THE BEGINNING 1905

The foundations for the Papatoitoi Cricket Club were laid at an inaugural Meeting held in the spring of 1905. This Meeting was attended by Messrs. F M Waters, D Burnside, T Haslip and E Weir. This enthusiastic group soon engendered sufficient support for the formation of a Club and Mr J W Sumner was elected President with Mr D Burnside as Club Captain. The first recorded game was played against East Tamaki on a paddock near the Presbyterian Church, on the corner of the Great South Road and East Tamaki Road. East Tamaki were dismissed in the first innings for 3 runs !! In these early years games were all friendly ones. 

Papatoitoi had a population of just 193 when the cricket club was formed in 1906. It was in the 1909-1910 season that the Club was able to really advance with the laying of a turf wicket on the recently acquired Recreation Ground. The Recreation Ground, comprising ten and a half acres, had been purchased through the efforts of the Papatoetoe and Surrounding District Progressive League. Before their acquisition, the grounds had been planned as an orchard, so holes for the fruit trees needed to be filled in. 

Like most newly-formed organisations, the League had no money and all the money for this then very considerable purchase had to be borrowed, and the property was vested in five trustees being: F M Waters, S Hodge, H A Swaffield, I Gray, and Mrs Eliza Wallace. For the purchase, ₤200 had been loaned by the Martyn brothers, and the balance of ₤600 was borrowed on mortgage; the cost of the ground worked out at about ₤75 per acre. The ground was called the Kolmar Recreation Ground for its first twenty years of existence. The responsibility for Mr Swaffield was not his only contribution to the Cricket Club, for he immediately became associated with the administration of the Club, and his three sons, A A (Alec),H E (Harry),and later, P W (Percy) became prominent players and administrators. Alec Swaffield, President 1946 -1963 and life member, and Harry Swaffield, Secretary 1920 – 1928 and life member rank with Dave Burnside, Club Captain 1906-1944 and life member, and E H Burnside, Treasurer 1920 -1934 as players and administrators of great character and calibre, who guided the Club successfully for over thirty years. 

This new wicket and ground proved a great asset and the turf wicket was serviced with water from a not too distant windmill. All the work of leveling of the ground and wicket along with the laying or the water pipes was accomplished by Club members themselves. The Club and game continued to flourish and just prior to the 1914-18 war, five Papatoitoi players were chosen for a suburban representative team to go on tour. These players were Alec Swaffield, Percy Swaffield, C Clark, Dave Burnside and Harry Swaffield. 

No cricket was played during the 1914-18 war but the Club was kept alive by Dave Burnside and Alec Swaffield. The two stalwarts had to dig up the water pipes on the cricket ground and sell them to meet interest charges that were almost overwhelming the Club, so ending the first turf wicket! 

THE MIDDLE YEARS 1920'S & 1930'S

After the war the Club became active again with a Meeting in the spring of 1920. Mr F M Waters became the second President, an office he held until 1946. Dave Burnside continued as Club Captain with Harry Swaffield as Secretary and Ennis (Dol) Burnside as Treasurer. The Club continued its affiliation with the outer Suburban Cricket Association which was in turn affiliated with the Auckland City and Suburban Cricket Association. This was a time of change and advancements and a further team was formed with a large percentage of school boys in the ranks. W Harvey was the first captain of this team to be succeeded later by Jack Havill. 

In 1923, the name Papatoitoi was officially changed to Papatoetoe. The Cricket Club also changed to the new spelling and in the following year of 1924 changed its affiliation of parent bodies to become a member Club of the Auckland Cricket Association. The top team was entered in the Senior B Competition. At this stage the wicket on the recreation ground was asphalt covered with matting. No practice facilities were available at the ground and members practised on a turf wicket in a vacant area on the corner of Coronation Road and Detro Street, where the Masonic Hall is now sited. In 1927 a further two wickets were developed at the ground where members themselves organised these developments with their own labour. All mowing and maintenance was voluntary with Alec Swaffield and Dr J J Valentine making their vehicles available to cart the very heavy coir mats to the wickets each Saturday morning. With these new wickets came future players and administrators. Noteworthy amongst these were: 

• Dr J J Valentine, Secretary 1931-1940 and later to be a life member
• Ernie Bray, Treasurer 1934-1956, later also to become a life member
• Bill Joynt, player-administrator, later a life member.

Perhaps, however, one of the greatest contributors to the game in the Club was Mr Alf Winks who became sole selector in 1934 and continued through until 1949-50. Alf Winks was a long serving member of the Management Committee of both the Club and the Auckland Cricket Association. As a member of A.C.A. Committee he most actively put forward the many efforts of Papatoetoe to be promoted to Senior A ranks. He, too, became a Life Member. 

During the 1930 and 1931 seasons the Club sent several deputations to the Local Town Board requesting improvements to the recreation ground in the way of leveling and laying down of turf wickets. Their efforts finally bore fruit and in 1932 the Town Board took advantage of a Government scheme to employ local unemployed to upgrade the ground to its present standard. This work took 18 months. During the renovation period, games continued to be played on the ground. The practice venue was changed at this time from the Masonic Hall site to an area in Reeves Avenue where Mr Edgar Burnside's house now stands. When all the ground improvements were completed, the standard of play within the Club improved considerably and Papatoetoe teams were always well to the fore in their respective grades. 

The years just prior to the outbreak of the Second World War saw some good cricket and some good cricketers from the Papatoetoe Club. In 1937-38 the Second grade team captained by Alec Swaffield was runner-up in the championship. In 1938-39 the Senior B side (the Club's top team) captained by Charlie Broberg was joint winner of the Auckland Senior B championship. Notable in this team's effort was the fine bowling of Jack Havill who took over 60 wickets for the season at an average of 9 runs per wicket. John Elliott, the first Club player to gain Brabin Cup selection was also a member of this winning team.