Cricket 1894

JULY 12, 1694 m iQ K B R t k WEEXX tf EE COB© OF TH® ®AMMf 249 L overs of statistics can provide amusement for themselves if they wish, in finding out the rate of scoring for and against in each, case. To do this it will be neoes3ary to divide the number of runs made by or against each County by the number of overs and multiply by twenty-five, which represents about the average of overs bowled in an hour. To show how reliable these tables are to find out the true form of a County, if the bowling average is deduoted from the batting, the difference in favour of the bat represents the comparative strength of the different sides. It is a little curious that in placing the Counties according to this method, there is really no change in the positions of the four present leaders, and a very slight alteration in the relative positions of the other3. W ith all the outcry about the weakness of amateur bowling at the present time, it is a little singular that Messr3. Woods and Jackson should have been able to perform a feat at Lord's this week which has only three times before been recorded in the history of the oontest between Gentlemen and Players. Altogether on only four occasions have two bowlers been able to keep up their ends without a ohange during this most impor­ tant of matches. The four in­ stances are as follow :— 1853 L ord ’s —Sir F. Bathurst and M. K em pson (G entlem en) 1864 L o rd 's — W illsher and Tarrant (F layers) 1879 O val — A. G . Steel and A. H. E van s (G entlem en) 1894 L o rd ’s - F . S. Jackson and S. M. J. W ood s (G entlem en) T he Harrow eleven for the Eton match, which is to commence at Lord’s to morrow, contains five of those who took part in the same fixture last year—J. H. Bullocli, the captain, J. H. Stogdon, G. P Gore, C. D. Williams, and R. F. Vibart. J. A. Halliday, who re­ presented the School at Lord’s in 1893, resigned his place owing to his ill-suceess throughout the term in matches. The six new players are J. L. Fisher, J. Bradshaw, A. S. Crawley, A. Page, A. H. W. Bentinck, and F. Symes Thompson. Eton has also five old choices in G. Bromley-Martin, the cap­ tain, C. C. Pilkington, H. D. Kettle well, F. H. E. Cunliffe, and L. D. Gosling. The six remaining places will be filled up from the following B. Chinnery, a son of W. M., the o il long-distanoe runner, A. M Hollin3, R, W. Mitchell, A. W. F. Baird, T. D. Pilkington, F. B. Robertson, F. H. Lubbock, aud H. F. Mytton. L ockwood , the Surrey cricketer, has, I learn on the be3t authority, j ust been invited to aocompany Mr. Stoddart’s team to Aus­ tralia in the autumn. What is more, I am able to add, he has accepted the invita­ tion. C onsidering the amount of good work the Cricketers’ Fund Friendly Society has done, for years in the relief of players who have fallen on bad times, either daring their active career or afterwards, it is gratifying to find that the institution is financially in a healthy state. Not only has the balance in hand at the commencement of the year been increased from £574 to £730, but the society occupies, perhaps, a unique position among bodies of the kind in having no liabilities. As the in­ vestments, moreover, show £3,300 in Consoli­ dated Stock, and £1,800 in Mitropolitan R ail­ way Stock, the Cricketers’ Fund has at least a good nest egg for the future. Another feature in the balance sheet, which will give satisfao • tion to C ricket readers, is the increasing support given by the leading county clubs. M ost busy men find leisure to devote to pursuits of a useful or instructive character in some shape or form. The Surrey captain, it will interest his many admirers, is able to spare sufficient time from the severe business of county cricket, to indulge in photography Though, too, he ha3 not had a long innings in this particular game, it will be seen that Mr. Key has already scored well, as the reproduction of the Yorkshire eleven, which is his work, will prove. Amateur photography, indeed, is well represented in this number of C r ick et . The excellent snapshot of Brock­ well on the front page is the handiwork of another amateur craftsman, bearing appro­ priately enough the grand old cricket name of Grace. T he law makers of cricket, or in other words the Marylebone Club, decided on Tues­ day night to amend the rule relating to the follow-on in respect of three days’ matches to the extent that the side going in second shall follow their innings if they have scored 120 runs less than the opposite side. The alteration,whioh is not to become law till next season, doe3 not affect two days’ matches, for whioh the existing rule prescribing eighty runs as the limit for a follow-on still applies. Personally, I welcome the decision of the Special General Meeting at Lord’s on Tues­ day night, as this particular modification of the rule has been consistently advocated in C ricket as the most advisable concession to a strong expression of public opinion. At the same time, while acceptable as a compromise, it is something of a tentative measure,and I am myself not quite clear that it is a permanent solution of an undoubted difficulty. The revised version of rule 53 as recommended by the Committee of M.C.C., and carried unani­ mously on Tuesday, I may add is as follows: “ The side which goes in second shall follow their innings, if they have scored 120 runs less than the opposite side in a three days* match, or 80 runs in a two days’ match.” The rule as amended will be forwarded at once to the leading cricket authorities in Australia, so that it may oome into opera­ tion in the ordinary way with the commence' ment of the next season in October. A b el ’ s exclusion from the Players’ eleven this week will require a little better explana­ tion than anything the authorities at Lord’ s are likely to be able to give. The plea that his grand performance at the Oval last Thurs­ day and Friday came a little too late, that is, after the eleven had been practically chosen, in any case would not convinoe the most care­ less C ricket reader. A s a matter of faqt, though he had been a little out of luck since that fatal run out at the commencement of the match between Surrey and Middlesex, at L o rd ’ s, he was before then one cf the most successful batsmen o this yeai. In any case it would be of interest to learn on what possible line of argument those who were responsible for the selec­ tion of the Players could vin­ dicate the preference given to, say Albert Ward, or even to Chatter- tou, on this season’s form. B ut after all,as the result shewed, the loss was rather that of the Players th ai of any one else. In any case, Abel has the satisfaction o knowing that he won at the Oval the best record secured for the Players e gainst the Gentlemen in the matches at Lord’s and the Oval. Bis 16 i was outdone at Hastings in 1892 by Gunn, by one run, but against this Abel can point that he was not out. His performance last week was about as fine a display of watchful and consis­ tent batting as one could wish to see. The only exceptions that have been taken to it have been in two chances at the wicket,when he was about completing or had just completed his fifty. Still chanoes at the wicket are not always of the easiest, and in this instance they could hardly be called easy. It may be wort y of mention that this is the second occasion on which Abel has carried his bat through the innings in first-class cricket at the Oval during the present season. The first was in the match between Surrey and Middlesex on May 24. On that occasion he carried his bat through Surrey’s first innings for 136 out of a total of 300. T he rumour seems to have got about that Mr. G. J. Mordaunt,who has scored so heavily for Oxford University this season, is likely to assist Kent in tbe later matches of that county. My own information is that the report is incorrect. As a matter of fact, so far as my information goes, the Oxonian has not as yet, at all events, a qualification for Kent. P eil H u rst T unnicliffe W a in w rig h t M ou n sey H u n ter M r. A . S ellers L ord H a w k e (cap t.) F . S. Jackson B row n M oorhouse YORKSHIRE ELEVEN.