Cricket 1886

N o 118. VOL. V. Registered for Transmission Abroad. THURSDAY, MAY 20, 1886. PR ICE 2d. W A L T E R R A L E IG H G IL B E R T . T hough a Londoner by birth, and first associ­ ated with Middlesex cricket, W. B,. Gilbert’s name has been, ap C ricket readers know, linked wi,th the shire of the Graces. It would have •been strange had it been otherwise, considering his. relationship with the celebrated brother­ hood of which Dr. W. G. is the bright particular star. A cousin of the Graces,-W; R. Gilbert was born, as already stated, in London, on Sept. 16, .1853. His first appearance in a fixture of any importance was in the early part of 1873, at Prince’s, when he formed one of the sixteen Colts under the leadership of Mr. P. M. Thornton. Though only moder­ ately successful with the bat, his cricket generally seems to have given satisfaction to Mr. I. D. Walker, the Middlesex captain, and the opening match of the season saw him installed as one of the County eleyen. A trial against such a team as that of Yorkshire was rather a stiff test for a young cricketer, but he acquittedhimself creditably, making nineteen in promising form. The Middlesex programme at that time was only of modest pretentions, and his chances were, consequently, not numerous. Still, he proved his capabilities beyond a doubt, and in the two matches with Surrey in particular, did good service, scoring in the three innings he had an aggregate of 108 runs. His play, indeed, for a first season, must nave been considerably above the average for Mr. W. G. Grace to select him as one of the team to accompany him to Australia at the end of the summer. Though no great scores were attached to his name during this Australian tour in the winter of 1873, the experience gained was naturally of considerable value. Mr. W. G. Grace’s influence, too, materially assisted his advance­ ment, and since that time he has played a by no means unimportant part in the world of cricket. The season of 1874 saw him still in the Middlesex team, but he was not particularly successful, being credited with an aggregate of 125 runs for nine completed innings. That year, though, witnessed a great advance in his position as a cricketer. He represented the Gentlemen of the South against the Players of the North at Prince’s, and also the Gentlemen against the Players later in the week, on the same ground, though it must be added that in neither case was the Amateur Eleven fully representative. Though his connection with Middlesex ceased with the close of 1874, he was only one season absent from County Cricket. Qualifying by residence at Downend, he had established his right to play for Gloucestershire by the commencement of the summer of 188(5. His introduction to Gloucestershire cricket, too, was a success, for his first innings in a great measure contributed to the easy victory of the County. His .debut was against Surrey at the Oval, and Mr. Townsend and he suc­ ceeded in raising the score from 34 for two, to 188 for three wickets, contributing himself 86 to the Gloucestershire total of 301: The value of his services to Gloucestershire was fully proved at the very outset of his connection with the County, and Mr. W. G. Grace has found him to be one of his most reliable supporters ever since. The season'of 1876 saw his reputation firmly established, and several of his innings were especially note­ worthy. He began the year in brilliant form— for an England Eleven against Cambridge University. ’> In this match he was at the wickets on a part of each of the three days, and he carried his bat through the innings for 205 in a total o f. 383. ForKent and Gloucestershire against England in the Canterbury week, too, he was in remarkable form, and on this occasion he was nearly five hours at the wickets, scoring 143 of a total of 329 got from the bat by the combined counties in their first innings. Space will not admit of an enumeration of his many good per­ formances during the last ten years. As an all-round cricketer he has always enjoyed a deservedly high reputation. His form of last year too, proved conclusively that his capacities as a batsman had not diminished in any way. On the contrary, several of his performances were of a distinctly high class. The opening match of the Gloucestershire season was as usual against Surrey, and it was in a very great measur e due to the stand of Messrs. Brain and Gilbert, whu made 82 before a wicket fell at the commencement of the second innings, that the Glouces­ tershire eleven were able to claim a hard earned victory with only two wickets to spare. A month later at Gloucester a still more notable feat was credited to him. Messrs. W. G. Grace, Townsend, and Gilbert were, indeed, the only batsmen who could make any show against the fine bowling of Yorkshire, Mr. Gilbert, though, quite outdid the achievements of the other two crick­ eters named, and his second innings, which extended over four hours, was a remarkably fine display of batting. During the remainder of the season he rarely failed to score well. His best record, though, was in the return match with Lancashire, at Clifton, in the middle of August. Oddly enough one batsman on each side carried his bat throilgh the innings^ Barlow was *credited with this feat for Lancashire in the first innings, and “ Together joined in cricket’s manly toil.”— Byron.