Cricket 1888

M AY 17,1888. ORICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 141 MARYLEBONE CLUB AND GROUND v. KENT. Some fairly good cricket was the out­ come of this match, played at Lord’s on Mon­ day and Tuesday last. The Marylebone Club was represented by a good all-round eleven, but Kent, as the names of its representatives •will show, might easily have been strengthened. In addition to several prominent amateurs, Alec Hearne, owing to an injury to his arm, was also absent, though a valuable substitute was found in "Walter Wright, the Nottingham professional, who played for the first time for Kent under the residential qualification, and is likely to be a very useful addition to the County team. The chief feature of the low scoring which marked the first day’s play was the excellent performance of the Middlesex captain, Mr. A. J. Webbe. Going in first he was not out at the clos# of the innings, which lasted just under two hours, scoring 37 of the 69 got from th© bat, and as far as we could see without an actual chance. The batting in the second hands showed a great improve­ ment, and the play all round was much more interesting. Nine batsmen in the second innings of Kent got into doubles, and the highest scorer proved to be the fast bowler— Mr. Stanley Christopherson, who hit with great vigour for his thirty. When they went in a second time on Tuesday M.C.C. wanted 173 to win, and Messrs. Grace and Webbe made 82 of these before the former, who was the highest scorer of the match, was caught. Mr. T. C. O’Brien, who was absent in the first innings, was bowled for seven, and just as luncheon hour arrived, Mr. Webbe was run out, having again played well for his runs. Thanks to some good cricket, however, by Mr. Wynyard, and later on to some free hitting by Mr. Wright, the runs were got, leaving M.C.C. the winners by five wickets. In the first innings of M.C.C. Wootton got four wickets for seventeen runs, and Walter W right five for fortv. The latter, in addition, showed capital cricket for his second score of 28. Davidson’s bowling in the first innings of Kent also deserves notice. K ent . First Innings. Mr. F. M. Atkins, c Rob­ ertson, b Burton ......... 6 F. Hearne, b Davidson ... 12 G. G. Hearne, c Chatter­ ton, b Burton............... 9 Mr. L. Wilson, run out ... 2 W. 2Wright, b |David­ son ............................. 5 Mr J. N. Tonge, b David­ son ............................ 1 Mr.A.M.Streatfeild-Moore, b Davidson ............... 0 Mr. S. Christopherson, b Davidson ... ............... 4 Wootton, not out .........12 Martin,cO’Brien, DDavid­ son ..............................10 Pentecost, c O’Brien, b Burton ...................... 0 Total ............... M.C C. First Innings. Mr. W. G. Grace, b Woot­ ton ........................... Mr. A. J. Webbe, not out Mr. E. G. Wynyard, b Wright ..................... Chatterton, b Wright Mr. T. C. O’Brien, absent Mr. C. W. Wright, bWoot- ton ............................ "W. Hearn, 1b w, b Woot­ ton ............................ Davidson, b Wootton ... Mr.J. Robertson, b Wright Burton, cWilson, bWright Mr. F. T. Welman, c F. Hearne, b W right......... 0 B 11, lb 2 ................. 13 Total ..................82 Second Innings. c Webbe, b Bur­ ton ...............13 b Davidson ... 11 b Roberts< n ... 24 b Robertson ... 19 c Wright,bChat- terton .........28 b Grace .........16 b Grace .........14 c Burton, b Rob­ ertson .........30 c Wright, b Bur­ ton ............... 2 not out .........21 bChatterton ... 5 B 5, lb 5 ... lu 61 Total ...193 & G. Second InningF. 14 c Tonge, bWoot­ ton ...............39 37 run out .........31 0 b Christopher- 27 s o u ............... 2 c Tonge,b Woot­ ton 0 b Wright 0 not out 0 not out 6 0 10 B Total ... 36 ... 17 ... 13 ...173 BOWLING ANALYSIS. K e n t . Firs* Innings. O. M. R. W. Burton ... 24 10 34 3 Davidson ... 23 First Innings. O. M. R. W Christopher­ son .........11 6 12 Wright ... 31.114 40 Wootton ... 21 11 17 Second O. ... ... 32 27 6 ......... 25 Grace........ 21 Robertson... 24 Chatterton . 6 M.C.C. & G. Second O. Innings. M. K. W. 14 52 2 8 60 1 8 27 2 11 i'6 3 3 8 2 Innings. M. R. W. 0 5 4 Tonge Martin Wilson ... 11 ... 38 ... 37 ... 13 ... 11 ... 1 23 54 18 52 2 5 20 6 .3 0 “ CHRONICLES OF CRICKET .” * Under the above title the publishers have simply reproduced verbatim in a very neat volume at the reasonable price of 3/6, three most valuable opuscuia of the past, any one of which could only be picked up now and then at a very long price; they are “ Nyren’s Cricketer’s Guide,” “ Lillywhite’s (the original old bowler) Illustrated Handbook of Cricket, 1844,” which contains portraits of W. Lilly- white, Fuller Pilch, Box, and Cobbett; and “ W . Denison’s Sketches of the Players,” 1816. “ Nyren’s Cricketer’s Guide,” which is a record of the precepts and doings of the Old Hambledon Club, contains a drawing of Lord’s Ground in the year 1832, and of the rustic pavilion which was built after the fire in 1825, and the front of that pavilion was the only boundary which was recognised when I first knew the ground in 1841, at which period it was simply a large enclosed field; a rustic tavern with bow windows and a row of small trees in front on the site of the present tavern, and the tennis-court with the bat shops behind being the only buildings; and all hits except against the pavilion railings had to be run out. In front of the pavilion was a long form which, by common consent, was always occupied by old cricketers and judges of the game. Nyren’s “ Cricketer” was—not speaking profanely—the “ cricketer’s bible ” when I was at school, and a copy was always kept with the hereditary cricket paraphernalia, which descended to captains in succession; and, making allowances for a few old-fashioned ideas which belonged to patriarchal times, modern cricketers will do well to learn the book by heart, barring the last paragraph but one on page 101, and we must hope that the soul of the man who penned it is out of pur­ gatory by this time, for the doctrine is the doctrine of “ roping for a draw,” which is the curse of modern cricket sometimes, but, for- tnnately for us, very rarely practised, as the custom is odious. The entire tone of Nyren’s book is, to a cricketer, as wholesome as “ Izaak Walton’s Angler ” is to a fisherman, being written by one of the old Hambledon Club, whose very soul was in the grand old game. Let those who say that they can’t play a break-back—tantamount jto left-handed round-armed bowling without a pad to a right- handed man—read what Nyren says, “ How a batsman should take his stand at the wicket,” pp. 17, 18; and let him remember that the same principles held good after round-arm bowling came in. In fact, let him learn the book by heart—rejecting the paragraph one from end p. 101, as }ptlus the admirable precepts of fair play, the writing in many parts is graphic and spirit stirring. Now for old Lillywhite’s book. Let the reader study Law X X V . (as it stood in 1814) on l bw, p. 15, and remember that practically that law was observed until within the last- ten or twelve years, although the wording had been altered, as it now stands with the fatal words “ from it to the wicket.” “ Old Lilly 's ” book is “ only a little one,” like the wet nurse's historical “ love child” in “ Midshipman Easy;” and is mostly valuable for the bowling * [Swan, Sonnenschein and Co., Paternoster Square, E.C.J hints. Remember the advice to wicket­ keepers, p. 29—“ As the umpire and not your­ self must give a man out, it is best to get his decision before you toss up the ball as a signal ef success.” W . Denison’s sketches of thirty-six players —amateur and professional—of whom he writes, has the advantage of being true (as I can testify from having seen most of them play constantly). The author commenced his cricket in 1820, and was the pioneer of daily cricket reporting, having been a Parlia­ mentary reporter in the Gallery of the House of Commons, and having had the command of some of the morning papers. Denison followed cricket as much as he could for health, and he played a great deal in the South of London, and was much in the company of the best cricketers, and knew the game. He was not so good a cricketer as he thought himself, perhaps, and the charge of egotism and conceit may apply to some of us as much as sOme Said it did to h im ; but he was thoroughly loyal and “ true to the flag.” Denison had a great hand in restoring Surrey County in 1845, when the Oval was taken. There may be more than four of those of whom he writes alive, but I know that most of them are dead. Anyhow, I know four now alive, and have seen them all in good health within the last two years— namely, F. P. Fenner, formerly of Cambridge, one of the very best all-round men we ever had, who keeps a fine hotel, the “ White Lion,” at Bath, a grand handsome well set up man, cetat 77; old Tom Sewell of Mitcham, now of Seven­ oaks, cetat 82, formerly a good “ general utility ” cricketer, known at Lord’s, where he wras on the ground very many years, as “ busy Tom,” whom I saw hale and hearty at Lord’s last year; and T( m Adams, of Kent, an every­ day wear-and-tear cricketer in the grand old Kent eleven, a hard hitter, good change bowler, and as fine a long-field as Gunn, now about seventy-three, whom, if I was a betting man, I should like now to back him to walk as far and shoot as much game as most men fifteen years younger than himself. Martingell also I saw in 1887. I picked up my “ Nyren ” over twenty years ago at an old bookstall out of a box marked “ all these books at 3d. each,” and a long time afterwards I publicly offered ore rotundo at the Pavilion at the Oval ten guineas for a copy for an old schoolfellow in Devonshire, who has a priceless sporting library, but without effect; and some year or two after my offer was made some gentleman at Gravesend, whose name—Heaven forgive my base ingratitude !— I cannot remember, picked one up at »n old bookstall at Chatham for fifteen pence, and wrote me a very handsome letter with it as a f resent, saying that he was an old pupil of elix’s, and, knowing my worship of Felix’s memory, he was delighted to give to me as one of the admirers of his old master, a book for which he heard me offer ten guineas. I have no interest in the book or its sale, but I should say to all real cricketers—even if the book had been published by old Nick instead of Swan Sonnenschein and Co.—read, mark, and inwardly digest “ Nyren’s Cricketers’ Guide,” and the book will make you better men, no matter how good you may be. F.G. STOICS v. BRUCE CASTLE SCHOOL. Played at Tottenham on May 12. S t o ic s . S. D. Fairles3, b Richards...............18 J. W. H. Vivian, b Richards............... 5 B. Rennie, h w, b Sharps .............. 23 O. R. Borradaile, c G, Richards, h George 16 E C. E. S. Cockburn, c Morgan, b Sharps 85 E. C. Spencer-Stan- hope, b George ... 4 B r u c e C a s t l e S c h o o l - Cockburn, 6, 11. Bard man Total, 8. . f\. Hentsch, b Ri hards............... 7 . F. Kcnnett, b Richards ......... 4 . W. Baines, not out ..................... 31 Fisher, b Richards 49 . S. Weeks, aosent 0 Extras............... 7 Total ...219 -G. Morgan scored, b (not out) 1; b 1.—