A last hurrah (for now) for Eton versus Harrow at Lord's

HUW TURBERVILL AT LORD'S: MCC are not saying it will be the last ever at Lord’s… just that it won’t automatically be on the fixture list. It might be reprieved for anniversaries and such like. Until then they will have to slum it at their own grounds

Lord Byron may have been prompted to pen a sad poem, while Henry Blofeld has threatened to quit MCC over the decision – yes, the annual fixture between Eton and Harrow at Lord’s is no more.

England’s two most famous and historic schools have been facing each other at the home of cricket since 1805 (Byron played in the inaugural match). Hosts the Marylebone Cricket Club have chosen to "broaden the scope of the fixture list", however; chief executive Guy Lavender told the club’s 23,000 members that the decision was "not taken lightly" and "did not arise as a result of anxiety to kowtow to the woke police".

The priority, he says, "is to ensure the highest-quality pitches for professional cricket and to make Lord’s more accessible to a wider range of players and extend playing opportunities to more teams." They only have a certain number of slots, once you plot in Tests, ODIs, Middlesex matches and so on.

Did it prompt riotous scenes among a crowd of more than 4,000? I must admit I was quite taken aback by the two packs of youngsters singing football songs at each other in the Mound Stand, and chants like "We’ve had more prime ministers", but then I recalled what I was like on school trips more than three decades ago. Apparently the 18-year-olds were not allowed their one beer this year, however, so no doubt that had a placatory effect. The stewards were twitchy, and a blue flare was let off by one scamp.

There are people who say the fixture should be retained for reasons of a) finance, and b) tradition, and we will come to them – although a special general meeting in October now looks nailed on.

MCC are not saying it will be the last ever at Lord’s… just that it won’t automatically be on the fixture list. It might be reprieved for anniversaries and such like. The Varsity match has also lost its annual status. Interestingly the schools said they were disappointed, while Oxford and Cambridge appeared to applaud the move.

^{Spectators in full voice [Alex Davidson/Getty Images]}

Jamie Cox, MCC’s relatively new assistant secretary (cricket), wants the everyman (and woman) to touch the hallowed turf. The first match he saw after taking the job was the Village Cup final (organised by The Cricketer) last September. The sight of Ben Johns of Calmore Sports CC scoring the winning runs and leaping into the air is etched in his memory now: "That anyone who plays cricket in this country can play at Lord’s."

The Cricketer’s former editorial director, EW Swanton, would be 'furious of Sandwich' (he lived in the Kent town). He’d probably have put the issue on the magazine’s cover. Alas as one of his successors (sort of) I cannot get too worked up about it. I’m a traditionalist, but it’s difficult to put up too much of an argument against it.

What will replace it? The first Women’s ODI for five years – against India – is on September 24. There was also a men’s and women’s T20 double-header against the National Asian Cricket Council in May.

There is no longer the option of putting some matches on the Nursery Ground, as the new Compton and Edrich Stands have trimmed its playing surface. It’s not really on anyway. New health and safety regulations dictate that balls being pummeled over the wall into Wellington Road in the direction of double-decker buses are no longer viable.

Agh, but what about the corporate matches, critics cry? Well, the simple fact is that MCC do need to make money. Members voted against flats being built over the tunnels owned by Charles Rifkind, and the bills have to be paid.

Plenty are opposed, however, with articles and letters in The Times and Telegraph railing against the light – Simon Heffer turning crimson.

Mike Hall, a former Harrovian, has been collecting the signatures needed to trigger a special general meeting. He has comfortably exceeded the 180 needed. It could be the most prominent SGM since the David Gower/Jack Russell brouhaha of late 1992, when England didn’t pick them for India.

"Twenty or 30 years ago MCC tried to drop the fixture then," Hall told The Cricketer, "but they realised it made them too much money. Look around us now – there’s 4,100 here, and all the corporate boxes are sold out. I just don’t think they have thought the decision through. It’s disregarding history, tradition, gate receipts and box receipts. The club says it cannot afford to rebuild the Tavern Stand, so they need the money. It’s the oldest continually-run fixture in the world. It’s so sad."

^{Spectators queue to get into the fixture in the 1920s [Getty Images]}

The fixture certainly has a colourful history. Lord’s used to sell out for it – there was 38,000 here in 1914. Interest started to wane after World War One. Terrence Rattigan, Nick Compton, Gary Ballance and Sam Northeast have played in the match for Harrow, while future PM Alec Douglas-Home, Blofeld and Alex Loudon appeared for Eton. David Cameron and Boris Johnson didn’t make the line-up, although I daresay the latter tried.

So what of this final match?

Harrow got off to a flier in the 55-over contest, to the delight of a sizeable contingent of fans. Football-style chants of "who are you?" and "the mighty, mighty Harrow” ensued as the two sets of fans – normally 16 miles apart – taunted each other.

Two wickets in two balls from the brisk George Weldon pegged them back. The loss of wicketkeeper-batsman George Cutler for 46 was a blow, and at 117 for 5 after 26.5 overs the innings was in the balance. The tail wagged, however, with Ellis Connor O’Flaherty (41) and Max Ferreira (34) enjoying their days in the sun, offering good support to No.5 Cameron Ellis (43). A total of 265 from the team in maroon stripes looked testing, and so it proved…

The boys in sky-blue caps managed only 179; Weldon top-scored with 38, and Henry Buxton made 31. That makes it Harrow 55, Eton 60, with 68 draws, and five years where the fixture wasn’t played (wars and pandemic).

I have no intention of rubbing salt into the wound of fans. My scars of 1989 are still felt. I’m a big Doctor Who fan, and was sad when the BBC took the show off the air in 1989. Ratings were dire, but the programme under Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred had shown signs of improvement. When people told me it was rubbish and deserved to go, the blood boiled.

Who knows, like Doctor Who, perhaps Eton v Harrow at Lord’s will be resurrected. Until then they will have to slum it at their own grounds.