Cricket 1902

A pkil 10, 1902. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 59 P r o m the Australasian :— The public feeling with regard to the continued exclusion of Laver from the test teams is growing stronger and stronger, and considering his excellent all-round reputa­ tion, and his admirable form this season, I must say that I am altogether surprised at the treatment he has received. In first-class averages this season he is headed only by Hill and Gregory, and in howling the only man who heats him is Noble. His fielding at point is too well known to need comment, and even in the outfield, as sure as a catch, he is not surpassed by any cricketer in Australia. Those who can recall his magni­ ficent one-handed catch by the grand stand which disposed of Wainwright will endorse my statement. About 130Australiancricketers oi the first water have been to tngiand as members of Australian teams from 1878 to date, and in batting average Laver stands sixth or seventh in the long list. Add to his hatting his bowling and fielding capabilities, and it is no wonder that the public are becoming indignant. A t Adelaide, on March 1st, Arnold Collins took six wickets in an over for the Imperial United C.C. T he following ia evidently meant to be severe. „ A lecture entitled “ Umpires: Their Per­ fections and Imperfections,” by one of the English amateurs who has had the bad luck to be given out when he thought he was not out, and the good luck to be given not out when he thought he was out, ought to be entertaining. One knows that style of thing. It comes from Sydney. T he Richmond C.C. has suffered a very heavy loss by the death of Mr. Wal­ ter Furze. For many years he was the moving spirit of the club, and to his personal influence may be attributed in no small degree the high position the R.C.C. has occupied of late years among Metropolitan clubs of the better class. He was to the best of my knowledge hon. treasurer for many years, and his practical experience and business-like habits were of the greatest value in the management of affairs in the Old Deer Park. He had been spending the winter at Bournemouth and died on March 31st from the effect of injuries received in falling from a horse while riding on the sands there nine days before. A. H. M ehta , the Parsi cricketer, whom rumour accredited with an inten­ tion of settling in England, with a view to qualify for county cricket, has changed his mind. He has decided to remain in India after all. T he Surrey cricketers, who are, as usual, to begin the serious work of the season against the London County C.C., are to have a preliminary game at the Oval before appearing on the 24th inst. at the Crystal Palace. The Eleven are to play the next Fourteen at the Oval on Monday and Tuesday, the 21st and 22nd inst. T h e Associated Cricket Clubs of Phila­ delphia have definitely decided to send another team to England in 1903, as was stated in the last number of Cricket. The last tour of the Gentlemen of Philadelphia in England was in 1895, and to judge by the response given by the Marylebone Club aDd the principal counties to the application for matches, the Americans are already assured of a hearty welcome. The fathers of cricket in Philadelphia are not without hope that the Australian cricketers may be induced to play a match or two in America on their way home. If they should fail one may look to see another team of English amateurs in the States in the fall of this year. W ic k e t - k e e p in g seems to be indi­ genous to the soil of Australia. New South Wales has recently furnished a more than capable understudy apparently for J. J. Kelly, in the person of W. Carter, who is now on his way to England as the second string of the Eleventh Australian team. The return match between Yictoria and Mr. Maclaren’s team seems to have given an opportunity to a new stumper, Woodford, of which according to accounts, he fully availed himself. It was only the inability of Hastings, the regular Victorian wicket­ keeper, to play, that gave him a chance at all. As he caught Hayward and Tyldesley, besides stumping Blythe, in the one complete innings of the Englishmen he acquitted himself well. “ Felix,” the cricket critic of the Australasian, says that he chowed really good form in this match. A t the annual meeting of the Norfolk County C.C. it was shown that the past season was the worst experienced since the foundation of the club. This year the county has retired from the Minor Counties’ Championship. A CHAT ABOUT F. A. IREDALE. By “ Recorder” in The Adelaide Observer. Frank Iredale will probably take part in little, if any, more first-class cricket. After the New South Wales match with South Australia, at Adelaide, he retired from the Eleven, on the plea that he desired to give closer attention to his business. It is felt by many of his keenest admirers, as a batsman, that the passing of him by the test team selectors, while one or two men regarded by many as inferior to him were chosen, influenced him in retiring. Probably it did. As F. A. Iredale is only 34 years of age, and his batting this summer has been as sound as ever, he ought, in the ordinary course of events, to be in first-class cricket for a few more years. Frank Iredale made his first appearance in representative cricket in December, 1888, for New South Wales against the Australian Eleven of that year, then just returned from England. His contribution to the New SouthWales 1 total of 342 was the mystic 13. His next match was in January, 1890, for New South Wales against Yictoria, his first innings against our cricketing rivals of all time producing 53. It was a good innings, too, yet a week or two later the selectors“ dropped him from the Eleven that played South Australia, his placa being given to the returned W. L. Murdoch. Iredale has missed only two of the 25 matches with Yictoria since he first appeared, and has scored 1,273 runs at an average of 30.42 per innings. His biggest innings in this series is 101, on the Melbourne Ground in 1892. He did not score heavily in his last three matches against Victoria, yet has always been a very good performer against them. In January, 1899, he got 98 and 49, not out; in December of the same year, 91. In the fixtures with South Australia F. A. Iredale averages 43.96 per innings, having scored 1,407 runs. He has taken part in every match, save two between New South Wales and South Australia, and has always scored heavily. In Sydney, in 1896, before the Australians left for England, he made 187 and 80 not out, which stands as his best double performance in a first-class match. His cricket against South Australia includes these innings :—187, 118, 91, 83. 80*, 77, 75, 67, 64, 55, 51, 51, 45, 41, 37, 36, 36, 31, 26, 25, 25, 22, 21, and 20. In only seven in n iD g s did he fail to reach double figures against the men of Adelaide. The old Belvidere cricketer has been one of Australia’s best performers in the test matches against England. He averages 36’68 for 23 innings, and one feels toler­ ably sure that had he been tried again this summer he would not have reduced this average, for his form was thoroughly sound. He made two centuries against England, 140 at Adelaide, and 108 at Manchester in 1896. Other big innings were 89, 84, 81 and 68. His first effort in a test match realized 81, in the match of Australia’s 586 against Stoddart’s first team on the Sydney Ground. In Eng­ land Frank Iredale scored well both in 1896 and 1899. He has compiled a dozen centuries (eight against English bowling), and in all first-class matches has made 6,313 runs at an average of 33.70 per innings. Were he residing in Melbourne or Adelaide Iredale would probably have again represented Australia this season. FRANK IREDALE IN FIRST-CLASS CRICKET. No. Times Most of not Total in an inns. out runs. inns. Aver# Teat matches ... ... 28 ... 1 ... 140 ... 807 ..,. 36 68 Australian X I., 1896 61 ... 3 ... 171 ... 1328 .. . 27-32 Australian X I., 1699 88 ... 3 ... 115 .... 1039 ... 29-68 Victoria ........... ... 44 ... 2 .. 101 ..., 1278 .. 30*42 South Australia ... 33 ... 1 ... 187 ..,, 1407 ... 48-96 Queensland ... ... 5 ... 1 ... 86 ... 89 .. . 22 25 Tasmania........... ... 1 ... 0 ... 196 ... 196 .. — New Zealand ... ... 1 ... 0 .. . 31 ... 31 . .. __ Other matches ... 12 ... 2 ..., 87 .. 392 ... 39 20 All lst-class mtchs. 1S9 ... 12 ... 196 .... 6313 ... 33 76 C RICKET Report Sheets, lOd. per dozen, post free. Order of Going-in Cards, 7d. per dozen, post free. Cricket Score Books, 6d. and Is. each; postage, 2d. extra.—To be obtained at the Offices of Cricket, 168, Upper Thames Street London, B.C.