The South Melbourne Cricket Club (SMCC) was founded in 1862, and has been an integral aspect of community life in South Melbourne. The club has a proud history and has produced nine (9) Australian Test Captains; more than any other club in Australia. Forty-seven (47) International players have represented the club and eight (8) of these have been listed amongst Wisden’s “International Cricketer of the Year”.
The club’s well-known emblem was adopted in the 1949/50 season. The crest of the club is based on the seal of the former City of South Melbourne (now part of the City of Port Phillip), which in turn is based on the Arms of Lord Melbourne, after whom the city was named. The motto “Liberalitur aut vincere aut vici” translates to “A sportsman, win or lose”.
The clubs nicknames stem from our close association with the South Melbourne Football Club (now the Sydney Swans). In the early years, the cricketers were known as “The Hillites” (derived from the early name for the area, Emerald Hill), “The Southerners” or “The Bloods” (a reference to the bold red in our outfits). Prior to the 1932 season, the football club recruited so heavily from interstate that the team was known in the press as the “Foreign Legion”. Six of these recruits were from Western Australia, a state whose emblem had long been the swan. That, along with the clubs home ground being alongside Albert Park Lake where the large white birds were often seen, possibly led to the “Swans” gaining widespread acceptance. The football club winning the 1933 premiership solidified the “Swans” popularity for both clubs and the Swan was adopted as the club emblem.
From the 2005/06 season, the club has been known as Casey-South Melbourne Cricket Club (CSMCC) and moved to its current home at Casey Fields in season 2006/07.
The club continues to receive great investment from the local Casey Council and the area community in general. All of this will aide in the clubs push for premiership glory.
INSIGNIA
NICKNAMES
CLUB SONG
Cheer, cheer the red and the white,
Honour the name by day and by night,
Lift the noble banner high,
Shake down the thunder from the sky.
Whether the odds be great or small,
South will go in and win over all,
While her loyal sons are marching,
Onwards to victory.
Premierships
| Club Championships: 2 | 1st XI Premiers: 7 | 2nd XI Premiers: 7 | 3rd XI Premiers: 3 | 4th XI Premiers: 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949/50 | 1872/73 | 1875/76 | 1938/39 | 1948/49 |
| 1989/90 | 1878/79 | 1893/94 | 1953/54 | 1960/61 |
| 1888/89 | 1935/36 | 1976/77 | ||
| 1891/92 | 1939/40 | |||
| 1952/53 | 1949/50 | |||
| 1959/60 | 1954/55 | |||
| 1967/68 | 1969/70 |
The premiership in 1891/92 earned South Melbourne the title of “Champions of the Colony”, thus enabling them to play a match against Lord Sheffield’s touring England side, captained by W. G. Grace. The game, played at South Melbourne on January 9 & 11 1892, was the subject of a painting, the original of which is still held by the South Melbourne Cricket Club. It was during this tour that Lord Sheffield donated the sum of 150 pounds to go towards a Perpetual Shield for Competition between the Colonies-later known as the Sheffield Shield.
Ryder Medalists
| Name | Year |
|---|---|
| M. D. Taylor | 1981/82 |
| W. N. Phillips | 1981/82 |
| M. D. Taylor | 1987/88 |
| C. A. Rose | 2011/12 |
Team of the Century
The SMCC “Team of the 20th Century” contains 11 Test players, 5 Australian captains, 3 State captains and 5 players named as a “Wisden Cricketer of the Year”.
A.L Hassett (Captain)
W.M Woodfull
I.R Redpath
G.H.S Trott
G.N Yallop
K.R Miller
I.W Johnson
C.N Parry
D.W Fleming
C.V Grimmett
A.N Connolly
W.N Phillips