Our History - 1922

The Full Story

In 1922 a group of school leavers from Wolverhampton Grammar School who shared cricket practice at West Park decided to form a cricket club. They recruited other Old Boys and a number of friends and called themselves West End Cricket Club. At a meeting in November of the same year a football club was formed, taking the name Wolverhampton Grammar School Old Boys FC. There was already a team started by Old Boys some 20 years earlier called Old Wulfrunians FC in existence, hence the long cumbersome name that was adopted.

The early pioneers of the two clubs played both sports, a situation that continued through most of their history. The names of Roger Holder, Major Jervis, Ernest and Max Westwood, among others, were prominent members of the Committees of both clubs. The School became very interested in the organisation of the two clubs, and agreement was reached at the end of the 1920s that membership would be restricted to Old Boys of the School.

Cricket at this time was largely organised around friendly matches with few leagues in existence locally at this time. Football, on the other hand, was already organised around a competitive league structure. Thus, WGSOB FC were able to join the Birmingham and District Amateur Football Association in 1926. Both clubs shared a ground at Pinfold Lane, with changing facilities and hospitality rented at the Rose and Crown public house at a cost of 5 shillings per week. The quality of the pitches was not great, leading to the Cricket Club purchasing a matting cover for the wicket in the hope of improving it.

In 1931 the ground at Pinfold Lane was lost to the development of new housing. The lack of suitable alternative grounds led to the Cricket Club going into abeyance for a short time. However, the Football Club moved to a new ground behind the Three Tuns public house, in 1932 and at the end of the 1932-33 season the 1st XI were Premier League winners for the first time.

July 1927 Cricket X1 Team. Original photo followed by AI Enhanced Version.

In 1936 with the encouragement of The Old Wulfrunians Association, the Cricket Club reformed, also now using the name Wolverhampton Grammar School Old Boys. A ground was rented from the Education Department of Wolverhampton Council at Marsh Lane. In the same year the football club demonstrated their growing strength by adding a 4th XI.

Despite promising results on the field during the 1930s the quality of the playing surface continued to be a problem. On the occasion of the Cricket Club’s day game against Old Carolians, with lunch and tea provided at the Three Tuns public house, Old Wulfs made 11 all out, and Old Carolians 13 for 5 wickets. It is reported that the Old Carolians captain politely but firmly declined to make it a two innings game. When war broke out at the end of the 1939 season the Cricket Club decided that as it was only going to field one team for the foreseeable future it would give up the ground and play all fixtures away.

In 1945 the Football Club joined the Wolverhampton Amateur League for one season as the Birmingham AFA did not reform until the following year. Two pitches were obtained in Danescourt Road with changing rooms at the Dog and Gun, yet another public house. However, the pitches were on a farmer’s field and were no more  satisfactory than previous facilities. The Cricket Club continued to play away matches as grounds were difficult to obtain with so many used for military purposes and not yet back in use. It was clear to the Committees of both clubs that a pitch of their own was needed.

Old Wulfrunians suffered badly during the war. Ten per cent of those that served failed to return. To mark their sacrifice the Old Wulfrunians Association and the School launched an appeal. The collected funds would pay for a screen bearing the names of all the fallen in two World Wars to be sited in Big School, and the purchase of a sports ground to be developed by the Association, and to be called The Memorial Ground. This undertaking took a little longer than expected, but in 1949 a site in Castlecroft was purchased from Ansells Brewey. At the time of purchase the site consisted of two sloping cowfields and a pond. Although a contractor was engaged to level the area much of the work in terms of laying the football pitches and the cricket square fell upon the shoulders of the members of the OWA. The first recorded cricket match at Castlecroft took place on 15 July 1950 against Much Wenlock, the proud captain that day being Bill Swallow. The other home games that season were still played at the School.

1951 saw the first full seasons cricket at Castlecroft with the club under the captaincy of Roger Holder. By this time the old pavilion had been erected with members having dug a trench from the Castlecroft Hotel to lay on a water supply. Calor gas provided the source of lighting and heating and a bar selling bottled beer was set up at one end of the building.

The new ground helped both clubs to increase their playing strength. In 1953 the Football Club fielded a 5th XI for the first time, and that same season the 1st XI did the double of League and Senior Cup for the first time. A host of trophies was won by all the football teams over the next two decades. In 1970 the club donated the Holder Cup in memory of Roger Holder to the Birmingham AFA for competition between fourth teams and became its first winners. The Cricket Club, still without league cricket, improved their fixture list on the back of improved playing and hospitality conditions.  

Unfortunately, the successes of the 1950s and early 60s did not last, principally because increased employment mobility led to players leaving the area and with the number of school leavers gaining University places also increasing, they were not being replaced. The rules regarding the qualifications for membership were eventually relaxed. A limited number of associate members were allowed to aid restoration of playing numbers. 

The closure of the Old Wulfrunians Association club above Barclays Bank in Wolverhampton Town Centre led to a further development of the Castlecroft ground in 1967 with the building of a new clubhouse with changing rooms, showers and dining facilities assisted in the recruitment of players and the club entered the 70s with renewed optimism. A bungalow to house the club steward was also built. The layout of the ground had originally consisted of two football pitches either side of the cricket square. Now the lower field was laid out with the two football pitches and there was a hockey pitch either side of the cricket square – a Hockey club having been formed recently.

Once again improved facilities gave a boost to the sporting bodies. The Cricket Club competed in the Staffordshire Cricket Alliance, a loose federation of clubs, between 1972 and 1975 and performed well. Also, the 1st XI reached the final of the Wightwick Knock Out Competition in 1974, losing to an experienced Fordhouses team, while the 2nd XI were victorious in the Chronicle Knock Out in the same year. In 1976 both teams joined the Staffordshire Club Cricket Championship and finally sampled league cricket on a proper basis for the first time. The League was formed the previous year with eight founder members: Brewood, Cannock, Fordhouses, Milford Hall, Rugeley, Stafford, Wightwick and Wombourne. This was increased to ten the following year by the addition of Old Wulfrunians and Little Stoke. In 1978 the 1st XI narrowly missed out on the championship, finishing runner-up. In 1982, the club’s Diamond Jubilee year, both the Singapore national team and Northamptonshire, with six current or future England internationals, were both entertained at the Castlecroft ground. Playing strength was sufficient that a 3rd XI was entered into The Staffs Club Championship.

The Football Club suffered a couple of near misses in the Senior Cup during the 1970s before securing their third Premier League title in the 1979-80 season, a feat they repeated in 1990-91 when they also won the JW Hunt Cup for the first time. The turn of the new century then saw an unprecedented run of success. Their first title was won in 2000-01, followed by runners-up spot the following year. Then followed three consecutive League and Senior Cup doubles in 2002-03, 2003-04 and 2004-05. The JW Hunt Cup was added to the silverware won in 2002-03. As a result of this success it was decided to seek a higher level of football for the 1st XI. To do this a new club, AFC Wulfrunians, had to be formed. Because the Memorial Ground did not meet the standards required by the West Midlands League an agreement was reached to ground share with Wolverhampton Casuals at Brinsford Lane. Once this was in place entry into West Midlands League Division 2 was confirmed. The remaining teams continued to compete in the Birmingham AFA.

1982 proved to be another high point for the Cricket Club. A number of 1st XI players left soon afterwards and another rebuilding exercise began. Fortunately, the 2nd XI were embarking on a period of success that lasted throughout the 1980s and 1990s. The decline of the 1st XI bottomed out in 1988 when the team finished bottom of the League for the first time. Recruitment of several players that had played at a higher level added to players graduating from the 2nd XI. In 1989 The Steak Out League Division 2 was won and within two years of finishing bottom of the League the Club were runners-up.

During the 1990s there was a reorganisation within recreational cricket. A pyramid system was formed with the Birmingham League at the top and the South Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire Leagues becoming feeder leagues. The Staffs Clubs League expanded to eight divisions. Along with promotion relegation was now a possibility, and in 1996 that fate befell the 1st XI after injury cost them their overseas player. In the following years numbers dropped and teams became younger and more inexperienced. In 2004 successful negotiations were held with Tettenhall Cricket Club about a merger. This allowed four teams to be fielded. In 2006 the League was won for the first time and with it promotion to the Birmingham League. 

The stay in the Birmingham League lasted only one year and the years since have seen the 1st XI yo-yo between the Premier Division and Division One of the Staffs Clubs Championship (now known as The South Staffordshire Cricket League). The remaining teams have remained relatively stable and for the 2025 season a 5th XI was begun.

The Memorial Ground at Castlecroft was upgraded to meet the requirements of the West Midlands League, and this allowed the 1st XI to join the West Midland League Division 2 for the 2015-16 season. They won promotion to Division 1 in their first season.and have competed there since. They no longer have any teams in the Birmingham AFA but are backed by a large junior section.

The most significant development of recent years has been the growth of Junior sport. The Junior Cricket section started in the 1980s grew to include age groups from Under 9 to Under 17. The Junior Football Club formed in the 2000s has grown to be one of the largest in the region and includes girls teams as well as boys. Pathways have been developed to prepare all Juniors for adult sport. The sporting bodies have entered the second century of their existence with the future assured.