Recently, we asked you, our great supporters, for your most memorable matches at New Road.
After a host of responses, we picked a few of the most talked about matches and decided to take you on a trip down memory lane!
From the T20 derby day thriller of 2022, to the famous Brittannic Assurance County Championship win of 1988, sit back and enjoy going back through the archives and reliving some of the most famous New Road memories…
Pears punish noisy neighbours in T20 thriller
Worcestershire v Warwickshire, Vitality T20 Blast, Group Stage. 3rd June 2022. Worcestershire bt Warwickshire by 15 runs.
One of the most memorable recent instalments of ‘Pears v Bears’ took place back in 2022, when Worcestershire Rapids edged out a star-studded Warwickshire side at a jubilant New Road.
It was Brett D’Oliveira who kicked off proceedings with a scintillating 71 off just 38 balls at the top of the order for the hosts, hitting nine boundaries in a ruthless exhibition of ball striking.
Ably supported by a breezy 41 from Kiwi star Colin Munro and a late innings blitz from Jack Haynes (53* from just 24 balls), the Rapids set the noisy neighbours an imposing 218 to win from their allotted 20 overs.
Dillon Pennington (3-30) picked up the crucial wicket of Bears opening batter Paul Stirling early on, after the Irish international had taken Moeen Ali for 22 runs from the very first over of the reply.
Ed Barnard and Dwayne Bravo shared three middle order wickets to keep the home side on top, whilst youngster Josh Baker took the prize scalp of future-Pear Adam Hose, for 32, on his way to figures of 2-26.
It was Pat Brown and the experienced head of Bravo that saw the game out and ensured the Rapids hung on for a famous 15-run win.
Hick makes it a century of centuries
Worcestershire v Northamptonshire, Liverpool Victoria County Championship Division Two. 21st-23rd June 2006. Worcestershire bt Northamptonshire by an innings and 222 runs.
Thursday, 22nd June 2006 will be a day forever etched into the history of Worcestershire County Cricket Club, as it marked the day that arguably, the greatest player ever to represent this great club notched his 100th Century for the Pears.
At precisely 11:20am, having resumed overnight on 93*, Hick worked a ball off his hips and down towards fine leg before raising his arms aloft to take the admiration of the crowd inside New Road as he celebrated his landmark moment.
In a trademark innings, the 40-year-old former England man made his way to 139 before being dismissed, facing 250 balls and stroking 16 boundaries to punish a Northants attack that included Indian legend Sourav Ganguly.
Despite going onto reach his milestone, Hick did not top score in the Worcestershire first innings, as a sensational double hundred from opener Phil Jaques laid the foundations for the hosts to rack up a staggering 543-9d.
In reply, Northants were skittled for a mere 67, with Indian seamer Zaheer Khan running through the away side on his way to collecting a fifer and putting the game beyond any doubt before it passed the halfway mark.
Matt Mason (5-59) and spinner Gareth Batty (3-52) did the bulk of the work to end Northants’ enforced follow-on, as the home side wrapped up a handsome win by an innings and 222-runs in one of the most iconic matches this ground has ever seen.
County Championship Title comes home against Glamorgan
Worcestershire v Glamorgan, Brittannic Assurance County Championship, 14th-16th September 1988. Worcestershire win by an innings and 76 runs.
Time for a trip through the archives, as we look back to one of the most poignant matches in the club’s illustrious history.
Having battled it out for the duration of the 1988 summer with rivals Kent, the County Championship came to a thrilling conclusion on the final round of the domestic season.
Worcestershire, facing off against Glamorgan at New Road, knew only a win would do if the club were to secure a fourth County Championship title. Even then, a win may not have been enough, with Kent lying in wait to pounce on any sort of slip up.
Having lost the toss, Worcestershire were asked to bowl first and had a Neal Radford four-fer to thank as they restricted the visitors to 244 all-out on the opening day’s action.
The response was emphatic from the champions elect, largely down to number three Graeme Hick, who’s staggering 197 helped Worcestershire romp to 423 all-out in their reply.
Hick faced 263 balls and scored 29 boundaries in another colossal stay at the crease, batting for just shy of five and a half hours as he made the Glamorgan attack toil.
Further contributions from Gordon Lord (42) and Steve Rhodes (46) helped strengthen the Pears’ grip on the match, before the title was sealed in emphatic fashion, as the home side wrapped up victory by an innings and 76 runs.
Phil Newport’s figures of 5-23 led the Worcestershire charge as he and his fellow bowlers dismantled the Glamorgan batting line-up, skittling the away side for 103.
The maximum points win ensured there was a scarcely believable one-point buffer between the Pears and chasers, Kent, but that was all that was needed to ensure Worcestershire were crowned County Champions.
1988 saw the start of an iconic period of red-ball dominance for the club, as the Pears went on to secure back-to-back County Championship titles, with that particular team remembered vividly for it’s swashbuckling nature and clinical performances.
Last Over Mayhem Sees Worcestershire Sneak Past Lancashire
Worcestershire v Lancashire, Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy semi-final, 3rd August 2003. Worcestershire bt Lancashire by 6 runs.
After reaching the semi-final stages of the 50-over competition, Worcestershire welcomed Lancashire to New Road on a glorious August afternoon, vying for a place in the showpiece final at Lords.
In what transpired to be one of the greatest climaxes to a game ever played at New Road, the match was flipped on its head in the final over of the contest courtesy of Andrew Hall’s nerves of steel.
With temporary seating required and crowds gathering from 6:30am to secure their seats at a sold-out New Road, the stage was set.
Worcestershire’s 254-5 was largely comprised of Graeme Hick’s 97, as well as a classy 63 from Anurag Singh against a Lancashire attack that included Freddie Flintoff and a certain Sir James Anderson…
Lancashire were well positioned deep into their innings, with opener Mal Loye kicking on to make a memorable hundred, with the next best contributor being Glen Chapple (44), who would feature slightly later on in the match…
Having taken charge of the chase, Lancashire required just seven from then final over of the match to book their place at Lords. Step forward… Andrew Hall.
With Lancashire’s Loye stranded at the non-strikers end, Hall went on to take three wickets and bowl a maiden in the final over of the contest to clinch a stunning comeback win.
Taking wickets on the first, third and fifth ball of the over, Hall sent New Road into pandemonium as fans flocked onto the pitch in celebration as Worcestershire secured victory on one of the most unforgettable days ever enjoyed at New Road.
Jack of all trades masters them all to send Surrey spinning
Worcestershire v Surrey, LV= County Championship Division Two. September 9th-12th 2014. Worcestershire bt Surrey by 27 runs.
They call it “Jack’s match” for good reason. Not only was it a special match for Worcestershire bowler Jack Shantry, who took 10 wickets in the match, but also for Worcestershire batter Jack Shantry, who scored a historic second innings century to single handedly secure his side promotion back to Division One!
In a remarkable turn of events, Worcestershire were dismissed for 272 in their first innings, before Surrey responded with a dominant 406 all-out, despite Shantry picking up six scalps in the process.
Worcestershire’s race looked to have been run when their second innings crumbled to 171-7, but not even the most evergreen of Worcestershire supporters could have foreseen what was about to unfold.
Shantry broke multiple records on his way to his maiden ever first-class, including becoming the first ever number nine batter to register a County Championship century as his 101 not-out from just 89 balls (part of a 108-run eighth wicket stand with Joe Leach) saw his side retake the lead heading into the final stages of the thrilling contest.
Not quite content with his contribution thus far, Shantry picked up a further four wickets to help reduce Surrey from 106-2 to 189 all-out and send Worcestershire players, coaches and supporters into an uncontrollable frenzy as the Pears confirmed their promotion with a remarkable 27-run win whilst Shantry left the field as only the third man ever to score a century and take a match ten-fer for Worcestershire.
