The purpose of this list is to identify historically significant English cricket clubs and teams which played in matches that had either important or first-class status. It concentrates on those which are now defunct or, if extant, not currently significant. Therefore, the list excludes County Championship clubs, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), touring teams, and the main university clubs. Clubs in the Minor Counties Cricket Championship, or in one of the ECB Premier Leagues, are excluded unless they formerly played in important or first-class matches.
Some clubs which originally folded were subsequently refounded as modern league clubs. Many of the teams are combinations of recognised clubs or counties–for example, the combined Hampshire, Surrey & Sussex team in 1729. For the most part, ad hoc XIs (elevens) formed by individual patrons or organisers for one or a few matches are not included here; exceptions are the likes of C. I. Thornton's XI, H. D. G. Leveson Gower's XI, and T. N. Pearce's XI which became well-established over several seasons. The ad hoc XIs are listed at List of occasional English cricket XIs.
The total column gives the number of matches that the team is known (i.e., given that many early records have been lost) to have played in. In the source column, if only one citation is given, it relates to the earliest known mention of the team in the surviving records. The list is not necessarily exhaustive.
While the scope of the article is strictly historical, and in no way statistical, it has been necessary in a few cases such as Rutland and the MCC touring teams to temporarily cite CricketArchive, pending discovery of more credible offline sources.
Note. Where a team name is preceded by a symbol, there is or will be a redirect to this list.
A known dates team name home or used venue total source 1786 A to C Moulsey Hurst 1 notes"A to C" was in fact a Kent Eleven and it was a curiosity that they selected only players whose names began with A, B, or C. Their D to Z opponents, who were in fact a Hampshire team with given men, selected only players whose names did not begin A, B, or C. Haygarth in S&B calls it "Hambledon Club with Lumpy versus Kent". The venue, in Surrey, was neutral. Haygarth says he saw the alphabetical title in other sources. 1831–1833 A to K Lord's 2 notesThe two "A to K" versus "L to Z" matches in 1831 and 1833 were among the few genuine alphabetical matches. They were both played at Lord's by teams of MCC members supplemented by a few leading professionals including Jem Broadbridge, William Lillywhite, Fuller Pilch, and Ned Wenman. The 1833 match was 12-a-side. 1787–1789 A to M Lord's Old Ground and Bishopsbourne Paddock 5 notesAccording to CricketArchive (CA), teams called "A to M" and "N to Z" played each other five times in three seasons from 1787. The main secondary source for the five matches is Scores & Biographies (S&B) which calls the two teams "Earl of Winchilsea's Side" and "Sir Horace Mann's Side". There is nothing in S&B to suggest that the teams were organised alphabetically. Furthermore, the so-called "A to M" teams included Tom Taylor, and the "N to Z" included James Aylward and William Fennex. CA claims that these were given men, and also that the two patrons evidently alternated between the teams, which would put Winchilsea into "A to M" and Mann into "N to Z". The S&B version is supported by the ACS. 1733 Acton & Ealing Ealing Common 1 notes 1743–1752 Addington notes 1744–1746 Addington & Bromley notes 1747 Addington & Croydon notes 1745–1746 Addington & Lingfield notes 1846–1881 All England Eleven (AEE) notes 1775 Alphabetical Match teams Artillery Ground and Moulsey Hurst 2 notesThis refers to two matches organised by the Duke of Dorset and the Earl of Tankerville in May 1775, the first one played at the Artillery Ground and the return at Moulsey Hurst two days later. Details of the teams are unknown and so it cannot be said which letters of the alphabet applied to each team. All that is known is that the patrons made two "Grand Alphabetical Matches". 1776–1785 Alresford Itchin Stoke Down notes 1782 Alresford & Odiham notes 1780–1784 Alton & Odiham notes 1919 Army and Navy notes 1702 Arundel Bury Hill aka Berry Hill 1 notesThe Arundel club was formally constituted in 1704 but, two years earlier, an Arundel team took part in a match against the 1st Duke of Richmond's XI. The venue for that match is unknown but Arundel's ground at Bury Hill was in use for other important matches through much of the 18th century. The Arundel club remains active at league level in Sussex.
B known dates team name home or used venue total source 1805–1832 The Bs notes 1822 Bakewell notes 1749–1750 Bearsted Bearsted Green 2 notes 1741 Bedfordshire (18th century) Woburn Park notesFirst recorded in two matches against a combined Huntingdonshire & Northamptonshire team. The county's first patron and captain was John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford. 1769–1795 Berkshire (18th century) Old Field, Bray notes 1740 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Hertfordshire 2 notes 1743 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Middlesex 1 notes 1779 Berkshire & Hampshire notes 1766–1773 Bourne Bishopsbourne Paddock notes 1730–1799 Brentford various 13 notes 1771 Brentford, Hampton & Richmond notes 1770–1799 Brentford & Richmond Richmond Green notes 1732 Brentford & Sunbury unknown 1 notes 1790–1825 Brighton notes 1752 Bristol Durdham Down 1 notes 1912–1939 British Army (or "Army") notes 1940–1945 British Empire XI notesN.B. This needs its own article. 1975–2006 British Universities notes 1727 Alan Brodrick's XI Peper Harow 2 notesThe earliest known written rules were the Articles of Agreement written by Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond and Alan Brodrick, two of cricket's foremost patrons, applicable to the two matches in 1727 which they promoted. The results of the matches are unknown. 1742–1808 Bromley Bromley Common 20 notes 1743–1749 Bromley & Chislehurst Bromley Common 4 notes 1749 Bromley & London Artillery Ground 1 notes 1747 Bromley & Ripley Ripley Green 2 notes 1741–1785 Buckinghamshire (18th century) notesRichard Grenville was the county's first patron and captain for a match against Northamptonshire. 1786 Buckinghamshire & Middlesex notesPlayed against Berkshire at Warfield in September 1786. 1816–1818 E. H. Budd's XI notes 1821–1825 Bury St Edmunds notes
C known dates team name home or used venue total source 1912–1942 Sir Julien Cahn's XI notes 1817–1877 Cambridge Town Club notes 1826–1833 Cambridge Union Club notes 1882–1890 Cambridge University Past & Present notes 1857–1871 Cambridgeshire (19th century) notes 1864 Cambridgeshire & Yorkshire notes 1923 Capped (in Capped v Uncapped match at Hastings) notes 1767–1770 Caterham Caterham Common notes 1769 Caterham & Coulsdon Smitham Bottom, Coulsdon notes c.1610 Chalkhill unknown 1 notesA team with this name took part in the world's earliest known organised match at Chevening, Kent against opponents called Weald and Upland. 1705–1773 Chatham unknown 2 notesThe first reference to a team from Chatham, Kent, is a match against West of Kent in 1705, one of the earliest known important matches. There is a specific reference to a "Chatham Club" re a single wicket match in 1754. In the last quarter of the 18th century, Chatham was mainly associated with George Louch and is believed to have used a ground owned by him for its home matches, though there are references in 1785 and 1787 to Chatham Lines as a venue. There are some 19th century references but the Chatham club ultimately folded and there is no real modern equivalent, not even in Kent league cricket. The town of Chatham is famous historically for the Royal Dockyard but it is not known if there was any connection between the dockyard and the cricket club. 1731–1789 Chelsea Chelsea Common 4 notesRecords have survived of five important matches between 1731 and 1789 which involved the Chelsea club and/or were played on the common. The first, played on the common for the high stake of 50 guineas, was Chelsea v Fulham on Tuesday, 13 July 1731. Fulham won. There was a return at Parsons Green on Tuesday, 10 August 1731, which Fulham won by 3 runs. On Tuesday, 26 June 1733, Fulham again hosted Chelsea at Parsons Green, this time for 30 guineas, but the result of this match is unknown. On Monday, 16 August 1736, there was an inter-county match on the common between Middlesex and Surrey. The stake was 50 guineas and Middlesex won by 9 runs. The last match found in the records was on Thursday, 10 and Friday, 11 September 1789 when Chelsea played Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in Marlborough Gardens, Chelsea. This match, which was of dubious status, was probably drawn after a postponement.
Chelsea Common virtually disappeared under building work in the 19th century. 1731 Chelsfield unknown 1 notes 1736–1784 Chertsey Laleham Burway notes 1762 Chertsey & Dartford notes 1822–1855 Cheshire (19th century) notes 1724–1726 Chingford unknown 1 notesIn 1724, Edwin Stead's XI v Chingford ended early because the Chingford team refused to play to a finish when Stead's team had the advantage. Lord Chief Justice Pratt presided over the ensuing court case and ordered the teams, as in the London v Rochester match in 1718, to play it out so that all wagers could be fulfilled. The game was completed in 1726 but the final result is not on record. Chingford's involvement is the earliest known reference to Essex cricket but the 1724 venue is uncertain and so not definitely the first match played in the county. 1738–1746 Chislehurst Chislehurst Common 14 notes 1746 Chislehurst & London notes 1927 Civil Service notes 1920–1946 Combined Services aka Services XI notes 1771–1784 Coulsdon notes 1787–1788 Coventry notes 1646 Coxheath 1 notes There was a Coxheath team, as such, in 1646. 1707–1798 Croydon Duppas Hill 23 notesA leading club in the 1730s, especially, when it was sometimes representative of Surrey as a county.
D known dates team name home or used venue total source 1786 D to Z aka Rest of the Alphabet Moulsey Hurst 1 notesD to Z played against A to C, which was in fact a Kent Eleven and it was a curiosity that they selected only players whose names began with A, B or C while their D to Z opponents, who were in fact a Hampshire team with given men, selected only players whose names did not begin A, B or C. Haygarth in S&B calls it "Hambledon Club with Lumpy versus Kent". The venue, in Surrey, was neutral. Haygarth says he saw the alphabetical title in other sources. 1722–1808 Dartford Dartford Brent numerous notesThe earliest known match involving a team from Dartford took place in 1722, against London. The club's own website says it was formally established in 1727. The club is extant. 1919 Demobilised Officers notes 1752 Deptford Upper Fountain 5 notesPlayed in four matches as Deptford & Greenwich. 1743–1748 Deptford & Greenwich Mr Siddle's Ground, Deptford 4 notes 1746–1750 Stephen Dingate's XI 9 notes 1769–1790 Duke of Dorset's XI Sevenoaks Vine notes 1753 Dover notes 1895–1926 Dublin University notes 1858–1861 Durham & Yorkshire notes
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