The Lord's Taverners at the cradle of cricket

The road into Hambledon still feels like it narrows towards something special. A bend, a hedge, the Bat and Ball, then Broadhalfpenny Down opens out like a stage, the cradle of cricket under an open Hampshire sky.

That sense of occasion is exactly what powered the charity fixtures staged there between the Broadhalfpenny Brigands and the Lord’s Taverners between 1960 and 1972: 13 matches, watched by crowds who travelled from far and wide, the boundary edge lined with spectators several deep, and a marquee serving a quintessential cricket tea behind the little thatched hut of a changing room.

The results didn’t really matter; Brigands won two, the Taverners four, with seven draws. It was the atmosphere and the cast lists that explained why these games became a summer talking point.

The Taverners help young people facing the challenges of inequality, and open up opportunities for those who might otherwise be left on the margins. These matches were fundraisers, driven by the belief that sport can change lives.

Players ensured there was sparkle. Fifteen Test cricketers represented the Lord’s Taverners at the cradle of cricket, from Ray Lindwall and Doug Insole to Jim Laker and Ken Barrington. Brigands fielded three County players themselves; Gerry Tordoff of Somerset, Colin Ingleby-Mackenzie of Hampshire, and Michael Ainsworth of Worcestershire. They were joined by club stalwarts and celebrities who enjoyed a pre-match lunch at HMS Mercury, then happily pulled on whites.

The 1961 match drew a crowd in its thousands, and it ended in the kind of last-wicket tension that charity cricket produces more often than it should. The Taverners’ last pair needed just a boundary to win when the last wicket fell. 611 runs were scored in the afternoon, a record that still stands today more than 60 years later; a newspaper headline called it a "dazzling day".

In 1964, Jim Laker, on his way to greatness, bowled down the hill and a year later, Ken Barrington took five for 15 as the Brigands were dismissed for 107, the best bowling figures recorded by a Tavener in the series.

In 1968, Brigands rotated 13 players and Taverners 14. Chasing 286 to win, Brian Shattock came to the crease with Brigands struggling on 10 for 4. He cut loose to crash 158 in just 65 minutes with 27 boundaries, including 8 sixes. The match was drawn with the last pair surviving the 41st and final over.

There were close finishes in 1970, when Taverners chased down a 220 target in under 30 overs with just one wicket in hand, and in 1971 when Taverners reached their target of 200 in the 35th over with 3 wickets in hand in fading light.

The 1972 game was rain-affected. The Brigands' Captain, Bryan Burns, top-scored in the game and recalled using the large roller to "squeeze the damp out of the pitch before the start". The game was abandoned at tea when the rain came; the Taverner's captain, Alf Gover, wondered whether Brigands could have declared earlier, given the weather forecast.

Burn's favourite memories are surviving an over from Worcestershire fast bowler Jack Flavell in 1969, "he passed my bat 6 times", and taking the wicket of Stuart Surridge, the great Surrey Captain and Wisden Cricketer of the Year.

Famous players included Sir Tim Rice, Robert Powell, and Robin Smith

In 1988, the Lord’s Taverners returned to Broadhalfpenny Down to play in a cricket match filmed for the ITV Telethon, with proceeds going to charity. Sir Tim Rice featured, and Miss Marion Begley, a local cricket-loving nurse, won a competition prize to lunch with the teams before play. TV presenter Nicholas Parsons, Capital Breakfast Show host Chris Tarrant, and actor Robert Powell added a dash of showbiz to an already distinctive setting.

Newspapers previewed and reported on the charity matches at Broadhalfpenny Down

By David Henderson, with scorecards and research from Lord's Taverners Archivist William Powell and Brigands' Bryan Burns, 2026. Photographs used with permission from Lord's Taverners and Alamy.