What was the first proper match that you attended ?

My first proper match was in April 1988. Sussex v Somerset in the CC at Hove,

I remember Paul Parker, who was captain at the time, was not out in both innings and scored a ton in one of them. Also in the team were the Wells brothers, Neil Lenham, Tony Pigott and Gunner Gould. There was also a leg spinner who I remember being impressed by but can’t think of his name.

Sussex won by 7 wickets and I was hooked even though they only won another 2 games that season and were near the bottom of the table.

Assuming by proper you mean First Class cricket, it would be Kent v Surrey at The Rectory Field, Blackheath. I think a year or two earlier, I saw Charlton Footballers play a TV Entertainers XI in a charity match also at Blackheath. I recall that Brian Rix was out second ball for 6. He just lost his wicket rather than his trousers on that occasion. Still, I doubt you are including charity games that were played like T20 games.

Sussex v Essex, Sunday League at Horsham in 1989.

First first class match - day 4 of Sussex v Gloucestershire at Hove in August 1989.

OMGod, that was my very first game too.  Do you remember a very striking, attractive 12 year old playing by the ice cream van?  I certainly do, I went on to marry her.  Some years later of course.

That was when I first started following cricket.  I was a kid, thank Christ, and I remember my favourite player was Tony Dodemaide - I liked the name.  Not sure he actually played in the game you mention because I was lying for the sake of a joke.  Better label that these days.  My real first game was Surrey v Sussex at the Oval in a 40 over game in 98.  Bevan was playing and we wiped the floor with them.  That was in the season when he was batting at four in the Champ and was by far and away his best season, for the record.

In 1972 I was at Lords on the Friday for England v Australia when Bob Massie took 16 wickets.

In 1990 I went to the 5th day at the Oval England v India taking my 6 year old son involving a long walk from Victoria to the ground on a v hot day when Gower scored a ton in a pretty dull draw. Don't think laddo had particularly good memories of his first outing. Might have done better to have alighted at Clapham Junction.

In 2006 I was in Australia staying at Sydney (also went to Cronulla just before the race riots a couple of months earlier) with my 2 daughters, then aged 19 and 20. Oldest girl had gone off backpacking so on final day of Australia v SA took younger lass for one and only visit to a cricket game which just happened to be 10,000 miles away. It was a good last day with Ponting and Hayden getting Oz home. Got talking to some England lads at the match who just happened to come from Lancing I think and were BHA and Sussex fans. Daughter managed to get her mug on Channel 9 television which was one of the main channels as camera panned the crowd (ignoring me). Anyone seeing her must have imagined she was a keen Aussie cricket fan, but spent most of her day with her head in a magazine even turning down some random charmer inviting her to a hospitality suite. She couldn't even remember the name of the Aussie captain after his heroics.

England v South Africa, third test at the Oval in 1994, day 1.

I had a mate who moved from Catford to Hastings (maybe not for a better life) told me that even back in the mid 60s when he went to the Oval to see England v WI with Wes Hall and Charlie Griffith in their prime the amount of WI supporters was akin to the Notting Hill carnival (maybe a few less women). This continued in the 70s, dropped off in the 80s and by the 90s were lower than Botham's IQ.

British Asians with Pakistan and Indian heritage continue to flock to the 1 day internationals.