County Championship – First (W11, D6, L4)
Benson & Hedges Cup – Group Stage
NatWest Trophy – Quarter Final
John Player League – 12th
Captain – Clive Rice
A wait of more than half a century was ended when Nottinghamshire clinched the 1981 County Championship, the Club’s first title since Arthur Carr’s team of 1929.
This year the skipper was Clive Rice and he led by example – scoring more runs, 1462, at a better average, 56.23, making the highest individual score of the summer, 172, and the most centuries (6, with a further six fifties).
He also took 65 wickets at 19.20 and 25 catches, the most of any fielder other than the wicket keeper.*
Derek Randall ran him close on all the batting averages and in the bowling only Hadlee, 105, and Hemmings, 90, took more wickets for Notts.
The county’s home record was impressive – of the ten Championship games at Trent Bridge eight were won with one drawn and the one out ground match, at Cleethorpes, also brought a win.
The season began with a draw away to Kent at Canterbury; the home side were hanging on at 192-9, still 50 runs short of their target when play ended. Eddie Hemmings, with six second innings wickets, was the outstanding player.
Leicestershire were the first visitors to Trent Bridge and were twice bowled out for under 200 as Notts completed an eight wicket win. The next game, away to Derbyshire, was abandoned without a ball bowled.
Rain interrupted the game against Middlesex at Uxbridge and each side forfeited an innings to try to secure a positive result. Notts declared their first innings on 258-3, Rice 117, early on the third and final day; Middlesex were 180-6 when the draw was agreed.
Back at Trent Bridge, Nottinghamshire beat Gloucestershire by nine wickets. Hemmings with 6-21 was again the second innings hero for Notts.
Cambridge University were beaten at Fenner’s by ten wickets; Nigel Illingworth made his Notts debut and took his first First-Class wicket, bowling the students’ skipper David Holliday.
Any thoughts of the title were set aside as Notts experienced a mid-season wobble.
Yorkshire battled for a draw at Bradford with a strong fight back after being bowled out for just 68 (Hadlee and Hemmings four wickets each) in reply to Notts 322-8 declared, Hadlee 142. Following on, the home side – led by Boycott’s 124 – were 355-7 at the close.
Two West Indian greats steered Somerset to a hefty win by an innings and 61 runs. Viv Richards scored 106 for the home side at Bath and Joel Garner skittled Notts with 6-29 as they collapsed to 97 all out.
Away to Lancashire at Aigburth, Notts enforced the follow-on but could not clinch the win. Randall, 162no, and Rice, 102, helped the visitors reach 329-3 declared and Lancashire were dismissed for 179, Hadlee 7-25. David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd led the second innings resistance with 128no as Lancashire reached 320-3.
The one home defeat came against Middlesex though that seemed unlikely when Notts gained a first innings lead of 150. A century for skipper Mike Brearley, with solid support from Roland Butcher and Phil Edmonds, set Notts a target of 248; they folded for just 126 all out, John Emburey 5-30 to lose by 112 runs.
A two hundred run partnership between Rice (166no) and John Birch (111) gave Notts the upper hand at Chelmsford but Essex hung on for the draw and were 152-7 at stumps.
Bowlers dominated the away defeat to Hampshire with only Clive Rice starring with the bat. He made 105 out of Notts first innings of 143 – 73 per cent of the total. Hants did slightly better and reached 190 all out; Notts then imploded, making 99. Malcolm Marshall and Keith Stevenson each took nine wickets in the match as Hampshire won by seven wickets.
From then on, the race for the Championship was back on and Notts lost just one of the last eleven games.
Three home wins on the trot got the season back on track. Worcestershire were beaten comfortably with Rice’s 152 the mainstay of Notts 402 all out in response to the visitors’ 132. Batting again, the Pears reached 282, leaving Notts to get just 13 runs, which they did without losing a wicket.
Yorkshire also had a low first innings, 104, but responded strongly to make 364 in their second, Neil Hartley 106. Notts had made 354, Rice again starring with 172, so needed 115 to win which they achieved for loss of two wickets (both Todd and Randall were run out).
Notts also secured an eight wicket win over the Red Rose county. Lancashire were bowled out for 150 but the home side only squeezed past, taking a first innings lead of 17. The visitors made 209 in their second innings and a century from Paul Todd and a fifty from Derek Randall knocked off the required runs.
At Hinckley, Leicestershire had three centurions in their first innings of 431-8 declared; Brian Davison (123), John Steele (116) and Chris Balderstone (100). Notts were bowled out for just 200 and invited to follow-on.
Neil Weightman made the only century of his First-Class career, 105, and put on 165 for the second wicket with Randall (101) as Notts complied 354. Leicester got home for a four wicket win. Roy Dexter made the last of his 22 First-Class appearances for Notts in this game.
Surrey were dismissed quite cheaply twice – 175 and 103 – with Rice taking nine wickets across the game. Notts made 293 to win by an innings and 15 runs: Hadlee made 98 but any disappointment at missing out on a hundred will have been eased by the scoring of his 4,000th First-Class run.
Nottinghamshire completed the double over Worcestershire at New Road, dismissing the home side for 146 and 132 to win by an innings and 106 runs.
A low scoring home draw with Sussex followed, Eddie Hemmings’s nine wickets being the most notable performance.
Warwickshire had two innings of great contrast at Edgbaston – making 331-9 declared and a meagre 49 all out. Notts made 303 (Randall 117) and 79-2 to win by eight wickets.
Northamptonshire were the visitors for a home game at Cleethorpes and were dismissed for 85, Rice 4-25 and Hadlee 5-34, and Notts made 319 to win by an innings and 53 runs.
Eddie Hemmings with 7-59 and 6-70 was the architect of a nine wicket win over Derbyshire and the season closed with another handsome victory, by ten wickets over Glamorgan. The Welshmen were rattled out for 60 and 149 whilst Notts made 180 and 30 without loss.
Trent Bridge hosted the First Test of an Ashes summer in which Australia won comfortably – by four wickets – with no sign of the dramas that were to follow in this series.
Terry Alderman, on Test debut, and Dennis Lillee were the main contributors as England made 185 and 125 and Australia 149 and 132-6.
* 1981 was the ‘Summer of Botham’ but it was Clive Rice that took the award for the Outstanding All-Rounder of the season.
November 2026
Scorecards and stats can be seen here