Cricket 1886

JAN. 28, 1886. CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 7 from October to March. Many begin to practise in September, some continue to in­ dulge in their favourite pastime in April, but Boxing Day and New Year’s Day are the twin :zeniths of the season, reserved for intercolonial .or international matches. If anything, per­ haps cricket flourishes more before Christmas than after. After Christmastide one feels that one has passed the climax, and before Christ­ mas the weather is cooler. After Christmas everyone who oan afford it goes out of Mel­ bourne until March to avoid the hot wind season. But first-class cricket, depending little on the wealthy classes for its support in Australia, does not suffer as one might have expected from the exodus. Perhaps it is as fair to expect greater pro­ ficiency in cricket in Australia as it is fair to expeot greater proficiency in skating in England. Australians certainly can get more practice, so far as weather is concerned, and Melbourne, unlike London, has easily accessi­ ble oricket grounds in every quarter. There Are three first-class grounds within a few minutes’ walk from Collins-street. As soon as fb man’s work is over, a walk of a m ile will take him to his cricket ground. Everybody, therefore, has the opportunity of playing cricket, and the grounds have pienty of mem­ bers to support them. And this, to digress, recalls another feature of Australian cricket— its centralisation. I don’t fancy that any Australian eleven that has come to England ever included any man who had not played in one or other metro­ politan club. Sandhurst has a cricketer or two ; Ballarat had a cricketer or two, who mi­ grated to Melbourne in despair of ever doing anything for themselves until they were under the cegis of some metropolitan club; Allan, engrossed in serving his country (as a well- paid civil service official), vegetates at War- nambool; but with these exceptions Melbourne cricket is tantamount to Victorian cricket. And the same remarks apply to Sydney, though Spofforth was for a while on a station, and Murdoch professes now to be a solicitor at a town on the line to Melbourne with the eupho­ nious name of Cootamundra. Evans—always held out to England as a sort of “ Boojum Snark,” who may come home and squelch the British lion some day—is at present out of practice somewhere up the country. It is a fact well known in Melbourne, a sort of Masonic secret never committed to paper, that it is running a risk of the world coming to an end to give anyone a place in the Vic­ torian eleven who is not a member of one of the three clubs—the Melbourne, the East Mel­ bourne, or the South Melbourne. Occasion­ ally destiny is defied, and a player from the Richmond Club, or even Carlton, given a soli­ tary trial; but remorse always intervenes, and then selection is again confined to the charmed circle. The change of air from Carlton to South Melbourne so invigorated Walters that he became a cricketer of the first water at once; a,nd Stokes and Turner are Imperilling their chances of ever coming to the front by continuing in the ohill outside air of Richmond. (The writer is a member of the Melbourne Club only, so personal bias is absent). Now we come to a disadvantage against which Victorian cricket has to contend—a dual control. The control nominally, and to a considerable extent really, belongs to the Victorian Cricket Association. But the Victorian Cricket Association is a comparative pauper, without house or home, and the Mel­ bourne Cricket Club has wealth, a charming residence, and numerous supporters. Pos­ sessed of the best ground, the best buildings, the best income, and the best situation, it is the natural arena for all great oricket matches, It alone has the capital to guarantee expenses to teams from England. It alone can give them the requisite accommodation when they come. Nearly all well-known cricketers belong to it as well as their own club. Its affairs are prudently managed, and the public very well cared for. Here, then, is a hated rival, upon whom a joint voice in the affairs of Victorian cricket is forced, however unambitious it may be of the honour. There have been times when the V.C.A. has looked upon the Melbourne Cricket Club in the same friendly kind of way as a caucus of Irish patriots in the United States regards a great English nobleman who buys a large estate in their neighbourhood. The Association once, at any rate, deliberately suspended one of their own rules to give an appeal against the Melbourne Club—a proceeding which resulted in their ridiculous confusion, by the triumphant strength of the club in cricket saving any possibility of the second defeat requisite to put the club out o the competition for the Maclean Cup. When the V.C.A. found that Melbourne was almost certain to win the cup in any case, they stultified themselves again by annulling their former illegal action. Fortunately the Melbourne Club has been very sensible and forbearing, so the threatened breach between it and the V.C.A., which the V.C.A. richly deserved, was averted, and with it the disaster which threatened Victorian cricket. It will be a good thing for Melbourne cricket if challenge cup matches are abolished and the V.C.A. amalgamated with the Melbourne Cricket Club, thus making it an M.C.C. in more than a name. This might induce its first-class cricketers to join other clubs for club matches, and lead to a resuscitation of the Richmond, St. Kilda, Kew, <fcc., Clubs into so many first-class nurseries of cricket. Finally, if an}rone who has never left Eng­ land wishes to form an idea of Australian cricket as it exists in Australia, he must re­ member in forming it that in Australia cricket is essentially a town game, the various senior clubs in the metropolis taking the places of Notts, Yorkshire, Kent, Surrey, and other first class counties. Secondly, that we have nothing exactly like the Maryiebone Club in Melbourne. Our M.C.C. ground certainly corresponds to Lord’s, but the nearest approach to the Marylebone executive as a central authority is in the Victorian Cricket Association. The Surrey Club is a closer parallel to the Melbourne C.C. than the Marylebone Club. Thirdly, that our Australian elevens are not drawn from the same class as most of the pro­ minent English amateurs, nor from the ground bowlers, who almost arrogate the title of “ Professional” in England. The only two members hitherto furnished by Australian society to Australian Elevens have been Moule and Massie. With very few exceptions men of wealth and position in Melbourne have been utterly out-distanced, as cricketers, by the lower middle class. The Australian elevens generally oonsist of clerks in the Civil Servioe, in banks or in offices, and shopkeepers. Tha former can get away from their work by four o’clock, and the latter are generally owners of shops, and consequently their own masters. The reason why they excel is because they take more pains with the game. Many of the jeunesse doree are away on their “ stations ”—Australians are very seldom men of leisure—and such as hang about Melbourne are devoted to tennis, the fine old English game, even more than lawn- tennis. Professionals, in the sense of ground bowlers, are not a score in number altogether. The Melbourne Club has about half-a-dozen, and all the other clubs between them not double that number. Owing to everyone taking his turn of bowling and fielding at the nets, the ground-bowler is an exotic that does not flourish, though at the Melbourne Club, at fixed times, those who would rather hire bowlers than take their ten minutes in turn can have the club bowlers at 3s. an hour. These wealthier cricketers, such of them as can by their social status secure election to the club, generally play with the Bohemians— a kind of colonial I Zingari, who have no ground of their own, but play out-matches only, and take one or two tours, of a week or more, every year, visiting provincial towns or other colonies, and very much feted with balls and banquets and the like upon these occasions, which, for good company, good fun, and cor­ dial cricket, are hard to beat. D. B. W. S. PENGE CLUB. BATTING AVERAGES. Matches played, 21; won, 10; drawn, 5; lost, 9. (Six innings and over). Times Most in Inns, not put. Runs, an Inns. Aver. W. xr. Cook ... 11 ... 0 ... 22 1 . .. 60 ... 20.7 J. Brazier ... 6 ... 1 . .. 86 ... 26* ... 17.1 E. R. Shillefco 9 ... 2 ... 101 ... 35* ... 15.1 C. H. Barber 8 . ... 1 ... 90 ... 25 ... 12.6 H. B. Smith... 7 ... 1 . . . 87 ... 24* ... 14.3 W. H. Lunnon 13 ... 0 ... 148 ... 36 ... 11.5 W. Barchard 11 ... 3 ... 65 ... 21 ... 8.1 H. W. Dillon 20 ,... 3 ... 116 ... 29 ... 6.14 E. B. Layman 12 . ... 0 ... 82 ... 35 ... 6.10 W. A. Brixton 18 ... 0 ... 107 ... 21 ... 5.17 C. M. Hilder 13 ... 3 ... 49 ... 10* ... 4.9 W. F. Umney 10 ... 0 . .. 42 ... 14 ... 4.2 L. Johnstone 12 ... 1 ... 43 ... 8 ... 3.8 J. H. Stallard G ... 2 ... 13 . 4 ... 3.1 C. G. K nott... 7 ... 2 ... 16 ... 5 ... 3.1 C. Ovenden ... 8 ... 1 ... 17 ... 8 ... 2.3 F. Oldham ... 11 ... 1 ... 14 ... 7 ... 1.4 * Signifies not out. BOWLING AVERAGES. (Over 100 balls). Balls Runs Wkts. Aver. E. B. Layman ... ... 108 ... 46 ... 11 ... 4.1 F. Oldham .......... ... 844 .,.. 310 ... 68 ... 4.5 W. F. Umney ... 280 ... 76 ... 15 ... 5.07 W. H. Lunnon ... ... 502 ... 201 ... 25 ... 8.4 L. Johnstone ... 575 ... 205 ... 21 ... 8.5 W. F. Cook ......... ... 700 ... 282 ... 30 ... 9.4 J. Walton .......... ... 115 ... 47 ... 3 ... 15.6 H. B. S m ith .......... ... 120 ,... 66 ... 3 ... 22 OXFORD UNIVERSITY F ixtu res for 1886. May 13—Oxford, Seniors’ Match. May 17—Oxford, Freshmen’s Match. May 20—Oxford, Eleven v. Sixteen Freshmen. May 24—Oxford, Eleven v. Next Fourteen of Univ­ ersity. May 27—Oxford, Australians v. Oxford University. June 3—Oxford, Oxford University v. Gents of England. June 10—Oxford, Oxford University v. Lancashire. June 17—Oxford, Perambulators v. Etceteras. June 21—Oxford, Oxford University v. M.C.C. & G. June 28 —Manchester, Oxford University v. Lan­ cashire. July 1—Lord’s, M.C.C. v. Oxford University. July 5—Lord’s, Oxford v. Cambridge. All three day matches except that v. M.C.C. and (j., at Lord’s, which is a two day match. A ssociated C ricket C hallenge C up .—T he fourth annual general meeting of this association was held at the K ing’s Arm s, Tottenham Court-road, on Jan. 5. The Association is com posed of the cricket clubs belonging to the large retail houses in the drapery and furnishing firms of London, a follow s:—Messrs. John Barker and Co., Debenham and Freebody, Gainsford and Co., F. Gorringe, Hailing, Pearce, and Stone, Maple and Co., Marshall and Snelgrove, Shoolbred and Co., Spencer, Turner, and Boldero, Swan and Edgar, Tarn and Co., W allis and Co., &c. Mr. Morrison, of the Clarence C.C., was voted in the chair. Mr. M orrison was re-elected chairman, and Mr. Turner, of the B orough Alliance C.C., rc- elected secretary and treasurer. The draw for the order of playing for the challenge cup then took place, the follow ing dates being agreed t o :— First ties, May 22; second ties, June 19; third ties, July 3 ; final tie, July 17. Draw.— U nity v. Kensington, Clarence v. Commerce House, Grove House v. W aterloo, Borough Albion v. Tottenham House, V ictoria v. Kildare, H olborn Circus v. Cavendish; West E nd a bye. The first club in each cas^e have choice of ground. Next Issue February 25.