Cricket 1900

THB FINEST BAT THB WORLD PRODUCES. A ug . 30, 1900. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 371 1874 .. . 3 ... 0 .. . 1 .... 4 1873 .. 4 ... 0 .. 2 . 6 1876 .. 6 ... 0 .. 3 .. 8 1877 .. . 7 .. 0 .. 1 .. 8 1881 .. . 10 ... 0 .. . 3 .. 13 1878 . 3 . 0 . 3 . . H 1873* .. 5 .... 0 .. . 1 .. . 6 1884 .. . 9 . 0 .. . 1 .. . 10 1886 ... 7 .. 0 .. . 7 .. . 14 1900 .. . 16 .. 0 .. . 12 .... 28 Yorkshiremen fielding in their finest form during the season. The team as a whole— for, throughout, the side worked together as one m an— is to be heartily congratu­ lated upon the successful manner in which it has gone through the season. Below w ill be found a LI8T OF COUNTIES WHICH HAVE NOT MET W ITH A REVERSE IN ONE YE AR IN COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES. Year. W on. Lost. Drwn. Ttl. Derbyshire ........... Gloucestershire ... Gloucestershire ... G loucestershire ... Lancashire ........... Middlesex ........... Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire Y o rk sh ire ............. * An extra match was afterwards played against Yorkshire, which Notts lost by an innings and 24 runs. The record of Yorkshire, it will be seen, stands out prom inently by itself — and forms a noteworthy ending to nine­ teenth century cricket. I am still living in the hope that some day, not very far in the future, a match will be played at the close of every season between the champion county of the year and the rest of England. I f it C ju ld be arranged— and w hy should it not ? —it ought to be played at Lord’s, and, after expenses had been paid, the proceeds handed over to the Cricketers’ Friendly Society, or some similar institution deserving the support of the cricketing public. One thing is certain: such a match would prove a great attraction. A correspondent, hailing from M ilden - hall, Suffolk, writes for a list of the longest hits on record. A s the table will probably interest many besides the gentleman who desires the information I give the table here. THE LONGEST HITS ON RECORD. 175 yards, by W . Fellows, at practice on the Christ Church Ground, Oxford, 1S5>, from a ball bowled by Rogers. The distance was care­ fully measured by E. Martin, the custodian of the ground. 160 yards, by C. I. Thornton, during practice at Brighton, the late Rev. James Pycroft super­ intending tbe measurement. 1871. 160 yards, by G, J. Bonnor, during practice at M el­ bourne. 157 yards, by W. H. Fowler, Somersetshire v. M.C.C. and Ground, at Lord’ s, August 4 and 5,1882. 156 yards, by C. Cox, of the Wanganui Club, at Wanganui (N .Z.), 1883. 155 yards, by C. I. Thornton, during practice at Brighton. 152 yards, by C. I. Thornton, Orleans Club v. Austra­ lians, at Twickenham, July 8 and 9, 1878. 150 yards, by G. J. Bonnor, during practice at M el­ bourne. 150 yards, by C. I. Thornton, at Colombo, 1891. The above represent the distances the ball pitched from the wicket. J . H . T . Roupell, for Trinity H a ll v. E nmanuel College, at Cambridge, iu June, 1865, hit a ball for ten, the ball travelling 240 yards. In November, 1888, J . Hopwood hit a nine to square-leg in a match at Bloemfontein, ttie b ill going over 200 yards. C. E . H iggins, for Forest Gate v. Torpedo Factory (Royal Arsenal), in August, 1892, at W est Ham , hit a ball to square-leg which travelled over 200 yards. It required three fieldsmen to return it, and ten runs were made from the stroke. It was a thousand pities that the match which had been set apart as a benefit for W alter Mead was so seriously iuterfered with b y rain. F or many years M ead has BUSSEY’S A T T H E S I G N O F T H E W I C K E T . B y F . S . A s h le y -C o o p e r . W o fa fa D ta h i w £ '6 0 E J H L U S C D .Q U J d “ EH fa 0Q s f C D f C O C O O o 0 G a a BUSSEY’S M ore than once last week during the match between Yorkshire and Sussex at Brighton it appeared quite probable that the champions would experience their first reverse of the season, Sussex playing an all-round game surprisingly well. Yorkshire, however, is a terribly hard nut to crack, for when it seems tolerably certain that the coup-de-grace is about to be administered the side recovers itself in amazing fashion and generally winds up b y holding the advantage. Supporters of the northern county must have felt anxious last Saturday when, at lunch time, Yorkshire had lost six wickets in their second innings and led b y only 58 runs. To M r. T . L . Taylor, above all others, the honour of saving the game must be given. It would have been a matter for regret had the team experi­ enced its only defeat of the season at the hands of a side which relies to a very great extent on the abilities of players not born in the county. Lord Hawke has more than sufficient cause to be proud of the team he has so ably led during the seasun, for, although in several previous years counties have gone through a season unbeaten, no side has ever done so after playing as many matches as Yorkshire have done this year. H ad Messrs. Jack­ son, M itchell and M illigan been available the side would have possessed more available material than any team had ever done before in the whole history of the game. N o higher praise to the all-round excellence of the team can be given than to state that the absence of these three players was little felt. In years to come the Yorkshire team of 1900 w ill be constantly mentioned in the same breath as the grand old Surrey team of the sixties. W h at makes the success of the side more enjoyable than would ordinarily be the case is that Yorkshire relies solely upon local talent. Lord Hawke, it is true, is an exception— he was born at Gainsboro’, in Lincolnshire, of which place his father was rector —but his seat is in Yorkshire and practically his whole life (except when he has been popularising the game in some distant part of the world) has been sp«nt within the borders of the county. T o all who love the game for the game’s sake— and who do not enthuse about it merely on account of championships and averages—- the repeated successes gained by the side must have been hailed with pleasure. It is very many years, certainly not during the time of the present generation, since a side so powerful in all departments of the game has been seen. In Rhodes the team possesses the finest slow bowler of modern times, whilst many victories have been gained by the wonderful fielding of the side. The fielding of the team had a great deal to do with the many triumphs of Rhodes, and, in saying this, I do not wish to detract in any manner from the marvellous powers of that player. ‘ 1Keen fielding strengthens bow ling ” is a truth which must have been thrust home to many who had the pleasure of seeing the