George Hill and Will Luxton lead the way for Yorkshire's cricketers at the home of rugby

Whether Webb Ellis – whose name lives on through the title of the World Cup trophy – really did so continues to divide opinion some 200 years later.

He was one of a number of well-known Old Rugbeians, a list that includes Neville Chamberlain, Lewis Carroll, Rupert Brooke and Salman Rushdie.

If the school prides itself, then, as the birthplace of that game, its association with cricket is somewhat less established.

Yorkshire’s visit on yesterday was just the fourth county fixture held within its grounds, beginning with a T20 match in 2013. Pedants may point out that a fifth – a One-Day Cup game between Warwickshire and Kent in 2014 – was abandoned without a ball being bowled. The school is also hosting a visit from Nottinghamshire on Wednesday on the final day of the 50-over group stage.

Yorkshire are playing Glamorgan in Cardiff that day, their hopes of qualifying for the knockout stages going to the wire after a six-wicket victory kept them in the hunt.

George Hill, an alumnus of Sedbergh, prospered in the not unfamiliar surroundings of a prestigious school, capturing a career-best 6-28 as Warwickshire scored 242-9 after being sent into bat.

Hill’s was the seventh-best return in Yorkshire’s one-day history, and the best against county opposition for 35 years, Paul Jarvis having taken 6-27 against Somerset at Taunton in 1989.

A maiden first-team hundred for Will Luxton (105 from 121 balls with seven fours and six sixes), plus half-centuries from Harry Duke (60 from 51) and Matty Revis (51 from 65), then helped the visitors home with 5.3 overs to spare, inflicting on Warwickshire their first defeat in this season’s competition.

As church bells chimed on a lovely sunny morning, albeit with a strong wind taking the edge off the temperature, Yorkshire showed three changes to the side beaten by Leicestershire at Scarborough on Thursday.

With Shan Masood having left for Pakistan’s Test series against Bangladesh, Jonny Tattersall returned to the XI as captain, while pace bowler Ben Coad – rested against Leicestershire – came in for Dom Leech. Yorkshire handed a competitive debut to Yash Vagadia, the 20-year-old batsman, with James Wharton out with an ankle injury.

As a crowd of 1,991 ringed the boundary, a good number having travelled from Yorkshire, the visitors made a decent start on a sluggish pitch.

Coad and Ben Cliff gave little away in the early stages, then Hill produced a decisive intervention from the School End. The all-rounder struck with his first delivery after replacing Cliff, bowling the dangerous Ed Barnard, then had Will Rhodes pulling to mid-wicket and Hamza Shaikh leg-before to leave the hosts 73-3 in the 20th over.

Yates, the left-handed opener, played confidently, though, reaching a fine half-century from 74 balls, which included a six over mid-wicket off a Dom Bess full toss that flew out of the ground towards the main road.

After Bess had Michael Burgess held by Vagadia at deep mid-wicket, Yates perished for the top score of 72, pulling Revis to Bess at deep square-leg, his 107-ball innings containing eight fours to go with the maximum.

Enter (or rather re-enter) Hill. Back on at the School End, he bowled Chris Benjamin for a run-a-ball 38, swinging across the line, and then claimed his fifth by bowling Jake Lintott.

A fourth clean bowled victim followed in the form of Kai Smith, Revis inflicting the same fate on Michael Booth in the closing stages, one of 10 Warwickshire batsmen to reach double figures.

Duke got Yorkshire’s chase off to a flyer, the 22-year-old looking as though he had a point to prove after scoring just 12 from 38 balls in the match against Leicestershire.

After 38 balls here he had 41 to his name, with eight fours and an outrageous scooped six off Ollie Hannon-Dalby; his half-century came up from 44 deliveries, and followed the early loss of Vagadia, who drove to mid-wicket.

Duke could not go on, top-edging a sweep off Lintott to wicketkeeper Benjamin. Fin Bean pulled leg-spinner Tazeem Chaudry Ali to deep mid-wicket, and Yorkshire fell to 117-4 in the 20th when Tattersall snicked Lintott to slip.

It could have gone wrong from that point, but Luxton – who reached his hundred with back-to-back sixes off Yates – and Revis shared 129 in 25 overs to lead Yorkshire over the line in the land of Webb Ellis.