Worcestershire County Cricket League

The Worcestershire County Cricket League (WCL) is an English club cricket league, and consists of club teams from Worcestershire, Herefordshire, and several other sides from bordering counties.

History

The Worcestershire County Cricket League was created in 1999 as part of the new 'pyramid system' in English club cricket, and acts as a feeder league to the Birmingham and District Premier League. It was formed mainly as a merger between the old Worcestershire Clubs' League and the Autobag/Plumb Centre League. Other clubs came from the Midland Combined Counties League, the 3D Cricket PLJ League, and in the case of Herefordshire sides, the Marches Cricket League and the Willowsticks Three Counties Cricket League.

There is promotion and relegation and most divisions of the league operate on a two up/two down basis, although the feeder league status means that more than two sides may be relegated from Division 1, with knock-on effects on other divisions, if more than one Worcestershire or Herefordshire side is relegated from Birmingham League Division 3. Other exceptions to this are in Division 1 (where only the winner is promoted to the Birmingham and District Premier League), Division 3 (three down), and Divisions 4 North and South (one up from each plus the winner of a playoff between the two 2nd placed teams). There is also no relegation from Division 4 North and South, and clubs can only be promoted from Division 5 if they are able to field two XIs in the following season, and there is a space available in either of the Division 4s.

Winners of Division 1 of the Worcestershire County Cricket League, who have been promoted to the Birmingham and District Premier League, since 1999 are:

*1999: Hagley Cricket Club
*2000: Redditch Cricket Club
*2001: Kington Cricket Club
*2002: Old Elizabethans Cricket Club
*2003: Evesham Cricket Club
*2004: Pershore Cricket Club
*2005: Ombersley Cricket Club
*2006: Kington Cricket Club
*2007: Brockhampton Cricket Club
*2008: Eastnor Cricket Club

Divisional Structure

For 2008 the Worcestershire County Cricket League is made up of the following divisions and clubs:

Division One

*Astwood Bank
*Barnards Green
*Bromyard
*Droitwich Spa
*Eastnor
*Netherton
*Oldswinford
*Pershore
*Redditch
*Stourbridge
*Worcester
*Worcester Nomads

Division Two

*Alvechurch & Hopwood
*Avoncroft
*Bewdley
*Chaddesley Corbett
*Colwall
*Coombs Wood
*Feckenham
*Lye
*Malvern
*Monmouth
*Pedmore
*Romsley & Hunnington

Division Three

*Belbroughton
*Birlingham
*Cookley
*Cutnall Green
*Enville
*Hagley
*Harborne 3rd XI
*Kidderminster Victoria 3rd XI
*Old Elizabethans 3rd XI
*Rushwick
*Stourport
*Wormelow

Division Four North

*Alveley
*Amblecote & Wollaston
*Barnt Green 3rd XI
*Belbroughton 3rd XI
*Bromsgrove 3rd XI
*Claverley
*Halesowen 3rd XI
*Himley 3rd XI
*Stourbridge 3rd XI
*Stourbridge Social

Division Four South

*Burghill & Tillington
*Barnards Green 3rd XI
*Canon Frome
*Hanley Castle & Upton
*Himbleton
*Martley
*Old Vigornians
*Ross on Wye
*Tenbury
*Worcester Dominies & Guild

From Division 1 down to Divisions 4 North and South, there are also separate 2nd XI Divisions, with the 4th XI of those sides above whose 3rd XIs play in the league, competing against other clubs' 2nd XIs. From 2006, Division 1 and 2 2nd XIs were promoted and relegated independently of their 1st XIs (and 4th XIs can be promoted or relegated independently of their 3rd XIs), and from 2007 the same applied to Division 3.

Division Five

*Badsey
*Brintons
*Chain-Wire
*Cleobury Mortimer
*Evesham 3rd XI
*Hewell
*Highley
*Knighton-on-Teme
*Vine
*West Malvern

Division Six

*Bewdley 3rd XI
*Coombs Wood 3rd XI
*Droitwich Spa 3rd XI
*Kidderminster Victoria 5th XI
*Old Hill 3rd XI
*Pershore 3rd XI
*Stone

Division Seven

*Astwood Bank 3rd XI
*Hallow
*Kempsey
*Malvern 3rd XI
*Netherton 3rd XI
*Ombersley 3rd XI
*Worcester 3rd XI
*Worcester Nomads 3rd XI

Division Eight

*Amblecote & Wollaston 3rd XI
*Astwood Bank 4th XI
*Avoncroft 3rd XI
*Chaddesley Corbett 3rd XI
*Cleobury Mortimer 2nd XI
*Enville 3rd XI
*Harborne 5th XI
*Hewell 2nd XI

Division Nine

*Coombs Wood 4th XI
*Feckenham 3rd XI
*Oldswinford 3rd XI
*Pershore 4th XI
*Romsley & Hunnington 3rd XI
*Stourport 3rd XI
*West Malvern 2nd XI
*Worcester Nomads 4th XI

Famous Players

Several current or ex-professional cricketers have played in the Worcestershire County Cricket League in its short history:

Internationals

England
*Richard Illingworth
*Phil Newport
*Neal RadfordNew Zealand
*Daniel FlynnPakistan
*Humayun Farhat
*Imran Farhat
*Abdur RaufSri Lanka
*Chamila Gamage also known as Chamila Gamage Lakshitha
*Dharshana Gamage

First class players

England
*Duncan Catterall
*Damian D'Oliveira
*Liam O'Driscoll
*William ThomasAustralia
*Michael Jeh
*Craig JonesSouth Africa
*Andre (Leon) Botha
*Wesley Euley
*Calvin FlowersWest Indies
*Mali RichardsIndia
*Neeraj Chawla
*Sachin Khartade
*Shashi RanjanPakistan
*Mohammad Ali
*Khalid Mahmood
*Mahmood Malik
*Atiq-ur-Rehman
*Zahid SaeedZimbabwe
*Leon Soma
*Jason Young

External links

* [http://www.worcscl.org Official League Website]