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Sideline Sid Sports correspondant & historian www.sunlive.co.nz |
While Sideline Sid is a huge fan of all things sporting in the Western Bay of Plenty, he also has a real passion for history and believes that knowing where we come from is as important as the present.
Horse racing and cricket shared a common background of being introduced to Tauranga by the military that arrived in the 1860s. While there is reference to cricket being played at Government Paddock, it was only after reading an old article on local horse racing that the origins of the venue were revealed.
Cricket in the Bay of Plenty began in Tauranga after being introduced by the 12th Regiment, who were responsible for the establishment of the Military and Civil Cricket Club around 1866.
Early honorary secretaries were Captain Marcom and Lieutenant Campbell, who supervised the pitch at Government Paddock and arranged games between the crews of visiting ships, notably HMS Challenger and HMS Falcon.
Obstacles to the continuance of regular matches were damage to the pitch by wild and domestic pigs and uprisings in the surrounding countryside, which necessitated more serious activities for the soldiers.
The transition from a military to a civilian settlement signalled the demise of the military dominated cricket club. In October 1872, the Tauranga Cricket Club was formed by Major Roberts, Captain Skeet and Messrs Griffiths, Sisley, Ogilivie, Samuels, Dacre and Goldsmith.
For the rest of the 19th century the club revived each summer for Saturday games. When a match was arranged with an out-of-town team, such as Tauranga vs. Katikati, the banks closed early so locals would be free to attend.
When outside teams weren't available, members of the club divided themselves into sides such as All-comers, Married, Single, Diehards, Standbacks or simply Mr. Gray's side.
Horse racing in Tauranga, as in many other districts at the time, started with the Militia. Perhaps even before the Military established the Monmouth Redoubt, there was probably the odd line up of horses along the beaches or tracks cleared of fern or scrub.
In the old letters and papers, after the arrival of the troopers and their mounts, there is reference to early morning scurries along the wide open verges of what became Cameron Road.
In November 1872, the newly established Bay of Plenty Times reported a meeting of gentlemen held in the Tauranga Hotel to appoint stewards and organize details for a race meeting.
A reported remark that the proposed race meeting would crown all other and that the balance sheet showed a surplus of nineteen pounds, four and sixpence, indicated that earlier race meetings had been held in Tauranga.
The outcome of the November gathering at the Tauranga Hotel was a race meeting set down for January 1873.
The race course for the Tauranga meeting was situated on the old (military) camp area starting in Monmouth Street and proceeding along Willow Street, round into Brown Street and back into Monmouth Street. The area had been previously fenced off and known as the Government Paddock.
It was held by kind permission of Major Roberts, who was the Commanding Officer of the military district. The feature race was the Ladies Plate for a stake of 12 sovereigns. Post entries were taken for the hack race for which the winner received a silver cup presented by the recently established Bay of Plenty Times.