With the centenary of the last Lowerhouse Cricket Club Second Eleven league championship now less than a year away, the club has been presented with a remarkable piece of its history.
The club has received an original framed photograph of the 1927 Lowerhouse Second Eleven league-winning team, along with the winning medal belonging to one of the players pictured, Henry “Harry” Clayton.
The photograph and medal were donated to the club by the family of Harry Clayton, with his great nephew, Andrew Benson, presenting both items to Lowerhouse Cricket Club chairman Stan Heaton.
It is a fitting time for the items to return to the club.
After 99 years, the Lowerhouse Second Eleven finally added another league championship to the club’s history in 2026, making the 1927 photograph even more significant.
There is also a wonderful family connection.
Pictured in the 1927 championship team are Stan Heaton’s grandad, Matthew Walker, and his uncle, Stanley Walker.
The photograph also brings back memories for older members of the club, with familiar Lowerhouse names including George Bridge, who was groundsman during the 1970s, as well as members of the Drabble family, including Charlie Lupton.
Almost a century after the photograph was taken, it is fantastic to see the 1927 champions back at the Brooks Foundation Ground and to have Harry Clayton’s medal preserved alongside it.
A special piece of Lowerhouse history, returned home at exactly the right time.