Cricket 1901

THE FINEST BAT THE WORLD PRODUCES. M a y 30 , 1901. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 163 BUSSEY’S CO CO CD BUSSEY’S AT THE SIGN OF THE WICKET. B y F . 8 . A s h l e y -C o o p b r . In these degenerate days of hard wickets and boundaries—and, consequently, large scores—it is with a feeling of relief that one comes across a bowling performance which stands out prominently. Few, indeed, have been the notable successes achieved this year by fast bowlers, and, on this account, Sharp’s record of nine wickets for 77 runs in the second innings of Worcestershire against Lancashire, at Worcester, is themore welcome. Sharp is, at the time of writing, the only bowler who has obtained as many as nine wickets in an innings during the present season. Had it not been for the success which attended the hard hitting of Pearson and Straw at the end of the innings, he would have possessed an analysis, taking everything into consideration, quite out of the common. In him Lancashire would appear to have found a player who gives every promise of becoming first-class with both bat and ball. Like Hirst and a few others, he can play a great game when his side is doing badly. His score of 30 on Monday last against York­ shire was an innings as good as many of three | figures played of late years. Now that the career of Briggs has unfortunately come to an end, it seems as though the place of the best all-round man in the team will be filled by Sharp, and, in following so great a player as Briggs, he will have a difficult position to fill" but, as far as one can already judge, he will probably give a very good account of himself. Those of us who can hark back to the days when G. H. Longman was in his prime and played for Cambridge University, Hampshire, and the Gentlemen of England, can recall many delightful innings. His son, H. K. Longman, appears to have inherited the batting skill possessed by his father. At Eton each was the greatest run-getter in the eleven, and the father, on proceeding to Cambridge, increased his reputation and became one of the finest batsmen of his time. The son, after many successes, has also gone into residence at Cambridge, and, in the first month of his first season there, has played an innings of 150 against Yorkshire. The latter side, it is true, did not possess the services of Rhodes and Hirst, but it was nevertheless an exceedingly fine performance on the part of the young batsman to score the “ three fifties ” against Wainwright, Haigh, Mr. Ernest Smith, and Brown. It is almost superfluous to add that Mr. Longman has a great future before him. He is qualified for Surrey, and will probably be given a trial in the county eleven in July and August. It was a capital performance on the part of Mr. Bumup and Humphreys to score a hun­ dred for the first wicket in each innings of Kent against the South Africans at Becken­ ham. To these two men the victory of the home side may be almost wholly attributed, as but for their efforts the match would probably have been won easily by the tourists. We have still, it is evident, to see the South Africans at their best. On two occasions— against London County at the Crystal Palace and Kent at Beckenham—we have been shown that they are capable of playing a first-class game. The opening match of the tour, against Hampshire, must not be taken too seriously, for two of the men who then made centuries against them were well acquainted with the methods of their bowlers. Llewellyn is himself a South African, whilst Mr. A. J. L. Hill has frequently been opposed to Graham and Rowe in their own country. When they have become more acquainted with English wickets they will assuredly do better. The practice they had before commencing regular match-playing was very helpful in a way, but, as old William Clarke used to say, ‘ ‘ Playing in the ring is quite another thing.” “ To the making of large scores there is no end.” The wonderful and continued success of Mi. McGahey has so far been the chief feature of a not altogether uneventful season. Only by Mr. Grace himself has such scoring in the month of May been accomplished. Mr. McGahey has been unfortunate in not placing three consecutive centuries to his credit, but on the other hand, he exceeded the hundred in each innings in one match—a feat which is becoming very fashionable nowadays. At their best, Essex will prove a hard side for any team to beat. Their batting now appears to be stronger than ever before, whilst in Mr. Kortright, Mead, Reeves and Young the county possesses a quartette of bowlers almost unmatched by any other team in the country. It would be no surprise to find Fssex occupying third or fourth place in the county championship table at the end of the season. Yorkshire defeated Lancashire in very characteristic fashion at Mauchester on Tuesday afternoon. It is remarkable how frequently the side, after holding practically no advantage on the first innings, has won by eight or nine or even ten wickets. The one disappointing thing concerning the recent match was the Yorkshire fielding in the first innings. No less than six catches were missed, which speaks volumes for the strength of the attack, considering that so strong a batting side as Lancashire should have been, after all, disposed of for a total of 133. As on several previous occasions, Hirst proved the chief factor in the success of the side, playing an innings of forty and taking twelve wickets. His bowling in the second innings was “ simply and severely great,” and was almost wholly responsible for Lancashire being dismissed for the smallest total of the year. When the team to visit Australia comes to be selected, Hirst should be one of the first players chosen, despite the non-effectiveness of his bowling on the fast Australian wickets in 1897-8. Although the Sussex County Cricket Club has been in existence for more than sixty seasons, no attempt until the present year had ever been made to compile a Sussex Cricket Annual. The compiling of such a brochure is a task which should have been attempted years ago. The defect, however, is now remedied, and it is appropriate that the editorship should have been undertaken by Mr. Alfred D. Taylor. “ The Sussex County Cricket Annual ” consists of 84 pages, and contains full scores of all first-class matches played by the county eleven last year, as well as over a dozen articles relating to Sussex cricket and cricketers. The publication is issued by the Sussex Evening Times, of Brighton, at the not prohibitive price of two­ pence. KENSINGTON PARK v. MERCHANT TAYLORS’ SCHOOL.—Played at St. Quintin’s Park on May 18. M erch an t T aylo bs * S ch o o l . First innings: J. E. Raphael, not out, 176; T. Dennis, not out, 136 ; byes 16.—Total (for no wktsi 326. L. H. Shuttlesorth, M. B. Elderton, F. W. M. Draper, K. Perks, F. H. Cockell, A. J. Robinson, W. L. Anderton, O. S. Cr.*wfurd and C. G. Evans did not bat. K en bin oton P a r k . G. T. Campbell, Perks, b Draper ... 18 R. F. O. Orr, b Draper 0 E. Bendle, c Anderton, b Robinson ......28 C. H. M. Thring, b Robinson.............. 0 C.H. Church,b Draper 47 P. Greatorex, b Evans 0 F. H. Palmer, not out 15 F. Kendall, not out... 8 B 11, lb 4, w 1, nb 4 20 Total (6 wkte).. 131