Humberside Alliance cricket league

The Humberside Alliance cricket league was a club cricket competition that was ran in the former county of Humberside. The competition was a secondary league mainly open to 2nd XI sides, friendly teams or teams not able to pass the criteria to join the main cricket competitions in the area, the Yorkshire Cricket League for teams in North Humberside, now East Yorkshire, and the Lincolnshire County Cricket League for teams in the South.

Humberside Alliance Cricket League
CountriesEngland
AdministratorECB
FormatLimited Overs
First edition1980
Latest edition2000
Tournament format2 Division League
Current championScunthorpe Town Cricket Club
Most successfulBrigg Town Cricket Club (5 titles)
WebsitePlay Cricket Site

Competition history

The competition started in 1980 with only 1 division and a 2nd division was added 1984.

The competition was created during the winter of 1979 thanks to a lot of hard work from local journalist Nigel Fisher (Brigg Town Cricket Club) and well known cricketing administrator Bryan Simpson (Broughton Cricket Club) to create a league that mimicked the county lines of the county of Humberside that was formed in 1974. This also meant a league could be created outside of the Lincolnshire County Cricket league as the league didn't allow many 2nd XI teams at the time and also had a high entry criteria that some teams trying to start were struggling to reach. The falling standards at grounds in the North Lindsey League and Grimsby and District Cricket League which at the time was home to a number of local second Xi's was the main focus for improvement within the new league. The format was written as a 40 over a side league but anything from 45 to 30 over games could be played so long as the captains on the day agreed, with these rules and others the league considered itself to be a more friendly format to other county leagues. Because of this however the league did consider itself secondary and accepted in its own rules that the Lincolnshire league was "superior".

By the Mid 90s the league was still active with 2 divisions but some of the more friendly sides were struggling for adequate grounds to play at and other teams were struggling to fulfill their fixtures. In 1996 the 2nd XI sides of teams in the Lincolnshire league decided to join the Lincolnshire league who created their own more relaxed 2nd XI competition. The county of Humberside was abolished in 1996 meaning the league faced more problems in trying to keep running and by this time all but 1 of the teams were sides from South of the River Humber as teams north had all joined the Yorkshire league.

in the year 2000 the ECB had a full restructure of club cricket across the country which resulted in the Lincolnshire County Cricket League Abolishing their 2nd XI division and creating a full top to bottom structure for all teams of all playing style, allowing teams starting up to enter at the bottom. This left the Humberside Alliance league obsolete and the league folded at the end of the 2000 season. As a gesture by the Lincolnshire league they created an extra division, division 5, for all the remaining teams to join and had all of the Humberside Alliance league records stand for that division. Due to low numbers in the area that league was dissolved after 4 seasons and the Humberside Alliance league was officially over.

The Alliance also ran 2 other competitions, the Barry Fenton Memorial cup which was a cup competition that ran alongside the league and also a League representative match where a league XI would play a one off game against a team from another league.

Past Winners
Division 1 WinnersDivision 1 Runners upCup WinnersRunners UpDiviison 2 WinnersDivision 2 Runners Up
1980Barton Town 2ndsMessingham 2ndsN.P.W. 2ndsMessingham 2nds
1981South Kelsey 2ndsBroughton 2ndsS. Kelsey 2ndsBarton Town 2nds
1982Barton Town 2ndsFisonsFisonsScunthorpe 3rds
1983Norsk HydroS. Kelsey 2ndsS. Kelsey 2ndsBelton 2nds
1984Norsk HydroBrigg TownAlkborough 2ndsN.P.W 3rdsScunthorpe 3rdsWaltham
1985Brigg TownNorsk HydroS. Kelsey 2ndsCaistor 2ndsCaistor 2ndsSCM
1986Nuform 2ndsNorsk HydroNuform 2ndsHibaldstowKirton LindseyHibaldstow
1987Brigg TownSCMHibaldstowScunthorpe 3rdsBroughton 2ndsWinteringham
1988Brigg TownSCMKirton 2ndsS. Kelsey 2ndsFindusEast Halton
1989Alkborough 2ndsFindusFindusS. Kelsey 2ndsKeelbyBroughton 2nds
1990Broughton 2ndsFindusDee JaysKeelby 2ndsBottesfordBelton 2nds
1991FindusDee JaysFindus 2ndsHolton-le-clayNorth ThoresbyGy/Clee Police
1992Gy/Clee PoliceHibaldstowLittlefieldsGy/Clee PoliceLittlefieldsBP ACES
1993Gy/Clee PoliceHibaldstowLittlefieldsHibaldstowClub C.CTSB College
1994SCMHibaldstowClub C.C.N. ThorsebyHolton-le-clayScotter
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999North Thorseby
2000

[1]

League Records
Record
Highest Score340-7 - Messingham 2nds vs Nuform 2nds - 1980
Lowest Score15 - Nuform 2nds vs Barton Town 2nds - 1982
Highest Individual Score165* - Andy Hardy (SCM) - 1994
Most runs in a season1274 - Andy Hardy (SCM) - 1994
Best Bowling Figures10-5 - Dave Newton - Alkborough 2nds vs Caistor 2nds - 1988
Most Wickets in a season91 - J. Robinson - B.P. Aces - 1996
Most Dismissals for a Wicket Keeper38 - Steve Dixon - Scunthorpe Town 3rds - 1987
Most Catches in a season19 - R. Goodworth - B.P. 1sts - 1997
Best Partnerships
1st Wicket212 - Edwin Chappell & Neil White - South Kelsey 2nds vs Broughton 2nds - 1982
2nd Wicket225 - M. Williams & R. Walmesley - Dee Jays vs South Kelsey 2nds - 1991
3rd Wicket175 - Lincoln Broad & Paul Farmery - North Thorseby vs Hainton - 1999
4th Wicket207 - D. Richardson & M. Robinson - North Thorseby v N.P.W. 3rds - 1991
5th Wicket134 - U. Sheik & D. Beecham - Littlefields vs B.P. Aces - 1995
6th Wicket153 - P. Metheringham & A. Day - Scotter vs B.P. Aces - 1995
7th Wicket191 - Keith Bawden & Geoff Sidebottom - Messingham 2nds vs Nuform 2nds - 1980
8th Wicket99 - D. Holmes & P. Jackson - East Halton vs Bottesford - 1991
9th Wicket79 - J. Scofield & C. Hamilton-Reid - Blossom Way vs Outcasts - 1993
10th Wicket85 - Alistar Peat vs Tony Marfleet - North Thorseby vs BW Police - 1999

References
  1. All records taken from Humberside Alliance League Handbook
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