Guest Blog by Paul Edwards S&B
Lancashire’s first team cricketers will return to Southport for a County Championship match in 2026.
Sports fans in our town and the surrounding areas will be able to watch players like James Anderson, Marcus Harris and Keaton Jennings take on Worcestershire in a four-day game beginning on Friday, 15th May 2026.
Southport did not host a top-level domestic men’s match in 2025 and the decision to play at Trafalgar Road again represents a vote of confidence in S&B Sports Club at a time when the county has no shortage of outgrounds and the new facility at Farington is nearing completion.
Hosting the fixture is a tribute to the remarkable work done by the club’s groundsman, Colin Maxwell, and his team of helpers, who keep the square, outfield, environs and tennis courts in such excellent condition throughout the year.
“We didn’t get a game last year but I know that Lancashire think highly of us,” said S&B’s cricket chair, Jordan Bell, as he welcomed the news and began to prepare for six months’ very hard work.
“That’s largely down to Colin, our ground chairman, Neil Crew, and the group of Artisans who labour tirelessly to maintain Trafalgar Road.
“They put an awful lot of effort into ensuring that our facilities are of a high standard.
“I think Lancashire appreciate that and they also recognise that we offer the same standard to all the county’s teams whether it’s the men’s first team, the women’s sides or anyone else.”
But perhaps it is fortunate that Worcestershire will be Lancashire’s opponents next May.
They were the first visitors to Trafalgar Road for a Championship match in 1959 and have not won any of the five matches they have played on the ground. Their last game took place in 2018 when an unbroken seventhwicket partnership of 139 between Dane Vilas and Josh Bohannon took Lancashire to a memorable victory on a field that has not been short of laurelled triumphs.
Perhaps more important than that, however, is the fact that Worcestershire’s players, officials and supporters are among the most pleasant and appreciative on the circuit and it should therefore be a particular pleasure for Bell and his own team of volunteers to carry out the thousand tasks that lie ahead of them.
“We’ve hosted nine county matches since Lancashire returned to Trafalgar Road after a 12-year break in 2011 and we know we have to rely on our volunteers to set up the ground, staff the bars and carry out the vast range of jobs involved in running a first-class game,” said Bell.
“That won’t be any different next summer and I’ll be looking to get the main stakeholders together for a meeting in the next couple of weeks.
“This game will stretch over a weekend, so that might mean that we’ll get even more visitors than usual and the main day for corporate hospitality will probably be Friday.
“But our aim will be to welcome everyone, be they business groups, travelling supporters from Worcestershire, families or individual spectators.
“It’s always a pleasure to host Lancashire.
“It produces a tremendous buzz around the club among members, not least because they know they will see the ground so full for a game that will attract national attention. But it’s not only a good thing for S&B, it’s good news for the town and its business community.
“Given that Royal Birkdale is hosting the Open Golf Championship in July, this game against Worcestershire will take its place in a very busy summer for Southport. We’re just delighted to be playing our part in it all.”
- For more details about hospitality opportunities at S&B in Southport please visit: Southport & Birkdale Sports Club, cricket, hockey, snooker, squash and tennis along with a function room and bar.
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