Cricket 1903

A u g . 6, 1903. CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 323 BUSSEY’S “DEMON DRIVERS. < C Q B « GEO, G. BUSSEY & GO Desire to inform Cricketers all over the world who may experience a difficulty in ob­ taining “ D em o n D r iv e r s ” that this difficulty arises in consequence o f the ever-increas­ ing demand exceeding the supply. Readers o f G e o . G . B u s s e y & Co.’s pamphlet, entitled “ Evolution o f the Demon Driver,” are aware that a fea­ ture o f the success of the “ D em o n D r iv e r ” is due to a special process, occupying a long period, that the bats under­ go before leaving the works, and although there are always a large number o f Bats under this treatment which could be placed on the market, G e o . G . B u s s e y & Co., in the interest of cricketers and their own repu­ tation, will not deviate from the system that has made the The Finest Bat the World produces. GEO.G.BDSSEY & CO, 36 & 38, QUEENVICTORIASTREET, E.C, Manufactory—PECKHAM, S.E. Timber Mills—ELMSWELL SUFFOLK. AGENTS ALL OVER THE WORLD. AT THE SIGN OF TH E W ICKE T . B t F . S. A sh lb y -C oop h r. One of the features of the past week’s cricket has undoubtedly been the severe reverse sustained by Sussex at the hands of Worcestershire, who were weakened in hav­ ing to take the field without a member of the Foster brotherhood. An innings and 176 runs is at any time an enormous margin, but is additionally so when the innings of the winning side is declared closed with but five wickets down. At Worcester last week the wicket was slow, but not bad, and certainly played easier during the Sussex innings than at any time in the match. Clearly the side never recovered from their early misfortunes. A member of the Worcestershire County C.C. offered Wilson a half-guinea new hat if he succeeded in bowling Fry for anything under 50, and he actually bowled him twice in six balls without having a ran scored off him! Very possibly but little will be seen in future of Caldwell, who played a splendid innings of 133, as he is to be ordained by the Bishop of Chester in a few week’s time. Fortunately he has two brothers said to be quite as good as himself. With their strongest team in the field, Worcestershire is a county which may at any time accomplish a really great per­ formance. Their crushing victory over Sussex must be regarded as one of the best performances they have ever achieved. Banjitsinhji’s ill-judged prophesy that Wor­ cestershire would be at the bottom of the championship at the end of the season has not been forgotten in the county, and the memory of it added a zest to last week’s match, the result of which should surely have expunged the old taunt of “ Fostershire.” There have been few more serious accidents in the annals of cricket than the one which occurred at Perth on Monday last on the occasion of the meeting of Forfarshire and Perthshire. The calamity referred to took place whilst W. B. Sharp and Higgins were batting in the second innings of the visiting eleven. Without a moment’s warning the grand stand, which was erected expressly for the match, and which was over a hundred yards in length, collapsed like a pack of cards. Considering the large number of spectators involved in the catastrophy, it is surprising that there were no fatalities. About 150 persons, however, were injured more or less severely, twenty of whom it was found necessary to detain at the Infirmary. So far as memory serves me—for at time of writing I am far from all cricket books—a precisely similar event took place in 1822 in a big match in the Midlands—I believe between Holt and Sheffield. There was a very graphic, not to say blood-curdling, account of this latter event published in tne Annals of Sport­ ing at the time, in which it was stated that “ shrieks, screams and horrid groans rent the air on all sides,” and a great deal more in similar strain. If my memory does not deceive me, another accident which might have had serious consequences occurred in connection with the Perthshire eleven a few years ago. Whilst on their journey in a wagonnette to a match the vehicle overturned and precipitated its occupants over a hedge. According to one account, the players alighted in a cabbage field, whilst another version states that a ditch was their “ bumping- ground.” The truth, as Mr. Haygarth so often stated, is very difficult to obtain, for no two descriptions of the same occurrence ever agree. How expensive missed catches may some­ times prove was clearly demonstrated in the Gloucestershire and Lancashire match at Liverpool. Maclaren scored 204 and Spooner 168, the former being let off when 3, twice when 21, and again when 53, and the latter being favoured by the field when he had made 36 and 90. Maclaren, therefore, virtu­ ally had five innings, and Spooner three, and, this being so, it is not surprising that the pair should score 368 runs together for the first wicket. It is a fact that as many as forty per cent, of the three-figure innings played this season in great matches have not been faultless. Assuming that the best batsmen are responsible for the numerous hundreds, it is not unreasonable to suppose that the cricketers of less skill—to wit, those who fail to notch “ centuries” —give far more chances in proportion to the number of runs they make. It is not, therefore, illogical to suppose that if all reasonable chances were accepted the number of runs scored would be about half the amount obtainedunder existing conditions. The most successful batsman of 1903 has so far been C. B. Fry. He has already played seven three-figure innings, only one of which has been chanceless. The mistakes made in his favour during those seven innings were responsible for six hundred runs. Comment is needless. Owing to exceptional pressure on space the most notable occurances of the past few days can be but briefly referred to. It may be stated that (i.) L. J. Moon was seen to advantage against Essex and Somerset; that (ii.) Tunnicliffe will receive over £2,000 as a result of his benefit match ; that (iii.) W . S. A. Brown and Boberts added 104 runs for the last wicket of Gloucestershire against Sussex, at Bristol, Roberts making but eleven of the number; that (iv.) Jessop has again shown his partiality for Sussex bowling; that (v.) Kent played a great game against Essex, at Canterbury ; that (vi.) C. McGahey made three successive duck’s-eggs; that (vii.) innumerable catches were missed in the Surrey v. Notts match at the Oval; that (viii.) Arnold, of Worcestershire, worked havoc on Monday and Tuesday at the expense of the Warwickshire players ; and that (ix.) G. N. Foster, the youngest member of the famous brotherhood, scored 112 on Tusday last for the second eleven of Worcestershire against Warwickshire 2nd XI. MILL HILL SCHOOL v. WELLINGBOROUGH GRAMMAR SCHOOL.—Played at Mill Hill on July 22. W ei . lingb jrouuh G rammar S chool . First innings C. C. Simpson, b Bramall... 15 H. Litchfield, b IVill..........17 H. W . Taylor, b Bramall ... 2 R.W.Morris,lbw, b Bramall 0 A. C. Bourner, b Bramall... 8 C. M. Barton,b Bramall ... 1 P.K.Berry,cMorgan,b Ewen 21 T. P. Wood, lbw, b Ewen... 5 H. W. Talfreyman, b Ewen 12 J. W. Cloueton, b Ewen ... 7 C. E. Sears, not out ......... 0 B 6, lb 4 ................. 9 Second innings. not out................. 0 8tBramall,bPeiU 10 c and b Peill ... 13 eDore.b Penny... 32 b Penny ..........10 cDore.b Peill ... 8 b Peill................. 0 b Penny .......... 0 B 4, w 8 ..........12 Total .................97 Total (7 wkts) ! M ill H ill S chool . J. L. Macalpine, c and b Berry .............. .. 1 K.Bramall,stBourner, b Berry .................16 L.W.Taylor,stBourner b BerryJ ................. 4 N.A.Dore.candb Berry 24 J. R. Dick.c Bourner,b Sears........................ 8 D.L.Morgan.eBoumer b Berry ....................44 R. C. Taylor, b Morris 13 R. E. F. Peill, lbw, b Berry ................. 0 J. F. Ewen, c Wood, b Sears........................20 W. M. Penny,b Morris 21 W. B.Comley, not out 1 B 4, lb 1, w 3 .. 8 Total ...15 9