Cricket 1882

SEPT. 14,1882. CRICKET; A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 287 - M c P 7 I Y I M 0 N - : - 6 0 ^ I P ^ They are the abstracts and brief chronicles of onr time.— Hamlet. B efore these lines reacli a large number of the readers of C ricket another English team, the seventh, will have set sail for Australia. At half-past twelve o ’clock to­ day the P. and 0 . Steamer Peshawar is due to leave Gravesend. It will carry the majority of the team engaged to play a series of matches in the colonies, under the leadership of the Hon. Ivo Bligh. The name of the players were given by me several weeks ago, but it will be well to repeat them. There will be nine amateurs and four professionals: the Hon. Ivo Bligh, Messrs. M. P. Lucas, G. B. Studd, C . T. ;Studd, A. G. Steel, C . F. H. Leslie, W . W . Bead, E .F . S. Tylecote, G. F. Vernon, with Barlow, Bates, Barnes, and Morley. I am not quite sure that Morley’s selection is a judicious one. He has broken down more than once this season, and has lately not been in the best health. The sea voyage and difference of climate may, and probably will, do him much good, but I •should have preferred, I think, to have seen Ulyett of the party. In batting, the team willbevery strong, andhad Ulyett been in the eleven the order of going in would have been rather difficult of decision. On the hard and fast Australian wickets Mr. Bligh’s team are sure to make some good scores. The only doubt need be about their bowling, which on paper is hardly strong enough. Whatever is in store for them though, every­ one will wish them hearty good luck, and a successful, as they are sure to have an en­ joyable, trip. English cricketers, one and all, will echo the hope that one result of the tour will be the captain’s complete restora­ tion to health. As a reminder, I may add that the team are due to make their first appearance at Adelaide on Nov. 9. A “ R eader of C ricket ” — he might have chosen a more distinctive title—who has, owing to absence abroad, just read my note o f August 31, on the subject of what, in the slang of the cricket field, is known as “ chucking,” is hurt that my Lancashire friend should have replied to my remarks on Crossland by denouncing Mr. Tuke. He suggests that this is a poor Ta. ( ke ) quoque. What does he mean ? L ast week I called attention to the doings of two once-well-known Marylebone cricketers, the Hon. W. N. Hood and Mr. A. H. Stratford to wit, in Canada. I gather from a number of the Canadian Cricket Field just to hand that Mr. Stratford was very much among the Montreal batsmen in a match between the Montreal and Winni­ peg Clubs, on the Friday and Saturday before the Canterbury week. In the first innings his “ twisters” took eight out of the ten wickets. I h a v e to thank numerous correspondents for the readiness with which they have acceded to my request for information respecting instances of big hitting at all parallel with that of Caldecourt at Watford, to which I called attention last week. More than one has pointed out that reference is made to old Caldecourt’s feat in vol. 1, p. 444,of “ Scores and Biographies.” I had the particular page of that volume before me as I wrote, but my information was more complete than was to be found there. Mr. Haygarth is doubtful about the place, date, and title of match, whereas my informant gave something like an approximate date and the exact ground. What I wanted to know was the precise date and title of match. Perhaps some One can oblige. A nent the same subject, “ Middlesex ” — in an old story re-told— describes that in his youthful days, when the “ Old Cope ” cricket-ground was one of his haunts— Copenhagen House, by-the-bye, being then situate whereon the Clock Tower now stands in the Cattle Market—-he there witnessed Mr. John Walker, of the famous brotherhood, one of the most brilliant hitters of his day—playing for Clapton in then- annual match v. Islington Albion, hit four successive balls for 6 each to square-leg, out of the ground into the adjoining en­ closure. The Albion and Clapton were at that time two of the leading clubs, and numbered in their ranks the most prominent players. He also adds that he has often heard Caldecourt refer to his 86 in 6 hits, which were brought off at a match at Watford, from the last 5 balls of one over, and the first of the next—making 6 clean hits out of the ground in succession. A nother correspondent,to whom I ammost grateful for an offer of much valuable help, sends me the following records of heavy scoring in an over. In vol. 8, page 6, of “ Scores and Biographies,” Mr. E. G. Sut­ ton is recorded to have made five sixes in an over (probably of five balls) in 1867. In vol. 10 of the same work Mr. V. E . Walker is noted to have made two successive hits for seven in a match Free Foresters v. Southgate at Southgate on June 27 and 28, 1867. I myself saw Mr. J. Hearsum this year in a match of the Vine Club at the Oval hit two consecutive balls for eight. B onnor ’ s 20 runs from one over of Mr. Lucas at Scarborough on Saturday will be fresh enough in the minds of cricketers. Something of a similar feat I can remember by Mr. D. Q. Steel, when he scored 17 in one over from Mr. G. N. Wyatt, for Cam­ bridge v. Surrey, at the Oval in 1877. This is, if I remember right, the only over Mr. Wyatt has ever bowled for the County. T he reputation of the Australian team has been considerably enhanced by their two last performances at Scarborough and Leeds. Full details of Banrierman and Bonnor’s ex­ ploits at the former piace will be found in another part of the paper, so that I will merely call passing attention to another sen­ sational exploit of these insatiable Colonists. Their recent form has been the more extra­ ordinary considering that several of them are disabled in one way or another. Palmer completely out of it, Blackham with two teeth disturbed, Giffen lame, Garrett not altogether in the best of health, and last of all Bonnor, with an injured arm: Moving accidents indeed by field if not by flood. B e f o r e I part with the Australians the averages of the four principal batsmen of the team up to Tuesday will repay perusal : Completed Innings. Runs. Aver. Murdoch ................... 50 .. 1594 .. 31.22 H oran........................... 41 .. 109!) . . 28.8 Massie........................... 52 .. 1H48 .. 25.92 Bannerman................... 48 .. 1152 .. 24 T here is an old saying that youth will be served. The paper of that name is hardly so well served as it might be, to judge from the exceedingly comical remarks in its issue of the 6th inst., on the subject of the match between England and Australia. This is rather high faluting for an opening para­ graph :— Oh! W oe! W oe! Go, hide your heads cricketers o£ England. Representatives of our national game avaunt! Make way for the Champions of the’ World! The Australian Eleven, who have fairly beaten what we fondly hoped was good a team enough to uphold British prestige in the one game in which we do—or rather did—claim supremacy. The chiel that penned those notes was poorly at the time, no doubt, but the concluding lines are even more graphic : NO !—In sorrow I say it. They were not . Lucas (5) played a ball on his wicket. Peate made a gal­ lant attempt to pull the match out of the fire, but Barnes being caught for two, he could not expect help from C. T. Studd, so that when he was bowled, after putting together 9, the match was over, and England beaten by seven runs, while the Australians can fairly be crowned Champions of the World. Peate’s gallant attempt is a little too jocose. What, too, does the writer mean by the following:— C. T. Studd cut up as badly as in, the “ Gentle­ men’’ match, and had another “ duck’s egg.” Realty there seems no depending on the erratic performances of this player. Peate’s attempt, I remember well, was so gallant, that Mr. C. T. Studd never had a ball to play. Moreover, I was of opinion that Mr. Studd on this year’s form was one of the most successful batsmen, amateur or professional. I n all humility I make the sad admission. The talented individual who wrote Bonnor’s biography made a mistake which is really unpardonable. He gave Bonnor’ s throw at Plymouth 119 yards 7 feet, instead of 11!)