Cricket 1901

CRICKET, AUGUS T 15, 1901. n j — H ® ?— ____ > M u n i s * J 11 III i I S m ' / fee 1 J J ^ C ^ h S T 1 A | «3 E » 1 i @8 -!------ “ Together joined in Cricket’s m an ly to il.” — Byron. wo. 5 8 1 . v o l . x x . THURSDAY, AUGUST 15, 1901. p r i c e 2 a. CHATS ON THE CRICKET FIELD. M R . H . S. ISBRUCKER . As president of the Dutch Cricket Association Mr. Isbriicker holds an im­ portant position in Holland. Not many years ago he was one of the best bowlers in the country, fast right over-hand, but owing to illness he was obliged to give up the game. Before becom ing president of the Association he filled all the possible offices, being first a member of the com ­ mittee, then second secre­ tary, first secretary, and vice-president. Like all the Dutchmen who have come over to play cricket in England he speaks English with fluency, and is never at a loss for a word, hav­ ing also a perfect command of the idioms. He, like all Dutch cricketers, has been greatly disappointed that English teams have declined to go to Holland this year for fear of meeting with insults from the mob, but he is still in hopes that he may succeed in convincing gome club that cricketers would be received every­ where in Holland with the utmost friendliness. There is still time to arrange a tour, and Mr. Isbriicker would be glad to hear from any secre­ tary with that object in view. His Dutch address is 65, S u m a tr a s tr a a t, T h e Hague. When asked how the Dutch Cricket Association— the Nederlandsche Cricket Bond— came to be formed, Mr. Isbrucker said, “ It was founded in about the year 1880 by members of a few of the most promi­ nent clubs, at the suggestion of the Hague Cricket Club. It was thought that it was advisable to have some recognised authority at the head of Dutch cricket. A t present about fifteen clubs are members of the Bond, and we hope eventually to get many of the others to join .” “ What are your principal matches in Holland ? ” “ W e have a competition which is something like your county champion­ ship, except that each club plays each other club twice. All the clubs which are members of the associa­ tion take part in this competition, in which one point is counted for each victory. A t the end of the season the champion club is presented with a gold medal, while medals are given to the men at the head o f the batting and bow ling averages. There are also matches between North and South Holland and between the Universities and against the men who come home from the Colonies ; at this moment we are trying to get up a match between Married and Singles. Some years ago M r. Robert Lam ing, a gentleman of English extraction who lived in Holland, gave a cup for matches between the cities with the object of inducing the various clubs in the cities to become more united. The cup had to be won three times before it could pass into the absolute possession of a city, and the Hague promptly won it the first three years, so that there was no longer a cup to play for. Which was a great pity.” “ What induced you to play cricket yourself ? ” “ About twenty years ago a b oy at one of the schools had received a present of a set of cricket materials from England, and he asked me to g o and sample them on the Maliebaan, a field where the soldiers are drilled. I accepted his invitation, and was so charmed with the game that I went in for it seriously at once.” “ Y ou had seen cricket played before ? ” “ Yes. It had been played b y the Hague C.C. for about a couple of years, but to look on at a game is a very different thing from taking part in it, as I soon found. A t that time cricket at the Hague was played on the Maliebaan, which was so crowded that people could not pass near it without exposing themselves to con­ siderable danger. There were numbers of small clubs, which have now melted into two b ig ones. As for the surface of the ground it was terribly bad. We played on grass, which wore very quickly, and we had to go in for matting wickets. The soil is so sandy that turf such as one sees in England will not grow upon it. Various experiments have been made, and Mr. Posthuma has done his best on his own ground to get aturf wi«k#t, bat in vain.” “ Where is your ground now ? ”