Cricket 1886

“ Together joined in cricket’s manly toil.”— Byron. THURSDAY, MAY 13, 1886. p r i c e 2d. MR . JOHN M cIL W R A IT H . I n the face of the consistently high scores attached to his name during the Australian season just over, it may safely be asserted that there are atpresent few, if any, more dangerous batsmen among the thousands who follow our national game in Greater Britain than the Victorian cricketer whose portrait we are fortunate enough to be able to give this week. His extraordinary success on Colonial cricket fields during the winter has already gained for him a high reputation in the old country. His fame as a hitter, a sure passport to popularity with the British public, will, too, ensure for him a nearby reception over here, and, in fact, his play will be watched with more interest than that of many of the team. As a rule a long appren­ ticeship is necessary to the acquire­ ment of any exceptional skill as a cricketer. In the majority of cases, certainly of amateurs, the novitiate begins at a very early age, and, indeed, a cricketer is often at his best when he has not long passed out of his teens. Most of the Australian players who have visited this country have taken to the game in early boyhood. There have been, though, notable examples among them, where the cricketer has not, like the poet, been born, but made, and made, too, at a later period than is ordinarily the case. Mr. W. H. Cooper, the slow bowler, who came and saw, certainly without conquer­ ing, English cricket in 1884, suddenly, and it may be said by a sheer acci­ dent, developed an aptitude for the game at a comparatively, for a cricketer, advanced age. And though quite the same cannot be said of Mr. Mcllwraith, he did not give any foretaste of future excellence in the cricket field until he had long passed his majority. Though born at Mel­ bourne in 1857, it was only as recently asfour years ago,thathis “ fancy lightly turned to thoughts of ” cricket. At school he paid no attention to the game, and though he can claim to have been a member of the Melbourne Cricket Club since he was fifteen years of age, his connection with that body for a long period was an honorary rather than an active one. There are few examples,we should fancy, of such rapid pro­ motion in the ranks of crioketers. Even in his second year of 1883-84 he had already established for himself a reputation of no mean order. The season was a memorable one for him, and it was his good luck to be credited with a record, the highest aggregate made by a batsman in the Colonies, scoring over fifteen hundred runs for the Melbourne Club in all matches. His best score during 1883-84 was one of 198; but in addition he got into three figures on more than one occasion, and altogether he had the fine average of over fifty runs. His play during the following season of 1884-85 hardly fulfilled the expecta­ tions created in the previous year. He was one of the players chosen to practise for the Inter-colonial match against New SouthWales, but his services were not required on that occasion by the selector of the Victorian team. Though more fortunate in securing a repre­ sentation in theVictorian eleven which opposed the English professionals under the charge of Shaw and Shrewsbury, the wicket was not in favour of run getting, and going in ninth he was unable to claim more than four runs in his two attempts. Altogether he was less successful than in the preceding year, and while his average in allmatches was 38, in first- class fixtures he had to be content with one of 20.18 per innings. In the season recently brought to a close Mr. Mcllwraith again came very pro­ minently to the front. His batting throughout was, indeed, of exceptional brilliance, and whether for the Mel­ bourne Club, or in Inter-colonial matches hewas equally successful. His highest scorewas his143for Melbourne against their old rivals of East Mel­ bourne, but even this was surpassed by his achievements inmore important matches. His first appearance in an Inter-colonial for Viotoria last Boxing Day was a remarkable one. His score of 133 was a very fine display of bat­ ting, and only one possible mistake, a hard return to the bowler, when he had got 66, could be urged againsthim. Good as this performance was he more than confirmed the accuracy of the form by an equally fine display a week later for the Australian team against an eleven of Victoria. Scott, his present Captain, and he while they were together, increased the total by exactly 200 hundred runs, and again there was no actual chance in the attainment of his long score of 125. For the Melbourne Club against the Professionals he was credited with a dashing innings of 68, and this he followedup with 51 forVictoria against South Australia, and 39 for the Aus­ tralian team against a Combined Eleven, his two last appearances be­ fore his departure for England. Mr. Mcllwraith requires constant practice to keep up his form. He cannot, it is confidently expected, fail to make his mark on good hard grounds, while on the other hand, there is every reason to believe as he is young enough at the game he will be able to adapt himself to the sticky wickets often the rule in England. Mr. Mcllwraith is a powerful hitter, and when set is veryjdangerous, giving every one in the field plenty of work. He usually takes a posi­ tion in the out-field, and though considered a trifle slow will, doubtless, remedy this fault when he sees the necessity of being quicker on