Somerset

Somerset County Cricket Club were founded in 1875 and are one of the 18 major cricket clubs in England. The side were granted first-class status in 1882, and again in 1891, after losing it in 1886. The first recorded cricket match in the county dates back to the 13th July 1751, in what was a commemorative match played in honour of the late Frederick Prince of Wales (1707-51), the eldest son of George II, and the patron of cricket. They played their first Test match in August 1882, and beat Hampshire by five wickets.

The side have played at the County Ground in Taunton since their very first Test match against Hampshire in 1882. The stadium currently holds 8,500 fans, but the ground is currently in the midst of an extensive revamp. With £60million in funds, the club are aiming to increase the total capacity to 15,000, which will make the stadium a viable option for future international Tests and One Day Internationals.

Success for Somerset has been hard to come by. Despite competing in the County Championship since 1891, the county have never finished first. They have, however, finished second on three occasions, in 2001, 2010 and 2012. In limited overs cricket they have won the Pro 40, in 1979, three Friends Provident Trophies, in 1979, 1983 and 2001, one Twenty20 Cup and two Benson and Hedges Cups.

Two stands of the County Ground are named in honour of two of their greatest players, Ian Botham and Marcus Trescothick. Botham is arguably England's greatest ever all-rounder and in his 12 years at Somerset he scored 19,399 runs and took 1,172 wickets. As for Trescothick, he is still active at the club despite making his debut 20 years ago. He has made 310 appearances and scored 21,064 runs. However, the record run scorer for the club is Harold Gimblett with 21,142 runs.  Jack White leads the way with 2,165 wickets for the club. Second placed Arthur Wellard has just 1,517.

Somerset fans have also been lucky to see some of the international greats turn out at the County Ground. Former Australian international Justin Langer spent three years at the club and his knock of 342 is the highest by any Somerset player. West Indies great Sir Viv Richards totted up 14,698 runs during his time in Taunton.  Back in the 19th century the club had the first ever overseas player in Sammy Wood, who had played three tests for Australia but then went on to switch his allegiance to England.

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