Whose shadow stretches longest across College Park? The ghost of Herbert Rollins perhaps. His scorebox, a tribute to his cricketing prowess, once graced this very ground, until a fire claimed it in 1963. College Park itself, nestled within the hallowed grounds of Trinity College Dublin, has seen more than its fair share of history. The first cricket match recorded here was in 1868. It was a clash between Ireland and an All-England Eleven. But cricket’s roots here run deeper. A poem from the 1820s mentions a match between Ballinasloe and “the Collegians” at Trinity. Whether this took place on College Park remains a mystery. For a time, College Park was the epicenter of Irish cricket, home to the Dublin University Cricket Club. This club, once boasting first-class status, hosted the ground’s first first-class match in 1895. Dublin University faced the Marylebone Cricket Club. College Park welcomed touring sides and English county teams, even hosting first-class fixtures until 1961. In 1926, Dublin University played its final first-class fixture against Northamptonshire. The partition of Ireland in 1922, however, saw cricket’s prominence diminish. College Park, though impacted, continued to hold its own. In 2000, it etched its name in history books by hosting Ireland women’s first Women’s Test match. They triumphed over Pakistan women by an innings and 54 runs. College Park also hosted Women’s One Day Internationals, the first in 1987 between Ireland Women and Australia women. The last such match played here was also between these two nations in 2005. While intended as the home ground for Leinster Lightning in 2019 and 2020, this plan never materialized. Yet, the legacy of College Park, a testament to cricketing passion and historical echoes, endures.
Центральный дом работников искусств
Step through the grand wooden doors of the Central House of the Workers of Art, and you’ll be transported to