Racecourse Ground, Hereford

The cricket ground lies within Hereford Racecourse and was established in 1909.[1] It first held a first-class match ten years later when Worcestershire played HK Foster's XI in 1919,[2] played as part of the county's first-class programme after they decided not to enter the County Championship immediately after the First World War.[1] Worcestershire's Humphrey Gilbert claimed 12 wickets in the match for 122 runs.[3] The ground staged a further first-class match in 1919, when the Australian Imperial Forces cricket team visited to play HK Foster's XI,[2] with the Australians Johnny Taylor scoring 138 runs in the Australian Imperial Forces first innings of 405 all out.[4] Worcestershire returned to ground following the Second World War, playing a first-class match against the Combined Services in 1947;[2] Worcestershire's Roly Jenkins and Dick Howorth each taking a five wicket haul in the Combined Services first innings.[5] It would be 34 years before Worcestershire returned to using the Racecourse Ground as an outground, with it hosting one County Championship match each in 1981, 1982 and 1983.[2] Worcestershire played four List A one-day matches at the ground between 1983 and 1987 in the John Player Special League and Refuge Assurance League.[6] The ground was selected as one of the host venues for the 1986 ICC Trophy, a World Cup qualifying competition for associate members of the International Cricket Council. It hosted one game between Argentina and Bangladesh.[7] Following Durham's elevation to first-class status in 1991, Herefordshire replaced them in the Minor Counties Championship for 1992. Between 1992 and 1996, Herefordshire played six Minor Counties Championship matches at the ground,[8] in addition to one match in the 1993 MCCA Knockout Trophy.[9]

County matches typically attracted around 4,000 people, with a Refuge Assurance League match between Worcestershire and Surrey which featured Ian Botham and Tim Curtis seeing 7,500 attend.[1] The pavilion, which was built in 1889, is located some way from the playing surface, which is accessed across the track itself. As such, players watch matches from a tent, which adjoined the scorers' and press tent in the south-west of the ground. On major matchdays the north-west of the ground was given to match sponsors and accommodated tents and a double-decker bus. There are two scoreboards at the ground; a permanent one adjoining the main pavilion and a temporary scoreboard closer to the playing area.[1] Following the closure of Derby Racecourse in 1939, the Racecourse Ground became the only first-class ground in England to enclosed by a racecourse.[1]

• Racecourse Ground at ESPNcricinfo

52.0683°N 2.7286°W / 52.0683; -2.7286