Cricket 1884

“ Together joined in cricket’s man ly toil.”— Byron. No. 67. VO L .III. Registered for Transmission Abroad. THURSDAY, JULY 24, 1884. PRICE 2d T . C. O ’B R IE N . T h e history of the game, as far as our know­ ledge goes, fails to furnish another instance of such rapid promotion on the cricket field as has recently been the good fortune of the amateur whose career supplies the material for the present sketch. As his name indi­ cates, Mr. Timothy Carew O’Erien comes of an Irish stock. His uncle, Sir Patrick O’Brien, has represented King’s County in Parliament for many years, and he himself was born in Ireland—at Dublin, on Nov. 5, 1861. The Roman Catholic College, at Down­ side, was the first school with which he was at all prominently identified. His stay there extended over four years, but it was his subsequent connection with St. Charles’ College, Notting Hill, which gave him the earliest oppor­ tunities for displaying his proficiency at tho game. Tho facilities offered by the Kensington Park Club, the best club in the neighbourhood, induced him to enrol himself a member of that body, and some of the best of his earliest ! cores were made on its behalf. One of his first noteworthy innings was made for Kensington Park against Bexley,and, unless we are mistaken, his first score of three figures—certain!}' of any real account—was his 153 against tbe Royal Indian Engineering College, at Cooper’s Bill, at the commencement of tho sea­ son of 1881. His average for Kensing­ ton Park that year was 41J for thirteen completed innings, ar.d it was during this summer that he made his debut in the Middlesex Eleven. His first County match was at Lord’s, against Glouces­ tershire, but his introduction to the Eleven was not attended with good for­ tune, and he failed to make a notch in either innings. During the following Season of 18£2 several large scores were associated with his name. Three tinres he got over a hundred runs in an innings for the Ken­ sington Club, and, in addition to two other cen­ turies, he made his mark at Lord’s with a well- *iit innings ol 113 for Marylebone Club and Wovmd, against South Wales. Oncn again he was selected to represent Middle sex, but, as in the previous year, no great success attended him, and his one innings against Notts, at Nottingham, was only productive of four runs. During last summer he became more promin­ ently identified with the Marylebone Club, but his highest of six innings was seventeen, and, altogether, he was not in such a vein for run- getting ai in 1881 or 1882. For the third suc­ cessive year he was given a trial in the Middle­ sex Eleven, and this time he showed to much *re»ter ndvtmtftge, being credited with two in­ nings of seventeen and twenty-five, against the Yorkshire Eleven, at Lord’s. Up to last year, though there were not a few good judgi s who believed him capable of much better cricket than any he had as yet played, he had certainly done little in good matches to justify the belief that he would participate in some of tho most important fixtures of 1884. With a view, it is to be presumed, of a bid for a place in the Inter-University match, Mr. O’Brien, at the commencement of last term, became a member of New Inn Hall, at Oxford, and his connection with that University was from the very first favourable to his advancement as a cricketer. Two well-hit scores of 27 and 39 not out in the Freshmen’s Match formed klie result of his first appearance, and this opening suc­ cess he followed up with innings of 20 and 16 for the Sixteen Freshmen, and 93 for the Sixteen against tbo University Eleven. His debut in the Oxford team, too, was a lucky one, and his very finely hit first score of 92 against the Australians had very much to do with their unexpected reverse. Since that time, until quite lately, his batting was an uninterrupted series of good scores. At Oxford against the Gentlemen. Lancashire, and M.C.C. and Ground he did little, but otherwise he was consistently success­ ful, and among his best performance* were his 119 for Middlesex against Gloucestershire, 72 for M.C.C. and Ground against the Australians, 91 and 57 not out, for Oxford against Lan­ cashire, and a very well played 37 for Middlesex against Notts, at Lord’s. On his scoring from the commence­ ment of tbe season it was thought that ho would punish tho weak bowling of Cambridge in tho Inter - University Match. Had he been allowed to get set in all probability lie would have tioub’ed the Light Blue bowlers seriously, but he was unfortunate enough to be bowled in each innings without a run, in the second by the first ball he reoeived. Since that time his efforts have been attended with com parstively slight success, though ha waB credited