A Review of the 1906 Season
1906 saw the cricketing scene in Chingford complicated further by reports of a further Cricket Club, Pelham CC who had acquired use of the Pelham Ground which was owned by Whitbread’s at the back of the Queen Elizabeth Hotel, and is of course now known as Forest Side. Pelham CC was actually the Cricket Section of the Whitbread Brewery and we have ascertained they were founded in 1893. Pelham CC appeared on the fixture list as opponents for Chingford twice in 1906.
The first reference to a properly organised game on the Pelham Ground appears in the Woodford Times on 3 August 1906 which reported:
BUTCHERS v BAKERS
A cricket match between teams representing the above trades was played on Monday afternoon last, on the Pelham CC ground. The event proved very interesting. The Bakers compiled 79 runs, King with 28 being top score . But for Polli(31) the Butchers would have been in a bad way- as it was they lost by 23 runs. After the match a meat tea was partaken of at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel. A very pleasant and enjoyable evening was spent with the help of songs etc.
Meanwhile, at Buxton Road, around the ground the roads were beginning to be made up, and kerbs were starting to appear!
For the first time since the Club being formed in 1903, growing membership was reflected in two elevens appearing on the same day twice – firstly on Bank Holiday Monday 4 June 1906 and then again the next Saturday. Chingford might have lived to regret their decision on the Bank Holiday as in the away game at Tottenham, Chingford conceded a club record score of 240 at the time – an enormous total in the context of other Chingford matches in 1906 !
WG Longden made the Club’s first ever half century, when on 19 May 1906 in the home fixture with Barclay, he hit 55.
Results in the season were a mixed bag with a similar number of wins to defeats.
WG Longden did the “double” yet again, topping the batting averages @ 19.9 with 239 runs, while again being leading wicket taker with 41 – including a 6 wicket haul v Hale End. Some competition was finally starting to emerge from the ranks with Captain HJ Veal contributing 189 runs and 34 wickets, while H Greenwood captured 24 wickets
HJ Veal was also the star of the show in the end of season Married v Single match where he took 6 wickets and then scored an unbeaten 33 for the Married who had the best of a drawn match with 110 playing 84-6.