to with keener interest,” said a contemporary report. Unfortunately Monday was cloudy and dull, although 12,136 paid for admission. John Shuter won the toss and Surrey were dismissed for 99, Attewell, operating unchanged from the pavilion end, taking eight for 56 in 44.2 overs. Nottinghamshire gained a lead of 173 and despite 74 from Walter Read, the visitors won by seven wickets. If Surrey felt hard done by, they made no mistake in 1887. Again they won 12 out of 16 but now, with one point awarded for a win and half for a draw, the outcome was clear. Shaw’s Trent Bridge days were over, Sherwin taking on the captaincy, but it was Shuter who found himself in the spotlight during the Whitsun fixture. Surrey led by 26 on the first innings and at the start of the final day they were 157 for three. By one o’clock they had carried this to 264 for four and with declarations not permitted at that time a draw appeared certain. Shuter then deliberately hit his own wicket and the remaining five men got themselves out in order to finish the innings. Nottinghamshire needed 316 but failed against Lohmann (five for 66) and despite WilliamGunn’s 72 were beaten by 157 runs. It was Surrey’s first win at Trent Bridge since 1870. Bobby Abel wrote: “Surrey v Nottinghamshire were the great matches of that season. The first game at Trent Bridge was the epoch making one which eventually led to the institution of the closure rule. Lohmann had a giant’s share in winning the remarkable game for us by 157 runs. He bowled nearly all afternoon, sending down 60 overs for 66 runs and five wickets, always keeping a perfect length and breaking both ways.” By the August Bank Holiday return, each side had played six matches and lost once. A vital game if ever there was one; in fact the Surrey club received 110 telegrams on the final afternoon requesting the result. There was a record crowd of 27,000 on Monday and they saw Surrey establish an early ascendancy by reducing Nottinghamshire to 143 for eight. Then Henry Richardson, a medium pace bowler who made his debut that summer, scored an unbeaten 54, sharing partnerships of 26 with Joseph Sulley and 79 for the last wicket with Sherwin (34). Faced with a total of 248, Surrey lost Abel before the close in scoring 14. There was a price to pay for Sherwin’s innings for he sprained a wrist, Gunn, so brilliant in the outfield, taking over behind the wicket. Nottinghamshire gained a lead of 36, Sulley taking four for 66, but several chances were missed. Needing 205 in the fourth innings, Surrey reached 77 for one with Shuter and Key going well before Sulley had Key caught by a recovered Sherwin. Barnes, brought on at the pavilion end, struck with three wickets and half the side was out for 127. Lohmann and Maurice Read then took Surrey to the brink of victory before Read was caught for 38. The winning run came at 4.40pm, the spectators being “hugely elated” over Surrey’s success. Cricket said there was a scene of excitement which The Oval had not seen in a long time, cheers following cheers until the various members of the winning team had dispersed. In total, 51,607 paid for admission over the three days. With few police present there was some unseemly behaviour – Wisden describing it as “a great deal of bottle-throwing and other playful eccentricities.” The victory put daylight between Surrey and their rivals. These included Yorkshire, beaten by an innings by Surrey at Bramall Lane but in tremendous form over the holiday at Canterbury. They made 559, forced Kent to follow-on but had to be satisfied with a draw after Frank Hearne’s 144. Certainly the August Bank Holiday fixtures of 1887 make nonsense of any school of thought which dismisses county cricket as irrelevant before the Championship was officially formed in 1890. Clash of Titans 29