Rectory Field, Blackheath
| Ground information | |||||||
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| Location | Blackheath, Royal Borough of Greenwich | ||||||
| Coordinates | 51°28′41″N 0°01′41″E / 51.478°N 0.028°ECoordinates: 51°28′41″N 0°01′41″E / 51.478°N 0.028°E | ||||||
| Home club | Blackheath Football Club | ||||||
| Establishment | 1883 | ||||||
| Owner | Blackheath Sports Club | ||||||
| Team information | |||||||
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| As of 30 August 2016 Source: CricInfo |
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Rectory Field is a sports ground in Blackheath in the Royal Borough of Greenwich in south-east London. It was developed in the 1880s by Blackheath Cricket, Football and Lawn Tennis Company and became the home ground of rugby union team Blackheath F.C. between 1883 and 2016. The ground has hosted international rugby matches and at one time, along with the Richmond Athletic Ground, it was the unofficial home of the England national rugby union team before the development of Twickenham Stadium. The ground was also used for first-class and List A cricket by Kent County Cricket Club between 1887 and 1972.
The field is named after the Charlton Rectory that once stood at the site. It is used today by Blackheath Sports Club for cricket, rugby, tennis and squash.
Located slightly away from the centre of Blackheath, Rectory Field is situated east of Greenwich Park. Before the adoption of the ground sport had been played on the Blackheath grounds, or Heath, for many years. Blackheath Football Club played on the Heath from 1871, but as the popularity of the sport grew, games began attracting crowds. After a match with Richmond was abandoned in 1877 due to a pitch invasion the club adopted a proper, demarked ground. One of the club members, Maurice Henry Richardson, knew of a part of the heath that was owned by his father and the club rented this part of the park for their matches. This pitch become known as Richardson's Field, and this playing ground hosted several internationals, including the first rugby match between England and Wales in 1881.
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