According to John Arlott, between about 1770 and 1795 Alresford "stood higher in cricket than any town its size has done in the history of the game".
Its period of greatness roughly coincided with that of the even more eminent Hambledon, not too far distant.
Many Alresford players also appeared for Hambledon, including Tom Taylor, Richard Aubrey Veck and the Freemantle brothers, Andrew and John.
In 1778 Hambledon announced[2] home and away fixtures with Alresford for fifty guineas a match, with no "given" men.
At this period it was common for the weaker team to bring in players from outside, or from their opponents, to even things up.