Victoria Square

Once called Government Acre, this site was transformed in 1897 to celebrate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee.  If you take a stroll through Victoria Square today, you’ll find children running about, families picnicking under the tall trees, and cricketers still padding up on summer weekends. This quiet green space tells a story that stretches back more than 150 years.

The Perfect Pitch: Cambridge’s

Cricketers in Cambridge, date unknown CM2958/8/46

Cricket Story

If there’s one sport that has shaped Cambridge’s community spirit for more than a century, it is cricket. From the first games on dusty paddocks to packed-out crowds at Victoria Square, cricket here has always been about more than runs and wickets, it has been about bringing people together.

The First Game: 1873

Cambridge’s first recorded cricket match was between the Armed Constabulary and townsfolk in 1873. At the time, Cambridge was growing fast, boosted by the beginnings of a dairy industry.

By the late 1800s, cricket was becoming a real event. In 1888, Cambridge women took to the pitch in a spirited match against Hamilton, raising money for the District Hospital. A few years later, in 1895, the club chose its colours: Cambridge blue, proudly worn as a scarf and sash.

From Government Acre to Victoria Square

The town’s main cricket ground has long been at the heart of Cambridge. Originally called the Government Acre, it was renamed Victoria Square in 1897 to mark Queen Victoria’s Jubilee. The square was ploughed, re-grassed, and transformed into a recreational hub. Most of the tall trees we see there today were planted in the 1930s, when the old hedges were removed.

Cricketing Legends

As the 20th century rolled on, local cricket flourished. Players became household names in the community, celebrated for their on-field feats. One player, O.V. Simpson, became a legend in the 1930s when he sent cricket balls soaring well beyond the boundary. One famously cleared the road in front of the National Hotel while another thudded onto the rooftops of Dick Street. Decades later, people were still talking about those hits.

Official opening of the Wilson Garrard Memorial Pavilion, Victoria Square, 1957 CM2958/8/44

A Golden Era: 1970s–1980s

The 1970s and 80s were a high point for Cambridge cricket. Matches drew crowds, and none more so than the historic clash in December 1988, when Northern Districts took on Central Districts. Around 1,000 people turned up—the biggest cricket crowd Cambridge had ever seen. The local paper dubbed it “the sports event of the year,” and for those who were there, it truly was.

The Pavilion and the Legacy

the cricket pavilion was opened in 1957 as a modest single-storey building. As a mark of the sport’s popularity, a second storey was added in 1987, and another extension in 2021. The pavilion continues to be used regularly.