cup for the first time, a prestigious treble indeed. The Saunders Cup treble was achieved by repeat victories in 1934 & 35. Prior to this the club had been losing finalists in the Saunders Cup from 1930-32, six consecutive final appearances is some going. The last record of club membership is in 1935, when the number of members had grown to 739!

Further league titles were secured in 1936 & 1939 (along with a second Kerridge Cup). The story of Blackhall Cricket Club in the 1930s is one of success unparallelled in the later years of the club.

League	1st team	Cups	Year	2nd team	Notes
Durham Coast League	7th		1929	n/a
	2nd		1930	2nd
	1st	Tom Burn Aged Miners	1931	3rd
	1st	Tom Burn Aged Miners	1932	1st
NYSD League	1st	Kerridge Saunders	1933	n/a	2nds in NE Durham League
	6th	Saunders Tom Burn Horner Magnet	1934	n/a	2nds in NE Durham League
	5th	Saunders Tom Burn Magnet Whitwell	1935	9th
	1st	Tom Burn Whitwell	1936	12th
	2nd	Horner Walton Bowl Coronation	1937	18th (bottom)
	3rd	Whitwell	1938	12th
	1st	Kerridge Walton Bowl	1939	11th

An impressive record indeed. Outbreak of the 2nd World War obviously called a halt to this run of success, but in terms of achievements on the field and interest in the club, this must easily rank as the most successful era of the club.

Jack Carr revisited.

Central to this was the figure of the professional from 1931-1939, Jack Carr. Carr has achieved an almost fabled status in North East Cricket, and naturally many of the stories improve with age, such that if you listen to some people talk about him you expect the guy to have played cricket in a blue lycra suit with a big red "S" on the front of it, but let us look at the figures which exist for his 9 seasons at the club prior to the War. These figures must be for all competitions, not just the league, since Carr does not figure in the NYSD records for wickets taken in a single season.

1,398 wickets at an average of 9.75. Over 7,000 runs, average not stated, but he had a reputation as a huge hitter batting usually at number 5.

In 183 games for Durham from 1924-46, Carr took 524 wickets and scored 4,472 runs, with a highest of 134.

A dispassionate look at these figures suggests that Carr was obviously a hugely successful league cricketer who held his own with Durham. It would appear that neither his county batting or bowling average were anything out of the ordinary, though he did take 22 from an over against the touring Australians, hit his first ever ball for Durham (vs South Africa) out of the ground and the Indian team applauded him to the crease in his last County game in 1946, so he obviously commanded some respect.

If we err on the generous side, and estimate 150 dismissals in 183 games (though with 2 innings games it is likely to be much higher) 4,472 runs would represent an average of just under 30. Similarly, 183 games and 524 wickets represents something just short of 3 wickets per game, useful no doubt, but hardly the strike rate of a World Class performer.

Keith's 1989 history of the club includes an extract from the London Evening Standard which reads "Carr, little known in the South, was the greatest draw Durham ever had. His terrific hitting astonished even the strongest Australian Test bowling. Like the great Sydney Barnes, Carr, now a veteran, has preferred a lifetime in Minor County Cricket. But what a draw he would have been at Lord's or the Oval."

The crowds at games reflect this. Keith's history states that "Gates of over 2,000 were quite common" though it is difficult to imagine how 2,000 people would fit into Welfare Park, let alone be able to see the game, especially since the minutes record that the fencing around the ground was in place by 1933. It would appear that trains were sometimes booked for away games, and Stockton CC's annual report from the mid-thirties reads "Although our gate receipts are down by over £100, this can be attributed to the fact our home game with Blackhall was rained off" Admission prices at this time were 6d (2.5p) and 3d (1.25p). It is obvious that Blackhall in the 1930s were quite an attraction.

What IS without doubt is that Carr was the central figure in the success of Blackhall during the 1930s and was certainly the player people came to see. He obviously played in a good side & took lots of wickets, and no doubt on occasion smashed the ball to all parts. 7,000 runs in 9 seasons in all competitions is not a huge return, however, in comparison to some other pros we have had over the years, so we must assume that heroic batting feats were not the norm, though undoubtedly spectacular innings did occur on occasions.

1,398 wickets represents an average of over 150 wickets per season which most certainly would make him the most successful bowler in the club's history by some distance.

Maybe it is true that, as time draws on, a spectacular hit or innings lives longer in the memory than a wicket taken, but analysis of the raw figures suggest that Carr was a much better bowler at club level than a batsman.

I also realise that these words may represent sacrilege in the eyes of some readers, but over time figures do tell a story in cricket.