Derbyshire CCC

Founded in 1870, Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class counties within England & Wales, competing at the highest domestic level in traditional four-day cricket, as well as fast-paced Twenty20 and one-day cricket

The Club has a rich heritage and recently celebrated its 150th Anniversary in 2020. During that time, Derbyshire have tasted success in the County Championship, being crowned winners in the one-division setup in 1936, as well as lifting the Division Two title in 2012.

The captain of that side, batter Wayne Madsen, has been with the Club for more than a decade and has amassed over 19,000 runs and is widely regarded as one of the best players in the county game.

In 2022, while enjoying another purple patch, he scored his first T20 century as the Club progressed to a third quarter-final in six seasons. Three years prior, during a successful 2019 summer, Derbyshire Falcons reached their first T20 Finals Day.

Added to Derbyshire’s four-day County Championship successes, the Club has won three limited overs trophies, including the dramatic 1981 NatWest Trophy which came down to the final ball in the final in front of a sold-out Lord’s crowd.

Stars that day included former England all-rounder, Geoff Miller, as well as world record holding wicketkeeper, Bob Taylor and the Club’s all-time leading run-scorer, Kim Barnett. Other notable players over the years have included Michael Holding, the great West Indies fast bowler and highly-regarded commentator, as well as Devon Malcolm and Dominic Cork.

New Zealand opening batter, John Wright, formed a formidable partnership with fellow overseas batter, Peter Kirsten, during the 1980s with the pair setting numerous Club-records. Wright, Club President in 2022, returned to the Club as Twenty20 Coach in 2017, leading the Falcons to a home quarter-final, their first in the competition.

Derbyshire play the majority of their home matches at The Incora County Ground in the heart of Derby, although other venues include the picturesque Queen’s Park – the home of the annual Chesterfield Cricket Festival, as well as former venues such as Ilkeston, Heanor and Buxton.

The Club’s headquarters famously hosted the first FA Cup Final outside of London, a replay of the 1886 final, and was a popular Racecourse until the 1930s. More recently, it has been developed into a multi-purpose venue with a Members’ Pavilion, tiered seating, a popular Grandstand and varied hospitality suites. The Incora County Ground has grown to become a key venue for international cricket, hosting a variety of Tour and international fixtures in recent years, notably the ICC Women’s World Cup in 2017, as well as the visit of the touring Australia side in 2019.

Added to its growing international reputation, The Incora County Ground is also a multi-purpose venue in Derby, providing the local community and wider East Midlands region with access to major concerts, Derby’s biggest fireworks display, as well as state-of-the-art conferencing and event space.

This diverse business model has enabled the re-investment into cricket and in 2022 the Club attracted world-renowned coach, Mickey Arthur, to Derbyshire as Head of Cricket. The former four-time international coach brought an instant uplift and improved on-field results saw the Falcons reach the T20 knockout stages in his first season, as well as impressive wins over the likes of Middlesex at Chesterfield, and the resurgence of key players such as Brooke Guest and Anuj Dal.