Established in 1982, the Club played friendly matches during their first season and having joined the North Somerset Cricket League in the autumn of 1982 the Club first played league matches in 1983.
On summer evenings in I980 and 1981 the local lads played cricket on the playing field situated at the bottom of Bloomfield Road just off The Bear Flat.
Eventually a team was formed and the members used to go for a drink after matches at the Rose and Laurel pub on Rush Hill. As this was the Club’s first HQ the team was called the Rose and Laurel Cricket Club.
Funds were raised to buy kit by the paying of subscriptions and using some of the money to acquire “pre-lottery” tickets.
As time passed there was a desire to improve the standard of play and it was suggested that the name was changed to the Bear Flat Cricket Club as there was more chance of obtaining better quality fixtures by not being known as a pub side.
Suggestions that the Club should apply to join the North Somerset Cricket League initially did not receive much support, however one dark, wet, miserable November evening in 1982, some dedicated members (because no-one else was sufficiently interested), travelled to Chew Magna to enter a team in the North Somerset Cricket League.
As the League had received so many applications that year it created a new 5th Division which consisted of the Club and six other teams.
Although there was resistance from certain quarters to a pub team being admitted as a member of the League, but when it was mentioned that the team was to be known as the Bear Flat Cricket Club which was affiliated to the Bear Flat Community Association the resistance abated.
Major Rikki Peters was invited to become the President of the Club and John Carter also readily agreed to become the Chairman.
The next task was to obtain some trophies.
Rikki kindly donated a trophy in perpetuity for the Batsman of the Year and Paul Richards, Don Gilbert, and Wellsway Motors also donated trophies.
The first league fixture of 1983 was played at Corston, now the home of the Stothert & Pitt Rugby Club, against Easton-in-Gordano.
The members of that first ever league team were John Bryant, Dave Parker, John Swannick, Alan Garrett, Terry Owen, Andy Ebdon, Clive Hulbert, Peter White, John Carter, Andy Terrett and Rich Smith.
The 12th Man was Andy Isaacs simply because no one knew where he lived or how to contact him!
John Swannick turned up late because he went to Corsham instead of Corston!
The game was abandoned because of rain and each side was awarded 2 points.
At times during the 1983 season the Club struggled to raise a team. On one occasion when the Club was playing at Whitchurch, a keen young lad came along Dave Godman, who at the time sported a head of very curly hair. Dave went on not only to captain the Saturday team but also to play a significant role in the development of the Club.
Bear Flat CC also known as “The Bears” are a Bath-based cricket club which plays:
- in Division 1 of the Wiltshire County Cricket League on Saturdays, home ground The Glasshouse Academy, Bradford Road, Combe Down, Bath;
- in Division 6 Blue of the Somerset Monmouth League on Saturdays, home ground the Ken Willcox Ground, Peasedown St John, Bath;
- friendlies against clubs based in Somerset/Wiltshire on Sundays;
- T20 games against clubs based in Somerset/Wiltshire midweek;
- And participates in the Somerset Knock Out cup.
Since 2012 the Club has played its home matches at The Glasshouse and since the Bath Recreation charity obtained a long lease of the ground much effort has been expended producing what is now one of the best playing surfaces in the west country.
The Bears have been extremely successful, and in 2017 were Wiltshire League Division 1 Champions.
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