Cricket 1899

18 CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. F eb . 23, 1899 his labour in the works, by his devotion to the game, and once he was seriously reminded by the proprietors that it was the last straw that broke the camel’s back. But when he accepted his first engagement as a professional to the Keighley Club, and returned in the winter to take his pla:e in the works, his delinquencies were forgotten, and, for what was, perhaps, the first time in the history o f the firm, a man who had voluntarily left hig employment was taken back, for which Derbyshire cjicketers have, indirectly, much to thank the proprietors of the ironworks. The story of his introduction to first-class bow ling was told by David­ son in 1893 in the Cricket F ield '.— “ I was asked to play in one of the Derby­ shire trial matches,” he said. “ It came about in a peculiar way. We (Keighley) were playing a match in which Peel was to bow l against us. I generally used to go in first, but as I had never seen Peel, I wanted to have a good look at bis bow ling before I tried to play it. The look did not greatly encourage me, I must own. As it happened I made 48, though Peel tied me up pretty often. In the follow ing year I happened to be rla y- ing a match in which Peel and Frank Sugg were also playing. Peel was talk­ ing to Sugg, and I was standing beside them. Presently Peel said, ‘ There’s a lad at Keighley, from out of Derby—you ought to play him.’ So I told him that I was the chap, but he didn’t remember me. On the follow ing Saturday I made 36 against Peel and Grimshaw, and then I was tried in a Derbyshire trial match. In the same season I was sent for to play at Leyton against Essex and took eight wickets. Then I was at once asked to go and play against Gloucestershire. 1 replied that I couldn’t do this, as K eigh­ ley Feast would be on, and I should be required to play there.” Fortunately he was able to get away after all, and took four wickets in the first innings and nine for 42 in the second, getting Dr. Grace out in each innings— a fine feather in the cap of a young bowler. In conclusion, it may be added, that although the saying that “ if he had cnly lived in a more famous county he would have been a still more famous man,” is true of many a good cricketer betides Davidson, it can be applied with exceptioual force in the case of the great Derbyshire cricketer. W . A. E k ' jtesw oh th . For the follow ing interesting summary of Davidson’s cricket career we are indebted to the Derby and Chesterfield Reporter :— “ Davidson’s first engagement as a pro­ fessional was with Keighley, always one of the leading clubs in Yotkshire. This was in 1885, and notwithstanding his youth, he had a most successful opening season. During the summer he played seventeen innings f«.r Keighley, and obtained an aggregate of 379 runs, com ing out second in the batting averages with more than 25 runs per innings. He was re-engaged by Keighley for 1886, but b y this time his reputation had reached the ears of the County Executive, and he was invited to play for Derby­ shire in the opening match of the season, v. M .C.C., which took place at L ord’s on Thursday, Fiiday, and Saturday, May 13th, 14th, and 15;h, 1886. Derbyshire won by an innings and 28 runs, and Davidson had a fair share in the victory, scoring 9 runs and taking five wickets for 37 runs. From the very fiist tiuie he played for the county he has been a regular member of the eleven, and his work, both with bat and ball, will bear comparison with that of any other player. The follow ing are Davidson’s figures in both departments of the game so far as Derbyshire county cricket is concerned, all matches being included :— BATTING. No. of Times Total Most in Season. inns. not out. runs. an inns. Aver’ 18fc6 ... ... 24 .. 3 ... 164 .. 33* ... 7 80 1887 ... ... 18 . 0 ... *91 .. 75 ... 2i’72 1888 .. ... 22 .. 2 ... 270 .. 61* .. 13-50 1889 ... ... 18 .. 2 ... 389 .. 129 ... 54 31 1890 ... ... 24 .. 2 .. 448 .. L8 ... 2036 1891 ... ... 21 .. 2 .. 245 . . 43 .. 1289 1892 ... ... 25 .. 2 ... 424 . 106 ... 18-43 1893 ... ... 27 .. 3 .. 522 . . 72 ... 21-75 1891 ... ... 23 .. 3 .. : 8L . . 81 .. 19 05 1895 ... ... 27 .. 2 .. 760 . . 79 .. 3040 1896 ... ... 27 .. 2 .. 1033 . . 274 .. 41-32 1897 ... ... 27 .. 3 .. 745 . 121 .. 31-04 1898 ... ... 22 .. 0 ... 471 . . 1(8 .. 2140 * Signifies not out. BOWLING. Season. Overs. Mdns. Runs. Wkts. Aver. 1886 ........... ... 543-1 ... 222 ... 785 .... 53 .. . 1481 1887 ........... ... 559 2 ... 217 ... 1027 .... 59 .. . 17-40 1888 ........... ... 274 1 ... 118 .. . 354 ... 19 .... 18-63 1889 ........... ... 379 1 ... 159 .. . 643 ... 38 ..., 1692 18-0 ........... ... 623 2 ... 218 .. . 1227 ... 68 .. . 18-04 1891 ........... ... 688 3 ... 302 .. . 1019 ... 65 ... 15 67 1892 .......... ... 725 3 ... 310 ... 1171 ... 91 ... 1286 1893 ........... ... 752 4 ... 290 .. . 1345 ... 63 ... 19 77 1894 ........... ... 809 1 ... 390 ... 1114 ... 90 ... 1737 1895 ........... ... 942 2 ... 485 ... 1446 ... 93 ... 1554 1896 ........... ... 1051*2 . .. 471 .. . 1732 ... 74 ... 23-40 1897 ........... ... 768-1 ... 345 .. . 1254 ... 56 ... 22-39 1893 ........... ... 978 2 ... 394 .. . 1093 ... 77 ... 14 14 “ In his very fir st season as a bowler, he was only a small fraction behind the late Wm . Cropper, who headed the list, but even then Davidson took the greater number of wickets. In 1887 he was again second on the bow ling liit, taking themost wickets, but this year also saw him at the head of the batting averages, with the greatest aggregate. In the season of 1888, he fell off sadly, but 1889 saw him again ta’..e a greater number of wickets than any other Derbyshire bowler, whilst he came second in the batting averages, Wm . Chatterton, who headed the list, and Davidson being the only two bats­ men who possessed an average of over 20. Except in 1896, when Joe Hulme beat him b y 12, Davidson has taken the greatest number of wickets every year he has played for Derbyshire, and in 1892 he was at the top of both the batting and bow ling averages. But, although he deteriorated somewhat as a bowler in 1896 (his average being by far the worst he has ever had), it must be remembered that the wickets that year were very bad from a bowler’s point c f view. No better evidence of the superiority of the bat over the ball during the season in question is afforded than Davidson’s performances, for, as a batsman, he quite eclipsed any of his previous etforts. In 1895 his figures were nearly ten in advance of anything he had done hitherto, and in 1896 there was an even greater improve­ ment. He has accomplished so many noteworthy performances during his county career that we shall only have space to refer to a few of the most remarkable. First and foremost let us mention his record score of 274, obtained for Derbyshire against Lancashire at Old Trafford in lfc96. This is the highest individual total ever made in any match in which Derbyshire have played. Scores of over 200 have been made two or three times against the county, but until Davidson broke the ice this had never been done by a Derbyshire player, the next best being Frank Sugg’s 187 at Southampton in 1885, and then fo l­ lowed Mr. L . G. W right’s 171 not out on the same ground nine years later. Two or three times Davidson has taken nine wickets in one innings, the first occasion being against Gloucester­ shire in 1886. The western county have only opposed D ;rbyshire once, and Davidson captured “ W . G .’s” wicket at each attempt. In the first innings he took four wickets for 41 runs and in the second nine for 42. H e was the only Derbyshire cricketer who ever scored over a thousand runs and took over a hundred wickets in first- class cricket in one season, a performance which he accomplished in 1895. Then again in 1896 he shared with W. Storer and W . Chatterton the dis­ tinction of scoring over a thousand runs for Derbyshire in one season, an honour to which no other cricketer can lay claim. Davidson and W . Storer are responsible for the most productive partnership on the p .rt of Derbyshire batsmen, the pair having scored 308 runs during their association at Old Trafford against Lan­ cashire in August, 1896. Davidson also figures in connection with the second best stand, he and W. Chatterton having put ou 293 runs together at Leyton against Essex in June, 1889.” C R IC K E T IN I N D I A . PA TIA LA v. CALCUTTA.—Played at Calcutta on January 2 and 3. Calcutta won by 60 tuls . C alcutta . Second innings, c Priebtley, b Hearne ... ... 18 b Mistry ...........22 c sub, b Hearne 14 42 2 0 1 First innings Bush, c Kanji, b Mistry ...5 6 Warden b Htarne ...........12 Bobinson, c Billimoria. b H earne.................................26 Moran, b Hearne...................30 Carruthers, b Brockwell ... 0 Smallwood, b Hearne........... 2 Paine, b Hearne ................... 2 Lyall, c Munzoor, b Hearne 0 Guise, c and b Hearne ... 20 Heebie, b M istry.................. 16 Stewart not o u t ...................14 E xtras.......................... 4 Total .................. 182 P atiala . First innings. Trockwell, b Hechle ........... 2 Mistry, c Warden, b Guise 16 Maharajah, b Bush ........... 1 Billimoria, lbw, b Guise ... 17 hadesi Kam, cLyalJ. b Bush 33 ................................ 11 1 1 11 not out b Hearne ........... b Hearne ........... b Hearne .......... c Maharajah, b Bearne ........... lbw, b Hearne ... c and b E eame b Hearne .......... Extras ........... Total 0 0 2 0 .. 21 ..122 Priestley lbw, b Moian Hfarne, b Heohle .. .. ... Williams', c Guise, b Bush Mehta, b Moian ........... ,,, Munzoor, not out................... Banjitsinbji, did not bat ... Extras ................... Total ...................] Second innings, c Lyall, b Moran 4 c Carrulhers, b Guise ...........12 b Moran ........... 0 c Bush, b Moran 45 b Hechle ... . 15 c Lyall, b Hechle 12 not o u t ......... b Moran lbw, b Moran b Moran lbw, b Guise Extras ... 7 7 0 6 15 10 T o ta l...........132