Back to Beckenham for the Oldest Rivalry in county cricket
Saturday 23rd May 2015
Kent take on Surrey at The County Ground, Beckenham twice in the next week to rekindle the oldest rivalry in county cricket.
The earliest known inter-county match was between Kent and Surreyin 1709 and the two neighbours meet again on Sunday (24 May) in the LV= County Championship before a NatWest T20 Blast match at the same venue on Friday (29 May).
Cclub officials are expecting a bumper crowd for the two fixtures with tickets for the new 2,000-seater stand proving popular with members and supporters booking through www.kentcricket.co.uk
Kent Cricket CEO Jamie Clifford said: “It is fitting that our return to metropolitan Kent should feature five scheduled days of competition against one of our closest rivals.
“My thanks to the ECB for ensuring that this summer’s Kent v Surrey matches are played here.”
Kent have only played three first-class fixtures at Beckenham to date: a draw in the inaugural match in 1954 against Gloucestershire before wins against Warwickshire in 2004 and Gloucestershire in 2009.
Surrey captain Gareth Batty said: “It's always good to play at Beckenham because we always get loads of Surrey fans coming to watch us. In fact, there may be more Surrey fans there than Kent fans.
"Games between the two sides are always competitive and we are looking forward to the LV= County Championship match on Sunday and the NatWest T20 Blast game on Friday.”
Kent Members can access the Members’ Pavilion Bar and other supporters can enjoy refreshments in the bar at the front of the new Function Centre and concessions selling food and drink around the ground.
The Kent Cricket Shop will be open in the Function Centre selling the new Samurai Sportswear kits, scorecards, match guides and a great range of merchandise.