 Somerset had been granted first-class status in advance of the 1882 season. Their maiden season at the top level was described by Wisden as disastrous, but the publication qualified this statement with mild optimism for 1883. The county failed to live up to this optimism, and although there were a few wins, performances on the whole were poor. Twice between 1882 and 1884 Somerset's opponents scored over 500 runs in an innings against them, and against Lancashire in 1884 they fielded only ten players. Stephen Newton, who had captained the side since 1882, left the club at the end of the 1884 season, and thereafter played all his cricket in London.
