In 1931, the original 7-year term of the lease for the Sandilands ground was coming to an end. Addiscombe CC’s H.E. 'Joe' Peirce (pictured above, sitting in centre) negotiated with the Whitgift Foundation and came away with a longer lease agreed for 21 years. The new lease included the tennis courts and the car park.

Greater security of tenure also meant plans for a new pavilion. In Inimitable style, Joe Pierce was quoted in the Croydon Advertiser saying ‘The club is going to have a grand pavilion in six weeks time, so magnificent that the old building will look like a night-watchman’s hut’.

Fearsome bowlers
On the pitch, Addiscombe’s 1st XI team was becoming successful with fearsome opening bowlers Jack Hinton and Eric Atherton regularly taking 100 wickets a season each. Don Oliver emerged as the most consistent run scorer, notching up many centuries during this long career with ACC which ran right up into the 1960s.

Addiscombe’s Annual Cricket Week became a popular institution with Surrey players regularly coming from the Oval to play in Invitation XI matches. The illustrious Jack Hobbs, the highest run scorer ever in first class cricket, played at Sandilands in 1936 and was caught at square leg for just 3 runs. He later became an Honorary Life President of ACC.

Onset of World War Two
The 1930s saw ACC consolidate and grow as a club and settle into Sandilands as a long-term home. But of course, by the end of the decade, cricket once again was affected and eventually suspended due to the outbreak of World War Two.

In 1940 , Sandilands was taken over as a base for anti-aircraft battery seeking to protect London from the blitz of the German bombers. It would be 7 years before cricket was played again at the ground.

After the war
Sunday 4th May 1947 was the first match at Sandilands after the war. To celebrate, Surrey brought almost a full-strength XI which included Errol Holmes, the captain, as well as Percy Fender, twins Alec and Eric Bedser and its now-famous future captain and bat manufacturer, Stuart Surridge.

Denis Moore, father of current President, David, joined the club after captaining Oxford University and playing for Gloucestershire. Also Roy Swetman who would go on to wicket keep for Surrey and England joined in the late 1940s. These players, along with the likes of Les Pullen, Reg Eaton, George Hayward, Clive Dring and Michael Woodhouse became star ACC players.

Epic performances
Alec Fletcher was a prolific opening bowler throughout this period, regularly taking 100 wickets a season and was widely considered ACC’s finest ever bowler. His statistics are incredible. In the 1952 season, he took 6-24, 5-38 and 6-29 in consecutive matches. He then followed this up later in the season with 7-47, 7-45 and 7-39.

On the batting front both Roy Swetman and Don Oliver recorded scores of over 150 and Clive Dring (later to play for Kent) scored heavily. On the 19th August 1951, Michael Woodhouse scored 220 not out v EJ Lloyd’s XI in a mammoth total of 343-3 declared. This remains the highest score ever by an ACC player.

A secure home
In the early 1950s, the extended lease on the ground was once again coming up for renewal. This time the indefatigable Joe Peirce managed to go one step better and buy the freehold of Sandilands from the Whitgift Foundation.

This secured ACC’s home for good and removed any fears of future housing developments threatening the club’s home. Peirce was not only the President of the Club, he was now the owner!

High standards
Peirce insisted on extremely high standards of behaviour by Club members.

Players were only allowed to enter the field of play following their captain and anyone seen to question an umpiring decisions could expect a severe ticking off. Peter Williams, (regular 1st/2nd XI player and author of Addiscombe CC: A history) writes about a match at Purley when he questioned his LBW dismissal and showed dissent to the umpire. As he walked off the pitch he was summoned by an angry Joe Peirce who gave him 'a rollicking that lasted a full 5 minutes'.

As well as behaviour, appearance was also vital. Addiscombe CC caps and blazers had to be worn on match days and cricket boots had to cleaned and polished. Provided they had the means, established players were expected to bring 3 pairs of flannels (cricket trousers) to each match. One pair to bat in, one to field in and another unblemished pair for walking around the ground during the match.

As Joe Peirce decreed ‘This is my back garden and things must be done properly.’

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Next instalment: A Golden Era: 1952-1967

We have copies of the book 'Addiscombe Cricket Club: a history' available for a £5 donation to club funds. Please email AddiscombeCC@Outlook.com if you would like a copy.