Cricket 1895

2 6 0 CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAMF. J uly 11 „ 1895. represented, good business on the part of Middlesex, for whom the Irish Baronet played a useful 53. Granted that Monday night’8 rain and Tuesday morning’s lain were all against scoring, yet Abel (43) and Walter Read (51) ought not to have been the solitary double-figure scorers, or Surrey’s first total have stopped at 151. Bye the bye, when did a county apply the closure when Surrey were being opposed ? A novel experience for them. But to no good result. That second venture—302 for 4 pickets—will stand out as the finest performance of the present year, one that no other County could have brought off. Abel (85) and Maurice Read (61), as in the Lord’s match, were much in evidence at the •start. It is getting monotonous to refer to Abel’s amazing success match after match on all descriptions of wicket., I do not hesitate to speak of him as the greatest batsman we have ever had for his inches. Hayward once more was useful, and Holland (56) and Brockwell (42) were both unconquered when the stumps were finally pulled up. The latter's success may have been the result of the rest he hud just taken, and his bowling was to the front in the second hands. 4 for 49. Richardson notched his first failure of the season, and it was as thorough as his previous successes— 5 wickets altogether for 212 runs ! The best bits of bowling were Hearne’s (7 for 61) and Maurice Read’s (3 for 25) Lohmann might have cut in very usefully on the slower wicket. What a reception he will have on Thursday. But whom to shelve for him and the ;younger Druce!? If I were the Surrey authorities I should think twice before disturbing their ranks for. the sake of the Cantab. They have never had much luck with their ’ Varsity recruits. Douglas, Streatfeild, Wells, and others never did any mighty deeds as county, players. Lohmann, on the other hand, if only the shadow cf his old self, will add considerably to Surrey’s all-round strength, whilst, should he btf asgood as ever, as we all sincerely hope, there will be no looking at Surrey. Sussex played up so gamely against Kent that I was in hopes they would extend, if not lick, Yorkshire. But they seem to. have a real genius for turning out surprises. Poor old Kent, still down on their luck ; hut wait until Mordaunt, Rashleigh, and that most reliable of batsmen on all descriptions of wickets, Patterson, lend a hand, and the corner will be turned. To lead on the first hands by 178, and then be ultimately beaten by 45, was hard lines indeed. Alec Hearne is establishing a reputation for balancing a first good score with a duck in the second ; he has done this in the last two matches. Mason’ s aggregate of 100 deserved to be on the winning side and Easby (41 and 31) gave further proof of being one of the most con­ sistent of our professional batsmen. How seldom he fails. Not so Marlow; after his many brilliant performances, the spectacles against Kent, and 6. and 8 against Yorkshire, will scarcely lift his average. Bean, the uncertain, came with a rush—33 and 89., whilst the Indian. Prince started perhaps the best -week he has had, as four innings of 30, 58, 59, and 74 prove. A shame that he was on the losing side in the second match, but nobody gave him the least help ; at any rate his share represents almost one-third of the double aggregate—367. But Tate bowled like a Trojan against Kent, witness six for 75, and five for 68, Bean (five for 27) keeping up the other end throughout Kent’s second hands. Kent are the only county now left out in the cold, seeing that Somersetshire, hitherto their companion in misfortune, have at last scored a point at the expense of Hamp­ shire. Sam Woods’ match, and no mistake ! His bat yielded ,96 runs, whilst his right arm dismissed ten-batsmen. He, like Abel, Ward, Prince Ranjy, and. many others, will have.cause to remember the first halfof 1805. Congratulations galore to the last-named on his reaching four figures. It is simply won­ derful, when we remember that our honoured guest has by sheer perseverance played him­ self into, the front ranks in the course of three or four years only. Were Australia over here now, I should suggest tjiat he be.chosen for England. I am hugely delighted with the Player’s team at Lord’s to-day. Of course both the fast bowlers are chosen, as I predicted. So are Attewell and Davidson, although at the beginning of the season the former’s name would never have been hinted by his warmest admirers. Sugg is the one doubtful quantity, but as he represents tjhe dashing.school, there’s no harm in playing one of that kidney. I sometimes havethought that the most scrupulous care in choosing a team may be wasted honour as well as time. What a fuss the University captains make of this responsibility, and. does it always pay ? Here’s W.G. the second honoured with his “ blue ” only at the last moment, and perhaps as much out of consideration for his father as anything else. I said, ‘ ‘ .Play him,” a week ago : they did, and there was only one more successful batsman among the Cantabs. Npw suppose I, or any other, scribbler had said beforehand, “ Warner, Fry, and Mordaunt aren’t worth naming by the side of Raikes, Smith and Foster,” what a chorus of howls would have been raised, I should not have had the face to appear again before my cricket constituents. *‘ And don’t play the younger Druce.” My pot hat could not have been worn again. And Cambridge won, for once again‘ ‘ the race was not to the swift, nor the-battle;to the strong.” Yet the finest individual batting came from the other p irty. Gower (73) and Smith (50 not out) in the first hands just saved Oxford from complete annihilation : and Foster’s second—121 runs, made up of a score of boundaries, and thumped, up in a couple of hours—made an undeniably big hole in the aggregate of 196. A miserable effort. Cambridge won by 134, and so are four matches in advance. It is pleasant to old fogies like myself, who venture to think there was some good cricket played thirty or forty, or even more years, ago, that Yardley’s double century in this annual match still stands out unique. I wish the modern ’ Varsity man had seen him and Mitchell bat. There was genius and no funk. One of, my clearest and sunniest recollections is the eve of the great struggle some thirty years since. Mitchell came out in the cool of the evening for a little practice, and poor Jemmy Grundy and Wootton accompanied him. I forget what was on the stumps, but I know that after two or three minutes Mitchell batted with one haud only, and I can distinctly hear at this distance the thump of the ball time after time as it cannoned against the hideous, temporary stand put up for the morrow’s match. Yes, there were great men before Agamemnon. Bravo, Warwickshire ! Who would have anticipated that you would “ bump ” Lanca­ shire ? And so completely. l\ut Ward and Mold were passengers in the first half of the match, and when they did play up it was too late. Mold’s five wickets for five runs on Friday last should have come much earlier, for Warwickshire had notched close on 200 runs already. Ward’s 77 was the only “ talent-money ” effort on his side; but for Warwickshire both the Quuifes and Lilley (the elder .C&jaife being at his best each time) went home with that coveted coin in their possession, unless of course they had left some of it at the refreshment counter. Whitehead and Mold just tied for bowling honours, each in one innings taking the same number of wickets and at precisely the same cost—8 for 64. As the delightful ground at Liverpool has generally' brougfit good luck to the Red Rose, we may conclude that the Midlanders on this occasion Were indebted for their triumph to infinitely better cricket. Yorkshire’s victories over EsSex and Sussex need not detain us ; I would simply say here that Tunnicliffe’s recent successes with the bat are a splendid foil to Brownes failures.* I think the former might have got his cap in the Players’ team, but no one complains that the latter’s naime is left out. Yet two months, ago Brown would have been unanimously chosen for England. But he will come again. P.S.—What sort of representative teams will appear at the Oval match ? Many of the counties are engaged ; will they be willing to let off any pro.’s that may be wanted? Amateur^, of course, take “ French leave.” Let’s hope that W.G. will desert Gloucester­ shire for once, and that the Middlesex amateurs will not again fight shy of the Surrey ground. If we can’t get the best elevenstogether inthis greatest of all matches, then I for one would say, “ Drop it.” But I should sorrow in secret over such a decision. a t S U T T O N (2) v. S T . S W I T H I N ’S.— Pla; C a tfo rd B rid g e on Ju n e 29. 1 V S u tto n (2). S. J . Tem pleton,b L .W a ll 0 n o to u t... .... .... 1 J . P . N elson, bL . W a ll ... 0 c Silverth orn e, b H u n t ... ,;t, 21 E . C. Stew ard, c G reen h ill, b H u n t ........................ 5 b G reen h ill... H . H yslop , b L . W a ll ... 10.c D ent,.b G reen­ h ill ..................... W . D a lz e ll, c H u n t, b L . W a ll ................................ 5 b L . W a ll ... ;.. G. R . Blades, run o u t .S. 40 • C . W ood, b H u n t ... 3 . cS ilverthorne, b . - W a ll. .... ......... J . W . M a rty r,b L .W a ll... 0 c ' K irch n e r, b B a rra tt ... ... V „ R. Brom age, c G ree n h ill, f , b H u n t ................... ... 5 p K irch n e r, b X>. W a ll.................... 9 F . C ollin s, h ot out .... ... 4 b L . W a ll .........10 W . G. Poole, c L . W a ll, b H u n t ... ... ... ...... 0 lbw , b B a rra tt .. 7 E x tra s ...................16 E x tra s ... ... 18- Total... T o ta l (9 w kts) 75 L.- W a ll, b H yslop F . W . B arra tt, c Stew ard, bTem pieton 4 J.JE L H u n t, c Blades, b Tem pleton ... ... 0 G. W a ll, b H yslop ... 25 W .G reenh ill.bS tew ard 16 S. Silverthorne, b Tem nleton ........... 8 L . DenF, b H yslop ... 0 S t . S w ith in ’ s J: H . D im sdale, c Poole, b H yslo p s...•.. 0 D r. S. E . B a rra tt, b H yslo p .......... ... 15 J.K irch n e r. c Steward, b H yslo p ... .......... O G . C. Breese, n ot out 0 E x tra s ........... 6 T o ta l 78- D U L W I C H v. B A T T E R S E A .— Played a t Battersea on Ju n e 29. D u lw ich . T. R . Pearse, b C am - r o u x ........................... 7 E . J . H easm an, c S u d ­ den, b W h ite ... ... 8 E . H . Heasm an, b C a m ro u x ................... 1 C. P . Tregellas, ru n out .................. ... 15 H .Thom pson,cStevens, b W h ite .................. 7 T. C. Stafford, b Cam ­ ro u x ........................... 5 T . S. Tregellas, c B en­ ton, b C am rou x ... 12 O .Jones, b Cam roux... 6 F .C .B r i erley,cStevens, b C am rou x ........... 5 F .H u n tle y , b B u tle r .. 9- R . E . M ayo, not out... 0 B 5, lb 1, nb 1 ... 7 T o ta l 82 B a tt e r se a . H . Carver, b T . S. Tregellas.................... 4 C. H . Stevens, c B rie r­ ley, b P e a r s e ........... 1 H . A . W h ite , c Jones, b T . S. Tregellas ... 5 A . J . S. W ilso n , c E . J. H easm an, b. T . S. Tregellas ... ' ........... 4 R ev. J. F , Sugden, b P e a rs e ....................... 7 W . D .B enton, ru n ou t 20 A . E . Broom , b Pearse 17 H . C. H aldane, c Stafford, b T . S. T re g e lla s .................. 8 W . M . H e lle r, b T. S. T re g e lla s .................. 0 H . G. B u tle r, n otout... 14 G . F . M . Cam roux, b T . S. Tregellas ... 7 B 6, lb 2 ... 8 Total 95