A brief history of the Mote

09-Jan-2006The picturesque Mote cricket ground is part of an 558-acre estate that dates back tothe 13th century, although Mote House, the manor house itself, was constructed inthe latter years of the 18th century. The first Kent County Cricket Club match at TheMote was in 1859, 2 years after the founding of the Mote Cricket Club. However,visits by Kent to The Mote remained sporadic until the beginning of the 20th century,and the development of the cricket ground into the facility it resembles today.The development of Mote Park’s cricket ground was largely motivated by Sir MarcusSamuel, the last private owner of Mote Park, who was later to become 1st ViscountBearstead. 1908 saw the levelling of the playing area to form the middle of threeterraces, with the upper and lower levels becoming rugby pitches. At this time, thewicket was moved to its current position, at right angles to the original orientation.In 1910, the two permanent, enclosed structures present on the ground wereofficially opened. The larger of these is that pavilion, containing the players’ dressingrooms and covered members’ seating. This is an unusually grand structure for acounty out-ground, being a two-level building of brick and wood.It has been extendedfrom the original structure to provide bar and catering facilities. Access to these islimited to staff, members and players. Thankfully, the surrounding fauna softens themodern architecture of these appendages.The smaller building, to the left of the pavilion from the wicket, surrounded by neathedges and low fences, is The Tabernacle. The term “tabernacle” refers amongstother things to a “nonconformist meeting-house” and the architecture of this curiousstructure ceratinly reflects this. The Tabernacle was formerly the private pavilionof Viscount Bearstead, for spectating and entertaining in luxury. In modern times,the building has provided a useful committee room for both the Mote and Kent countycricket clubs when either body is present.There is a small, open stand to the right of the pavilion from the wicket. This is amore modern concrete structure and the underside is used for equipment storage.The scoreboards are small, portable boxes of little known note.Mote Park was sold to Maidstone Borough council by the heir of the late 1st ViscountBearstead in 1928 and it remains partly in their ownership to this day. Mote Househas become a Cheshire Home, part of the charitable organisation founded byLeonard Cheshire, a former member of the Royal Air Force’s 610 (“Dambusters”)squadron. However, in account of the 1st Viscount’s love of the game, his heirpresented the cricket ground to Mote Cricket Club itself. The Tabernacle was givento the Band of Brothers, who in turn reunited it with the rest of the ground under theownership of the Mote Cricket Club in the late 1940s.Apart from restoration work, the ground resembles closely the facility that wasdeveloped in the early years of the 20th century, and provides a picturesque settingreminiscent of the classic picture-postcard portrayal of an English cricket ground.Several events of note have occurred at The Mote in first class cricket. The county’shighest partnership for any wicket in first-class cricket was made there during thenow almost-legendary 1995 season. Kent had signed the tiny Sri Lankan AravindaDeSilva as overseas player for the season, reputedly on more or less the soleinitiative of Mark Benson, the incumbent first team captain. This was a move thatalledgedly even gained him hate mail, DeSilva being deemed unworthy of theposition. However, when an intemperate spring gave way to a tropical summer, thepleasant DeSilva proved to be an inspired signing and by this point in the seasonwas being hailed as a Kent hero, applauded without seemingly actually needing toperform any longer and yet, showing no signs of stopping. This was the thirdconsecutive match in which he made a century, the second consecutive match inwhich he made a double century and the second consecutive match in which he tookpart in a record stand for Kent. He also became the first batsman past 1,000 runsthat season and scored over 100 in both innings. In partnership with GrahamCowdrey (137), who arrived with the score on 54 for 3, the two scored 368, DeSilvabludgeoning the small matter of 255. A wonderful photograph exists of the two arm inarm, celebrating beneath the scoreboard. Within the year, DeSilva was to win theadmiration of the entire cricketing world, with his almost single-handed destruction ofthe mighty Australians in the World Cup final.In 1910, C. Blythe (11 for 95) and the legendary F.E. Woolley (8 for 91) bowledunchanged throughout both innings of the Yorkshire fixture at The Mote, the mostrecent of 2 occasions on which this feat has been performed at the ground. Theprevious occasion was in 1889, also against Yorkshire (W. Wright 9 for 51 andF. Martin 10 for 65).The small playing area of The Mote can make it an interesting venue for one-daycricket. Emotional scenes at The Mote accompanied Kent’s 1976 John Player League(as the 40-over Sunday League competition was then known) victory. Entering the lastround of matches, Kent were the outsiders of 4 teams still capable of winning thetrophy. The BBC recorded each of the contenders’ matches and, to add to thedrama, commissioned a helicopter to act as a real-life “swingometer”, moving thetrophy closer to the ground of the likely winner of the moment. Kent played one ofthe most convincing performances in the history of the league, with Asif Iqbal making106 and Mike Denness, in his final Sunday game both for Kent and as their captain,making 56. Gloucestershire were left facing 279 to win, and barely batted out theirovers to lose by 123 runs. Somerset, the favourites, looked unperturbed for most ofthe afternoon but finished on the receiving end of a shock narrow defeat. Thehelicopter duly made its way to Maidstone and landed on the pitch, delivering thetrophy to the triumphant Denness who, only a week later, played his final game forKent.19 years later, in the 1995 Sunday League, Mark Ealham made the fastest centuryin the history of the 40-over game. Batting at 7 against Derbyshire, Ealham came tothe wicket with Kent, needing to set a good target to remain in contention for thetrophy, having collapsed to 105 for 5 with 14 overs left. To make matters worse, thepitch was offering little help to the bowling. Derbyshire looked to have won already.However, 44 balls later, Ealham passed his hundred, with 9 sixes and 9 fours. Oneach of the three occasions he was dropped, the ball was travelling too fast for thefielder to hold on to. The latter attempted dismissal saw the ball merely fly straight onthrough the fielders’ hands for six. Such batting was later to prove vital, as Kent wontheir first trophy for 17 years by the slimmest of margins, seasonal run rate.On a lighter note, in 1984 The Mote was the scene of pace bowler Kevin Jarvis’ Kenthigh score and his sole first-class six. Jarvis, although twelfth man on two occasionsfor England, is remembered rightly as one of the 10 worst batsmen ever to be seenin county cricket, with twice as many wickets as runs in his long career, and anaverage well below 4. However, a delivery from the former England allrounder GeoffMiller was on this occasion smote rom the ground, on Jarvis’ passage to the dizzyheights of 19.