The ground was being used for cricket in the 1858-59 season, when clubs from Nelson and the nearby town of Wakefield played each other there. The first interprovincial match there was in 1862-63, when Nelson played Wellington in a one-day match in which 40 wickets fell for 167 runs on a "very fiery pitch".
Between 1875 and 1887 Nelson played seven matches at Victory Square that are now recognised as first-class. Nelson won all six matches against Wellington and lost the other match to Auckland. Scores were extremely low and there were some notable bowling figures.
1874-75
Wellington 93 and 71 lost to Nelson 100 and 65 for 8 by two wickets.
Harry Hole took 8 for 37 and 2 for 24 for Nelson in his only first-class match. Thomas Armitage of Wellington, also playing in his first first-class match, took 5 for 18 and 4 for 24. The highest score was 31, made by two Wellington batsmen in the first innings.
1876-77
Nelson 96 and 42 beat Wellington 37 and 60 by 41 runs.
The Eden brothers were the main destroyers for Nelson: William Eden took 5 for 17 and 4 for 24, Thomas Eden took 3 for 17 and 3 for 28. The highest individual score was 22.
1879-80
Nelson 49 and 82 beat Wellington 51 and 29 by 51 runs.
James Wigzell of Nelson had the best figures, with 3 for 9 in the first innings and five wickets in the second, when the number of runs he conceded out of the 24 scored by the batsmen is unknown. The highest individual score was 29.
1881-82
Wellington 62 and 59 lost to Nelson 105 and 17 for one by nine wickets.
Thomas Eden took 4 for 9 and 5 for 20 for Nelson. The highest individual score was 27.
1882-83
Auckland 89 and 98 beat Nelson 33 and 150 by four runs.
William Lankham took 6 for 18 and 4 for 37 for Auckland. For Nelson, George Fowler took 2 for 38 and 6 for 42, and James Wigzell 5 for 16 and 4 for 16. The highest individual score was 30, by the Nelson number 11, George Silcock, in the second innings, when the last wicket added 50.
1885-86
Wellington 36 and 19 lost to Nelson 101 by an innings and 46 runs.
Wellington 31 and 48 lost to Nelson 73 and 7 for 1 by nine wickets.
The match, scheduled for two days, was completed on the first afternoon. George Fowler took 6 for 9 and 5 for 16 for Nelson. The highest individual score was 29, by Nelson's Henry Boddington.
Statistics
In the seven matches 1703 runs were scored for the loss of 250 wickets, an overall average of 6.81. The highest team total was Nelson's 150 in 1882-83. Of the 27 innings, only four reached 100, all by Nelson. Edward Boddington of Nelson made the highest individual score, 36, in 1885-86. On only five occasions did a batsman reach 30. The best bowling figures in an innings were Harry Hole's 8 for 37 for Nelson in the first match, and the best match figures were Andrew Percy Bennett's 12 for 18 for Nelson in 1885-86.
Current status
Victory Square was superseded as Nelson's main cricket ground with the opening of Trafalgar Park in 1888. It has been used only for local cricket since. It is the home ground of the Wakatu Cricket Club.
