Cricket 1899

454 CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. Nov. 30, 1899. for the purpose of coaching me. In the first year Pooley and Abel bowled to me at Vincent Square, and in the second year Abel and Barrett were the profes­ sionals. Mr.Grimstonexercisedtheutmost patience with me, just as he did with everybody else whom he coached, infeis- ling on my practising some particular stroke until I could make it with cer­ tainty, or making me try over and over again to give up some bad habit. Prac­ tically, I learned all my strokes from him, and at one time I was supposed to have very strong back play, but, un­ happily, I am afraid that I forgot my lessons in after years, except perhaps the importance of fielding, about which I have always taken the greatest pains.” Mr. Greatorex is on the North-Western Branch of the London Pliying Fields Committee, and he takes an intense interest in what is being done to provide working-men with ciicket grounds in the London districts. “ It is one of the most important works at the present time,” he said, “ from a social point of view. It is a work which might be very much greater if it were better supported by the public with funds, which the committee badly want to enable them to extend their work. The idea of the committee was to relieve the pressure which was arising in the public parks by getting clubs which could afford to pay a small sum to take pitches on the London Playing Fields’ grounds. All our grounds are held on yearly agreements, except Prince George’s Ground at Raynes Park, which you doubtless remember was purchased by the committee in 1897, for which object lovers of cricket gave most generously. Working men’s cricket is still greatly hampered by the arrange­ ments made by the London County Council with regard to open spaces ; by the complexity of its regulations, and by making the clubs ballot for pitches. Every club which wants a fitch on a London County Council ground has to send in a list of fixtures by the end of November, which seems to me very hard on a working men’s club. Various depu­ tations have been sent to the Council on this subject, but up to the pretent entirely without success. At the same time the County Council has obviously many difficulties to contend with, and I suj pose it cannot make charges for pitches on open spaccs. But whereas on the Plajing Fields Committee the arrangements for clubs are made by cricketers, who understand what is wanted, no such thing happens when the County Council is concerned. I suppose that it would be an impossible thing, now that politics have entered into the field, for the County Council to appoint a small sub-committee consisting of men who understand games, but it would be a splendid thing if it could be done. I am under the impression that in the case of Battersea the arrangements are well carrifd out.” “ How many clubs are provided for by the Committee ? ” “ There are so many that I can hardly tell you, but I should think that there are about two hundred, and that nearly three thousand players areprovided for on our grounds oneverySaturdayafternoon.” “ On what system do you select the clubs ? ” “ Each club pays for a pitch on alter­ nate Saturdays. The charges for a season vary from £15 to £10; I believe that a few clubs have grounds at £8. This may seem a good deal of money for workingmento pay, but of course they get assistance, and there is no possible doubt that they like the independence which is given when they feel that they have paid tor their ground. We should have no difficulty whatever iu filling grounds if we had three times our present number. We hardly ever fail to get the rent from a club, but of course now and then —very seldom—one of them gets into difficulties. Most of the clubs belong to institutes, missions or firms. It is found that the actual upkeep of the ground is in almost every instance met by the rents received from the clubs. Application for pitches has to be made to the secretary of the district sub-committee, and a guarantee must be given that the money will be paid. W. A. B e t t e s w o b t j i . CRICKET IN COMPARTMENTS. As will be seen in “ Gossip,” the suggested system of placing afternoon matches inperiods has been tried in India, and “ The Tice” makes the following re­ marks about it in the Madras Times : — “ The advantages of the system appear to be that (i.) monotony is entirely ousted from the game, since a ‘ period ’ is very soon finished, and it is time to field again, (ii.) Each side gets a good deal more fielding than under the usual method of playing the game, (iii.) Interest is kept up until very near the end, and I can foresee many far more exciting finishes by this system than is the case now. (iv.) Bowlers are bound to ‘ try’ more, likewise fieldsmen, right up to the finish, (v.) In one-day matches the ‘ rotting- about from four to six period ’ will be a thing of the past in matches where an early Btart has been made and wickets have fallen fast. “ Here ihe advantages cease. “ The disadvantages are more numer­ ous. (i.) The great thing to prevent is the fall of a wicket, therefore stone­ walling and careful play receive a most undesirable fillip, (ii.) In cricket, ts we play it out here, one-day matches for the most part, abatsman having scored 60 or so naturally wants to give the rest of Lis side a chance and takes more risks, and possibly gets out sooner. If he doesn’t get out he retires at 100 in very many cases. Under the ‘ period ’ system the batsman’s wicket becomes more valuable to both sides in proportion as he gets set. His taking risks, or ‘ getting him­ self out,’ or retiring, assist the fielding side no end. Everybody plays the game, hoping his side will win, so that it is not cricket for any batsman to give his wicket away unless under very excep­ tional circumstances, less than ever when by doing so his side’s average per wicket comes down from say 90 to SO. There­ fore, a batsman having got set must in his side’s interset do his level best to stay to the finish, since, if he retires, or ‘ gets out,’ he gives his side’s opponents the double advantage of his own wicket and that of the ‘ not set ’ batsmen to follow, (iii.) Far too much depends on the fall of a wicket, e.g., the natives had 98 for one, and had got to 129 before the second wicket fell; this brought them from 98 to 64, or from 38 runs per wicket ahead of the Club to only 14 ! Another wicket at the same total brought them to 42, or less than their opponents ! Two deliveries practically lost them the match. Cricket certainly is reduced to ‘ tommy-rot,’ if such a thing is possible. “ In a game where a ‘ W.G.,’ a Eanjit, or a MacLaren can be disposed of by one delivery, it is beyond all doubt a retro­ grade move for so much to depend on the fall of one wicket. HOW THEY GOT OUT. First Batsman (bowled) :—“ Very bad wicket. That pitch wants re-laying— the balls shoot about all over the place.” Second (caught):—“ Thought of driving the ball clean out of the ground, but I didn’t get hold of it properly. I was never so deceived in my life when I found that slip had the ball.” Third (bowled) :—“ That ball was pitched quite a yard off the wicket, and glanced off my pads. Wretched luck; I could have played that bowling all day.” Fourth (l.b.w.):—“ Never knew such an absurd decision. I’ll buy that umpire a penny book of rules. I couldn’t possibly be out 1b.w.” (Here this man proceeds to shew the spectators a plan of his position at thewickets, and demon­ strates to their satisfaction that he was not out.) Fifth (run out):—“ If that fellow Spriggins had run when I first c tiled him, this wouldn’t have happened. Just when I had got well hold of the bowling, too. Shall never have a better chance of making my 50.” Sixth (bowled) :—“ Never could play Stumps’ bowling. He’s no bowler, I admit; but somehow his deliveries are so tempting.” Seventh (caught and bowled) :— “ Wonderful catch. That ball was going like a cannon ball. It’s awonder it didn’t knock the man’s hand off. A few inches higher, and it would have been a boundary.” Eighth (bowled):—“ That umpire says I was bowled, but I don’t think so. I’m sure that wicket-keeper knocked the bails o ff.” Ninth (bowled):—“ That comes of trying to force the game. If our captain would only let people have their own way, we should win more matches.” Tenth (stumped) The decision may have been all right, but it was a very doubtful case, and the batsman ought to have had the benefit of it.” The eleventh man finally declared that if his partner had only kept his wicket up, he would have made a decent score.