Cricket 1895

306 CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. A* g . 1, lb95. club he scored 62not out and 33, and for Lincoln Lindum he made 90, v. Yorkshire Gentlemen. In the end he scored 1,676 for thirty-one com­ pleted innings, a fine average of 54*2. During the winter of 1885 Paul was away from Nott­ ingham, and thus lost his chance of a trial in the Notts County team, for which he would in the season of 1886 have become qualified by residence. A great deal of his cricket this year was played in Lancashire, but he scored well in many engagements, for example, 197 (not out) for Notts Castle against Nelson, 68 (not out) for Gentlemen of Notts v. Harrow Wanderers, 48 for an England team again* t Eighteen of North of Ireland at his birthplace, and 32 v. a Lancashire county team. For the Nelson Club, against whom he had made his big score, he played against Bingley, making 50, and this led up to his forsaking the occupation of a civil engineer, for which he had been in training since leaving school, and adopting the occupation of a professional cricketer, by signing an engagement to assist the Nelson Club in 1887. Meanwhile he had been playing football for Swinton, and haa become known throughout Lancashire as a safe and occasionally brilliant full-back. In 1887 his cricket record was of a consistent character, although he did not make so many runs as in previous seasons, still he had an average of 35*16 for 23 innings, and in addition captured 35 wickets for 13 runs each. In 1888 he was absent from England for the whole season, having gone to Australia with Shaw and Shrewsbury's football combination (which it will be remembered in the Clowes case, first brought forward prominently the vexed question of professionalism in Rugby football). Paul’s physique just fitted him for such a tour, and as he is a Lancashire county player, both as full-back and as forward, he proved very useful indeed at the Antipodes, indeed, in the whole of the tour he was absent from the team on one occasion only, though Harry Eagles, of Salford, improved even on this, playing in every match. After another winter’ s foot­ ball in England, making three seasons at a stretch, Paul at length obtained a fair chance of gaining county cricket honours. In the spring of 1889, having been engaged on the Lancashire county ground at Old Trafford, he was chosen to play for Colts of North v. Colts of South at Lord’s. In this match he dis­ tinguished himself by scoring 48, a very good innings and the largest on either side; and Lancashire v. M.C.C. and Ground following on the next three days, Paul for the first time represented a county in a first-class fixture. Though the club team included Attewell, Flowers, Barnes, Hulme and Davidson, the young player scored 36 (not out) in his first innings, being again top-s( 0 "er. During the remainder of the season he took part in most of the county’s matches, his best innings being 60 (not out) against Gloucestershire, and his average 16 runs for 19 innings. In that year he played for North v. South in the Lillywhite benefit match, but did not distinguish himself. Upon his becoming a professional, a marked change was seen in Paul’s style of batting. From being- a hard and brilliant hitter, he developed Caution in, perhaps, even too great a degree. Still he continued to play sound cricket, and no doubt the increased responsibilities attached to him tended to make his play more careful. In 1890 he had his best year so far. His foremost performance that seasonwas his 71 (not out) v. Middlesex at Lord’s, when, in conjunction with Yates, he decided the fate of the match, and from a not over safe state of the score, won a victory for Lancashire by seven wickets. Against Yorkshire he played soimd cricket and scored 65, and Oxford University allowed him to make 60 (not out) and 34. In all. he played thirteen innings in first-class county cricket, and his average was 23‘5— the third on the list—for county matches, and the fourth to Shrewsbury, Gunn, and Abel for all matches amongst professional batsmen, his average in all matches being 26-ll for sixteen innings. In 1891 he was not success­ ful, and, indeed, played for the county in three matches only—v. Leicester, Middlesex, and Yorkshire. He started fairly well at Leicester, making 23, but at Lord’ s he obtained the uncoveted pair of spectacles, and against Yorkshire scored but 10 before he was run out, making 1 (not out) at his second attempt. Outside county cricket, however, he played most consistently, chiefly for the Little Lever Club; and though he did not exceed the century this year, he had an average of 35*4 for thirty-three innings, and did much by his individual exertions to bring his club into prominence. In 1892 and 1893 he was still engaged by the Little Lever Club, and though he showed up well for Lancashire 2nd X I., he had no chance of playing in a first-class fixture. In local matches he still maintained his form, and in 1894 he was once more engaged at Old Trafford ground by the county club. He was tried in several club and ground matches with such a degree of success that he was again given a place in the Lancashire X I. His record for the year in first-class fixtures was 18 for thirteen innings, his befit display being a well-played innings of 58 against Middlesex at Lord’s. This year Paul has altogether surpassed his previous ex­ ploits. It will be remembered that against Kent he scored 141—his first century in a first-class match, and the first hundred hit for Lancashire this season,—and that after a very short interval he exceeded this score by 30 runs, in his famous partner­ ship with A. C. Maclaren in the record inn­ ings against Somerset. Neither will it have faded from recollection that this great part­ nership occupied three hours and ten minutes, and that during this time 363 runs were added to the score, of which Paul’ s 171 were made without the smallest chance, and included a 6 and thirty 4’s. The runs were about equally divided between the batsmen, and as the rate of scoring was 115 an hour, it will be Seen that Paul’ s powers of hitting have by no means deteriorated. His play has been remarkably free from blemish all through the season, and his average, good as it is, would be much better had he not been unlucky enough to be twice caught before he had scored in the Lancashire v. Sussex match at Old Trafford. In the match against Leices­ tershire, Paul was not at first chosen, but Mr. A. N. Hornby, in a most sportsmanlike way, in fact in his own way, stood out in order to make room for him, with the result that a faultless innings of 77 (not out) rewarded his discrimination. Paul’s other scores of note this season, have been his 89 v. Yorksnire, 35 and 20 v. Gloucestershire, and several others exceeding 20. In all, for twenty-one com­ pleted innings, he has registered 698 runs, an average of is3*23, which places him about ninth on the roll of professional batsmen. It is rather remarkable that Paul, although as a youth of the greatest promise, and for several years a terror to local bowlers whilst one of the shining lights of the Notts Castle Club, should have had no trial in first- class cricket until his twenty-fifth year, and that, although his exploits this year show him to be worthy a high place amongst our best batsmen, and second only to Albert Ward of Lancashire players, he should not have been able to maintain his place in that county’s eleven. However, it may be hoped that for a long time to come he will do good service to the county palatine, for though his playing himself in is occasionally rather a painfully slow process, his powers when once that feat is accomplished are of a peculiarly permanent style, and his long innings of this year go far to prove that there are few batsmen so difficult to dislodge as Paul when he has got his eye in. It has been above written that Paul stands over six feet in height, and it may be added that he makes full use of his height, standing well up and taking full advantage of his reach. He plays with a very straight bat, and though his play is studiously correct and his style admirable, he can display very free cricket, though he is never guilty of the slightest carelessness. Should he continue in form he will be of the utmost use to Lanca­ shire, who in A C. Maclaren, Albert Ward, and Paul, will possess three batsmen whom any county will find it hard to match, to say nothing of to excel. In the field he makes an excellent point, having iew equals and prob­ ably no superior in this position. It may, therefore, be hopedthatthetime maybe far dis­ tant when the young civil engineer, who has bidden farewell to his profession to accept em­ ployment as a paid cricketer (Osi sicomnes), will lay aside the bat and ball as implements of his calling, and resume the compasses and the pen. For few, in place of many, will then wittingly be entertained or benefitted by the doings of Arthur George Paul, whose portrait which appears above, is from a photograph by Messrs. Hawkins, of Brighton. HONOR OAK v. ILFORD.—Played at Ilford on July 27. I lford . F. Lett, b W ilkie ...11 F. H. Clark, run out 4 H . Porter, b Hayes ... 5 G. Turner, b W ilkie... 0 R. W . Mole, b W ilkie 0 J. Dowaett, not out ... 12 R. J. Carter, b W ilkie 1 H onor O ak . FT. Howard, b W ilkie R. Clark, b W ilkie ... C. Howard, b Hayes .. G.H.Gadston,b Wilkie B 3, lb 3 ................... Total E. G. Hayes, b Carter 19 J. Johnson, b Carter 5 E. Chapman, b Carter 30 C. H. Mayo, c and b Carter .................. 6 F. A. W ilkie, b Carter 0 A. Jones, c Porter, b Dowsett ..................53 T.R.Dickason, not out 62 H. L. Holford, lbw, b Lett ........................... 0 G. S. Harrison, b Carter ...................24 F.F. Harrison,bCarter 9 H. Burton, absent ... 0 B 16, lb 4, nb 1 ... 21 Total ...229 MR. T. W . GIRDLESTONE’S X I v. SILWOOD PARK.—Played at Silwood Park on July 27. S ilwood P ark . * C. C. Clarke, run ou t........... C. Paice, b Daffen ... ... H. M. Lupton, c and b D affen.................................. J. Hargreaves, b Daffen ... C. G. Shackle, b Daffen .. A.F.Soames.c W . M. Cooke, b Piper .......................... E. R. Soames, not out A. Stiebel, b D a ffe n .......... C. Gomer-Waterer, b Piper G. M. Soames, b Daffen ... W . A. Hughes, b W . M. Cooke ................................... B 1, lb 2 ................... M r . T. W . A . Daffen, lbw, b A. F. Soames ................... G.M. Maryon-Wilson, c -Waterer, b Har­ greaves ................... O .T . Cooke, b G. M. Soames ................... C. H. Marten, c and b -W aterer................... A. M. Low, c Paice, b Hughes ................... Total ...........74 G irdlestonb ' 0 b W . M. Cooke..,. 7 14 run out ......... . 5 0 b W . M. Cooke.. . 0 7 b Daffen ......... . 0 0 run out ... . 21 9 b W . M. Cooke.. . 2 21 c and b Daffen ... 3 0 not out ......... . 2 3 b W . M. Cooke... 2 8 b L o w ................. . 30 9 b W . M. Cooke.. . 0 3 B 4, lb 2, w 1.. . 7 74 T otal......... . 79 i X I. 29 J. R. Mallock, b G. M. Soames ................... 1 E. Blake, b Hughes... 3 E. W . Piper, b Hughes 0 W . M. Cooke, not out 8 J. W . Girdlestone, st Clarke,bG.M.Soames 0 H .E, I. Bax, b Hughes 0 B 4, lb 1, nb 2 7 Total ...141 In the second innings O. T. Cooke scored, not out, 3 ; W . M. Cooke, not out, 9 ; extras, 2.—Total (for no wkt.), 14.