A Game Sustained

76 Shocks to the system: 1916 for Great Horton against Pudsey Britannia, took ten for 16 and made the highest score of the day. Given all that was going on, it was again surprising quite how seriously the game was still taken in many ways. With recreation facilities being taken over for military use, letters in the Yorkshire Post discussed the digging up of parks and sports fields. One correspondent complained that the work had been done at the wrong time of year and that there were places other than cricket fields to destroy first. Another example was the determination to enforce competition regulations. In June, the Pudsey St. Lawrence club objected to the result of its Cup match with Great Horton on the grounds that the latter had included a player in contravention of cup rules. After a long hearing it was unanimously agreed that Great Horton had broken the rules, and the match was replayed on a Monday later in the month. There was also controversy at Elland, where the club officials engaged a professional and groundsman, but a section of the membership petitioned for the arrangements to be cancelled. Big names continued to turn out and perform. George Hirst appeared for Kirkheaton and in the Bradford League Jack Hobbs – who was rumoured to have been called up – gave a great all-round performance against Saltaire, making 24 of Idle’s 73 and then taking seven for 24 to dismiss their opponents for 53. The Leeds Mercury was very positive about the state of the game and in May enthused that international and county players ‘now figure prominently in Yorkshire club cricket’. An attendance of 4,000 people at the Saltaire-Idle game suggested that the Entertainment Tax was not discouraging spectators, and it was noted that it was not every day you could see Barnes and Hobbs for fourpence. In addition, ‘there seemed no lack of money, judging by the throng round the square and undulating green, and the ‘thrutching’ [pressing] in the saloon for tea.’ Woolley’s involvement at Keighley also helped them secure the club’s largest attendance in 30 years – around 3,600 people for their game with Idle. One reporter later observed that ‘it is to be noticed that Leagues like that in the Bradford district are having a record season. This indicates what the public