Cricket 1896

146 CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. M a y 2 1 , 1896. before the team was chosen, and, of course, I knew then that I m ight possibly be asked to go. I t was through Murdoch that I was chosen.” “ Had you played much good cricket before this ? ” “ I had only one season before with the Sydney Club, which had been formed a couple of years previously. I was eighteen years of age then. M y average was about 33, and it was above that ia the n»xt year, when I first played for the Colony. Once before this, I had played in a good match —for Eighteen Sydney Juniors against Shaw and Shrewsbury’s team—I believe it was this particularte mi — andcleanbowled Barnes on a wicket like a billiard table. A t that time I was a bowler, but since I began to play real cricVet I have let bow ling drop.” “ H ow often were you put on in England ? ___ ‘ ■As far as I remember it was only twice. The first time I had to try my hand against Louis Hall, who was not exactly a hitter. But I couldn’t bow l straight, and he made 18 off my first over. All my field were on the off-side, bu< as the ball pem-ited in going to leg, they weronot of much use. Murdoch stood it for two overs, and then he thought I had had enough. Iu 1893, I was put on in the second innings against the Past and Present of the Universities, with more good fortune, for I took one wicket for 33—my only wicket in first-class cricket in England, I believe. M y man was cm gh t behind the w icket; I remem­ ber that; tu t fad to say, I have forgotten who it was. In small matches before the tour Ingan I have taken a few wickets.” “ What did you think of English wickets ? ” “ They did not seem to me as good as those we had in Australia, which were truer and faster; and I still stick to this opinion. A wicket iu Australia is pre­ pared for four or five days before a big match, which may last for nearly a week, and I don’t think that you take as long as that in England. A great deal of preparation is very necessary over there, for once the match is begun the hose may not be put on the ground nor the grass cu", whiih sometime) makes it awkward iu the field. But the wicket does not seem to suffer; it is like a bit of glass, aud you can easily light a match upon it for your pipe. The soil goes down for five or six feet. The Sydney grouud is more like those of England than the others, because there more rain falls on it. When a wicket in Australia ia bad it is a lot worse than an English v\ick et; the ball bites and nips up so much quicker.” “ Did you find any difference in the light ? ” “ Yes, but it did not seem to affect me, although I did not do much during m y first visit. For a time everything went well with me. A t the end of the first eight matches I had top average, and when we were half way through the programme I was still fairly well up, but after this I never knew what it was to feel any life or spring in a bat. I played iu every match except one, but I did not again get into form .” “ D o you often feel tired after loDg days of fielding ? ” “ I was never really tired except once, and that was in the match against M.C.C., when Gunn made 228. I heard him calling out ‘ No ! ’ for about two days, and he gave me more fielding than I wanted. I really felt doue up at the end of the innings.” “ Have you seen many exoiting finishes to matches ? ” “ Not many, and I am not particularly anxious to do so, for they are very trying. Tn one of the m itches at Scarborough, either in 1890 or 1893, our fellows won by 7 runs against Lord Londesborough’s X I . Sam Woods and MacGregor were in, with about 30 runs to get, and they pulled up so nearly that we began to think it was a case. A t last MacGregor was out, lbw, which was, after all, a very unsatisfactory ending. We had another very exciting match against the M.C.C., when Lyons made 149. A t the finish, the M.C.C. had to get 14 to win, with two wickets to fall. The crowd sang out for us to play it out, but we were quite satisfied to let well alone. Somehow, I fancy they would have got the runs ; but there’s no telling. It was pretty exciting-, too. when we beat L >rd Sheffield’s X I. at Sydney. They had to make 210 in the second innings, when the rain came down. W. G., Abel and Bean were all out in about half-an-hour in the evening, and we all became wild with delight. Bat the next day, Stod lart looked like winning the match, so that when he was out, we were all as excited as possible. The crowd naturally becomes excited when England is losing.” “ With which of your performances are you the most pleased.” “ With my 201 against Lord Sheffield’s team at Sydney, in the first of the five test matches. It is very seldom that I have seeu such enthusiasm as was shewn by the crowd, but then, you know, I was a Sydney man, and that made a lot of difference. After the match, I was presented with £121, which people on the ground had been kind enough to subscribe, a n l I also won a bet of £20. It was a peculiar bet. Mr. Tewkey, a well-known brewer in Sydney, bet me £10 to nothing before the innings about my getting a hundred, and when at the close of the day, I was not out 85, he come and laid me another ten pounds on the same terms about the two hundred.” “ Are you still the smallest member of the team ? ” “ Yes. But I wasn’t the ‘ Midget ’ of the team, as they call me, when Alec. Bannerman was in it, for he was a lot shorter—I should think nearly, if not quite, an inch. McKibbin is a little taller than I am. Once, when Ivo Bligh’s team was in Australia, I was greatly chaffed by an Australian paper about my size. I used to bow l at the nets to the Englishmen, but one day I did not appear, and the paper said that the reason why I couldn’t be found was that I was hidden in one of Ivo Bligh’s boots But after all I am not so short, for in my boots I stand five feet five; so that it is really a libel to call me a m idget.” W . A. B e t t e s w o r t h . M.C.C. & GROUND v. BLACKHEATH.—Played at Rectory Field on May 16. M.C.C. & G rou n d . First innings. Second innings. C. L. Budd, b H ea th ........... 0 A . Heame, c Waymouth, b H e a th .................................. 1 not out....................11 C. E. 8. Mison, run out ... 5 nut out.................... 6 Pike, c Hickson, b Tonge ... 1 D. C. Lee, b Tonge ........... 0 A. Bird, c Castle, b Heath 1 R. H. Raphael, b Heath ... 3 lbw, b Heath ... 29 F. B. May, b Tonge .......... 0 Richardson, b H ea th ........ 28 G. L. Jeffery, not out........ 14 b Heath .............. 0 W . S. Sidney, b Heath ... 7 b W aymouth ... 5 Hon. W . O. Forbes, b Christopherson................14 b Heath .............. 0 Extras ................... C Extras........... 4 Total ... 80 Total (3 wkts) 55 B lackheatii . S. Castle, b Richardson 0 J. E. Mason, c Bird, b Hearne ...................19 J. N. Tonge, b Hearne 14 R. I. H. Arbuthnot, lbw, b Hearne........... G. C. Hubbaid, b Richardson ........... F. Escombe, c Hearne, b Richardson ........... C. L. llemmsrde, c Budd, b Mason 10 2 8. J. A. E. Hickson, b M a y .......................... 13 L. Weigall, c Pike, b M a y .......................... 5 Capt. E.G.Waymouth, c Bird, b Mason S. Heath, not out . Christopherson, Sidney, b Hearne . Extras ... . 10 18 18 9 56 I Total BLA.CKHEATH v. CHARLTON P A R K .-P layed at Charlton Park on May 16. C harlton P ark . R. J. Cowley, b Mason 0 T. Hazelrigg, lbw, b Mason ................... 7 S. H. Mills, c Chris­ topherson, b Auld... 0 W . J. C. Keats, b A u ld ...........................14 R. Wark, c Fagan, b A u ld .......................... 6 F. S. Allen, c Cooper, b Auld ................... 1 W . J. Cowley, c and b Mason ................... 2 E. M. Foster, b Mason ................... E. H. Graham, c Mason, b Auld T. W. Green, b Auld C. P. H o b s o n , b Mason ................... J. More, not out........... Extras ........... Total ........... B lackheath . M. Christopherson, b Hazelrigg.................. 27 W. D. Auld, c R. J. Cowley, b VVark ... 18 H. C. Mason, not out 62 J. Phillips, lbw, b A llen..........................23 R. A . Fagan, run out 14 H. L. Godden, H. Heath J. H. W . Davies did not bat. W . Swallow, c W . J. Cowley, b Green ... A. J. Adam, run out J. Cooper, not out ... Extras ........... Total ...........1 B. Durnford, and TEDDINGTON v. KENSINGTON PA R K .-P layed Bushey Park on May 16. T eddington . C. Jeffrey, c and b Thompson ........... 0 G. 8immond<», not out 26 B 3, lb 8 ...........11 R. S. Lucas, not out...280 F. R. Jeffrey, lbw, b Abney .................. 37 A. Crowder, b Abney 20 L Jacobs, b Thompson 23 R.L.Marshall,bLevick 3 Total ... *400 8 . H. Christian, b Thompson ........... 0 F, Gosney, Bishop, and A. N. Other did not bat. Kensington Park. T. H. C. Levick, c C. Jeffrey, b Crowder 0 W . A. Bailey, b Crow­ der .......................... 1 E. H. Seaton, c Sim­ mons, b Crowder ...85 H. K. Gow, b Crowder 4 G.Tho.npson.c Bishop, b Lucas .................... 5 M. A. Nicholas, b b Crowder ...........19 L. E. G. Abney, c Christian,b Marshall 10 C. G. Blois, c Crow­ der, b Marshall ... 6 S. Christopherson, c Crowder, b Lucas ... 18 H. W . Currey, b Lucas 3 W . Winter, not out ... 8 B 18, lb 4 .......... 22 Total ...18, C RICKET.—Wanted immediately. Copy April 13th, 1893, and two copies April 16th, 18SJ4. Lowest price, etc., to A.B. c/o Cricket, 168, Upper Thames Street, E.C. S URREY X L IN 18 >5.—A Descriptive Record of the matches played in that season, with Batting and Bowling Averages and Portraits o f the Team. Price, 3d.; by post, 4d. Obtainable at Bookstalls, Newsagents, or of Messrs. Merritt & Hatcher, 168, Upper Thames Street, E.C.