The 1791 English cricket season was the 20th in which matches have been awarded retrospective first-class cricket status and the fifth after the foundation of the Marylebone Cricket Club. The season saw 14 top-class matches played in the country.

Matches

A total of 14 top-class matches were played during the season.^[1][2][3] These included matches played by teams from Hampshire, Kent, Middlesex and Surrey as well as by club sides at Hornchurch in Essex and Brighton in Sussex. MCC played seven first-class matches. Other teams included England sides, the Gentlemen of Kent and Old Etonians.^[2][3]

A number of matches below top-level were played, including the first by a team from Leicestershire.^[4]

First mentions

Players who made their first appearances in 1791 included Lord Frederick Beauclerk, who went on to be an influential, albeit controversial, figure in the development of MCC,^[5] and Charles Cumberland.

References

Further reading

• Altham, H. S. (1962). A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914). George Allen & Unwin.
• Birley, Derek (1999). A Social History of English Cricket. Aurum.
• Bowen, Rowland (1970). Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development. Eyre & Spottiswoode.
• Major, John (2007). More Than A Game. HarperCollins.