Cricket 1898

178 CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. J u n e 9, 1898, “ A t that time you used to bow l very fast ? ” “ For a time I certainly bowled pretty fast. I knew, of course, that Kent badly wanted a fast bowler, and it did n it require much in the way of suggestion from members of the club to induce me to try to qualify for the place. But I began to find that I could do much better with medium, and an occasional fast ball. I had practically arranged to go back to Gravesend in the follow ing season, but I was informed that 1 had been transferred to Canterbury as ground bowler only, and I was engaged there for ten seasons; in fact, until last year. While I was with the St. Lawrence, at Canterbury, I went with a team of the club to Holland. The Dutch were not very good at that time, as you may guess from the fact that, though I only bowled twice, I took fifteen wickets for 14 runs. I remember that the first ball I bowled was at a pretty good pace. The batsman hit it for four, and I believe that if I had continued to bow l fast and straight, 1 hey would have played me. But after the first hit I altered my pace, and when the ball began to break they were com ­ pletely bewildered. W e stayed at The Hague, and played at Haarlem and Scheveningen. ” “ When did you first play for Kent ?” “ I was qualified in 1887, and in that year played about eight matches for the county, with very moderate success. I t was not until 1892 that I was regularly in the team. That season I was at the head of the county bow ling analyses, with 88 wickets for about 18 runs each. In the follow ing year I was doing very well indeed, and was looking forward to a really successful year. I had done one of the best things of my life against Lancashire, taking fifteen wickets in the two innings for 114, and then I was unfortunate enough to get my little finger broken in a match between Canterbury and Tonbridge. This kept me out of cricket for six weeks, and in the first match that I played after the accident— against Surrey at Catford—I g ot eleven wickets very cheaply. It was a match which we won b y 20 runs on a very funny wicket.” ‘ ‘ After the accident did you do as well as you had hoped at the beginning of the season ?” “ Yes, I think so. I was very success­ ful in the four matches against Surrey, Notts, Sussex and Yorkshire, and was fortunate enough to get the Tit Bits prize in July. But immediately after­ wards I was hors de combat again. I went to the Oval, for the return against Surrey, feeling queer, but well enough to play. However, after I had put my flannels on I was obliged to say I was not well enough to go out into the field. It was then found that my temperature was up to 103. So I was sent to bed at once. This illness kept me out of cricket for the rest of the season. The mention of the Oval rem indsmeof acatchthat I missedthere off Martin. I was standing at m id-on while Tom Hayward was batting. He had then made about 30. He played the ball to me, a lot faster than it looked, but still an easy catch, and I missed it. Martin could not see what was happening be­ cause the batsman was in a line with him and me, but I heard him say 1Has he missed it ? ’ Then I put my head round and caught Martin’s eye; he did’nt look particularly pleased, I can tell y o u ; Hayward made about 148, and most of the ruus came off me, so that I was amply punished for my mistake.” “ What are your earliest recollections of the game ? ” “ When I was about 14 or 15 years old I played for my village, Chalfont St. Giles. M y brother Herbert and I practi­ cally got all the wickets for three years until Jack came on, There was one match which I shall always remember. It was against Beaconsfield, and we got them out for 7, including two extras; Jack took four wickets for three, and I six for tw o.” “ From your experience in coaching boys, is there any general advice you can give ? ” “ I should say that a b oy should bow l at the nets as well as he possibly can for a short time on ly; he should never, under any circumstances, bow l till he is tired. It is the same in batting, and I am certain that 20 minutes’ good practice is better than an hour. I think that when a boy is batting, he should have the position of every man in the field iu his mind’s eye, and should never be satisfied with what looks a very fine hit, if he feels that the ball would possibly have been caught in a match. If he cultivates a careless style at the nets he may be sure that the habit which he has formed will have its effect when he comes to play in a match.” ‘‘ Was the winter school of cricket, started b y you and Martin last year at Canterbury, a success ? ” “ From the point of view of cricket, it was undoubtedly a success, and we hope to re-open the school next winter. The hall is about 150 feet by 50 feet, with a glass roof. We had top nets as well as side nets, and put matting on the boards. Very soon we had fifty members, many of them officers of the Tenth Hussars, who were quartered iu the city. The practice lasted for three hours a day. The light was g o o d ; there was never any glare, and even when the glass was covered with snow we were still able to see as clearly as possible. There are two or three peculiarities about playing on a covered wicket. For one thing, the noise made b y the ball is so peculiar that at first it is almost startling, though you very Boon get used to it. When we came to play in the open again it seemed for a time quite odd not to hear the ball rattle. Another peculiarity is that, even in the coldest weather you soon get exceedingly warm. W e are pleased to see that nearly all our members have made runs this year, despite the slow wickets.” Once in the course of his career Walter Hearne did the hat trick in a county match. “ It was against Lan­ cashire,” he said. “ Seven wickets were down. Then Thomas, who played occasionally at that time, was caught off me in the slips. Arthur Mold came in, and I gave him a ball which came back about four inches and bowled him. Bob Thoms was umpiring at my end, and he said ‘ A good ’un. Got another one like that ? ’ I said ‘ I think so, B ob .’ The next one happened to be as nearly like the other as possible, and took a wicket. Thoms took the ball and said to me, ‘ Here you are, boy. Take the ball and have a silver plate put on i t ; it will be something to look at when you are an old man.’ Of course I took his advice, and I have the Ball now, as well as another, with which I took 7 wickets for 24, against Gloucestershire.” Cricketers are often in doubt as to what is the relationship between the various Heames. W ith regard to this Walter said : “ Jack Hearne is my brother, and I am a second cousin of George, Alec, and Frank. M y brother Herbert used to play for K e n t; another brother, William, is ground man to the Household Brigade, Chelsea, and a third brother does not play cricket at all. M y father, William Heame, who is a first cousin of Tom and old George —G. G .’s father— used to play when he was a young man, but he has been a martyr to rheumatism for many years. William Hearn, the Hertfordshire cricketer, is no relation to us.” W . A. B e t t e s w o k t h . HONOR OAK T. CLAPTON.—Hayed at Honor Oak on May 28. H onor O a k . E.G. Hayes,not out...131 T. Dickason, c and b Bishop .................19 H.Burton, h Bishop... 51 G. Harrison, not out... 23 B 6, lb 2 .......... 8 Total (2 wkts) 233 T. Gracey, J. Johnson, F. Wilkie, E. Chapman, C. Mayo, A. Jones, and S. Dickason did not bat. C lapton . H. Hugill.b Wilkie... 1 J. Tate, c Dickason, b Wilkie ................. 8 8. Asser, c Jones, b Harrison................. 2 J.H.Douglas, b Wilkie 2 F. A. Bishop, b Wilkie 1 H. E. Y. Chichester, c Chapman, b Hayes 42 F. M. Harding did not bat. C. H. Nelson, at Jones, b Harrison ..........17 8. Genders, run out ... 11 W. Cooper, not out ... 14 Byes .................12 Total (8 wkts) 110 SOUTH ESSEX v. CLAPTON.—Played at Clapton on May 30. S outh Essex. First innings. Second innings. Underwood, b Bishop ... 6 b Jenkins .. 3 Coningham,c Bishop,bAsser 0 b Jenkins . 0 Gummer, c Bishop, b Asser 2 c Hugill, b Jen­ kins ................. 4 Freeman, c Winterbum, b Asser ............................... 7 b Genders.25 W. Earl, b Asser................. 8 c and b Jenkins 1 Clark, b Bishop ................. 1 b Genders........... 1 S. Smith, c Genders,b Bishop 6 b Jenkins . 14 Lawson, c Genders, b Asser 2 not out................. 2 D. Smith, b Bishop .......... 0 b Genders. 6 Noble, not out ................. 0 b Genders .. 4 jsent ................. 0 b Genders...... 0 B 3, lb 2, nb 1 .......... 6 Byes .... 7 Total ................. 36 Total ............ 67 C lapton . J. Douglas, run out ... 13 F. M. H a r d in g , c F. A. Bishop, b Clark 1 Gummer, b Under­ S. A. Asser, c Noble, wood ........................ 47 b Freeman .......... 20 O. Genders, c Smith, J. L. Tate, c Gummer, b Lawson................. 10 b Clark 75 T. H. Jenkins, b Law­ A. Dodson, o Noble, b son ........................ 4 Earl ........................ 1 H. Winterbum, not H. Hugill, lbw, b out ........................ 6 Lawson ................. 10 Leg-byes .......... 2 H. Chichester, c Gum— mer, b Lawson 1 Total ..........190