Name
Kent Spitfires

Badge
User Rating

(0 users)

Next Event
Middlesex t20 vs Kent Spitfires (31 May)

Head Coach
None Found...
Add new Player with 'Manager' position

League Position


Recent League Form ➡


Established
1842 (181 years old)

Sport
Cricket

Stadium/Home
St Lawrence Ground
(7,000 Capacity)

Jersey or Equipment Clearart

Archive

Primary Colours

Location
Canterbury, Kent, England

Nicknames
Spitfires

Competitions
English t20 Blast

Last Edit
curswine: 25/May/22


Upcoming
31/05 Middlesex t2 - Kent Spitfir
02/06 Hampshire t2 - Kent Spitfir
07/06 Kent Spitfir - Somerset t20
09/06 Kent Spitfir - Middlesex t2
14/06 Somerset t20 - Kent Spitfir

Results
02/07 Somerset t20 - Kent Spitfir
30/06 Kent Spitfir - Sussex Shark
23/06 Kent Spitfir - Middlesex t2
22/06 Essex Eagles - Kent Spitfir
20/06 Sussex Shark - Kent Spitfir

Description
Available in:

Kent County Cricket Club is one of the eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Kent. The club was first founded in 1842 but teams representing the county have played top-class cricket since the early 18th century. Kent have competed in the County Championship since the official start of the competition in 1890 and have played in every top-level domestic cricket competition in England. The club's limited overs team is called the Kent Spitfires after the Supermarine Spitfire.

The club plays most of its home matches at the St Lawrence Ground in Canterbury, which hosts Canterbury Cricket Week, the oldest cricket festival in England. It also plays some home matches at the County Cricket Ground, Beckenham and the Nevill Ground, Royal Tunbridge Wells where they host Tunbridge Wells Cricket Week.

Kent also field a women's team in the Women's County Championship. The team has won the Championship a record seven times, most recently in 2016, and the Women's T20 title three times, most recently also in 2016. It has traditionally played matches at the Polo Farm in Canterbury, but as of 2016 has moved to be based mainly at Beckenham.

Team Members




Blake





Denly





Dickson





Haggett





Kuhn





Leaning





Podmore





Robinson





Stevens





Stewart



= Player Contract years remaining
Showing 0 to 1 (Total: 1)



Stadium or Home

The St Lawrence Ground is a cricket ground in Canterbury, Kent, referred to as the Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence due to commercial sponsorship, and is the home of Kent County Cricket Club. It is one of the oldest grounds on which first-class cricket is played, having been in use since 1847. It is also notable as one of the two grounds used regularly for first-class cricket that have a tree within the boundary (the other is the City Oval in Pietermaritzburg).

Capacity at the ground was increased to 15,000 in 2000, and four One Day International matches have been played there, one each in 1999 (part of the 1999 Cricket World Cup), 2000, 2003 and 2005.

Cricket grounds in most parts of the world are devoid of any trees or shrubs. The lime tree at the St Lawrence Ground was an exception: the ground opened as the Beverley Ground in 1847, and was built around the tree. The presence of a tree within the playing area required special local rules. Shots blocked by the tree were counted as a four. Only four cricketers have cleared the tree to score a six: Arthur 'Jacko' Watson of Sussex in 1925, the West Indies' Learie Constantine (1928), Middlesex's Jim Smith (1939), and Carl Hooper (1992).1

The tree was diagnosed with heart rot in the 1990s, and it was pollarded to encourage new growth, reducing it from over 120 feet to around 90 feet in height. Unfortunately, high winds in England on 7 January 2005 caused the 200-year-old tree to snap in two, leaving a 7-foot stump. Wood from the dead tree will be made into mementos that will be sold to supporters. A new lime tree was planted outside of the playing area in 1999 by EW Swanton, in preparation for the ultimate demise of its predecessor. The club moved it within the playing area on 8 March 2005, although it was still less than 6 feet high.

The club announced in late 2006 that it would redevelop the ground. The planned £9 million development would include a hotel, health and fitness centre and conference facilities. The pavilion and other stands would also be upgraded. Money for the project would be raised by the building of private housing on the nets behind the pavilion and on the car park of the local pub, the Bat and Ball. These plans were put on indefinite "hold" in 2008 because of the credit crisis, the fall in the property market and other problems in the British economy. Plans were resurrected in summer 2009 and work started in September 2010.

In March 2010, the club confirmed that Bellway would be its housing partner for the redevelopment project. This included a hotel, conference facilities, a health and fitness centre, hospitality boxes, stand refurbishment, floodlights and retail units.

In 2011, an oil painting of the cricket ground by Albert Chevallier Tayler showing Kent playing Lancashire in 1906 was sold by the club at Sotheby's for £600,000 after it became too expensive to insure. It now hangs in the Long Room at Lord's.

On 14 March 2012, a new Sainsbury's Local convenience store opened, occupying the ground floor of the new club administration building, alongside a cafe.

In 2013, the club announced they had been unable to find a partner for the hotel and fitness centre, and instead hoped to build 60 retirement flats. Canterbury City Council initially rejected the planning application in late 2014, but construction began in 2016.

Trophies


Fanart


Banner

Other Links

Facebook

Twitter

Website

Instagram

Youtube