Club History and Achievements
Limerick Cricket Club was established in 1968 through the consolidation of the then existing Catholic Institute Cricket Team and the Limerick Protestant Young Mens Association (LPYMA) Cricket Team.
Limerick Cricket Club is part of the Munster Cricket Union, with teams ranging from far afield as Galway, Tralee, Cork, and Waterford. The league is split into 3 divisions with a total of 20 teams.
Limerick Cricket Club currently fields 2 teams, Seniors (1st) and Juniors (2nd) division, and is the only cricket club outside of County Cork to consistently compete in the Senior (1st) division competition.Ever since its inception, Limerick Cricket Club could well be described as nomadic.
Initially the Club’s home was at the LPYMA ground (behind the Maternity Hospital) until the early 70’s. The ground was suffering from vandalism so a move was made to the Catholic Institute ground in Rosbrien, which was used for a couple of seasons, however the wicket was difficult to maintain.
The Club then moved to DeBeers (now Element Six) ground in Shannon. At this time the name was changed to Shannonside Cricket Club for some years.
Because of the distance involved and drop in numbers from the Shannon contingent, it was decided to move back to Limerick to the Catholic Institute, and the name reverted to Limerick Cricket Club.
The mid-seventies were not a good time for Limerick Cricket Club in terms of success. The concentration was on survival and the struggle to establish a home ground to play on. During this time it was often difficult to raise a side to travel and on some occasions, the Club travelled with 9, 10, and on occasion, 8 players to Cork to fulfil a fixture. However, throughout the history of the Club, we have always fulfilled our fixtures, and have never cancelled a match because we could not travel.
After a couple of seasons at the Catholic Institute, the Club was on the move again. The nomadic nature of the Club has led to stints at Crescent College Comprehensive, the County Club on the Meelick road, Lord Harrington’s Estate in Patrickswell, Old Crescent R.F.C, and currently at the University of Limerick (UL). The struggle is constant but the new and old members have always kept their enthusiasm.
The 80’s were a particularly successful decade for the Club. For the first time in 1982, Limerick Cricket Club won the Munster Senior Cup. In the Cup we were successful in 1982, 1986, 1988, and beaten finalists in 1980 and 1984. We won the league in 1984, 1985 and 1988.
The lack of success in 1983 can no doubt to a large extent be attributed to the fact that the Club had no proper ground, with all competitive games having to be played away. This is a sentiment echoed throughout the history of the Club, even when the Club was its most successful.
In 1990, the Club moved to the University of Limerick. During the early 90’s the Club won the Munster Junior Cup twice and a memorable Munster Minor Cup and League double in 1992. The Club fell on barren times during the mid to late 90's, with only a couple of Munster Senior Shields and a remarkable Munster Senior Cup win to show for its endeavours.
The early years of the millennium demonstrated promise with a Munster Minor Cup (2001) and Munster Senior Shields (2003; 2005) and Munster Senior League titles (2004; 2005). This was also a very productive time for the Junior side, with the Munster Junior Leagues (2004; 2005), and a League and Munster Junior Cup double in 2005. This period of success was remarkable as it was achieved despite a lack of resources, including a home venue, a problem that continues to plague the Club.
While huge appreciation is owed to UL for allowing use of their ground, the fact remains that there are no facilities at the ground and the arrangement is such that we have access only if no other fee paying organisation has booked the ground, which unfortunately for us, is a common occurrence. The adversity of a lack of a self controlled venue has however galvanized the team spirit within the Club and promotes a thriving and cosmopolitan membership that embraces all ages and ability levels.
Limerick Cricket Club has consistently had members in the Munster representative cricket team, particularly during the 80’s when it made up the bulk of the team. Last season we had two Senior players in the Munster team. However, of particular note is John Daly of Parteen, Co. Clare, who in his first season of cricket was chosen to represent Munster in the U13 age category.
Those who have gone onto further honours, including:
John McDevitt – Irish national team 1986.
David Lynch – under 15 Ireland 1998.
Shershah Shahab – under 15 Ireland 2005.
Alan Lynch – Irish schools team 1992; Irish university team 1998.
Eoin McCann – selector for the national Irish Cricket Team during mid 80’s and 90’s, including two periods as Chairman of Selectors; Present of the Irish Cricket Union 2002.
Ronnie Lawlor – selector for the national Irish Cricket Team 1997 – 2000; Chairman of selectors 2000-2001.
Peter Nicholson - presented with a Sports Service Award by the Limerick City V.E.C. Sports Advisory Board, 1989.
Titles won within the Munster Cricket Union
Munster Senior Cup: 1982, 1986, 1988, 1997
Munster Senior League: 1984, 1985, 2004, 2005
Munster Senior Shields: 1998, 1999, 2003, 2005
Munster Senior Plate: 2006, 2007
Munster Junior Cup: 2005
Munster Junior League: 1992, 2004, 2005
Munster Minor Cup: 1992, 2001
Munster Minor League: 1992
The Club Today
Today Limerick Cricket Club has 95 paid members ranging in age from 8 to 70. While there is a strong presents of Irish nationals, the membership is quite cosmopolitan and the Club boasts members from 9 different nationalities.Limerick Cricket Club is committed to the development of cricket within the Limerick region, and especially to the development of underage cricket. With much appreciation, use of the all weather surface at Villiers school has allowed training to be held on weekends at the school.
Each weekend last season, Limerick Cricket Club members directed up to 40 kids under the age of 18 in cricket training. From this success two under 15 matches were run. While the kids represented themselves well, they suffered from the lack of ‘real’ experience, again emphasising the need for a proper playing area and facilities. The vision for the coming season is to develop 3 underage teams (U18, U15, and U13) who will compete on a regular basis within the Munster Cricket Union. We hope to have two teams competing this season, and the third next season.
The Club also has a website, which can be located at: www.limerickcricketclub.com.
In addition to wanting to thrive as a competitive Club within the open age divisions of the Munster Cricket Union, the Club also has a focus on social aspects. This is despite the fact that we have no Club house to help foster this environment. This has manifested primarily through Club tours, Club friendlies within Ireland and Club trips. Within the last couple of years, Club tours have included Geneva in Switzerland, and Cannes in France, and a friendly against Ballyeighan Cricket Club.
The Quest for a Permanent Home
Limerick’s nomadic existence has seen home matches at the following venues:
1968 – 1971 Catholic Institute and LPYMA
1972 – 1975 De Beers, Shannon
1976 – 1977 Catholic Institute, Rosbrien
1978 – 1979 Crescent College Comprehensive, Dooradoyle
1980-1981 Old Crescent R.F.C., Rosbrien
1982 Lord Harrington’s Estate, Patrickswell
1983 County Club, Meelick
1984 – 1985 Old Crescent R.F.C., Rosbrien
1986 – 1989 Crescent College Comprehensive, Dooradoyle
1990 – University of Limerick, Plassey
As mentioned earlier, the use of the ground at UL is very much appreciated, however the fact remains that there are no facilities at the ground, and there is no option to develop facilities.
In addition, the arrangement is such that we have access only if no other fee paying organisation has booked the ground, which unfortunately is a common occurrence. This means that for many of our ‘home’ fixtures we are forced to be played ‘away’, which commonly means travelling to Cork. Last season, only a total of 3 of 12 home fixtures were possible. This puts us in the position of depending on the other clubs within Munster to facilitate us, which is not always possible.
As long as Limerick Cricket Club has been in existence, it has been a nomadic Club. Despite this, the Club has survived and has been relatively successful. But to flourish further we need a permanent home ground, a secure and available playing area and facilities, so that we can develop as a Club, and in particular continue to develop the kids within the Club, as they are the future of the Club.
Luke Kirwan
