Cricket 1888

“ Together jo ined in cricket’s m a n ly to il.”— Byron. R .gl8t« 8 d 1f o r V n ^ 8 i 7 i .I Abroaa. THURSDAY, JUNE 7, 1888. PRICE 2d. MR. JOHN WORRALL. tyn. John W o r r a ll, the only member of the Australian team now here whose face has not before been made familiar to CRiCKET-readers, though the latest iu our order of going-in, is by no means the last in point of merit as a cricketer. A s an all-round athlete, moreover, Mr. Worrall can boast a position with hardly, if any, rivals in Australia. Born at Maryborough on May 12, 1868, his life has been spent in the colony of Victoria. Educated at the State School at Maryborough, his aptitude for outdoor games soon brought him well to the front and secured for him the notice of those who had the management of the sports of the district. H e was selected to repre­ sent Maryborough on the cricket- field when he was only fourteen years of age, and right well did he acquit himself, scoring 41 in very promising style for a youngster. A year later he was deemed worthy of a place in the football team as well, so that by the time he was fifteen he had already secured a double first in local athletics. Re­ moval to Ballarat gave him better opportunities of distinction at both g ames, and during his stay there e made his mark as an all-round player of |no Jmean promise by securing the bowling trophy, in addition to scoring 67 runs against the first team taken by Shaw and Shrewsbury to Aus­ tralia. The Hon. Ivo Bligh and his comrades, too, found the Eighteen of Ballarat one of the most formid­ able combinations they had to meet during their visit to the Colonies in the winter of 1882, and Mr.Worrall, who made 52 out of the Eighteen’s total of 226, impressed the English bowlers not a little by his resolute batting on that occasion. In the following season he represented Victoria for the first time in an Intercolonial match, and he took E art a year later in the run-getting xture between Victoria and South Australia at Adelaide, when 1,307 runs were scored in the five days for thirty- six tickets. A second move to Melbourne brought him directly under the notice of the managers of Victorian cricket, and the excellent all round form he showed for the East Melbourne Club thoroughly justified the high estimate they had of his capacities. Just about thij time he was, in faot, quite in the I front rank of Victorian cricketers. In the inter-colonial matches of 1885 he was very successful, and, indeed, in representative matches generally he acquitted himself most creditably. In the Inter-colonial begun at Mel­ bourne on Dec. 26, 1885, his bowling was of great use in the second innings of New South Wales, and he had the satisfaction of taking the bowling trophy, delivering 118 balls for 26 runs and three wiokets. In a match for East Melbourne he took seven wickets at a cost of only one run, and his bowling was of the greatest assistance to that club, in whose bowling averages he came out first at the end of the campaign. During the last Australian season, he kept up his reputation as one of the most useful all round players in Victoria. His latest performance of any note was for Victoria against Mr. Vernon’s team at the end of their tour. He was not put' on in the first innings of the English­ men, and not until lato in the second.. His success at the finish of the English batting, though, was remarkable, and his analysis of 115 balls for 32 runs and five- wickets was one of the best performances of the match. His bowling on that occasion' must have been of a very high class, for the wicket, according to all accounts, was in rare run-getting order. Writing of this achievement, “ Felix,’* the cricket critic of the Australasian newspaper,commented in high praise. “ When the quality of the opposing batting is taken into account, and the further cir­ cumstance that Mr. W . W . Read was thoroughly set.and scoring fast when Worrall went on, the merit of the sturdy Johnian’s achieve­ ment stands out very conspicuously indeed. He kept a-good length on the off-side, and varied his pace with judgment.” Just about this time, fortunately for Mr. Worrall, those who had been collecting the Australian team for England had been disappointed of more than one cricketer who had been counted on, aud no doubt the impression created by the bowling feat just recorded had a very great influence in de­ termining Mr. Beal to invite him to accompany him to the old country. So far, although he has had few opportunities as a bowler, Mr. Worrall has been of no small service to the Australian team. The brunt of the bowling has, up to the present, been borne by Turner and Ferris, and as yet there has been no great need to test the real capacities of the changes. An ex­ cellent all round cricketer, though, Mr. Worrall will always be worth a place in the team. Possessed of a good eye, with plenty of strength, and never wanting in pluck, his hitting powers have already proved of no small use towards the end of the innings, when runs, too, were wanted. He bowls right-hand round-arm with an off- break, but his reputation as a bowler rests on his Australian performances, and he has yet to satisfy the English public of his ability in this department. As a field, he has few, if any, superiors, and he is generally and rightly regarded as the most brilliant, as well as fear­ less fieldsman in Australia. As a footballer,