Cricket 1884

jam . 3i, 1884. CKICKET; A WEEKLY RECORD OE THE GAME. 9 will be laid before the Committee of the Marylebone Club The ball shall be bowled with unchecked swing of the arm, and without downward action in the elbow ; if thrown or jerked, or otherwise unfairly delivered, the umpire shall call “ no ball.” T he author of the well-written article on “ English and Australian Cricket,” reproduced in another part of the paper, from Baily, in com­ menting on a certain decadence in Murdoch’s batting in 1882 and ’83, cites the old saying, that “ a stale horse never comes again.” I should not say that the comparison is a peculiarly happy one in connection with cricket, as it would be easy to name many players who have from a temporary falling off of their play given occasion to the same prediction of permanent loss of form. In Mur­ doch’s case the old proverb, that a prophet is not believed in his own country, is falsified, as the New South Wales papers are in great tribulation over the report that the Captain of the two last Australian teams in England might not be able to spare the time to play in the Inter-Colonial Match against Victoria on Boxing Day. A cc o b d in g to the last accounts from Australia Murdoch was batting in bis very best form, and those who wit­ nessed that splendid second innings of his against England, at the Oval, in 1880, do not need to be told how good that is. His performance for his local club (Cootamundra) against Wagga-Wagga, for the Cox Cup, one of the numerous trophies of New South Wales, is indeed one of the best already recorded so far in an ex­ ceptionally high-scoring season. In the match in question he went in first each time for his side and scored 90 out of 131, and 140 of 195 from the bat. In the second case he carried out his bat, and in neither innings was there a chance. He also took five wickets for 81 runs. “ Censor,” in the Sydney Mail, says that Mur­ doch, “ who has lost some of his rotundity, is in as good batting form as ever he was.” T h e Australian season, now in pro­ gress, has so far been productive of some unusually high scoring. There have been some performances with the ball, of which the most noteworthy have been duly registered in C b ic k e t . Of the latter, one of the most curious which has come under my notice, is that of T. Shearing, recorded in the Sydney Mail of Nov. 24. It occurred in a country match between Carcoar and Blayney, and Shearing’s perform­ ance for the former is recorded thus : On a good matting wicket, entirely in favour of the batsmen, he took five wickets in five consecutive balls in one over, and afterwards three more wickets in three suc­ cessive balls, two of them being obtained with the two last balls of an over, and the third wicket with the first ball of his next over. He thus performed the “ hat trick ” twice in one innings. The spectators thor­ oughly appreciated this extraordinary bowl­ ing by subscribing for a new hat for the hero of the occasion. T h e following from The Country Gentleman, of Jan. 5, will be of interest to hundreds of cricketers all over the country:— High jinks were held at Mamhead, in Devonshire, on Thursday. The village was en file on account of the marriage of Mr. C. 0. Clarke, of Esher, with the beautiful Miss Orpen, daughter of the Rector of Mam­ head. Everyone knows Charlie Clarke, and everyone likes him. He is a famous cricketer, a cheery companion, and the most entertain­ ing fellow in the world, The presents were rich and many. The members of the Esher Cricket Club, headed by the Duke of Albany, gave the bridegroom a silver service; Lord Harris,too, and other leading cricketers, with hundreds of friends and relations, con­ tributed to the array of gifts to him. The list of presents to the bride was also lengthy. T h e American Cricketer gives the following record of the batting of Mr. B. S. Newhall, of the Young America Club, during the last five years. It includes both visits of the Australians, the matches against Shaw’s andDaft’s Elevens, the Gentlemen of Ireland, the Canadians, and all visiting and foreign teams during that period, as well as all Young America Cricket Club matches proper, and is as follows:— Times Highest Total Aver- Inns. not out. score, runs. age. R. S. Newhall 103 C 120 2,428 25.03 His most successful season is that of 1881, in which his average was 41.50 runs per innings for fifteen completed innings. The figures will be of par­ ticular interest to English cricketers, as the brothers Newhall have done very much for the game on the other side of the big drink. Nay, more, B. S. of that fraternity will in all probability play a prominent part in the cricket of the American team which is to visit England this summer. T h e Sydney Mail is responsible for the following announcement:— The Merton Club, of Philadelphia, is using every endeavour to secure the services of a good English professional cricketer, and has offered £500 for the services of any one of the following professionals for next season : —A. Shaw, Bates, Barlow, and Peate. I take it that the club referred to is the Merton not the Merton. I h a v e already, more than once, had to call attention to the sensational scoring of the East Melbourne Club, during the Australian season now in full swing. The following figures of the first eleven will show at what an extraordinary rate they have scored. Buna. Wits. E.M.C.C, v. S. M. Trades 144 for 2 „ v. Fitzroy .. 685 for 10 (Cup) ,, v. St. Kilda .. 406 for 10 „ v. H. B. Railway 182 for 10 „ v. 15 of Public Schools .. 195 for 10 „ v, Sandridge .. 321 for 10 (Cup) „ v. Ballarat .. 52 for 2 „ v. Melbourne .. 421 for 9 ,, v. Hotham .. 578 for 10 (Cup) „ v. Almanacs .. 356 for 10 3340 for 83 Or an average of 40 runs per wicket. In Cup matches only the average is 53 runs per wicket, and 33 in all other matches. “ A l o v e r of cricket,” writing to the Australasian, gives the following as the best team of Australia :—Black- ham, Bannerman, Bruce, Bonnor, Cooper, G. Giffen. W. Giffen, P. Lev.is, McDonnell, Murdoch, Mid­ winter and Palmer, with Jarvis, Boyle and Massie as reserves, in the order named. Every man in the twelve, except Cooper, he claims is a batsman, there are four good bowlers and three fair changes, and every one can field. This is all very well, I have no doubt, but what has become of “ The Demon ? ” I wonder what Spofforth would say to the selection. I t is some months since I noti­ fied the settlement of the prelimin­ aries for the visit of another team of English Cricketers to Australia, at the end of 1884. Arrangements on the other side have now been con­ cluded, and the use of the grounds at Melbourne and Sydney secured by the agent (our old friend, John Con­ way, I believe) of the promoters, Alfred Shaw, Arthur Shrewsbury, and James Lillywhite. The team will leave in September, and Flowers, Barnes, and TJlyett are said to have already signed articles for the trip. The first match, it is said, will be at Adelaide, on Nov. 8th, and the trip is to extend to New Zealand and Queensland. Next Issue of CRICKET will be published Thursday, February 28.