The Tasmania men's cricket team, nicknamed the Tigers, represents the Australian state of Tasmania in cricket. They compete annually in the Australian domestic senior men's cricket season, which consists of the first-class Sheffield Shield and the limited overs Marsh One-Day Cup.
Tasmania played in the first first-class cricket match in Australia against Victoria in 1851, which they won by three wickets. Despite winning their first match, and producing many fine cricketers in the late 19th century, Tasmania was overlooked when the participants in Australian first-class tournament known as the Sheffield Shield were chosen in 1892. For nearly eighty years the Tasmanian team played an average of only two or three first-class matches per year, usually against one of the mainland Australian teams, or warm-up matches against a touring international test team. The English "bodyline" team of the 1930s played Tasmania in Launceston
Tasmania were finally admitted to regular competitions when they became a founding member of the Gillette Cup domestic one day cricket tournament upon its inception in 1969. They have performed well in it, winning it four times, and having been runners-up twice. It took a further eight seasons before Tasmania were admitted into the Sheffield Shield in 1977–78, and it was initially on a reduced fixtures list, but by the 1979–80 season, they had become full participants, and slowly progressed towards competitiveness within the tournament, first winning in the 2006–07 season—after almost 30 years in the competition. In the KFC Twenty20 Big Bash the Tigers have yet to win, but were runners-up in 2006–07.
Tasmania play their limited overs cricket in a predominantly green uniform, with red and gold as their secondary colours, and have a Tasmanian tiger as their team logo. They play home matches at Bellerive Oval, Clarence on Hobart's Eastern Shore, though matches are occasionally played at venues in Devonport, Launceston and Burnie.
History
Introduction of cricket to Tasmania Cricket almost certainly has been played in Tasmania since the time of European settlement in 1803. It was a popular pastime among marines, who were responsible for security in the fledgling colony. The first recorded match is known to have taken place in 1806, although it is most likely that unrecorded matches were already being played at this time. According to the colony's chaplain, and famed diarist, Robert Knopwood by 1814 the game had become very popular, especially around the festive season at Christmas.Robert Knopwood's Diary. Robert Knopwood. Hobart, Tasmania (1803–1838) [published 1977 by the Tasmanian Historical Research Association]
By the 1820s there had still not been any official club organisation, but matches were being played on a regular basis. Cricket is recorded as having been played in the settlements at Richmond, Clarence Plains, Kempton, Sorell, in the Macquarie Valley west of Campbell Town, Westbury, Evandale, Longford and Hadspen.The Companion to Tasmanian History. Ric Findlay (2004) Hobart, Tasmania
Many of these matches seem to have been organised between hotel licensees, in order to create profits through the sale of food and beverages, and through betting on the outcome. One such match that was arranged in March 1826 by Joseph Bowden, the hotelier of the Lamb Inn on Brisbane Street was played for a winner's purse of 50 guineas between "Eleven Gentlemen from the Counties of Sussex and Kent against the choice of the whole Island of Van Diemen's Land".History of Cricket in Tasmania. Ric Finlay. (date unknown)
There is no evidence to suggest an "official cricket season" during the first two decades of the colony, and many of these games initially seem to have been played around June and July, to coincide with the traditional English cricket season, rather than the Tasmanian summer. Accounts of such matches suggest games were often played in atrocious conditions due to winter rains and cold conditions. But by the 1830s, logic had prevailed and cricket seems to have reverted to the southern summer months. Club cricket had also become well-established by the 1830s. One of the earliest men responsible for organising cricket within the colony was John Marshall, who was established the Hobart Town Club soon after his arrival from England. Soon after in 1835 the Derwent Cricket Club was formed making it the oldest surviving cricket club in Tasmania, and in 1841, the Launceston Cricket Club was formed, making it the second oldest surviving cricket club in Tasmania, and third oldest in Australia. Cricket had soon also spread into many regional settlements throughout the Colony of Tasmania, making it one of the most popular pastimes there. Some matches were played as part of district festivals, with large banquets following play.
Beginnings of first-class cricket in Australia
By the late 1840s organised cricket was doing well in both Hobart and Launceston, and was spreading throughout the colony. In 1850 the first "North" versus "South" match was held in Oatlands, midway between Hobart and Launceston, and won by the South. The success of the match prompted promoters to organise an inter-colonial match, and the inaugural first-class cricket match played in Tasmania, which was also the first ever first-class cricket match in Australia, was played in 1851 between Victoria and Tasmania in Launceston at the Launceston Racecourse. The game was billed as "The Gentlemen of Port Phillip versus the Gentlemen of Van Diemen's Land". The game featured four-ball overs and no boundaries, attracted a crowd of about 2500 spectators, and it was a timeless match, but only lasted for two days. Tasmania emerged victorious by three wickets.
Geographic and social isolation Despite winning the first ever first-class match in the Australian colonies, Tasmania felt its geographic isolation in the form of a lack of competition. Few touring teams wished to undertake the long sea journey to the island in the late 19th century. The game also developed more slowly, with Tasmanian clubs maintaining a belief in amateurism at a time when mainland clubs were turning to professionals to further their development. Also a lack of innovation stymied progress. The Victorian team that visited in 1858 had adopted the new round arm form of bowling, and it demolished the Tasmanian batting order unused to the technique. The population decline of the 1850s as Tasmanians moved to the Victorian goldfields also had a negative effect on the quality of players Tasmania could select.
Despite the problems facing Tasmanian cricket, local teams did occasionally play against competitive teams. The English tourists of 1861–62, played against Tasmania, winning by four wickets. Tasmania played against Victoria three times in the early 1870s, but lost all three matches, convincing the Victorians that Tasmania was not suitably competitive. Tasmania did not play another first-class match until 1877, when it travelled to Adelaide to take on South Australia.
The 1880s provided better progress for the colony. In 1880 the TCA Ground had been established, providing a permanent ground to play on in the colony's capital, Hobart. The establishment of an organised regular local competition led to improvement in the quality of players. John Davies, owner of local newspaper The Mercury, was a keen cricket fan, and through personal connections, he arranged various touring English teams to visit the colony, and victory for Tasmania against the English tourists in 1887–88 led to Victoria resuming competition with Tasmania.
In the 1890s, the colony was playing representative cricket against Victoria almost every year, and occasionally against New South Wales as well. The colony could also boast genuinely first-class quality players, such as Kenneth Burn, Charles Eady,Mr Charles John Eady obituary, Wisden, 1946 edition, page 439. and Edward Windsor, the first two of whom played test cricket for Australia. However, the retirement of Eady and Burn by 1910, and in-fighting between Hobart and Launceston again threatened first-class cricket in Tasmania. The outbreak of World War I also saw a large loss of playing talent, killed on the battlefields. Cricket was suspended during the war, and did not resume until 1923, albeit with severe financial problems.
Sheffield Shield wilderness
Following World War I, Tasmanian representative teams usually had to content themselves with matches against touring international teams during brief stopovers, while they travelled by ship to mainland capitals. Occasionally Tasmania would play the odd game against mainland state teams, but it was usually only one first-class match per season. One notable visit was by the Jardine "bodyline" team in 1931, where they played Tasmania at the NTCA ground - England won.
The inter-war years proved a period of consolidation for Tasmania, as the state struggled to recover from the devastation of the war. Club cricket was hampered by rivalry between the south, north and north-west. Several exceptional cricketers emerged in this period, such as Laurie Nash, Jack Badcock, though a lack of opportunity led many to pursue cricket careers on the mainland. The quality of cricket in Tasmania varied from time to time, but after World War II the standard was high. Cricket resumed much faster than it had done after World War I, and excellent players such as Ronald Morrisby, Emerson Rodwell, and Bernard Considine emerged. This prompted moves to be made by the Tasmanian Cricket Association for further matches and recognition.
Despite the skills of Rodwell and Terence Cowley, Tasmania struggled to beat Victoria in the 1950s. As a result, the Victorian Cricket Association decided to end the regular matches against Tasmania, and the English tourists also decided to downgrade matches against the state to second-class status. As a result, the Tasmanian Cricket Association made a first attempt to join the Sheffield Shield in 1964, but was rejected. The Australian Cricket Board of Control outlined areas in which the state's administration would need to be improved before Tasmania could participate in the Shield. Despite this, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia supported Tasmania by sending full-strength teams to take on the state as warm-ups to their Shield campaigns over the following few years. When the domestic one day competition was established in 1969, Tasmania was granted full playing status.
The arrival of Lancashire all rounder Jack Simmons in the 1972–73 season proved a turning point in the fortunes of the team. His inspirational captaincy lifted the competitiveness of Tasmania. In the 1974–75 and 1975–76 seasons, Tasmania were losing semi-finalists in the Gillette Cup. The Tasmanian team was finally admitted to the Sheffield Shield by the Australian Cricket Board in 1977 on a two-year trial basis, although it played a reduced roster in comparison to the other states. Tasmania's points on the ladder were calculated at x5 and /9 due to the fact they only played each other state once (instead of twice) during the season. A famous victory by 84 runs at the TCA Ground against the Indian tourists in 1977 helped the TCA to convince mainland cricket authorities that Tasmanian cricket was nationally competitive.
National competitiveness Simmons had proved an inspirational captain for Tasmania, and although the team only won one of the twelve first-class matches under his leadership, that had more to do with the quality of the homegrown players at the time. His List A cricket record was more successful, leading Tasmania to six victories in eleven matches. He also assisted the TCA in modernising the administration of cricket in the state.