Northern Premier Cricket League

EBC Premier League

Cricket tournament

Northern Premier Cricket LeagueCountries|  England

|

Administrator| ECB
Format| Limited Overs
First edition| 1951 (Founded)
2000 (ECB Premier League)
Tournament format| League
Number of teams| 12 (Division One)
Current champion| Kendal CC
Most successful| Blackpool CC (18)
Website| https://npcl.play-cricket.com/

The Northern Premier Cricket League is a cricket league in the North West of England and was designated as an ECB Premier League in 2000.[1] Prior to that date it was known as the Northern Cricket League.

Because the Northern Premier Cricket League had no formal feeder league and no automatic relegation and promotion, the ECB suggested on several occasions that its ECB Premier League status might be withdrawn. As from 2017, the Palace Shield became the Northern Premier League's feeder league and promotion and relegation between the two leagues took place for the first time at the end of the 2017 season.

## History

[edit]

The Northern Cricket League was founded on 10 November 1951,[2] in controversial circumstances.

Several of the clubs in the west of the area covered by the Ribblesdale League had been unhappy for some time about the format of that League. The League had a membership of 18 clubs which meant that only 5 opponents in the League were played against twice per season whilst the remainder were played against once. This group of clubs met secretly on 7 October 1951 and produced a handwritten document which stated:

The following Ribblesdale League clubs:- Blackpool, Chorley, Darwen, Fleetwood, Lancaster, Leyland, Morecambe, St Annes being duly authorised by their respective Committees are resolved from this meeting to request the Ribblesdale League to form a West Section, comprising the above named clubs together with Leyland Motors, Furness and Kendal. Failing agreement on the part of the Ribblesdale League the above eight clubs pledge themselves to resign forthwith from the Ribblesdale League and to create a new league, which would include an invitation to Leyland Motors, Furness, Kendal and Preston.[3]

At the AGM of the Ribblesdale League, held in Whalley on 10 November 1951, the motion was proposed to form West and East sections with the West section comprising Blackpool, Chorley, Darwen, Fleetwood, Lancaster, Leyland, Morecambe, and St Annes, plus two new clubs Furness and Kendal (both from the North Lancashire Cricket League) along with Leyland Motors if they wished to play in the West section. After discussion, the vote was 9–9 and was defeated on the casting vote of the President who had earlier expressed distaste at the way the western clubs had acted.[4]

The eight clubs duly resigned from the Ribblesdale League, as did Leyland Motors, and representatives of these clubs along with those of Furness and Kendal then met at the Swan Hotel in Whalley where the Northern Cricket League was formed. Preston Cricket Club were invited to join the new league as the twelfth team. The invitation was accepted but they remained in the Liverpool and District Cricket Competition for one further year before participating in the Northern Cricket League's second season in 1953.[2]

Furness left the league after the 1958 season to be replaced by Netherfield, but there were to be no further changes to the membership until Barrow joined the league in 2004. More recent changes in the membership can be seen below. Leyland merged with lower level club BTR in 2000 and adopted the name Leyland and Farington, while Leyland Motors were known as Leyland DAF between 1991 and 2000. Founder members Darwen left the league after the 2016 season. In 2017 promotion and relegation was agreed between the Northern League and Palace Shield and at the end of the season Garstang and Fulwood & Broughton replaced Lancaster and Kendal. For the 2023 season, Fleetwood re-joined the Northern League as Palace Shield champions, alongside Palace Shield runners-up and Northern League newcomers Eccleston with Lancaster and Vernon Carus going in the opposition direction and both returning to the Palace Shield.

## Winners

[edit]

* Year | Champions

|

1952 | St Annes
1953 | Furness
1954 | Blackpool
1955 | Blackpool
1956 | Kendal
1957 | Lancaster
1958 | Furness
1959 | Kendal
1960 | Blackpool
1961 | Leyland
1962 | Blackpool
1963 | Blackpool
1964 | Blackpool
1965 | Blackpool
1966 | Darwen
1967 | Blackpool and Preston[a]
1968 | Morecambe
1969 | Blackpool
1970 | Preston
1971 | Chorley
* Year | Champions

|

1972 | Fleetwood
1973 | Leyland Motors
1974 | Blackpool
1975 | Fleetwood
1976 | Lancaster
1977 | Lancaster
1978 | Lancaster
1979 | Lancaster
1980 | Chorley
1981 | Leyland
1982 | Blackpool
1983 | Preston
1984 | Blackpool
1985 | Fleetwood
1986 | Lancaster
1987 | Darwen
1988 | Blackpool
1989 | Blackpool
1990 | Blackpool
1991 | Leyland
* Year | Champions

|

1992 | Morecambe
1993 | Kendal
1994 | Kendal
1995 | Morecambe
1996 | St Annes
1997 | Netherfield
1998 | Netherfield
1999 | Darwen
2000 | Netherfield
2001 | Netherfield
2002 | Darwen
2003 | Darwen
2004 | Fleetwood
2005 | St Annes
2006 | Morecambe
2007 | St Annes
2008 | Netherfield
2009 | St Annes
2010 | Leyland
2011 | St Annes
* Year | Champions

|

2012 | Fleetwood
2013 | Leyland
2014 | Blackpool
2015 | Morecambe
2016 | Leyland
2017 | Netherfield
2018 | Blackpool
2019 | Leyland
2020 | League suspended
2021 | Blackpool
2022 | Garstang
2023 | Kendal

1. ^ Joint champions.

* Wins | Club

|

18 | Blackpool [a]
7 | Leyland
6 | Lancaster
Netherfield
St Annes
5 | Darwen
Fleetwood
Kendal
Morecambe
3 | Preston [a]
2 | Chorley
Furness
1 | Garstang
Leyland Motors

1. ^ a b Blackpool and Preston shared a championship in 1967.

source.[2]

## Division One performance by season from 2000

[edit]

Key

Gold  | Champions
Blue  | Left League
Red  | Relegated
Performance by season, from 2000  Club  | 2000  | 2001  | 2002  | 2003  | 2004  | 2005  | 2006  | 2007  | 2008  | 2009  | 2010  | 2011  | 2012  | 2013  | 2014  | 2015  | 2016  | 2017  | 2018  | 2019  | 2020  | 2021  | 2022  | 2023

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Barrow  |  | 11  | 8  | 12  | 9  | 9  | 6  | 2  | 8  | 2  | 2  | 5  | 7  | 4  | 10  | 7  | 12  |
Blackpool  | 5  | 3  | 5  | 12  | 7  | 3  | 10  | 10  | 3  | 7  | 5  | 5  | 9  | 11  | 1  | 4  | 2  | 4  | 1  | 3  |  | 1  | 2  | 5
Carnforth [a] |  | 9  | 12  | 11  | 12  | 12  | 11  | 14  |
Chorley  | 3  | 2  | 6  | 7  | 5  | 9  | 13  | 11  | 7  | 3  | 14  | 3  | 13  | 7  | 12  | 9  | 5  | 5  | 5  | 7  |  | 10  | 6  | 2
Darwen [b] | 2  | 5  | 1  | 1  | 3  | 4  | 3  | 3  | 8  | 11  | 4  | 7  | 7  | 10  | 3  | 3  | 11  |
Eccleston  |  | 12
Fleetwood  | 7  | 10  | 9  | 10  | 1  | 7  | 7  | 13  | 13  | 10  | 10  | 14  | 1  | 5  | 6  | 2  | 3  | 7  | 9  | 4  |  | 12  |  | 6
Fulwood & Broughton  |  | 10  | 5  |  | 8  | 3  | 10
Garstang  |  | 6  | 2  |  | 5  | 1  | 3
Kendal  | 8  | 4  | 4  | 4  | 6  | 5  | 2  | 4  | 2  | 8  | 11  | 9  | 4  | 8  | 7  | 12  | 8  | 11  |  | 10  |  | 6  | 9  | 1
Lancashire Colts [c] |  | 9  | 10  | 10  | 12  | 9  |
Lancaster  | 9  | 12  | 11  | 8  | 12  | 13  | 5  | 8  | 12  | 13  | 7  | 12  | 11  | 3  | 14  | 10  | 13  | 12  |  | 2  | 11  |
Leyland [d] |  | 7  | 6  | 9  | 1  | 2  | 3  | 1  | 2  | 5  | 1  | 3  | 4  | 1  |  | 7  | 8  | 8
Leyland & Farington [d] | 10  | 9  | 10  | 11  | 13  | 11  | 14  |
Leyland Motors [d] | 11  | 11  | 12  | 9  | 10  | 10  | 11  |
Longridge  |  | 6  |  | 4  | 7  | 4
Morecambe  | 4  | 7  | 2  | 5  | 4  | 6  | 1  | 2  | 4  | 5  | 6  | 6  | 8  | 4  | 10  | 1  | 12  | 9  | 11  |  |  | 11  |
Netherfield  | 1  | 1  | 3  | 3  | 2  | 2  | 4  | 6  | 1  | 4  | 8  | 4  | 5  | 9  | 8  | 8  | 6  | 1  | 2  | 8  |  | 3  | 5  | 7
Penrith  |  | 11  | 6  | 10  | 6  | 8  | 11  |  | 10  | 11
Preston  | 12  | 8  | 8  | 6  | 8  | 12  | 8  | 5  | 10  | 2  | 13  | 13  | 6  | 13  | 13  | 13  | 7  | 8  | 12  |
St Annes  | 6  | 6  | 7  | 2  | 9  | 1  | 6  | 1  | 5  | 1  | 3  | 1  | 12  | 6  | 4  | 11  | 9  | 2  | 3  | 9  |  | 9  | 4  | 9
Vernon Carus  |  | 12  |
References  | [5] | [6] | [7] | [8] | [9] | [10] | [11] | [12] | [13] | [14] | [15] | [16] | [17] | [18] | [19] | [20] | [21] | [22] | [23] | [24] | [25][e] | [26] | [27] | [28]

1. ^ Carnforth left the league after the 2012 season to join the Westmorland Cricket League.
2. ^ Darwen left the league after the 2016 season to join the Lancashire League.
3. ^ Lancashire Colts withdrew from league cricket after the 2014 season.
4. ^ a b c Leyland & Farington and Leyland Motors (Leyland DAF in 2000) merged under the name Leyland after the 2006 season.
5. ^ Coronavirus pandemic forced all formal competitive sporting activities to be suspended.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ List of ECB Premier Leagues Archived 15 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
2. ^ a b c "Northern Cricket League archive". northerncricketleague.org. NPCL. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
3. ^ "The beginnings of the Northern Cricket League". northerncricketleague.org. NPCL. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
4. ^ "Ribblesdale Cricket League". ribblesdaleleague.co.uk. RCL. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
5. ^ "2000 League Table".
6. ^ "2001 League Table".
7. ^ "2002 League Table".
8. ^ "Division One - 2003".
9. ^ "Division One - 2004".
10. ^ "Division One - 2005".
11. ^ "Division One - 2006".
12. ^ "Division One - 2007".
13. ^ "Division One - 2008".
14. ^ "Division One - 2009".
15. ^ "Division One - 2010".
16. ^ "Division One - 2011".
17. ^ "Division One - 2012".
18. ^ "Division One - 2013".
19. ^ "Division One - 2014".
20. ^ "Division One - 2015".
21. ^ "Division One - 2016".
22. ^ "Division One - 2017".
23. ^ "Division One - 2018".
24. ^ "Division One - 2019".
25. ^ "Division One - 2020".
26. ^ "Division One - 2021".
27. ^ "Division One - 2022".
28. ^ "Division One - 2023".

## External links

[edit]

* Northern Premier Cricket League play-cricket website
* Northern Cricket League website