Cricket 1899

S e p t , 14, 1899. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 409 (Z T o n t S p o n O e n c e . The Editor does not held himselj responsible for thi opinions of his correspondents. CR ICKET IN IRELAND . To the Editor o f Cbicket. S ir ,— Cricket in Ireland is, I fear, regarded with mild contempt by English­ men. Practically the only meeting of Irish and E nglish elevens nowadays takes place at the Viceregal Cricket Ground, in the end of August, when I. Zingari make their appearance. W ith the Gentle­ men of Ireland team at full strength, Zingari have generally suffered a reverse, but this year, with Gwynn, Oomyn, the Hamiltons, and Ross refusing to play, the Irishmen got an innings defeat. It was Bosanquet who worked the mischief, and the Oxonian got a wicket which suited his pace to a nicety— a very fast, bumpy one (not a drop of water had been spilt on the pitch to prepare i t !) He captured nine wickets for 54 runs in the first innings, and seven for forty something in the second. The next match was against the Irish wandering team Na Shuler, and on this occasion the Englishmen got beaten by nine wickets. This time the wicket received an over-dose of water, and consequently Bosanquet was by no means so effective as against the Gentlemen of Ireland. For once our crack bat, Lucius Gwynn, failed to come off, which was a great disappointment to all, ashegenerally makes a century against the Zingari team. He, however, bowled in splendid form, taking eleven wickets for 100 altogether. I. Zingari included several first-class players, including Sir T. C. O ’Brien, who knocked up 121 against the Gentlemen of Ireland, A . M . Hollins, the Oxford blue, H . T . Hewett, of Somerset fame, Lord George Scott, who captained the eleven, and B. J. T. Bosanquet, whom l havementionedbefore. It seems a pity that Irish cricket, which I am sure any of the Zingari members will tell you is of a very good quality, should be almost quite unheard of in England, and it is pretty well admitted that an eleven selected from the following would give some of the English counties a good fight: L . H . Gwynn, R. M . Gwynn, Rev. L . Hamilton, B. Hamilton, W . D . Hamilton, R. H . Lambert, S. D . Lambert, S. C. Smith, P. H . Browning, W . Harrington, T. C. Ross, A . M . Porter, and J. B. Brady.— I remain, yours faith­ fully, R. A l l e r t o n . A TASMANIAN CRITICISM. Cricket is proverbially a game of chances. No certain lines can be laid down for winning a match. It cannot even be predicted that the strongest team (on paper) is bound to gain the victory. This being the case, it is curious to find the critics in the English papers one and all declaring that they know the reason why the Australians drew the first test match instead of winning it, and it is, perhaps, still more curious to find that the incidents of the fourth test iiatch should most emphatically give the lie to those wise writers and call upon them to eat the leek. The argument put forward, hanging around the vexed question of three-day matches, has simply been that if the team that bats first wishes to win, it ought to put together all the runs it can on the first day, having regard to the whole time at disposal for playiDg the contest out. So far well, but, curiously enough, the reverse side of the picture is afforded by the fourth test match, where the Englishman going in first actually took the advice of the critics, and made all they could on the first day. The sequel was that, owing to what are known as the “ glorious uncertainties” of the game, the result was only another draw, instead of, as the quidnuncs had laid it down as an axiom, a certain triumph for those who, through force of circumstances, “ laid on the wood ” at first. In each case, owing to the fact that the three days proved not enough for the four completed innings, whether the scoring on the first day was large or small, the struggle of the Titans grew at the close to be one of tactics, an attempt, successful in each instance, to avoid defeat where victory could not be achieved. Grace forced ‘t draw in the first instance by the tactics he used, j ust as Darling in the fourth match forced a draw on the Englishmen. The very fact of the time being circumscribed gave the games a different tone altogether for at least the second half of their duration, though the conditions were so different, and though, also, if the time at disposal had only been unlimited, and no finesse needed on that basis, each might have been concluded within the three days of play. The fixed time, beyond which a match must not extend, adds, indeed, a new feature to the play which is not cricket at all, but something outside it completely. This has been recognised in Tasmania in regard to the pennant matches. The sooner it is recognised in the wider field of action the better it will be for all concerned .—Tasmanian Mail. AM ER ICAN CRICKET OP T O -D A Y . Now that the important matches have bgen scheduled for the autumn, it behooves the players who will probably be chosen to represent Philadelphia to cease dallying with the driver and the putter and the tennis racquet. Every man should practice regularly, and to some extent go into training, as it is no easy task to play a three days’ match unless a man is in condition. There is little doubt but what our opponents will be stronger than the team Warner brought over last year, and the defeats sustained then should act as extra incentives to every man to be at his best, so that the team may be able to play up to its best iorm, and not make such an exhibition as at Wissahickon and Manheim last year, when many of the players were woefully off their game. Just a word to the committee! It is needless to say your task is a difficult one; you cannot possibly select a team that will not meet with criticism; but The Cricketer strongly believes in selecting men on their form of to-day, and not on what they have done in seasons gone by. The youngsters have come in with a rush this year; some of them will solve the question of their selection by their work in the “ Colts’ ” match, but even then the task will be of the hardest. W hy not follow to some extent the rule of the committee on the other side? Over there they choose twelve or thirteen men, and if the wicket is suc'i that the captain is confident some of the bowlers will be useless on the pitch, he drops those men. There have been men put on our team for their bowling, and when the day of the match arrived everyone realised that they would be nearly useless on the wicket, and yet they must be played. Such a policy is hard on the player as well as the team.— American Cricketer. HAMP3TEAD v. MALDEN WANDERERS.— Played at Hampstead on September 9. H.B. Hayman, st New, b Neime ... ..........190 E. L. Marsden, b Smith ................. 2 F. R. D. Monro, b Mountford .......... 1 W. T. H. Danby, c New, b Mountford 41 H. Greig, b Mountford 13 R. A. Hiil.bMountford 6 J. (I. Q. Besch, b Mountford .......... 0 J. C. Toller, c New, b Mountford ..........26 G. Crosdale, b Mount­ ford ........................ 0 L. Hutchinson, c Briggs, b Neame ... 10 A. B. Osmond, not out ........................ 1 Extras.................81 Total ...320 M alden W an derers . E. A. Bush, b Osmond 63 B. H. M. Smith, b Munro .................20 A. Jud J, b Marsden... 0 A. G. Rough, c Hut­ chinson, b Marsden 4 G. H. New, b Marsden 18 H. A. Sargent, c Hay­ man, b Marsden ... 4 C. Mountford, e Os­ mond, b Marsden... 16 H. Briggs, b Marsden 0 H. A. Jones, c Gros- dale, b Osmond ...16 G.8.Neame, bOsmond 11 A. Jennings, not out 0 Extras.................17 Total ...169 SCORES OF A THOUSAND RIJNS IN AN AUSTRALIAN TOUR. 1878 * 1893.+ C. Bannerman .. 1278 J. J. Lyons .......... 1605 1880* G. H. 8. Trott .. 1496 W . L. Murdoch .. 1218 E. Graham ......... 1492 P. S. McDonnell.. 1020 W. Bruce .......... 1314 1882. G. Giffen ........ 1280 W . L. Murdoch .. 1711 A..C.jBannerman.. 1229 H. H. Massie 1405 3. E. Gregory 1196 1884. 1896. W. L. Murdoch .. 1378 J. Darling .......... 1555 P. S. McDonnell.. 1225 S. E. Gregory 1464 G. Giffen ........ 1032 F. A. Iredale 1328 1S86.+ G. H. 8. Trott .. 1297 8. P. Jones ......... 1530 G. Giffen ........ 1208 G. Giffen ......... 1454 C. Hill ................ 1196 H. J. H. Scott .. 1298 3. Donnan ......... 1009 G. E. Palmer 1036 1899. 1888. f. Darling ........ 1941 P. S. McDonnell.. 1393 \L. A. Noble.......... 1609 G. H. 8. Trott .. 1212 V. Trumper........ 1556 G. J. Bonnor 1*04 J. Worrall .......... 1202 1893. 3. Trumble......... 1183 W. L. Murdoch .. 1459 S. E. Gregory 1181 J. E. Barrett........ 1305 F. A. Iredale 1039 G. H. 8. Trott .. 1273 J. J. L y on s........ 1142 1 Chiefly by matches against odds, + One match v. odds included.