Craigengower Cricket Club (CCC) Cricket Team Online

C.C.C. Cricket Team Online

Club History

The Club was founded in Hong Kong in 1894, when Mr. W.D. Braidwood, the Headmaster of the Victoria English School, converted a turfed piece of ground into a cricket field, in Bonham Road near Breezy Point.

The cricket was enthusiastically received both by the students and their parents. It was thought that their activities should be dignified with a suitable title. Mr. Braidwood cast around for a name and finally settled upon the name of the building which housed his school - Craigengower. Mr. Braidwood was also a Scot which probably explains the source of the name.

There was one drawback to the cricket ground. While hitting the ball over the boundary was an easy matter, recovering the ball was less straightforward. The land beyond the boundary was the site of an old cemetery. The students had to recover the ball from amongst skulls from damaged urns scattered beyond the boundary. Not unnaturally, the players did not particularly enjoy this task.

W.D. Braidwood

So Mr. Braidwood looked around for another piece of land upon which cricket might be played. At this time, Happy Valley was a large area of open ground which was used for a variety of sporting activities, including those of the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

Mr. Braidwood selected an area in the northeast corner of Happy Valley for his new Cricket Club. Even this site was not without its problems.

It was the start for some Jockey Club races. Consequently, Saturday afternoon cricket matches were interrupted at regular intervals while horses and their riders were lined up for an enthusiastic, if not altogether professional, gallop around the perimeter of Happy Valley.

The Jockey Club activities did not, however, deter Mr. Braidwood and his cricketers. Indeed, it was not long before a formal and permanent racetrack was constructed which no longer encroached upon the cricket field.

Cricket at Craigengower - circa 1936

Early on the Club introduced the award of a shield to the player who headed the batting averages. Unfortunately, the shield was allowed to be won outright by R. Basa in 1903; one of Braidwood's ex-students and later to become a Club President. Possibly because it was a good idea, the Club Secretary, Mr. A.E. Asger suggested an open cricket competition on league principles. The President, Mr. Braidwood, convened a meeting on October 22, 1903 which led to the formation of the Hong Kong Cricket League. The Club Secretary, Mr. Asger became the first Secretary of the Cricket League. A new local newspaper, the South China Morning Post, donated a shield and a League competition consisting of 8 teams was underway.

The first league game was played at Happy Valley on Saturday, October 24, 1903. C.C.C. entertained the Civil Service Cricket Club (later to be known as the Centaurs). The match was drawn, with C.C.C. managing only 71 for 4 in reply to the Civil Service's 100. Admittedly, the Civil Servants had 37 overs to score 100, and thoughtfully gave 13 overs in reply. In October 25, 2003, the very same weekend 100 years ago, C.C.C. and the Centaurs helped to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Hong Kong Cricket League with a re-enactment of this first ever league match, played at the Hong Kong Cricket Club. A dinner party was followed and was attend by more than 80 former and current C.C.C. and Centaurs players, guests, wives and children.

C.C.C. and the Centaurs, Centenary Game, Oct 2003

Until the Pacific War, the Club was a leading force on the Hong Kong cricket scene and won the first division cricket championship on several occasions.

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