Page 5 - Clydesdale origins (Autosaved) #3_Neat

In three short years, Clydesdale Cricket Club had become the epicentre of the promotion and
development of cricket in the west of Scotland culminating with the holding of a number of
invitational games at Kinning Park over the course of the following two decades.

In September 1851, Clydesdale’s ground at Kinning Park became the venue for an exhibition match

between the Twenty Two of Glasgow versus an All England Eleven. The match was played over three

days on the 18th, 19th and 20th September.

Marquees and tents were erected all around the ground and companies and salesmen exhibited
their wares for the good people of Glasgow to peruse. Fred Lillywhite, the proprietor of the famous
“Lillywhite Brothers - Tobacconist and Sports Outfitter”, in London was present, and his good
friends, Jonny Wisden, George Parr and William Caffyn were playing for the All England Eleven.
Wisden, of course, on retirement from the game, would go on to compile his Wisden’s Almanac
which has become the cricketer’s bible in respect of facts, figures, statistics and analysis of all things
cricket.

Having made investigations into the composition of the Glasgow team, it appears to have been a
Clydesdale XI beefed up with a selection of seasoned English professional cricketers and invited stars
of the day to make up a twenty-two to take on an All England select.

Clydesdale’s team had players of note whose representative statistics reflect their capabilities. J
Morrison played for Scotland (1852-1858), Archibald McCraw for Scotland (1852), Archibald
Campbell for Scotland (1852-1854), E Morrison for Scotland (1852-1858) and William Connochie
for Scotland (1852-1858), Colonel Buchanan's Scotland Team (1860), Caledonian Club (1861) and
the Gentlemen of Scotland (1862).